Neurodiagnostics and Sleep Science Major, B.S.

The Neurodiagnostics and Sleep Science (NDSS) major prepares individuals for professional practice in the health specialties of neurodiagnostics and sleep science.  The NDSS major also allows current practitioners to continue their professional development, while learning new skills in an increasingly important and rapidly expanding segment of health science.  

 The emphasis of the curriculum is to enhance and advance the student's professional career in neurodiagnostics and sleep sciences with additional education skills in critical thinking and creative problem solving needed for key leadership, educational, and management positions.  The curriculum offers specific professional coursework in advanced methods and monitoring, program administration, and clinical outcomes evaluation.  The program culminates in a capstone experience that is developed around the students’ specific professional interest area.      

This degree program is offered as a limited residency program that is a combination of both distance education or on-campus through the UNC Chapel Hill Department of Health Sciences. 

Neurodiagnostic and sleep science procedures record and study the electrical activity of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves, the function of the cardiovascular system, and the function of the respiratory system. A variety of diagnostic tests are performed including recording sleep studies (polysomnograms), recording brain wave activity (electroencephalography), recording responses from peripheral nerve stimulation (nerve conduction velocities), recording stimulus evoked responses from the brain and spinal cord (Evoked Potentials), and monitoring brain and spinal cord activity during surgery (intraoperative monitoring). Therapeutic procedures are also performed including positive airway pressure and supplemental oxygen titration for people with certain sleep disorders such as apnea. 

Accreditation  

The program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation for Polysomnographic Technologist Education (CoAPSG).

Admission to the Program

Students must complete all First-Year Foundation requirements, all Reflection & Integration requirements, and complete at least six Focus Capacity requirements. Please visit IDEAs in Action General Education curriculum for specific information regarding the general education course requirements. Additionally, the following pre-admission math/science courses are required:

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Prerequisite Course List
MATH 130	Precalculus Mathematics F	3-4
or MATH 231	Calculus of Functions of One Variable I
BIOL 101 & 101L	Principles of Biology and Introductory Biology Laboratory H, F	4
BIOL 252 & 252L	Fundamentals of Human Anatomy and Physiology and Fundamentals of Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory H	4
CHEM 101 & 101L	General Descriptive Chemistry I and Quantitative Chemistry Laboratory I H, F	4
or BIOC 107	Introduction to Biochemistry
PHYS 114	General Physics I: For Students of the Life Sciences F	4
or PHYS 118	Introductory Calculus-based Mechanics and Relativity
PHYS 115	General Physics II: For Students of the Life Sciences F	4
or PHYS 119	Introductory Calculus-based Electromagnetism and Quanta
PSYC 101	General Psychology F	3

Transfer Credit Equivalency

The UNC Transfer Credit list provides a list of courses that students have previously transferred to UNC Chapel Hill from other community college or four-year institutes. 

 UNC Chapel Hill Transfer Credit List

Application Process

Application may be submitted prior to completing all course requirements but decisions will be given on a conditional basis if that is the case. All general education requirements need to be completed prior to being admitted.

Applicants will be reviewed using the following criteria:

• Clarity and quality of personal statement
• Academic progress and promise
• Supportive references
• Knowledge of the field

If you need to apply for an F-1 Visa, please contact us before you apply to our program.

Application Instructions

Current UNC Chapel Hill Students (Internal):

Click Apply and log in to the ConnectCarolina Student Center. In the “other academic” dropdown, select “Apply for Change of Major.” Once you complete and submit this request, you will receive an email with instructions for completing your application.

Transfer Students:

• Go to the Common Application to create an account and start your application.
• Submit the application, the common application supplement, and the application fee by the deadline.
• Upload the essay requested in your common application supplement.
• Submit the official transcript from all secondary and post-secondary schools to: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Office of Undergraduate Admissions Jackson Hall, Campus Box 2200 Chapel Hill, NC  27599-2200
• Arrange to have two letters of recommendations written on your behalf sent to uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu. Recommendations should be completed by college professors or teaching assistants who are familiar with your academic abilities, work supervisors, or volunteer project supervisors.

You must apply to UNC and to the NDSS program through Undergraduate Admissions. When you indicate that you are applying to the NDSS program, you should also get the NDSS-specific questions on your application.

For more information on application deadlines, please go to our website.

Upon completion of the Neurodiagnostics and Sleep Science program, students should be able to: 

Sample Plan

Sample plans can be used as a guide to identify the courses required to complete the major and other requirements needed for degree completion within the expected eight semesters. The actual degree plan may differ depending on the course of study selected (second major, minor, etc.). Students should meet with their academic advisor to create a degree plan specific to their interests. The sample plans represented in this catalog are intended for first-year students entering UNC–Chapel Hill in the fall term. Some courses may not be offered every term. 

The suggested course sequence for the required pre NDSS courses at UNC–Chapel Hill can be found here. Transfer students receiving placement credit may have a slightly different sequence.

Scholarships and Grants 

Students in the Neurodiagnostics and Sleep Sciences degree program are eligible for scholarships and grants that can be found here.