The University of North Carolina's Board of Governors Committee on Educational Planning, Policies and Programs unanimously voted to support UNCW’s proposed medical school on Wednesday. 

Following the initial approval, the proposal will go before the full UNC System Board of Governors during its meeting on Thursday for full approval. ​During the committee meeting, UNCW Chancellor Aswani Volety said that he has committed to raising $100 million in philanthropic support for the project.

David English, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at UNC System, said during Wednesday's meeting that the Board of Governors has received strong support for the proposal from the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, the Wilmington City Council and the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners since the initial proposal in April.

The Board of Governors' vote could kickstart a multi-year process for UNCW to navigate accreditation, as well as UNC System approval for a doctoral program. Once the Board of Governors gives UNCW the go-ahead, the university can begin the planning process. 

If the proposal is approved on Thursday, UNCW is expected to return to the Board of Governors in May 2027 to seek authorization for its Doctor of Medicine program. In the meantime, the proposal would go to the UNC System Graduate Council and then undergo an external expert review contracted through the UNC System. 

UNCW would also have to seek accreditation with the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), a national accrediting body headquartered in Washington, D.C. The first step toward LCME accreditation is to submit a letter requesting applicant status and to begin planning a self-study, which must be submitted 18 months after becoming an applicant. 

In April, Volety said he estimated the entire process – from initial Board of Governors approval to the graduation of the proposed medical school’s charter class – could take about 10 years. 

Volety said during the committee meeting on Wednesday that the exact cost of the total LCME accreditation process is not yet known and that the university does not yet have a full budget for the proposed medical school. He said that the initial consultant study tied to the proposal was funded through philanthropic support.

According to the LCME website, the application fee for a first-time program is $50,000.

Board of Governors member Art Pope noted that although the proposal has significant philanthropic support, the proposed medical school could eventually affect the UNC System budget. 

“As I understand it, primarily at this stage with non‑state funds … even with major seed money, startup money, capital money coming from non‑state funds, it will have an operating impact on our budget in future years, which we’ll consider through the normal course,” he said.

The proposed medical school would operate as a four-year standalone institution following a distributed clinical model rather than a traditional teaching hospital model. The proposal also includes a three-year accelerated track.

The distributed clinical model involves partnerships with local healthcare providers such as Dawson Med, MedNorth, and Novant Health, enabling students to complete rotations and meet clinical training requirements.

Approval from the Board of Governors would also allow UNCW to begin a national search for a founding dean to lead the accreditation process with the LCME and the UNC System.

According to Volety, the university is seeking a candidate with previous experience leading a medical school through the accreditation process. The university will launch a national search for the dean, he said.

UNCW cannot recruit or admit students to its prospective program until it reaches “preliminary accreditation” status, following the submission of the self-study and an LCME site visit. During the process, the university must publicly and clearly disclose its accreditation status.

The UNC System Board of Governors regular session is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Thursday and can be livestreamed here.