As one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States, UNC has developed a long series of traditions associted with its athletics and student organizations.

Athletics

The school's sports teams are called the Tar Heels and the mascot is the ram. They participate in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The women's soccer team has won eighteen national championships since 1981, and the men's basketball team has won national championships in 1924, 1957, 1982, and 1993. From 1961 to 1997 the team was coached by Dean Smith, who holds the record (as of 2004) for the most victories by an NCAA Division I coach with 897 wins.

Clubs

The Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies[1] , Black Student Movement[2] , and the Campus YMCA[3] , as well as over 400 other recognized clubs and 48 Greek organizations contribute to a diverse and vibrant student life. A secret society known as: The Order of Gimghoul [[4] ] exists at the university, which selects or "taps" ten men from the junior class each year and secretly meets at Gimghoul Castle in west Chapel Hill. This castle was constructed from 1924-1926 and is the only bona-fide castle in the state of North Carolina.

Founded in 1977, 89.3 WXYC - FM is UNC's award winning student radio station, broadcasting 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Though programming is left up the student DJs, WXYC typically plays little heard music from a wide range of genres and eras. On November 7th, 1994 it became the first radio station in the world to rebroadcast its signal over the internet.

Traditions

Every Halloween is marked by celebration by UNC students. In a recent year, an estimated 70,000 costumed students and onlookers packed into the mile long length of Franklin Street abutting campus.

The rivalry between UNC and its first opponent, the University of Virginia, has cooled somewhat in recent years. UVa is still referred to by some as "Mr. Jefferson's university to the north." This rivalry has been replaced by rivalries with North Carolina State University, a sister institution of similar size with a greater focus on technical sciences; Duke University, whose basketball program has taken off in recent years; East Carolina University, a sister institution within the University of North Carolina System; and Wake Forest University, a private university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. During March Madness, it is traditional to exchange pranks with North Carolina State, and to refer to Duke University as "Dook."

An honor code exists to prosecute students accused of academic and non-academic offenses against the university community.