UNC to Offer Free Tuition to Some Students After SCOTUS Affirmative Action Ruling

People walk on the campus of the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, N.C., on June 29, 2023. Eros Hoagland/Getty Images

The University of North Carolina (UNC) will be offering free tuition to some students following the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 29 ruling to strike down race-based admissions policies at U.S. colleges—also referred to as affirmative action policies.

The high court ruled in favor of Students for Fair Admissions in its cases against Harvard College (the undergraduate college of Harvard University) and the University of North Carolina, saying that race-based admissions policies violates the Equal Protections Clause of the 14th Amendment.

The decision has made it unlawful for universities and colleges to consider race as a specific factor in admissions decisions.

In an announcement on Friday, UNC Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz said the university will provide free tuition and waive required fees for incoming undergraduates from North Carolina, if their families make less than $80,000 per year.

“We want to make sure students know financial constraints should not stand in the way of their dreams,” Mr. Guskiewicz said, adding more details will be shared in the next few weeks.

The school has furthermore hired additional outreach officers as part of its admissions team, to go to under-resourced communities and raise awareness of the university’s affordability, and recruit students from across the state.

“We want the best students to know that a UNC-Chapel Hill education is a possibility for them,” Mr. Guskiewicz said.

Tuition and fees for full-time students in North Carolina for the 2023 academic year averaged around $9,000, excluding housing, meals, and other expenses.

The chancellor noted that the university will follow the Supreme Court’s decision “in all aspects.”

“That means race will not be a factor in admissions decisions at the University. It also means we will comply with the Court’s ruling that an applicant’s lived racial experience cannot be credited as ‘race for race’s sake,’ but instead under some circumstances may illuminate an individual’s character and contributions,” he said.

“Our responsibility to comply with the law does not mean we will abandon our fundamental values as a university. We are and will remain passionately public, and we will ensure that every student who earns admission to Carolina can come here and thrive. Our University’s commitment to access and affordability and supporting a culture of belonging for everyone does not change with last week’s ruling,” Mr. Guskiewicz added.

The university’s decision comes shortly after Duke University, its sports rival, last month said it would provide free tuition to students in North Carolina and South Carolina whose families make less than $150,000 a year. The private university also said it would provide, in addition to the free tuition, financial assistance for housing, meals, and some course supplies for students with families making $65,000 or less a year.