North Carolina State University vs. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Residency decides this one before grades do. NC State admits a far larger share of who applies, so the admit math works in your favor; UNC saves most of its seats for North Carolinians by law, and out of state you face long odds no matter how strong you look on paper. Picture your days, too. At NC State in Raleigh you wire into the Research Triangle's tech economy, and you build a degree around engineering, computing, agriculture, or design on a land-grant campus that enrolls thousands more undergraduates than Carolina. Walk the older flagship 25 miles west and the draw changes. UNC leads with the social sciences, the biological sciences, and well-known journalism, business, and public health, and the Old Well still marks the center of a tighter, more selective place. Both keep in-state tuition low. Both read your course rigor above all else. So weigh what you're really choosing: the Wolfpack's wide-open applied-science campus where you stand a real shot, or Carolina's harder door and the residency wall that guards it.
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Acceptance Rate
Overall acceptance rate, plus the in-state and out-of-state admit rates the school reports separately.
Admit rate by residency
% admittedEarly Action
NC State offers non-binding Early Action — an earlier decision with no commitment to enroll.
Standardized Tests
NC State is currently test-optional — you may apply without submitting scores.
SAT Accepted?
ACT Accepted?
Test Optional?
SAT Scores
ACT Scores
Class Rank
Where NC State's enrolled first-years placed in their high school graduating class.
Based on the 79% of enrolled students who reported a class rank. NC State does not publish an average GPA.
Admissions Factors
How NC State weighs each part of your application.
Rigor of High School Record
Academic GPA
Standardized Test Scores
Application Essay
Recommendations
Extracurricular Activities
Character / Personal Qualities
Talent / Ability
First Generation
Level of Applicant's Interest
Class Rank
Volunteer Work
Work Experience
Geographical Residence
State Residency
Alumni Relation
Racial / Ethnic Status
Religious Affiliation
Cost of Attendance
Estimated full-time annual cost from NC State's Common Data Set. Only tuition changes with residency.
Out-of-state students pay $24,048 more — entirely in tuition. Room, board, and other costs are identical regardless of residency.
Financial Aid
Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.
Major Distribution
Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.
Student Diversity
Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.
Student-Faculty Ratio
The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.
Campus Life
On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.
Enrollment by Gender
Since some students did not report gender, totals may not fully reflect the student body.
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Acceptance Rate
Overall acceptance rate, plus the in-state and out-of-state admit rates the school reports separately.
Admit rate by residency
% admittedEarly Action
UNC-Chapel Hill offers non-binding Early Action — an earlier decision with no commitment to enroll.
Standardized Tests
UNC-Chapel Hill is currently test-optional — you may apply without submitting scores.
SAT Accepted?
ACT Accepted?
Test Optional?
SAT Scores
ACT Scores
Class Rank
Where UNC-Chapel Hill's enrolled first-years placed in their high school graduating class.
Based on the 69% of enrolled students who reported a class rank. UNC-Chapel Hill does not publish an average GPA.
Admissions Factors
How UNC-Chapel Hill weighs each part of your application.
Rigor of High School Record
Academic GPA
Standardized Test Scores
Application Essay
Recommendations
Extracurricular Activities
Character / Personal Qualities
Talent / Ability
First Generation
Level of Applicant's Interest
Class Rank
Volunteer Work
Work Experience
Geographical Residence
State Residency
Alumni Relation
Racial / Ethnic Status
Religious Affiliation
Cost of Attendance
Estimated full-time annual cost from UNC-Chapel Hill's Common Data Set. Only tuition changes with residency.
Out-of-state students pay $36,132 more — entirely in tuition. Room, board, and other costs are identical regardless of residency.
Financial Aid
Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.
Major Distribution
Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.
Student Diversity
Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.
Student-Faculty Ratio
The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.
Campus Life
On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.
Enrollment by Gender
Since some students did not report gender, totals may not fully reflect the student body.
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NC State vs. UNC-Chapel Hill: frequently asked questions
Is it harder to get into NC State or UNC-Chapel Hill?＋
UNC-Chapel Hill admits a far smaller share: about 15.3% of applicants get in, against roughly 41.3% at NC State, so NC State takes in well over twice the proportion. Out-of-state applicants face even longer odds, since state law caps non-residents near 12% of UNC's undergraduates and 14% of NC State's, pushing the real out-of-state rate below the headline number at both schools and especially at Carolina.
Is NC State or UNC better for engineering and computer science?＋
NC State wins decisively for engineering and edges ahead for computer science. Engineering claims about 24% of its bachelor's degrees, its single largest field, with computer and information sciences adding another 5% off a land-grant base in applied STEM. UNC-Chapel Hill runs no comparable engineering college; its degrees concentrate in the social sciences (17%) and biological sciences (12%), with computer science around 7%. An engineering-first or applied-computing student belongs at NC State.
Is NC State or UNC cheaper, especially for out-of-state students?＋
On out-of-state sticker price NC State comes in lower, charging about $31,808 in tuition and fees against $45,228 at UNC-Chapel Hill, a roughly $13,000 yearly gap before aid. Carolina counters by meeting 100% of demonstrated financial need and posting a larger average need-based package (about $19,064) than NC State's roughly $14,720, which covers about 72% of need. In-state tuition stays low and close, around $7,760 at NC State and $9,096 at UNC, so a high-need resident finds the two much nearer than the out-of-state figures imply.
What are the most popular majors at NC State vs UNC?＋
Their peaks land in different fields. NC State confers the most degrees in engineering (about 24%), business and marketing (17%), and the agricultural and life sciences. UNC-Chapel Hill tops out in the social sciences (about 17%) and the biological sciences (12%), then interdisciplinary studies, communication and journalism, business, and computer science. NC State packs into applied STEM and design, while UNC distributes across the liberal arts, sciences, and professional schools.
Which is bigger, NC State or UNC-Chapel Hill, and what's the setting like?＋
With about 28,400 undergraduates to UNC's roughly 21,100, NC State enrolls the larger class, yet both teach at a 15-to-1 student-faculty ratio and house nearly every first-year on campus. Location separates them more than headcount does: NC State sits inside Raleigh, the state capital and a Research Triangle tech hub, while UNC-Chapel Hill keeps to the smaller college town of Chapel Hill a short drive off. Both hold onto and graduate their students well, UNC at a 97% first-year retention and 91% six-year graduation rate, NC State at 93% and 80%.
Source: North Carolina State University Common Data Set 2024-2025. Figures transcribed 2026-06-08. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with NC State. Banner photo by Dennis Ludlow, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Source: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Common Data Set 2024-2025. Figures transcribed 2026-06-07. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with UNC-Chapel Hill. Banner photo by William Yeung, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0).