You may soon be able to graduate from a public university in NC in just 3 years
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- UNC System solicits proposals for three-year, reduced‑credit bachelor’s programs.
- $20,000 planning grants intended primarily to cover faculty pay.
- Programs must prepare graduates for workforce entry and win Board approval.
The UNC System is exploring the possibility of offering bachelor’s degrees that could be completed in just three years — 25% quicker than the traditional 120-hour undergraduate degree.
The system is fielding proposals from system schools for such accelerated programs, with $20,000 planning grants on the table.
“This is not a substitute for a four-year degree,” UNC System President Peter Hans told The News & Observer. “This is something different ... an alternative route for students who might otherwise be skeptical of higher education.”
Hans says a quicker degree is in keeping with two of his three main pillars: affordability and accessibility. His third pillar — quality — is what the system will have to monitor closely as these proposals and programs roll out, Hans said.
“The big critique of higher education is it costs too much and delivers too little,” he said. “[There is] increasing skepticism about higher education itself for that reason in many quarters. If an innovation like this enabled us to attract students who might otherwise skip a college degree that could be very meaningful to them and help them enter a high-demand workforce field, then great.”
“So we’ve asked the schools for their thoughts, and we’ve asked them to be as creative as possible,” he said.
The call for proposals comes after the system’s accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, announced a new policy allowing reduced-credit bachelor’s degrees in March. Crucially, any program that uses the new reduced-hour, reduced-credit policy must “prepare graduates for direct entry into the workforce,” the accreditor said.
Are other states doing this?
Yes. Hans said he’s had conversations with people in states like Massachusetts — “northern states, so please bear that in mind: This is not some grand political conspiracy,” Hans joked — about their own three-year degree programs.
Sixty colleges around the country have adopted some three-year bachelor degrees, according to the Hechinger Report. Notably, however, Connecticut’s Democratic leaders in the state’s General Assembly just voted down a bill that would have allowed 90-credit degrees, Inside Higher Ed reports.
Indiana is requiring public universities to offer reduced-credit bachelor’s degrees.
What sets UNC’s approach apart, Hans’ senior adviser Dan Harrison said, is that the system is avoiding a top-down approach. Instead of mandating these programs, the system is issuing a call for proposals to see what ideas naturally float to the surface on campuses.
“There’s a lot of creativity, a lot of innovation on our campuses,” Hans said. “Particularly good ideas which aren’t always allowed to be fostered, because there’s an existing structure, and it needs to function within that, that it’s got to be 120 hours.”
Proposals from campuses are due on April 17. The $20,000 grant for successful proposals is expected to be used primarily for faculty pay, Harrison said.
The UNC Board of Governors must approve new degree programs before launch.
What’s the reasoning behind it?
For Hans, it’s all about staying up to date with what people and businesses need out of higher education — a launchpad to the workforce.
“The bottom line is this: higher education has got to change. It’s got to adapt. In an Amazon world, if you’re operating like Sears, it won’t go well,” Hans said.
“Those of us who deeply believe in the power of higher education should embrace opportunities for thoughtful change and explore new ideas to see if they can be adapted to evolving needs, both of the students themselves and the marketplace.”
Harrison says he doesn’t envision the typical three-year bachelor’s student to be an 18-year-old recent high school graduate, but rather a nontraditional, adult learner. Hans said people who have some college credits but never finished could benefit from this 90-hour model.
What kind of programs could be done in three years?
The system is giving special consideration to proposals for programs identified as high-need by the UNC System’s Workforce Alignment Report. It lists the following program ideas in its call for proposals:
- Accounting technology, accounting management, banking services, financial advising, and mortgage finance
- Information technology/artificial intelligence systems analysis and infrastructure management, network engineering, cybersecurity, database architecture, and computer graphics
- Aerospace technology, electrical and electronic engineering, and industrial technology
- Pre-professional nursing, rehabilitation counseling, and art/music therapy
- Music technology and music management
- Conservation management, natural resource recreation and tourism
- Economic analysis and applied econometrics
“In keeping with our mission of serving students and meeting the evolving needs of North Carolina, the UNC System seeks to examine whether more streamlined undergraduate degree models could accelerate time to degree, reduce student debt, align with critical employment needs, and expand access for working adults and other populations,” the call for proposals from the system reads. “Any accelerated model must also preserve the intellectual depth, coherence, and educational integrity that define a UNC undergraduate education.”
Harrison says the earliest programs he could envision would launch in 2027.
