I know this wasn’t your question, but just in case you think you can get UNC in-state tuition the beginning of 2nd year, you cannot. Once you enter as an OOS student, you’re an OOS student for the duration, even if the parents relocate to the state.
Thank You, That’s helpful. The general understanding is that (for any college) if student (and/or) parents establish a 12-month consecutive residency in NC (or any state for that matter), then the student can apply for reconsideration for in-state status for a future term. I know this works in TX and few other states. Is NC an exception?
North Carolina will look at the student move in pretty closely - need to demonstrate financial independence from parent, need 12 months, need license/residency changes which appear as North Carolina is intended as home, not just for purpose of attending college, working a full time job etc.
If your student has dependency on parents, then parents legal residency stands. The parents can make a ‘permanent move’ to North Carolina before the student would start as freshman, and after 12 months could then be reclassified as instate to start as a sophomore.
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Every state has different residency requirements. NC is among the most restrictive.
- you came to North Carolina for reasons other than to attend college
“You” applies to the parents if the child is a dependent. As @Crapshooter says, the parents have to move to NC before the student enrolls (or, presumably, is accepted).
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Makes sense. Now back to root question - UT Austin VS UNC Chapel Hill?
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@Crapshooter Thank You a Ton for that detailed response. Truly appreciate it.
we are afraid to be in the same boat. But hoping for a better outcome.
our situation is worst with OOS, 4.4 GPA, 10 AP 10 HONORS MOST OF THEM As, 1570 sat, pretty decent ECs (can’t say they are the best as everyone seems to have them). Going by what many in the forum saying, We should just loosing hope.
Good luck. My kid ended up at IU Kelley and is absolutely loving it. Your kid will have plenty of options…the key is not to focus on a single one as a “dream school” as there are likely dozens of schools where your kid would thrive.
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Is it true there was a wave of honors decisions today? Saw someone on reddit claiming they got in but no other posts. Mine both still say in review, and I’m worried now I’m cooked lol
Edited in post below
Last year honors came in waves, each one they released 2 to 3 times. For instance CSB had 2 waves. I believe they released each in 2 to 3 waves by school(from my observation lasy year). And in one of thsoe waves my daughters school was one. If any of your classmates got into an honor same as yours that probably means they reviewed that honors for that school.(again, just from my understanding). From what I have seen they dont reject honors until at the very end. Most of them came in Feb2nd to last week. This is only from my observation last year based on CC and Reddit posts
My son got his honors acceptance email last cycle January 23rd (he was accepted EA on 1/15) and then he got a physical letter in the March 3rd. I just looked and he did get notified early but the letter in the mail came later.
But that was in CNS. I think they all might be different since honors applications are all reviewed at the department level.
My son got in last week and we put our housing deposit down early this week. I’ve been reading several posts about housing and was wondering if there is any concern that he won’t get housing or if we should be ok on that front? We are out of state and still weighing options but wanted to make sure we didn’t need to start looking for apartment options. Thanks for your help.
Last cycle the people who applied for UT housing in mid-March and beyond didnt get contracts. That is the date when UT ran out which can vary slightly from cycle to cycle (they dont have enough spots for all freshmen on campus).
I am 99% confident you will get a contract having applied midJanuary. 2 things are required for you to get a contract though: 1. You applied for housing and paid the $100 fee (sounds like you did this). 2. You must accept your offer and pay the $200 enrollment fee.
Order of selection is by the date you paid the $100 application fee. This opened in August 2025 (UT does not require acceptance to apply for housing, a bit unusual but not alone in that). So with a January application you will be on the back end of selection (dont panic though there is an open swap period after selection and there also is a way s/o with late selection can get an earlier selection - if you want details let me know).
Some people delay accepting/$200 enrollment waiting on ivy/Rice etc. It is entirely possible someone who would have a 1st dorm pick time (august date for paying the $100 application) gets passed over for contracts because they delayed enrolling so late and paying that $200 because they ran out of contracts. So super important to understand that part. They started handing out contracts last cycle Feb 15 (it was always March 1 in previous years) and then they keep sending them out every 2 weeks til they are gone.
There are lots of off-campus places right accross the street in an area known as West Campus - mostly apartments, some private dorms. Google maps to search for an area between MLK to say 28th st and Guadalupe to Lamar. That area is packed with UT students - some freshmen but mostly sophomore and up. If you want details on some of those let me know but my LH wanted a traditional on-campus experience and is in a dorm and loves it. When I went to UT I was in a private dorm as a freshman (that UT took over actually) and my husband was in a coop in West Campus. We were both oos, had no idea about how dorms worked even back then, on-campus housing went fast.
Thanks for the info. So should be good as far as deposit date is concerned but since we’re waiting until later in the cycle to decide on where to enroll may still be out of luck. Unfortunate they don’t have more dorms but sounds like he will have some apartment options fairly close by if he doesn’t get the contract.
Yes. The newest UT dorm will open next cycle and a new volleyball complex with athlete housing included in the project is currently being bid to construct. That will add capacity but it still wont be enough.
If you decide by March and enroll, you still should be good to get a contract on campus. There are some big private dorms in West Campus - Castilian and Calloway. Calloway is mostly greek though. They have built so many high rise apts - some better than others - that there is plenty of space to get an apartment.
Dorms are Aug-May but most apartments are 12 “installments” mid Aug - end of July. You pay even if you are not there in summer or some allow subletting. Studios/1bdrms will probably be scarce (they go fast) but there are plenty of high rises that do roommate matching - where you might be 1 person in a 4bed/4bath arrangement where each is individually contracted and only responsible for their own rent/utility bill.
You have plenty of time to mull over your offers imho. Those that waited til like late March/April on the other hand to decide to enroll/pay the $200 might have had to go off-campus. If do you enroll an dpay the $200, get a contract, sign it, and pay the $300 housing prepayment, the $300 prepayment is refundable if you decide to go elsewhere (elsewhere as in another school, not elsewhere as in an off-campus apartment). The $200 enrollment and $100 housing application are not refundable.
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For the admitted students, does UT Austin provide any merit scholarships like the AES of UT Dallas? If so, are such scholarships announced later in Feb / March timeframe?
UNC offered my kid a place in Carolina Global Launch at University of Sydney this fall and assured admission at UNC-CH for the 2027 Spring Semester. Not clear what to make out of this offer as the kid also got into UT Austin. We live in TX.
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The Global Launch is legit - we’ve had classmates of our kids (3 with maybe 5 or 6 friend who’ve done it) do this and enjoyed it and then started off just fine. They needed to make peer friend groups on campus one semester behind but it worked out fine. Admittedly I was anti-start out of country and maybe because two of three are female and I uhhhh worry (Liam Neeson in Taken, but I don’t have a particular set of skills) but things went well for others.
Sydney may offer an absolute great out of country experience - and if money isn’t a concern then I would probably be less worried than some other locations.
However, I stand by my earlier statements - Texas Austin and UNC CH are two totally different campus vibes. UNC is a bit more ‘old world’ and ivy, and frankly a bit more elitist than what we’ve encountered at Texas with our LHD26. The campus is pretty in a natural oaks and grass an old classic buildings kind or way - Austin is compact, every inch of that campus has a purpose, there is no wasted space. whether its building, recreation center or green land - and the amount of money that has been and is being dumped into the Texas campus is -WAY- ore than at UNC. There are times I fear Carolina is resting on it’s academic reputation allowing its facilities to become not just old world charm but antiquated (and the buildings obviously built in the 70s - 80s style don’t help with offsetting that). I wish this wasn’t true, but Carolina needs a kick in the ass in terms of building quality facilities and what the students are demanding (other than the b-school and its continued progress, which is the bright spirit there) or the kids and their parents may start to choose elsewhere…
You simply must visit UNC and soon - it will very likely help you solidly your position a nd help you to open your childs eyes or not. They just aren’t the same vibe at all - and your child will likely be able to feel one or the other within a day or two.
- lot of typos, Im in bed typing in the dark because wifey worked today and is exhausted… I think shes deep signing at the sound of my keyboard typing now! Good god, its like I’m drunk, and in the dark.
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