A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require each constituent institution to compile and provide certain information to students who apply for admission at the constituent institution that may be helpful to students in selecting an institution of higher education to attend and in making career choices.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Part 3 of Article 1 of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 116‑40.15.  Duty to provide certain information to students applying for admission or enrolled at a constituent institution regarding the employment rates, student loan repayment and default rates, and other similar information of prior graduating classes.
(a)	Each constituent institution shall compile the information listed in this subsection and provide that information as required by subsection (b) of this section to students applying as undergraduates or graduate students at the institution. Each constituent institution shall compile annually all of the following information regarding prior graduation classes of the institution:
(1)	Default rate and repayment rate of student loans for undergraduates.
(2)	Four‑year and six‑year graduation rates of undergraduates.
(3)	Employment and unemployment rates generally and by majors for students who earn a baccalaureate degree.
(4)	Median and mean starting salary for students graduating with a baccalaureate degree; also, median and mean salary for students five years after graduation with a baccalaureate degree.
(5)	Graduate school acceptance rates.
(6)	MCAT scores and GRE scores of graduates accepted by the institution.
(7)	Average time to earn a baccalaureate degree.
(b)	Each constituent institution shall provide the information set out in subsection (a) of this section to each student applying for admission to the institution as an undergraduate or as a graduate student and to each undergraduate student when the student declares a major as follows:
(1)	The institution shall send each student applying as an undergraduate at the institution a letter that provides the information set out in subsection (a) of this section. The letter shall be sent no later than five days after the student has completed the application. The student, and the student's parent if the student is a minor, shall sign the letter and return it to the constituent institution when the student notifies the institution that the student intends to enroll at the institution. The student shall not be allowed to register for classes until the institution receives the signed letter.
(2)	When a student declares a major, the institution shall send a letter to the student with the information set out in subsection (a) of this section that is relevant to the student's major. The student shall sign the letter and return it to the institution. The student shall not be allowed to receive credit for classes taken toward the student's major until the signed letter has been returned to the institution.
(3)	The institution shall send a letter with the information set out in subsection (a) of this section to each student applying as a graduate student at the institution. The letter shall be sent no later than five days after the student has completed the application. The student shall sign the letter and return it to the institution when the student notifies the institution that the student intends to enroll at the institution. The student shall not be allowed to register for classes until the institution receives the signed letter.
(c)	The University of North Carolina General Administration shall develop a uniform format for providing the information required by this section that shall be used by each constituent institution. The University of North Carolina General Administration shall also ensure that each constituent institution complies with this section.
(d)	This section does not apply to the constituent institutions that are high schools."
SECTION 2.  Chapter 116 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:
"Article 27B.
"Duty to Provide Information Regarding Employment, Student Loan Repayments, and Other Similar Information to Students.
"§ 116‑229.30.  Duty to provide certain information to students regarding the employment rates, student loan repayment and default rates, and other similar information of prior graduating classes.
Any private institution of higher education where students who receive State financial aid are enrolled shall compile the information listed in G.S. 116‑40.15(a) annually and provide that information to all students applying as undergraduates or graduate students at the institution and to each undergraduate student at the time the student declares a major in the same manner as provided by G.S. 116‑40.15."
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law. Sections 1 and 2 apply to students applying as undergraduates or graduate students for the 2018 fall academic semester, to students who declare a major for the 2018 fall academic semester, and to students in those categories each subsequent academic semester.