Tuition Surcharge
Fall 2019 Update:
Effective Fall 2019, the tuition surcharge has been repealed. See SB 225 for more information.
Effective Fall 2010, undergraduate students seeking a baccalaureate degree at UNC-Chapel Hill will be subject to a 50 percent tuition surcharge as required by the North Carolina General Statute Section 9.10.(b) § 116-143.7. Session Law 2009-451. Prior to Fall 2010, the surcharge is 25%.
Important: No surcharge will be imposed on any student who exceeds the degree credit hour limits within the equivalent of four academic years of regular term enrollment, or within five years of regular term enrollment in a degree program officially designated by the Board of Governors as a five-year program.
As of Fall 2009, UNC-Chapel Hill has no five-year programs approved by the Board of Governors.
Tuition Surcharge Guidelines
Click the link to learn more about Tuition Surcharge Guidelines (PDF).
Tuition Surcharge Appeal Form
Effective Fall 2019, the tuition surcharge has been repealed. See SB 225 (PDF) for more information.
Counted Credit Hours
The undergraduate credit hours to be counted for this requirement include:
- All regular session degree-creditable courses taken at UNC-Chapel Hill including repeated courses, failed courses, and those dropped after the end of the second week of class
- All transfer credit hours accepted by UNC-Chapel Hill
However, the following credit hours shall be excluded from the calculation:
- Those earned through the College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) and College Level Examination Program (CLEP) or similar programs
- Those earned through institutional advanced placement, course validation, or any similar procedure for awarding course credit
- Those earned through the summer session or degree-credit extension division at Chapel Hill or at another UNC system institution
Students Subject to the Surcharge
The surcharge should be imposed on all counted credit hours in excess of the threshold defined below for each of the following three categories of undergraduates:
- For students earning a first baccalaureate degree in a program that requires no more than 128 credit hours, the surcharge shall be applied to all counted credit hours in excess of 140.
- For students earning a first baccalaureate degree in a board-approved program that requires more than 128 counted credit hours, the surcharge shall be applied to all credit hours that exceed 110 percent of the credit hours required for the degree. Such programs include those that have been officially designated by the Board of Governors as five-year programs, as well as those involving double majors, or combined bachelor’s/master’s degrees.
- For students earning a baccalaureate degree other than their first, the surcharge shall be applied to all counted credit hours that exceed 110 percent of the minimum additional credit hours needed to earn the additional baccalaureate degree.
Waiver Procedure
To request waiver of the tuition surcharge, please complete and submit the Tuition Surcharge Appeal form, including relevant documentation as specified in the Tuition Surcharge Guidelines (PDF) within 30 days of receipt of invoice with the surcharge listed.
Contact Information for Mailing Forms
Please mail completed appeal forms with documentation to:
Office of the University Registrar
Attn: Tuition Surcharge Appeal
3100 SASB North
Campus Box 2100
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-2100