The University of North Carolina at Asheville is a public university in Asheville, North Carolina. It was founded in 1927 as Buncombe County Junior College, part of the Buncombe County public school system. In 1930 it merged with the College of the City of Asheville (founded in 1928) to form Biltmore Junior College. In 1934 it became Biltmore College and was put under the control of a board of trustees. 1936 brought both a further change of name to Asheville-Biltmore College and a transfer of power to the Asheville City School Board.

In 1961 Asheville-Biltmore College moved to the present UNCA campus in north Asheville. In 1963 it became a state-supported four-year college, and awarded its first bachelor's degrees in 1966. Its first residence halls were built in 1967. It adopted its current name in 1969 upon becoming part of the Consolidated University of North Carolina, since 1972 called the University of North Carolina System. It is the designated public liberal arts university within that system, and has been classified as a Liberal Arts I institution since 1992.

As of 2003 UNCA has 175 full-time faculty members and an enrollment of 3,348 students. It offers thirty baccalaureate programs and a master's in liberal arts, first granted in 1991.