With the help of the state, UNC is expanding their certificate program for military personnel.

The UNC Core program offers online courses, which can be taken at the convenience of the service member and are meant to prepare them for entry into a UNC system school.

“The requirement is 27 hours of credit over the course of two or three years,” said Rob Bruce, director of the Friday Center. “You might have literature courses or physics or math or chemistry and you build the certificate by completing these courses.”

The Core program is not a degree program, but once the courses are completed, participants will earn a certificate. All of the credits earned will transfer to UNC system schools.

“It really gives military students a strong foundation in general education courses,” he said. “It really sets them up for the ultimate goal, which is for them to be admitted into a degree program and for them to complete their degree.”

The program has been in existence for a few years, but it has remained small. Bruce said this is because many don’t realize the program exists, but he expects it to grow as more people learn about it.

Last year the program had 10 enrollments. That number jumped to 50 this year.

“I will say percentage wise it’s a big jump,” he said. “But it’s still not good enough, no doubt about it. We’re expecting, once UNC Core gets up and running, we will have hundreds of enrollments in these programs.”

Bruce said the Friday Center will work to give students the resources they need, including an academic adviser with military education training.

“The next steps for the program is lots of course development,” he said. “We’re hiring additional instructional designers to help develop courses we see a need for.”

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