To enroll for Engineering Online courses at NC State, you must first apply to the university and become an active student.

• If you are interested in taking courses as part of a graduate degree, you should apply to that graduate program via the NC State graduate school application.
• If you are interested in taking courses without being in a graduate degree or graduate certificate program, then you should apply as a non-degree student (NDS) via the NC State NDS application.

Both of these applications are available online. If you have questions, please fill out the EOL Interest Form.

Applying for a graduate degree or a graduate certificate

In order to complete a graduate degree or graduate certificate and be awarded a diploma, you must apply and be accepted into that program. It is possible to begin coursework towards a degree as a non-degree studies student, as described in the next section; however, you will eventually need to complete the graduate application process.

The NC State Graduate School is responsible for administering graduate programs and certificates across all of NC State’s colleges. Once your application is complete, it will be reviewed by the graduate admission committee within the College of Engineering’s department responsible for that degree. The department will forward their decision to the Graduate School, and the Graduate School will inform the student of the admission decision. The Graduate School will then complete the process to admit you into the university and issue you appropriate student credentials to access NC State online resources.

The Engineering Online department at NC State is not directly involved in the admission process and is not able to assist in determining the status of your application. Please contact the Graduate School or the appropriate engineering department regarding the status of a pending application. Once you have been successfully admitted to a graduate degree program or certificate, you may proceed to enroll in online engineering courses via the enrollment process.

Applications and all supporting documents must be received by the Graduate School or program deadline, whichever is earlier. Programs not listed in the Program Deadline dropdown will follow the general application deadlines. Additional information regarding deadlines and requirements can be found in the University Catalog.

Applying as a non-degree studies student

There are several reasons why you may wish to apply as a non-degree studies (NDS) student at NC State to enroll in online engineering or computer science courses. The NDS program may be for you if you are interested in taking a few courses for ongoing professional development or would like to test-drive participation in an engineering online class before entering a degree program.

As a qualified non-degree studies student, you will be able to enroll in the same courses that you would take as part of a graduate degree program. As long as you earn a grade of B (not B-) or higher in each course you complete as a non-degree studies student, you can later transfer up to 12 credit hours of this coursework into a degree program once you have been admitted. This path allows you to begin graduate-level studies without having to meet all of the requirements of the degree program application. Once you are sure that you wish to pursue a graduate degree, you can then proceed to complete the graduate degree application.

If you are interested in completing an undergraduate certificate program, such as our Computer Programming Certificate, you would also apply as a non-degree studies student. Although admission into this program requires a bachelor’s level degree, the coursework is considered to be at the undergraduate level.

Applying as a Former NC State Student

If you have completed an undergraduate or graduate degree program at NC State in the past and you wish to begin taking classes prior to entering a new degree program, you will also need to apply as a non-degree studies student. You will be allowed to identify yourself as a former NC State student and will be issued the same university credentials that you had as a student in the past.

Also, if you were formerly classified as a non-degree studies student, and it has been a calendar year since you were enrolled in classes, your NDS status has likely been discontinued. You will need to reapply to enroll in classes again.

Submitting Your Application

There are two NC State non-degree studies applications available: one for on-campus students and one for online students. Although both applications will allow you to be admitted to the university and enroll in courses, it is recommended that you use the NDS application administered by the NC State Distance Education office. This application includes questions that are specific to students planning to take online courses.

Students applying to take online courses through Engineering Online are eligible for a waiver of the NDS application fee. If you answer the Enrollment Objectives questions in the application in the proper manner, the fee will be waived.

Once your application is started and you are on the “Enrollment Objective Form”, select:

• Begin a Certificate or specific program via Online and Distance Education (incl. Engineering Online)
• If you will be participating in the undergraduate Computer Programming Certificate (CPC):
  • Navigate to the Certificate section in the drop-down
  • Select “Computer Programming, Undergraduate Certificate”
  • Be prepared to upload an unofficial undergraduate transcript verifying that you have completed an undergraduate degree. Your application may not be processed without it
• If you will be participating in ANY OTHER Engineering Online-sponsored course:
  • Navigate to the Engineering section in the drop-down menu
  • Select “Engineering Online Courses”

If you select these responses and continue with the application, you should receive a message indicating that the application fee is waived. If you do not receive this message and then fail to complete the application payment section, your application for admission will not be processed. Do not reapply. Contact the Engineering Online office for assistance.

Site-Based Program Students

Students participating in site-based programs with UNC Asheville, UNC Wilmington, and Havelock must also be admitted to NC State University as a non-degree student to enroll in NC State Courses. The programs allow students to take undergraduate engineering courses and apply them towards the completion of a four-year degree or transfer.

The application process is very similar to traditional NDS. You will start your application via the link below. Once you are on the “Enrollment Objective Form”, select:

• Begin a Certificate or specific program via Online and Distance Education (incl. Engineering Online)
  • Navigate to the Engineering section in the drop-down menu
  • Select your associated program. 

If you are unsure if you are participating in these programs or are interested in participating in these programs, you may contact the program coordinators at these sites. Their information is included below. 

UNC Asheville
Linnea Linton, PE, Associate Director of Engineering
Phone: 251-6943
Email: llinton@unca.edu

UNC Wilmington 
Dana Wynn, Administrative Specialist
Phone: 910.962.4079
Email: wynnd@uncw.edu

Havelock
Michelle Pitman, Student Services
Phone: 252-444-8209
Email: HavelockEngineering@ncsu.edu.

New for Spring 2026

Applicants will now be required to upload a government-issued ID to submit their application. The purpose of the ID is solely to verify that an actual person is applying. IDs will not be used in the review process to determine admission, and it does not change the review process in any way, nor will Engineering Online have access to view the information you submit. This is simply an added precaution to help prevent spam attacks.

The following forms of ID will be accepted: Government-issued ID with photo (Driver’s License, Military ID, Passport), and should include those issued by governments outside of the US.

Residency Determination

The University of North Carolina General Administration manages and processes all residency determinations. All NDS students requesting in-state residency consideration for tuition purposes are required to complete the North Carolina Residency Determination Service (RDS) form prior to completing the NDS application.