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For all Admissions inquiries, including questions about the admissions process, admission events, and deadlines, please email admissions@ncssm.edu or call 919-416-2850.
Residency Statute
Under North Carolina law, only bona fide legal residents (domiciliaries) of North Carolina are eligible to attend the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. Non-residents are ineligible for admission. Copies of the applicable law and of implementing School regulations are available for inspection in the NCSSM Admissions Office. The controlling North Carolina statute, G.S. 116-235(b)(1), requires:
The school shall admit students in accordance with criteria, standards, and procedures established by the Board of Trustees. To be eligible to be considered for admission, an applicant must be a legal resident of the state, as defined by G.S. 116-143.1 (a)(1), or a student whose parent is an active duty member of the armed services, as defined by G. S. 116-143.3(2), who is abiding in this State incident to active military duty at the time the application is submitted, provided that the student shares the abode of the parent; eligibility to remain enrolled in the School shall terminate at the end of any school year during which a student becomes a nonresident of the State.
Policy set by the Board of Trustees requires that the school “enroll only students whose custodial parent or legal guardian has established permanent legal residency in North Carolina by December 1 of the school year in which the student applies for admissions and who otherwise meet the admissions criteria of the School.” To be classified as a resident for admissions and attendance purposes, you must furnish such evidence as the School may require to enable it to make such classification.
Residency Guidelines
If you experience difficulty or need assistance with login issues, please call 844.319.3640.
Prospective students seeking to enroll at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM) for the Class of 2027 are required to submit an application with the North Carolina Residency Determination Services (RDS) at www.ncresidency.org by January 30, 2025.
Use the CFNC login that you used to complete your NCSSM application to log into RDS.
If you do not have a CFNC/RDS account, you will need to create one. CFNC and RDS use the same login credentials.
As a reminder, we encourage you to keep your username and password in a safe place. Throughout the RDS application process, you and your parents will be answering questions, but it is only to verify that you are a legal resident of the state of North Carolina. If you are unsure of the information being requested, please inquire with your parents, as the system will verify all information provided. Once you are issued your Residency Certification Number (RCN), you will include it in your Blackbaud Tracking System account, which will be available in early-January, to all students who submitted an application for admissions using CFNC
The system will determine if your family’s residency status is in-state or out-of-state. If you receive an out-of-state determination in the initial consideration, you should request a reconsideration from RDS. If you need to appeal further, you can request an RDS appeal and, if needed, an SEAA appeal.
Please visit the www.ncresidency.org “What to Know,” “FAQ,” and “Resources” tabs for more information and help with the RDS process.
If all appeals are exhausted with RDS, the family can submit an appeal in writing with the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, residency@ncssm.edu, within ten days of the decision.
If you experience difficulty or need assistance with login issues, please call 844.319.3640.
Frequently Asked Questions
State law requires that in order to be eligible to attend NCSSM, an applicant must be a resident of the state of North Carolina or have a parent abiding in North Carolina due to active service in the military. As part of the application process, students are required to provide NCSSM with proof that they meet one of these criteria. For the applicant to be a resident of North Carolina, his or her parents or legal guardians must prove that they have established permanent residency in the state. Following are some frequently asked questions regarding the determination of state residency.
Although there is no “checklist” of actions that a person must take that will guarantee in-state status, there are certain residentiary acts that, when considered together, show an intent to establish permanent residency in North Carolina. The logic is that if a person permanently resides, or intends to permanently reside in North Carolina, that person will perform certain actions that tie them to North Carolina, including but not limited to: obtaining a North Carolina driver’s license, registering a vehicle, filing and paying North Carolina income taxes, having a mortgage or lease agreement for North Carolina real property, registering to vote, etc. These are examples of common actions that a person may take. The goal is to show proof that the applicant and the applicant’s parents or legal guardians have a permanent, primary place of residence in North Carolina.
Not necessarily. The documents are requested as a measure to assist NCSSM in determining residency for enrollment. No one is guaranteed a resident or non-resident until all documents have been reviewed by the Residency Determination Officer.
Students are required to have established North Carolina residency by December 1 of their sophomore year and must maintain North Carolina residency throughout the application process and their time of attendance at NCSSM, if accepted.
Yes. Your residency determination letter will provide you with instructions on how to request an appeal to the Residency Committee. Once you request an appeal to the committee, the Residency Determination Officer will schedule a date and time for your appeal hearing. After your hearing, you will be notified of the decision by a letter mailed to your home address.
It depends on the type of immigration documents your family holds. Certain types of visas and immigration documents will permit families to establish residency in the United States, as well as the state of North Carolina. However, applicants/parents must still ensure they meet the other requirements for residency. For additional information on acceptable visas and immigration documents that permit individuals to establish residency in North Carolina, please see below:
A Valid A-1, E-1, E-2, E-3. G-1, G-2. G-3, G-4, H-1B, H-1C, H-4, I, K-1, K-2, K-3, K-4, L-1A, L-1B, L-2, N, O-1, O-3, P-1, P-2, P-3, P-4, R-1, R-2, T-1, T-2, T-3, T-4, T-5, U-1, U-2, U-3, U-4, U-5, V-1, V-2, V-3, NATO-1, NATO-2, NATO-3, NATO-4, NATO-5, or NATO-6 visa status
(Eligibility under any of these visa statuses lasts only so long as the time frame of the authorized stay under the applicable visa status).
NCSSM puts the security of our families as a top priority. Unfortunately, full security of emails cannot be ensured as, despite our efforts, the data included in emails could be infected, intercepted, or corrupted. Therefore, we encourage families to check the email for threats with proper software, as we do not accept liability for any damage inflicted by viewing the content of emails. Therefore, families are encouraged to submit documents via U.S. Postal Service or by fax: 919-416-2853.
No. Currently, students who have received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) are ineligible to apply for enrollment to NCSSM.
No. Real estate property acquired for the sole purpose of a vacation home or rental property is not considered the homeowners’ primary domicile; therefore, applicants are not considered legal residents of the state of North Carolina.
Residency questions?
Contact residency@ncssm.edu.
For all other Admissions inquiries, including questions about the admissions process, admission events, and deadlines, please email admissions@ncssm.edu or call 919-416-2850.