Two-thirds of UNC System universities are interested in starting at least one three-year degree program, according to records obtained by The Assembly.
The university system announced last month it was “exploring the feasibility” of offering accelerated undergraduate degrees at its campuses, an effort leaders believe will particularly benefit nontraditional students like working adults and those who do not enroll in college immediately after high school.
Such programs, which reduce the number of credit hours students must earn to get their degree, have grown in popularity nationally in recent years.
Eleven UNC System campuses responded to the system’s request for degree proposals last month: Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, Fayetteville State University, N.C. Central University, N.C. State University, UNC Asheville, UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro, UNC Pembroke, UNC Wilmington, and Winston-Salem State University.
The campuses’ ideas vary widely across academic disciplines, as well as in how they would reduce the credits required for students to earn the degree. For example, a proposal from Fayetteville State for a 90-credit business management degree focused on artificial intelligence would preserve the entire 39-credit general education curriculum and “streamline” some business courses to cut 15 credit hours. A proposal for a 90-credit bachelor’s of science in nursing at N.C. Central would remove gen-ed requirements including English, math, and fitness classes.
If there is a single throughline in the proposals, it is that many focus on equipping students with skills they can apply directly to the workforce.
Two English professors at UNCW proposed a 90-credit degree in “workplace writing and content creation,” which they said would “offer a strategic pathway to a degree for students who have identified career goals in writing, editing, design, generative AI, and related communication fields.” Two UNCA professors proposed a 90-credit “live entertainment production” degree, which would “prepare students for technical and production careers in the live events industry, including concerts, festivals, theater, touring productions, and corporate events.”
A proposal from UNCG for a 90-credit degree in “applied economic analysis” noted that the program would be based on the university’s existing 120-credit bachelor of arts in economics. But the reduced-credit program would be “intentionally structured to serve both already-employed adults seeking career advancement as well as new entrants to the labor market.”
“It will appeal to students who are not interested in exploring secondary majors in other disciplines, including adult and nontraditional students who value an efficient, employment-oriented degree,” the proposal read.
Some schools, including Winston-Salem State, proposed creating pathways for the reduced-credit degrees for community college graduates. WSSU did not propose specific degrees, instead proposing that it would partner with nearby Forsyth Technical Community College to design “high-demand pathway programs” that might include health care or business.
App State, meanwhile, wants to create programs specifically for students who earn their two-year associate’s degree at a North Carolina community college. The proposal notes the reduced-credit degrees would not be open to traditional first-year students. The university anticipates reducing credits to between 90 and 100 in programs such as nursing, criminal justice, construction management, and several education degrees.
“Our approach aims to shorten the time to complete bachelor’s degrees, lower costs, and reduce debt for transfer students with Associate’s degrees,” the proposal reads.
UNC Charlotte’s proposals for a drone technology reduced-credit degree and one in engineering technology in fire and safety also referenced a vision for creating pathways to the programs for community college students. And ECU said partnering with the N.C. Community College System would be “central” to its model, which thus far does not identify degrees that it might include—instead, ECU officials are hoping to form a campus planning group to evaluate workforce needs and programs that would complement them.
Leaders of the N.C. Association of Community College Presidents have urged officials with the UNC System and the N.C. Community College System to collaborate on the new degrees and ensure the transfer pathways are clearly defined.
Other degrees proposed include: engineering technology at N.C. Central; applied sports business at UNCG; applied professional studies and interdisciplinary studies at Fayetteville State; economic analysis, accounting technology, applied business, and interdisciplinary studies at UNCP; and hospitality management, technical production, and learning, design, and technology at UNC Charlotte.
N.C. State submitted an “umbrella proposal” that would involve creating a “shared planning infrastructure” for reduced-credit programs that could be used across the university system. On its own campus, N.C. State noted possible programs might include agricultural business management, crop protection, and health informatics administration.
UNC System officials are reviewing the proposals before awarding grants of up to $20,000 to develop the degrees. System President Peter Hans previously told The Assembly: “We’re going to fund as many good ideas as we receive.”