Academic Calendars and Exam Schedules - Undergraduate

Fall 2024

Winter Session 2024

Spring 2025

Maymester 2025 

Summer I 2025 

Summer II 2025 

2024 Exams

2023 Exams

2022 Exams

2021 Exams

2020 Exams

2019 Exams

2018 Exams

2017 Exams

2016 Exams

2015 Exams

Academic Calendar Guiding Principles

Effective Summer 2025

Length

• Per UNC System Office, 1 credit over 15 weeks must meet for 750 minutes. Equates to 2250 minutes for 3 credits.
  
  • 42 sessions at 50 minutes each (MWF), plus 150 minutes of exam = 2250 meeting minutes in semester.
  • 28 sessions at 75 minutes each (TR), plus 150 minutes of exam = 2250 meeting minutes in semester. 
  • Off-block and big block courses will need to adjust meeting schedule to satisfy minimum time expectations. 
• The UNC Policy Manual 400.1.6: A credit hour is an amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours out of class student work each week for approximately 15 weeks for one semester of credit, to result in a minimum of 750- scheduled minutes of instructional time or the equivalent per credit hour…. The time may include required examination periods but may not include study days.
• Fall
  
  • 16 weeks, plus 1 week of final exams
  • 1^st 8-weeks: 8 weeks
  • 2^nd 8-weeks: 8+ weeks (ends last day of finals)
• Spring
  
  • 15 weeks, plus 1 week of final exams 
  • 1^st 8-weeks: 8 weeks
  • 2^nd 8-weeks: 8 weeks (ends last day of finals)
• Maymester
  
  • 2 weeks
• Winter Session
  
  • About 3 weeks (historically 3 weeks, not factoring holiday dates)
• Summer semester
  
  • The undergraduate calendar does not include an official semester in Summer. A summer course could be offered for 16-weeks, aligned with the Maymester-Summer II dates. 
• Summer Sessions 
  
  • 5 weeks
  • Intra sessions discontinued after 2024

Note: The term must fulfill week and minute requirements

Note: Do not count weeks that include no instructional time

Start & End Dates

• Terms will begin on Monday
  
  • If the Monday is a holiday, the start date will be pushed to Tuesday.
• Terms will end on Friday, after appropriate number of weeks have elapsed (see section above).
  
  • If the Friday is a holiday, the end date will be backed to Thursday.
  • Winter Session is an exception. 
• Fall semester
  
  • Third Monday of August AND/OR a date where there will be a full week of instruction after Thanksgiving break (to avoid having final exams begin immediately after Thanksgiving break).
• Fall 1^st 8-weeks
  
  • Matches the start of Fall semester.
• Fall 2^nd 8-weeks
  
  • Starts the Monday immediately following 1^st 8-weeks.
• Spring semester
  
  • If MLK occurs on January 15^th or earlier, classes will start on the Tuesday immediately after. If MLK occurs on January 16^th or later, classes will start the Monday prior to the holiday. 
• Spring 1^st 8-weeks
  
  • Matches the start of Spring semester.
• Spring 2^nd 8-weeks
  
  • Starts the Monday immediately following Spring Break
• Maymester
  
  • Starts the Monday immediately following Spring final exams.
  • Runs for 2-weeks.
• Winter Session
  
  • Starts the Monday immediately following Fall final exams.
  • Runs until the end of the calendar year.
• Summer semester
  
  • Starts the Monday immediately following Spring final exams.
• Summer Sessions
  
  • Summer I: Starts the Monday immediately following Maymester.
  • Summer II: Starts Monday following Summer I, dependent on July 4^th holiday.
    
    • Adjust as needed to avoid starting the term the week of July 4^th.
    • Give a 1-2 week break before and a 1 week break after.
• Per federal financial aid regulations set by the Department of Education: 
  
  • Fall, Spring, and Summer cannot overlap.
  • All terms must start and end within 14 calendar days of the Fall, Spring, Summer dates.
    
    • The 14 days is shared between beginning and end of term variances.
    • This applies to all degree levels.
    • Summer begins with Maymester.

Note: If a term would start on a university closure holiday, push to next business day

Census Date

• Fall & Spring semesters
  
  • 10^th day of semester
  • Typically, Monday of week 3
• Summer, Maymester & Winter Session
  
  • 10% of instructional period
  • Summer is typically 24-25 days, calculating 10% at 2.4-2.5 days. This will round, placing census on day 3. 
• If this date is a university holiday/closure, push to the following business day. 
• The UNC Policy Manual 400.1.8[R]: the census date is the 10th class day of the term. For summer sessions, degree credit extension courses, and any other degree-credit courses taught on an irregular calendar, the census date is the class day representing the passage of 10 percent of the instructional period. 

Course Adjustment Period (Drop/Add)

• Semester: Ends Friday of week 1
• 1^st 8-week: Ends Friday of week 1
• 2^nd 8-week: Ends Friday of week 1
• 5-week: Ends Tuesday of week 1
• 2-3 week: Ends Tuesday of week 1
• The UNC Policy Manual 400.1.5[R]: both the drop and add periods must be concluded by the census date.

Financial Aid Freeze

• Occurs the next business day after drop/add deadline

Roster Verification

• Opens the day after drop/add for all parts of term, unless that day falls on a Friday. Then it opens the following Monday. 

  • Roster verification may be open Saturday and Sunday, but students will not be dropped from their registration until Monday due to athletic eligibility and competition. This has caused confusion so is not a recommended practice going forward. 

• Open for 2 days for full parts of term 

  • This has been adjusted from 3 days to 2 days to eliminate the overlap with drop for non-payment. Discussing future drop for non-payment dates with Student Accounts. 

• Open for 2 days for shorter parts of term

  • If the shorter part of term falls on the same drop/add schedule as the full term (full term/1st 8 weeks), verification window will mirror the longer term.

Withdraw

• Fall & Spring semester
  
  • Friday of week 9
• Fall & Spring 8-weeks
  
  • Friday of week 4
• Maymester & Winter Session
  
  • Friday of week 1
• Summer 5-weeks
  
  • Friday of week 3
• The UNC Policy Manual 400.1.5[R]: Constituent institution policies must include a deadline for such withdrawal at a date no later than the completion of 60 percent of the term….The calculation of this date should begin with the first day of classes and conclude on the last day of regular class meetings. It should exclude the reading day and exam period.

Note: If the deadline falls on a university closure holiday, push to next business day

Midterm Grades

• Due from faculty the Monday after the conclusion of week 8

Final Grades

• Due from faculty the next business day after Final Exams or the semester/term end date (if no Final Exam time). 
• Consideration for extra days may be given if the term ends on a business day. Extension is not guaranteed. 

Spring Break

• Occurs the week after week 8 of the Spring semester.

Note: Founders Day is March 7, prefer to have students on campus for events.

Fall Break

• Thursday and Friday of week 7 of the semester.

Thanksgiving Break

• Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of Thanksgiving week.

University Holidays

• See HR

Immunization

• 30 days from the start of semester
• Per NC Law, students are to be withdrawn 30 days after the first day of classes.

RDS

• In accordance with the UNC System Office, beginning Fall 2019, residency applications must be completed with a residency determination by RDS no later than the 45th day from the start date of the term for a fall/spring term (counting ALL days in a term) in order for the residency determination to apply in the current term. For Summer I or Summer II terms, the deadline is prorated based on the number of days in the term (typically set at 8 days). 
• See Admissions for official date.

Final Exams

• Will take place during the 5 business days after the semester ending (Monday- Friday)

Commencement

• Graduate 
  
  • Last Friday of the semester (last day of Final Exams)
• Undergraduate
  
  • Saturday after semester classes end (day after Final Exams)

Undergraduate Graduation Application Deadline

• April 1 & November 1

Registration

• Summer (all)
  
  • Aligns to Fall registration dates
• Fall 
  
  • Begins Monday of week 8
• Spring
  
  • Begins Monday of the week 8
• Winter
  
  • Begins Monday after registration groups 1-4
  • Will be the same week as Open registration
• Registration Groups
  
  • Fall & Spring registration will release weekly, starting Monday at 9:00pm by group:
    
    • 1 – Seniors (90+ credits) and Priority groups
    • 2 – Juniors (60-89 credits)
    • 3 – Sophomores (30-59 credits)
    • 4 – Freshmen (less than 30 credits)
    • Open – New starts & Other
    • Winter registration will open when Open registration begins
  • Skip the weeks of Spring & Fall Break

NOTE: The principles presented above do not account for the graduate academic calendar. Per federal regulations, the graduate calendar dates must be planned in consideration of the undergraduate dates. 

Fall 2023

Fall 3 2023 (Winter Term) 

Spring 2024

Maymester 2024

Summer I 2024

Summer Intra I Session 2024

Summer II 2024

Summer Intra II Session 2024

Fall 2022

Fall 3 2022 (Winter Term)

Spring 2023

Maymester 2023

Summer I 2023

Summer Intra I Session 2023

Summer II 2023

Summer Intra II Session 2023

Fall 2021

Fall 3 (Winter Term) 2021

Spring 2022

Summer I 2022

Summer Intra I Session 2022

Summer II 2022

Summer Intra II Session 2022

Fall 2020

Fall 3 (Winter Term)

Spring 2021

Summer I 2021

Summer Intra I Session 2021

Summer II 2021

Summer Intra II Session 2021

Fall 2019

Winter Session 2019 

Spring 2020

Maymester 2020

Summer I 2020

Summer Intra I Session 2020

Summer II 2020

Summer Intra II Session 2020

Fall 2018

Spring 2019

Maymester 2019

Summer I 2019

Summer Intra I Session 2019

Summer II 2019

Summer Intra II Session 2019

Fall 2017

Spring 2018

Maymester 2018

Summer I 2018

Summer Intra I Session 2018

Summer II 2018

Summer Intra II Session 2018

Fall 2016

Spring 2017

Maymester 2017

Summer I 2017

Summer Intra I Session 2017

Summer II 2017

Summer Intra II session 2017

Fall 2015

Spring 2016

Maymester 2016

Summer I 2016

Summer Intra I Session 2016

Summer II 2016

Summer Intra II Session 2016

Fall 2014

Spring 2015

Maymester 2015

Summer I 2015

Summer Intra I Session 2015

Summer II 2015

Summer Intra II Session 2015