Best Child Development Schools Near Chapel Hill, NC (2026)

Chapel Hill, North Carolina has 5 accredited schools offering child development programs. Chapel Hill has a population of about 59,889. Median household income is $85,825 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 77.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area, the top-earning child development-related role is Child, Family, and School Social Workers at a median $62,370 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Child Development Schools to Chapel Hill

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer child development programs near Chapel Hill, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Chapel Hill city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Chapel Hill. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score โ€” U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

Durham Technical Community College

Durham, NC 9.4 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
49.8 BOC Score
Graduation rate 24%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $36,142
Avg net price $1,664/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 42

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Alamance Community College

Graham, NC 20.3 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
50.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 33%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $34,241
Avg net price $6,109/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 46

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#3

Meredith College

Raleigh, NC 21.4 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
59.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 69%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $51,539
Avg net price $22,488/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 80%
  • Programs offered: 53

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

North Carolina State University at Raleigh

Raleigh, NC 22.6 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
84.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 85%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $68,758
Avg net price $17,303/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 94%
  • Programs offered: 152

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#5

Wake Technical Community College

Raleigh, NC 26.7 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
55.3 BOC Score
Graduation rate 32%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $41,769
Avg net price $8,759/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 62

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

Central Carolina Community College

Sanford, NC 32.0 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
60.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 42%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $33,525
Avg net price $5,446/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 53

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#7

Piedmont Community College

Roxboro, NC 35.0 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
52.4 BOC Score
Graduation rate 39%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $33,274
Avg net price $1,095/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 27

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Vance-Granville Community College

Henderson, NC 41.2 miles from Chapel Hill
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
57.2 BOC Score
Graduation rate 32%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $34,304
Avg net price $3,286/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 30

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all North Carolina schools on the North Carolina child development page.


Child Development Wages Near Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill is part of the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area (BLS area code 20500). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to North Carolina statewide.

Occupation Median Wage Source COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education $36,600 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $37,500
Education and Childcare Administrators, Preschool and Daycare $58,590 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $60,031
Child, Family, and School Social Workers $62,370 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $63,904
Childcare Workers $30,970 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $31,732
Special Education Teachers, Preschool $46,630 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $47,777
Social and Human Service Assistants $45,490 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $46,609
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education $50,320 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $51,557
Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other $58,410 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC $59,846

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.


Chapel Hill at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Population 59,889 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income $85,825 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ 77.2% Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 97.6 (below U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024

Other Chapel Hill-Area Cities With Child Development Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited child development schools are near Chapel Hill, NC?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering child development programs near Chapel Hill. The closest is Durham Technical Community College in Durham, NC (9.4 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Wake Technical Community College (26.7 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying child development roles near Chapel Hill?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying child development-related roles near Chapel Hill are: Child, Family, and School Social Workers ($62,370), Education and Childcare Administrators, Preschool and Daycare ($58,590), Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other ($58,410). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with North Carolina statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Carrboro instead of Chapel Hill?

Carrboro, NC is 2.7 miles from Chapel Hill and has its own set of local child development programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Chapel Hill an affordable place to study child development?

Chapel Hill’s median household income of $85,825 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Chapel Hill while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and North Carolina public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.


Learn More About Child Development Programs

Other Programs Available in Chapel Hill

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Chapel Hill:

Data verified: September 5, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024โ€“2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.