Accepted Visiting Students
Welcome to Carolina!
We're so excited to have you decide to come to UNC for summer classes. Before you begin your journey with us, you'll need to complete several tasks to ease your transition.
To-do Checklist
Your Onyen (Only Name You’ll Ever Need) is used to log on to many UNC sites and online applications. As a new visiting student*, you will need to create an Onyen and password.
*If you are an alum or have previously created an Onyen, you do not need to complete this step. Click here to manage your Onyen or reset your password.
How to create your ONYEN
- Locate your Personal Identification (PID) number in your acceptance letter
- Visit the ITS Onyen services website. Click on “Create an Onyen” on the left-hand menu.
- When asked if you have a UNC Guest ID, click “No”
- Enter your PID and other personal information before clicking “Submit”
After you create your Onyen, it is important to set up your UNC email. This email is associated with your Onyen account and will be the primary way that instructors communicate with you. Course notifications through Canvas will also alert you via email.
*If you are an alum or have previously created an email account, you do not need to complete this step. Check that your email has been reactivated at heelmail.unc.edu
How to set up your UNC email address
- Go to the UNC Self Service website and log in with your Onyen and password.
- Click “Email Sign-up” on the left-hand menu
- Create your email alias and click “Submit”
- Check your new email account at heelmail.unc.edu
2-factor authentication helps keep your information safe by verifying your identity with a phone app before allowing access to your school accounts.
UNC uses the Duo Security phone app for sites such as Connect Carolina, while Office 365 comes with its own 2-factor authentication built in. You must sign up for both methods.
Sign up for Office 365 2-Factor Authentication
- Go to the ITS Onyen Services site and click on the tile “2-Step Verification for Office 365”
- Sign in with your Onyen information
- Fill out your information in the forms and click “Enroll”
- Once submitted, navigate to office.unc.edu and click “Set it up now”
- Register your device and select how you wish to receive authentication notifications-this will be your default notification method
- Follow the on-screen steps to complete your enrollment. You may also add a backup notification method if you wish
Sign up for Duo 2-Factor Authentication
- Go to the ITS Onyen Services site and click on the tile “2-Step Verification for Duo”
- Sign in with your Onyen and password
- Enter your PID and other information into the form and click “Submit”
- Click “Add another device” and register your device-a mobile phone is recommended
- Follow the prompts to register your device
Once you have created your ONYEN and your UNC email and enrolled in 2-factor authentication, you are ready to pick your classes for the summer!
A list of courses offered this summer, sorted by department, can be found on our website. Some classes do fill up quickly, so it’s in your best interest to enroll as soon as possible.
Course enrollment is done through Connect Carolina, which you log into with your Onyen and password. You must have 2-factor authentication set up.
Class Enrollment Tutorial
The Office of the Registrar has a comprehensive video series that goes step-by-step through the process of registration. We highly recommend any first-time visiting students* follow along the tutorial.
*If you are a high school visiting students, the Summer School Director of Admissions will enroll you in your desired class. You will not be able to register yourself.
Tuition is calculated per credit hour. Resident and non-resident tuition rates can be found on our website.
If you have registered for courses before prepayment begins, a bill will be generated for you several weeks before the start of the summer session. Exact dates for prepayment and billing can be found here.
Bills can be found on your Connect Carolina Student Center. Detailed instructions on payment options can be found on the Cashier’s Office website.
Please note that UNC does not offer financial aid for visiting summer students. We recommend contacting your home institution to see if you might be eligible for summer aid that can be applied to UNC courses.
UNC courses have five possible modes of instruction:
- In-person, On-campus
- In-person, On-campus and Remote mix
- Synchronous Remote
- Mostly Asynchronous Remote
- Fully Asynchronous Remote
Please ensure that you have selected courses with the modes of instruction that best fit your needs.
If you are taking classes on-campus this summer, you will need to connect to the internet.
Eduroam is UNC’s primary network, which you log into with your Onyen and password. UNC-PSK is a secondary network for devices that do not support eduroam. The password for UNC-PSK changes periodically and can be accessed with your Onyen and password.
Instructions for setting up eduroam/UNC-PSK on your devices can be found here.
Visiting students have the option to stay in residence halls on-campus during the summer. Housing is handled by Carolina Housing. For assistance, please contact Carolina Housing at 919-962-5401 or at housing@unc.edu
On-campus housing is available for visiting summer students taking at least 3.0 credit hours. Housing is only available for the sessions in which you are enrolled in courses.
UNC Student Stores offers a textbook lookup on their website. You will need to enter your courses into the given fields to be given a list of textbooks your instructor requires. These can be bought/rented from UNC Student Stores, or you can obtain them from third-party vendors.
Please note that some instructors may choose not to list textbooks with UNC Student Stores. Please check your course syllabus or contact the instructor to ensure you obtain all necessary materials.
Many (but not all) instructors host a course website on Canvas. This provides a convenient hub to post syllabi, reading materials, forums, and more. For in-person classes, this helps instructors supplement their lectures.
Instructors teaching online courses may use Canvas more heavily to host class forum discussions or to communicate via Canvas’s messaging system. It is highly recommended you check both Canvas and your email for instructor communications about how your online course will be taught.
For questions about using Canvas as a student, please consult the Canvas FAQ page or contact ITS.
Common Enrollment Issues
If you believe you fulfill the prerequisite requirement for a course, you will need to contact the department hosting the class (represented by the four-letter abbreviation before the course number). The department will register you for the course or put you on the waitlist if they determine you do meet the requirements.
Contact information for departments can be found on the department’s course description page on our website.
It typically takes about 24-48 hours for your account to be matriculated into the summer session after you receive your acceptance. Before you are matriculated, you will be unable to register.
Matriculation is automatic; you don’t need to take any further action. Try registering again 24-48 hours later. If you are still told you do not have a valid enrollment appointment, please contact us via email.
If you would like to obtain a syllabus for a course, please contact the department hosting the class (represented by the four-letter abbreviation before the course number) for assistance.
Contact information for departments can be found on the department’s course description page on our website.
There are several reasons why a class may not appear in the Connect Carolina class search:
- The course is full or on waitlist-The search option automatically hides classes that have no available seats. Make sure to uncheck the “Show open classes only” box if you are interested in waitlisting a course.
- The course is in another summer session-Make sure the correct summer term is set in the search engine by selecting either Summer I or Summer II from the dropdown box.
- The course has been cancelled-Courses are cancelled for a variety of reasons. An instructor may choose not to teach during the summer, or the class may have low enrollment. Our website denotes cancelled classes at the end of the relevant course description.
Click on the course details after searching for it in the Connect Carolina course search engine. If the class has a waitlist option, check the box at the top labeled “Waitlist”. Some classes may not have a waitlist option. The registrar’s registration video series covers waitlisting here.
If the course requires a prerequisite, please contact the hosting department to be added to the waitlist.
Prepayment typically begins a few weeks before the start of a summer session. The exact dates can be found on our website. If prepayment has begun, you must pay tuition before you can register for classes. Instructions for completing prepayment can be found on the University Cashier’s website.
If you’re dropping all the classes in a summer session and do not plan to attend that session, you will need to cancel your registration by submitting a cancellation form. This will only be available if the summer session has not yet begun.
If you would like to replace one course with another, you can use the Swap function on Connect Carolina. For swapping a class that requires a prerequisite, please contact the department hosting the course.
If a class is full, you might still be able to take the course if another student drops their seat. Some courses have waitlists to make this process easier, but other times you will need to periodically check back to see if any seats have opened up.
If you have questions about individual classes, please contact the department hosting the course for assistance. Contact information for departments can be found on the course description page on our website.