Becoming a Tar Heel

Your unique contributions to Carolina, your skills and perspectives, will enrich our student body and become part of an undeniable energy you’ll feel wherever you go. What makes YOU a Tar Heel?

A student looks through microscope.

You Challenge Yourself

You push your intellectual and inquisitive boundaries by taking the advanced coursework that’s available in your school. While you challenge yourself academically, we hope you’ll take the time to pursue your interests and absorb life outside the classroom — learning happens there, too.

Take advantage of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or dual-enrollment courses offered to you, but if your school doesn’t offer these courses, seek out ways to broaden your horizons and gather new knowledge through the courses of study that are available to you. We don’t have a preference for which program you choose and will consider your course of study within the context of what’s available to you.

You’ll need to meet these minimum course requirements before applying to Carolina so you’ll be ready to thrive here.

Students participate in UNC's Carolina Kickoff in front of the Campus Y building.

You Engage with the World

You participate in your community, feed your curiosities, ask how things work, and explore the world around you.

You could have a wide range of interests and excel in many types of activities — or focus on one or two things. We care that you’re engaged in things that genuinely interest you and unafraid to seek honest answers to big questions.

A smiling student covered in colored powder at UNC's Holi Moli event.

You are Uniquely You

Be authentically, wholly, and enthusiastically you.

Take part in life’s activities, responsibilities, and opportunities in the ways that only you can.

When you combine your commitments and your passions, you make your mark. Be sure to tell us all about it when you apply.