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The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The Office of Scholarships & Student Aid

Undergraduate Cost of Attendance

Eligibility Criteria for Financial Aid

To receive financial aid from funds administered by the Office of Scholarships and Student Aid, a student must meet the following criteria:

• be enrolled in a degree or recognized certificate program;
• be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident;
• make satisfactory progress toward completion of the academic program and, if applicable, registered for Selective Service; and
• may not be in default on a loan previously received for college expenses nor owe a refund on a scholarship, grant, or loan from a previous enrollment period.

Whenever possible, aid will be offered to meet the full amount of the student's eligibility. All students who meet the March 1 financial aid application priority deadline (including any requested supporting documentation) will be considered for Tuition Grants as a partial offset to recent tuition increases.

Simple Formula - Determining Eligibility

The amount of eligibility for financial aid is derived by this simple formula:

Cost of Attendance minus Expected Family Contribution (see note 1) minus Other Aid (see note 2) equals Eligibility for Financial Aid.

Note 1: Calculated from information on the FAFSA & CSS/PROFILE forms.
Note 2: Private scholarships and other aid reported by student.

How Your Need is Determined

The financial information you and your family provide on your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) or Renewal FAFSA is analyzed by the federal need analysis processor using federal methodology, a standard formula established by the U.S. Congress. Your information is used by the federal processor to calculate expected family contribution (EFC) which is the amount individual students and their families are expected to pay for higher education.

After analyzing your financial information, the federal processor sends the results to the University, indicating how much you and your family should be able to pay for your education. If the cost of attendance at UNC-Chapel Hill is greater than what the processor indicates you and your family should be able to pay, the University then considers that you have financial need.

Cost of Attendance includes tuition and fees, books and supplies, housing, meals, transportation, and personal and miscellaneous items.

Expected Family Contribution consists of expected parental contribution and/or student contribution, depending upon the student's classification as "dependent" or "independent". Federal Methodology is used by the federal processor to determine the amount of each applicant's expected family contribution and takes into account the family's income and assets, employment costs, allowances for living expenses, taxes, family size, and the number of family members in college.

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