University of North Carolina at Wilmington University of North Carolina at Wilmington The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW), sometimes referred to as UNC Wilmington or affectionately as The Dub, is a public university in Wilmington, North Carolina. UNCW enrolls 16,886 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students each year as part of the 17-campus University of North Carolina System. UNCW opened its doors on September 4, 1947 as Wilmington College. At the time the school operated as a junior college, offering freshman-level courses to 238 students during the first school year, 75% of whom were veterans returning from military service following World War II. Under the control
University of North Carolina at Charlotte site for the campus. They decided on a 250-acre (1 km²) tract of land northeast of the city near the Cabarrus County border. The college became state-supported in 1958 upon joining the newly formed North Carolina Community College System and moved to its current location in 1961. In 1963, Charlotte College became a four-year college. On July 1, 1965, it merged with the Consolidated University of North Carolina (since 1972 called the University of North Carolina) under its current name. In 1969, the university began offering programs leading to master's degrees. In 1992, it was authorized to offer programs leading