Depending on which state you are in, the school "Carolina" has a completely different meaning. In North Carolina, if you say Carolina, you are talking about the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Also called UNC, UNC-Chapel Hill, or Chapel Hill, this public university started having students attend in 1795 and claims that it is the oldest public university in the United States of America.

In 1789, The school was started by the N.C. General Assembly and was the first degree giving public university in the eighteenth century located in the United States. In the years of the civil war, David Swain, the Governor, asked the President of the Confederacy to keep the students of Chapel Hill out of the draft. For this reason, the school was allowed to stay open and was one out of very few that did so. Out of all cities in the South, Chapel Hill lost more of its people to the war than any other and thus the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill had to close from 1870-1875. A lot of reconstruction was to be done on the university during this time. Years later in 1931, UNC Chapel Hill was combined with the State College of Agriculture and Engineering and the Women's College to form the Consolidated University of North Carolina and did not change back until 1963.

To show that the university is at the heart of the campus, the "old well" is a symbol of the well that used to provide water for the students. It is located in between two of the oldest buildings on campus, Old East and Old West. Another symbol held close to the heart of all who attend North Carolina is the Davie Poplar tree. It is said that the founder of UNC Chapel Hill was standing under this tree when he decided where to locate the university. There is a legend that claims that when the Davie Poplar tree falls, so will the university. Just so that this will never happen, two clone trees have been planted near the original. The last popular landmark at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a Confederate Monument known as Silent Sam. It is a statue that honors the fallen soldiers that were heroes of the Civil War. Other honorable mentions of the school are the Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower and the Playmakers Theatre, both making UNC Chapel Hill the historical campus that it is today.

Athletics are very popular at Chapel Hill, especially Tar Heel basketball. As a part of the Atlantic Coast Conference, the college has 40 championships in the NCAA. Sports played at the university include women's and men's lacrosse, women's and men's basketball, women's and men's soccer, baseball, football, and women's field hockey, and more. The teams are referred to as the Tar Heels and this is because of how the state of North Carolina was a major producer of tar and pitch for the United States. Depending on the sport played, different schools are rivalries for UNC Chapel Hill. In football, the oldest gameday rivalry in the south is between the Tar Heels of North Carolina and the University of Virginia and has been played over 120 years. The Tar Heels are also rivalries with North Carolina State University in football and is especially since they are in the same state! Most commonly known as the hostile rivalry between schools, and especially when playing basketball, is the UNC Chapel Hill versus the Duke Blue Devils rivalry. Because both teams have won several championships and are often found at the top of the college basketball world, they are often competing for the top spot! It does not help that UNC Chapel Hill and Duke University are only located eight miles apart! This only adds to the hate the two schools have for each other. After basketball games ending with a win for UNC Chapel Hill, students are known to go to a downtown area near Franklin Street and start bonfires. The bigger the game day, the more people will be found on Franklin Street.

Chapel Hill has some of the prettiest colors in the ACC. Carolina Blue is a baby blue color and it is combined with white to represent the school. These colors were chosen by the oldest organization on campus, the Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies. Lady North Carolina Tarheels should not have a problem finding a white, baby blue, or combined printed dress to wear to their next sorority function! Support your Tar Heels wearing Carolina Blue and White!

The mascot of the UNC Chapel Hill is a Dorset Ram called Rameses. After a football team manager brought a ram to a football game day in 1924, the kicker of the team rubbed the ram's head and kicked a field goal to win the game. From that moment on, the ram was a symbol for the university. During World War II, Chapel hill was one of 131 schools to participate in a Navy training program. Therefore, the Ram you see on paraphernalia for the Tar Heels is wearing a sailor's hat.

There are quite a few student organizations and clubs that one could be involved with at UNC Chapel Hill. As a student you can join sororities, fraternities, honor societies, the resident hall association, or the marching band! You can get into some charity work by helping out with Dance Marathon which raises money for the North Carolina Children's Hospital or with HOPE which stands for Homeless Outreach and Poverty Eradication. Use your theatrical and dramatic talents in the regional theater company or use your writing and creativity as a member of the student run newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel! Whatever you passion, whatever outlet you are looking to get involved with, find it at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill! Go Tar Heels!!