College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

NCLarge public institution · Overall rank #50 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

A public university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with a composite rank of #50.

Who it’s a good fit for

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, whose degree mix is led by Social Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies. Mobility is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes part of that gap to the factors it measures—field of study, enrollment, and the local labor market.

An unexplained remainder subtracts from it. Return is among the highest we track.

Students who arrive with Pell Grants finish below the rate for the entering cohort as a whole, and the lowest income band pays far below the published cost. Access and affordability are both among the highest we track.

The admission rate is well below the median for comparable public universities of this size, and most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than on to further study. A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid ones are not the largest.

UNC at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
15.3%
Six-year completion[2]
91.2%
Four-year earnings[3]
$81,033

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$8,538
Median student debt[4]
$14,000
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$25,072

UNC rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, enrolling 20,752 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (97th percentile).

The four that make up that standing are tightly grouped, with mobility the strongest and access the weakest. The university admits 15.3% of applicants, a rate far below the 78.1% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size.

Of students who start full time, 96.6% return for a second year and 91.2% finish within six years. Those figures run well above the peer medians of 83.1% and 65.0%.

An estimated 17.6% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate describes the first-time, full-time cohort and not the full student body. The pillars sit close together, with mobility the strongest and access the weakest.

Return and affordability fall between them. The shape is a selective public university where all four dimensions of the framework run well above the field.

The Azimuth rank for mobility is #80 among nonprofit four-year institutions. That places the mobility pillar in the 95th percentile, the strongest of the four.

The Azimuth rank for access is #120 among nonprofit four-year institutions. That places the access pillar in the 92nd percentile, the weakest of the four.

The Azimuth rank for the return pillar is #104 among nonprofit four-year institutions. That places it in the 93rd percentile.

The Azimuth rank for affordability is #103 among nonprofit four-year institutions. It sits in the 93rd percentile.

The admitted-student profile at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill rests on financial access: undergraduates receiving Pell Grants make up 20.0% of the student body. Azimuth places the university at #120 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For Pell recipients in the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year completion rate is 85.4%, which is 5.8 percentage points lower than the overall rate (91.2%). Azimuth ranks the university #80 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students, and mobility is the strongest of the four pillars.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

UNC rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#50

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 95
Access & reach
National percentile: 92
Affordability
National percentile: 93
Return on investment
National percentile: 93

Top-ranked majors

  1. Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution#1
  2. Religion/Religious Studies#2
  3. Physics#4

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / UNC briefing

UNC cost & financial aid[6][7]

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill publishes a cost of attendance of $26,055, with in-state tuition and fees at $8,994 and out-of-state at $41,203. Room and board add $13,804 to the sticker total.

After financial aid, the average net price for aid recipients drops to $11,655, a savings of $14,400 against the sticker price. That average sits below the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $3,979.

Azimuth ranks the university #103 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill publishes a cost of attendance of $26,055, with in-state tuition and fees of $8,994 and room and board at $13,804. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—is $2,004; it reaches $8,538 for the $48,001–$75,000 band and $24,396 for families earning over $110,000.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $22,392. Azimuth ranks the university #103 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an offset of $14,400, which brings the for first-time full-time aid recipients to $11,655. That figure sits below the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $3,979.

Out-of-state students face a higher published tuition of $41,203. Among federal-loan borrowers who completed, the median federal student debt is $14,000.

That median is below the peer median of $20,076 for comparable institutions by $6,076, and about 69.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. The median Parent PLUS borrowing stands at $25,072.

The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $159 a month if repaid over ten years.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$8,538

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at UNC

At University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, completers who borrowed hold a median federal student debt of $14,000. Comparable institutions (same type and size) show a median of $20,076, placing the university below the peer median by $6,076.

Federal borrowing reaches 69.3% of federal aid recipients at the university. These debt figures cover federal student loans exclusively and omit private obligations.

Parent borrowers carry a median Parent PLUS debt of $25,072, a separate population from student borrowers.

The investment picture at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill pairs earnings well above the median for comparable institutions with debt that runs below it. Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $81,033, a figure in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students, an outcome at the 78th percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, range from $56,962 in a downside case to $121,472 in an upside case, with $81,033 as the typical outcome.

The median federal student debt at completion is $14,000, which is $6,076 below the peer median of $20,076. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $159 a month if repaid over ten years.

Above-peer earnings and below-peer debt point the same way, and Azimuth ranks the university at the 93rd percentile for return.

Parent borrowers at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill took on a median of $25,072 in Parent PLUS loans, a separate federal borrowing population. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $159.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$14,000
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$25,072

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$159/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$319/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / UNC briefing

UNC career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Azimuth places the university at the 93rd percentile for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $81,033, at the 89th percentile.

That is $15,423 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Graduates earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students.

That places the gap at the 78th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,309.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $1,796. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $3,950.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill completers earn a median of $81,033 four years after finishing; Azimuth places that figure in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. This median reflects a cohort of 5,713 federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled.

Relative to comparable institutions (same type and size), the university's median is above the peer median of $65,610 by $15,423. Earnings scenarios tied to the university's program mix span from $56,962 on the downside to $121,472 on the upside, with a typical outcome of $81,033.

The same completers earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students, an outcome in the 78th percentile. Based on program mix, an estimated 34.7% of graduates continue to graduate study rather than entering the workforce immediately.

Federally aided graduates of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $81,033 four years after completion, in the 89th percentile. That median is $15,423 above the $65,610 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #104 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students.

That places the earnings-beyond-expectations gap at the 78th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,309.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $1,796. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $3,950.

The largest degree fields include the social sciences, biological sciences, and interdisciplinary programs, with strong showings in economics and computer science as well. Estimated from the program mix, the downside earnings scenario is $56,962 and the upside scenario reaches $121,472.

An estimated 34.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix show a wide range, from $56,962 on the downside to $121,472 on the upside, with $81,033 as the typical scenario. These are scenarios, not observed groups of graduates.

The spread across program clusters is substantial. Computer Science graduates earn a median of $137,047 four years after completion, while Business Administration and Management graduates earn $135,874. Applied Mathematics, a smaller program, reports $119,839.

Graduates of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students. The median federal student debt at completion is $14,000, which is below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $6,076.

If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment on that debt is $159. For first-time full-time Title IV aid recipients, the overall average net price is $11,655.

That figure is below the $15,634 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $3,979. The average net price for families earning under $30,000 is $2,004, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is $22,392. Parent borrowers carry a separate median Parent PLUS debt of $25,072.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$9,309
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$1,796
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$7,513

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / UNC briefing

UNC acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill admits 15.3% of applicants. Most who apply are not offered a place.

That rate sits below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The figure describes that year's pool, not the likelihood for any individual.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
15.3%
25th percentile
1400
Median
1470
75th percentile
1530

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / UNC briefing

What are the largest majors at UNC?[12]

The university's highest-earning bachelor's programs reach well into six figures four years after completion. Computer Science tops the list at $137,047 with 432 degrees awarded, and Business Administration and Management follows at $135,874 on 332 degrees awarded, holding an Azimuth national rank of #5 in its field.

Large programs in the social sciences and life sciences land in a more moderate band. Communication and Media Studies, the biggest program by degrees awarded at 560, reports median earnings of $70,240 and a national field rank of #16.

Biology awards 558 degrees and shows median earnings of $62,047, while Economics reaches $103,846 alongside 449 degrees awarded and a national rank of #38.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reports earnings data for 37 bachelor's fields, and 34 hold an Azimuth national rank. The highest-earning program is Computer Science, where graduates earn a median of $137,047 four years after completion on 432 degrees awarded, and the field ranks #32 nationally.

Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution holds a national rank of #1 and is the top-ranked program in North Carolina at #1. Its median earnings are $80,344 on 102 degrees awarded.

The largest program, Communication and Media Studies, awarded 560 degrees and shows median earnings of $70,240 alongside a national rank of #16. Economics, with 449 degrees awarded, posts median earnings of $103,846 and a national rank of #38.

The degree mix at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is broad, with 34 programs holding an Azimuth national rank and 37 carrying published four-year earnings data. Social Sciences accounts for 15.3% of bachelor's degrees awarded, followed by Biological Sciences at 11.5% and Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies at 9.2%.

The largest program with published earnings is Communication and Media Studies, at 560 degrees awarded, with Biology close behind at 558 degrees awarded and Economics at 449 degrees awarded. The highest-ranked programs span liberal arts and technical fields.

Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution is the highest-ranked, at #1 in North Carolina within its field, with 102 degrees awarded and median earnings of $80,344 four years after completion. Religion/Religious Studies ranks #2 nationally and #1 in North Carolina within its field, with 20 degrees awarded.

Computer Science, the highest-earning program, reports median earnings of $137,047 from 432 degrees awarded. Azimuth ranks it #32 nationally and #2 in North Carolina within its field.

Business Administration and Management carries a benchmark ratio of 1.99x against the national median for its field, meaning its graduates earn nearly double the typical earnings for that field nationally. The pattern is one of strength spread across several fields rather than concentrated in a single area.

The largest programs are not the highest-earning ones, and a student drawn to the social sciences should know that the biggest departments are not the best-paid. The presence of highly ranked programs in both technical and liberal arts fields means the return picture depends heavily on the specific program a student chooses. Across all fields, 33.9% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Communication and Media Studies 560 degrees awarded
$70,240
Biology, General 558 degrees awarded
$62,047
Behavioral Sciences 490 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Economics 449 degrees awarded
$103,846
Computer Science 432 degrees awarded
$137,047
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness 346 degrees awarded
$63,286

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / UNC briefing

How does UNC serve students from different backgrounds?

Graduates at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill earn about $7,513 more than the model expects for similar students. That outcome sits in the 78th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The mobility pillar sits in the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, according to Azimuth. For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate reaches 91.2%; Pell recipients complete at 85.4%, below the overall rate by 5.8 percentage points.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill enrolls 20,752 undergraduates across its academic programs. The access pillar falls in the 92nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, according to Azimuth.

The university admits 15.3% of those who apply, a figure that rests below the peer median of 78.1%. Pell Grant recipients constitute 20.0% of the undergraduate population, while an estimated 17.6% of students enter as transfers or part-time students.

06 / UNC briefing

What colleges are similar to UNC?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with UNC.

Admissions peerWake Forest University21.7% admitted
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCWake Forest University
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$92,943+$11,910 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$28,719+$17,064 vs UNC · higher cost
Admission rate15.3%21.7%
Explore Wake Forest University →
Higher-admission alternativeElon University66.4% admitted
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCElon University
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$77,800-$3,233 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$41,555+$29,900 vs UNC · higher cost
Admission rate15.3%66.4%
Nearby alternativeHampden-Sydney CollegeNearby option · VA
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCHampden-Sydney College
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$71,699-$9,334 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$22,400+$10,745 vs UNC · higher cost
Admission rate15.3%40.9%
Higher-earnings alternativeGeorgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus$119,180 earnings
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCGeorgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$119,180+$38,147 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$12,116+$461 vs UNC · higher cost
Admission rate15.3%14.1%
Explore Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus →
Lower-cost alternativeCUNY Hunter College$2,984 average net price
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCCUNY Hunter College
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$73,236-$7,797 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$2,984-$8,671 vs UNC · lower cost
Admission rate15.3%53.8%
Explore CUNY Hunter College →
Similar profileUniversity of DelawareMatched across several measures
Comparison with UNC
MeasureUNCUniversity of Delaware
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,033$77,675-$3,358 vs UNC
Average annual net price$11,655$17,799+$6,144 vs UNC · higher cost
Admission rate15.3%70.6%
Explore University of Delaware →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings