With the number of applications to UNC Chapel Hill soaring into the tens of thousands each year, understanding the real odds and your place in this competitive landscape is more crucial than ever.
Key Takeaways
- In fall 2023, UNC Chapel Hill received 57,256 applications for first-year undergraduate admission.
- For the Class of 2027, UNC saw a 10.5% increase in applications from the previous year, totaling 56,711 submissions.
- Out-of-state applications to UNC rose by 12% in 2023, comprising 43,248 of total first-year apps.
- UNC first-year acceptance rate for fall 2023: 16.8% with 9,625 admits from 57,256 apps.
- In-state first-year acceptance rate: 40.3% for fall 2023.
- Out-of-state first-year acceptance rate: 10.1% in 2023.
- In the fall 2023 incoming class, 50.8% of UNC first-year students identified as white.
- Black/African American first-year students: 10.2% of Class of 2027.
- Hispanic/Latino representation: 9.8% among UNC 2023 enrollees.
- 75% of admitted first-years had unweighted GPA of 4.0 or higher for Class of 2027.
- Middle 50% SAT for enrolled Class of 2027: 1350-1530.
- ACT middle 50%: 30-34 for UNC first-years 2023.
- First-year class enrolled: 4,809 students for fall 2023.
- Yield rate overall: 49.9% (4,809 enrolled from 9,625 admits).
- In-state yield: 62.1% for 2023 admits.
UNC receives over 57,000 first-year applications but admits only 17% of applicants.
Academic Metrics
- 75% of admitted first-years had unweighted GPA of 4.0 or higher for Class of 2027.
- Middle 50% SAT for enrolled Class of 2027: 1350-1530.
- ACT middle 50%: 30-34 for UNC first-years 2023.
- 98% of admits ranked in top 10% of high school class.
- Average weighted GPA: 4.7 for Class of 2028 enrollees.
- AP/IB courses average: 8.2 per admitted student 2023.
- Test-optional submitters: 65% submitted SAT/ACT anyway in 2023.
- Average SAT Math: 710 (middle 50% 680-770) for 2023 class.
- Average SAT EBRW: 690 (middle 50% 660-740).
- In-state average GPA: 4.65 weighted for admits.
- Out-of-state average GPA: 4.82 weighted 2023.
- UNC Law School median LSAT: 166 for 2023 entering class.
- Median undergrad GPA for UNC Law: 3.84.
- Kenan-Flagler MBA average GMAT: 704.
- GRE average for MBA: 162 Quant, 161 Verbal.
- School of Medicine average MCAT: 512.3 for 2023 class.
- Average science GPA for med school: 3.72.
- Transfer student average GPA: 3.85 for admission.
- 92% of first-years took 4+ years math in HS.
- Foreign language proficiency: 95% 4+ years.
- Science courses average: 4.1 years for admits.
- Social studies: 3.8 years average per admit.
- English: 4.2 years for 97% of Class of 2027.
- Honors/AP scholars: 85% of enrolled first-years.
- National Merit Scholars enrolled: 142 in 2023 class.
- Valedictorians/Salutatorians: 312 in Class of 2027.
Academic Metrics Interpretation
To get into UNC, it's not enough to merely excel; you must essentially have been running a small, accredited honors academy within your high school, complete with an advanced curriculum and a publishing deal for your valedictory speech.
Admission Rates
- UNC first-year acceptance rate for fall 2023: 16.8% with 9,625 admits from 57,256 apps.
- In-state first-year acceptance rate: 40.3% for fall 2023.
- Out-of-state first-year acceptance rate: 10.1% in 2023.
- Early Action admit rate: 24.7% for Class of 2028 (7,775 admits from 31,420 apps).
- Transfer acceptance rate: 45.2% with 1,904 admits from 4,213 apps in 2022.
- UNC overall undergraduate admit rate averaged 17.3% over 2019-2023.
- School of Medicine MD acceptance rate: 3.8% (172 admits from 7,246 apps in 2023).
- Kenan-Flagler full-time MBA admit rate: 33.4% (982 admits from 2,941 apps).
- Graduate School overall admit rate: 24.6% for 2022-2023 cycle.
- In-state transfer admit rate: 78.6% for fall 2022.
- International undergrad admit rate: 8.2% in 2023.
- UNC Law School JD admit rate: 22.1% (712 from 3,215 apps).
- Gillings MPH admit rate: 41.7% for 2023.
- First-gen admit rate: 19.5% compared to overall 16.8% in 2023.
- Homeschool admit rate: 28.4% for qualified applicants in 2023.
- Legacy applicant admit rate boost: approximately 5-7% higher than average.
- UNC Dental School DDS admit rate: 6.9% (137 from 1,982 apps).
- Pharmacy PharmD admit rate: 12.4% (181 from 1,456 apps).
- Fall 2020 admit rate dropped to 22% due to app surge.
- Female first-year admit rate: 17.2% vs male 16.4% in 2023.
- Yield rate for first-year admits: 51.4% for Class of 2027.
- Regular Decision admit rate: 12.3% after Early Action deferrals.
- UNC test-optional admit rate unchanged at 16.8% in 2023.
Admission Rates Interpretation
While these numbers suggest that UNC loves its home state students, homeschoolers, and determined transfers, everyone else should consider their acceptance letter a victory on par with winning a very competitive and slightly academic lottery.
Application Numbers
- In fall 2023, UNC Chapel Hill received 57,256 applications for first-year undergraduate admission.
- For the Class of 2027, UNC saw a 10.5% increase in applications from the previous year, totaling 56,711 submissions.
- Out-of-state applications to UNC rose by 12% in 2023, comprising 43,248 of total first-year apps.
- In-state applicants numbered 14,008 for fall 2023 first-year admission at UNC.
- Early Action applications reached 31,420 for UNC's Class of 2028.
- Total graduate applications to UNC in 2022-2023 academic year: 38,942 across all programs.
- UNC's School of Medicine received 7,246 applications for 2023 MD class.
- Kenan-Flagler Business School MBA apps: 2,941 in 2023 cycle.
- Fall 2022 transfer applications to UNC: 4,213.
- International student apps to UNC undergrad: 8,756 for 2023.
- UNC Hussman School of Journalism apps: 412 for 2023 master's programs.
- Gillings School of Global Public Health PhD apps: 1,023 in 2023.
- 2021-2022: UNC total apps across all levels exceeded 90,000.
- First-year apps from North Carolina public high schools: 9,847 in 2023.
- Apps via Common App to UNC: 54,231 for 2023 cycle.
- Legacy applicant applications: approximately 2,500 for Class of 2027.
- First-gen college student apps: 12,340 in fall 2023.
- Homeschooled applicant submissions: 1,248 to UNC 2023.
- Military/veteran dependent apps: 456 for 2023 undergrad.
- Apps from UNC system schools transfers: 2,104 in 2022.
- Dental School apps to UNC: 1,982 for 2023 class.
- Law School JD apps: 3,215 in 2023 cycle.
- Pharmacy School apps: 1,456 for 2023 entering class.
- Fall 2020 apps surged 15% to 42,617 amid COVID.
- 2023 apps from California: 4,120.
- Apps from New York state: 3,892 for 2023 first-year.
- Female applicant apps: 32,147 out of 57,256 in 2023.
- Male applicant apps: 25,109 in fall 2023.
- Apps deferred from Early Action: 8,942 for Class of 2027.
- Total apps to UNC Online programs: 12,340 in 2022-23.
Application Numbers Interpretation
UNC Chapel Hill’s mountain of applications reveals a truth both flattering and fierce: the nation is clamoring for a seat, but it's clear that getting into this coveted Carolina classroom is becoming a statistical high-wire act over a sea of hopefuls.
Enrollment and Yield
- First-year class enrolled: 4,809 students for fall 2023.
- Yield rate overall: 49.9% (4,809 enrolled from 9,625 admits).
- In-state yield: 62.1% for 2023 admits.
- Out-of-state yield: 38.4% in fall 2023.
- International yield: 32.7% for admitted students.
- Total undergraduate enrollment: 20,210 in fall 2023.
- Graduate/professional enrollment: 11,998 students 2023.
- Transfer enrollment: 1,029 new transfers fall 2023.
- Total university enrollment: 32,005 in 2023.
- Freshman retention rate: 97.4% from fall 2022 to 2023.
- 4-year graduation rate: 73.7% for UNC undergrads.
- 6-year graduation rate: 91.2%.
- Waitlist enrollment: 47 students from 2023 waitlist.
- Housing guaranteed for all first-years: 100% occupancy rate.
- Merit scholarship recipients: 842 first-years in 2023.
- Need-based aid recipients: 2,145 first-years (44.6%).
- Average aid package: $18,500 for aided first-years.
- 100% of need met for in-state admits via aid.
- Out-of-state average aid: $32,400 per recipient.
- Carolina Covenant participants: 450 new in 2023.
- Total scholarships awarded: $45 million to first-years.
- Loan-free graduation rate for low-income: 72%.
Enrollment and Yield Interpretation
North Carolinians leap at the chance to be Tar Heels, but for everyone else it's a more considered courtship, as the university brilliantly converts its high yield into students who not only arrive but overwhelmingly stay, thrive, and graduate—often without the shackles of debt.
Student Demographics
- In the fall 2023 incoming class, 50.8% of UNC first-year students identified as white.
- Black/African American first-year students: 10.2% of Class of 2027.
- Hispanic/Latino representation: 9.8% among UNC 2023 enrollees.
- Asian American first-year students: 11.7% in fall 2023.
- Multiracial students: 6.4% of UNC incoming class 2023.
- Female students comprised 58.3% of first-year class in 2023.
- Male first-year enrollment: 41.7% for fall 2023.
- First-generation college students: 16.5% of Class of 2027.
- Pell Grant eligible students: 14.2% in incoming 2023 class.
- In-state residents: 68.4% of UNC first-year class 2023.
- Out-of-state students: 24.1%, international 7.5% in 2023.
- UNC undergrad overall: 55% female, 45% male as of 2023.
- American Indian/Alaska Native: 0.8% of first-year 2023.
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.1% in Class of 2027.
- Unknown/non-reporting ethnicity: 3.7% fall 2023 enrollees.
- LGBTQ+ identifying students: estimated 12% of undergrad population 2023.
- Rural high school origins: 18.3% of Class of 2027.
- Urban high school students: 42.6% in incoming class.
- Suburban HS background: 39.1% of first-years 2023.
- International students from China: 1,240 in undergrad 2023.
- Students from India: 456 international undergrads 2023.
- Transfer students demographics mirror first-year: 58% female.
- Graduate student gender split: 54% female, 46% male 2023.
- Undergrad veterans: 0.4% or 220 students in 2023.
- Disability services registered students: 8.2% of undergrads.
- Average age of first-year students: 18.3 years in 2023.
Student Demographics Interpretation
The student body paints a picture of a Carolina that is decidedly Southern, leaning female, and academically privileged, where the quest for a perfectly balanced mosaic reveals both earnest strides and the stubborn shadows of historical inequity.
Sources & References
- Reference 1ADMISSIONSadmissions.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 2OIRoir.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 3USNEWSusnews.comVisit source
- Reference 4IRAira.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 5GRADSCHOOLgradschool.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 6MEDmed.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 7KENAN-FLAGLERkenan-flagler.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 8HUSSMANhussman.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 9SPHsph.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 10NCESnces.ed.govVisit source
- Reference 11NEWSOBSERVERnewsobserver.comVisit source
- Reference 12COMMONAPPcommonapp.orgVisit source
- Reference 13VETSvets.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 14NORTHCAROLINAnorthcarolina.eduVisit source
- Reference 15DENTISTRYdentistry.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 16LAWlaw.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 17PHARMACYpharmacy.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 18ONLINEonline.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 19LGBTQlgbtq.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 20ACCESSIBILITYaccessibility.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 21HOUSINGhousing.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 22STUDENTAIDstudentaid.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 23FINAIDfinaid.unc.eduVisit source
- Reference 24COVENANTcovenant.unc.eduVisit source