University Archives: University Records Retention & Disposition Information

Approved Records Retention & Disposition Schedules

• 2021 Institutions of the UNC System, Records Retention and Disposition Schedule
• 2017 NC State University, Records Retention and Disposition Schedule (OLD)

NOTE:  Consult the 2021 UNC-system schedule first.  If you cannot find your records listed there, then consult the 2017 NC State schedule (which is mostly but not completely obsolete now).  If you are unable still to find your records listed or if you have questions about which schedule to use, contact the Libraries' Special Collections Research Center or the Office of General Counsel.

University Regulation on Records Retention

University REG 01.25.12 governs records retention and disposition of records at NC State.

If you have any questions about using retention and disposition schedules, contact the Libraries' Special Collections Research Center or the Office of General Counsel.

NOTE: Records (regardless of media) that are not listed on the University Records Retention and Disposition Schedules may not be destroyed without the consent of the University Archivist, NC State's University Records Officer, and the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Additional Records Retention Information

About the Retention and Disposition Schedule

The records retention and disposition schedule (linked at the top of this page) is a tool for the staff and faculty to use when managing the records in their offices. It lists records commonly found in university offices and assesses their value by indicating when (and if) those records should be destroyed or transferred to the University Archives.

Non-Paper Records

The following items are considered public records if they have been created or maintained during the course of university business:

• Digital files (including Word, Excel, PDFs, emails, Google documents, instant messages, and web sites)
• Video and audio recordings (including wav, mov, mp3, and mp4 files)
• Photographs (including jpg and tif files)

Any work-related files stored on disks, flash drives, hard drives, Google drive, servers, or project management websites (e.g., Basecamp, OnBase, Trello, etc.) are considered public records.

Records Requiring Permanent Retention

The majority of records created on campus are intended for a specific purpose and require only short-term retention. Some, however, have long term administrative, legal, and historical value for documenting the activities of the university, and these require permanent retention.  A few guidelines for determining records of permanent, historical, or archival value include the following:

• Records of the offices of the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellors, and Deans. Many records should be permanently retained, such as statements of policy, reports, correspondence and memoranda (including email), speeches, committee minutes, and publicity materials.  Some documents, however, do not require permanent retention, such as travel requests and financial transaction records.
• Records from administrative and academic offices: correspondence and memoranda (including email), annual reports, final grant reports, self-study reports, policy statements, planning documents, and symposium or colloquium files.
• Faculty meeting minutes.
• University publications (print and online), such as catalogs, newspapers, yearbooks, literary magazines, newsletters, brochures, programs, and posters.
• Some videos and photographs produced by university departments, colleges, and offices.
• Many websites of university departments, colleges, and offices.
• Some student organization records, such as constitutions, bylaws, meeting minutes, publications, and possibly photographs and videos. Read more about collecting documentation about NC State University student life.

Please consult the approved schedule (linked at the top of this page) for retention and disposition periods for specific record types. Contact the Special Collections if you have questions about whether or not records require permanent retention.

Destruction of Records

• The majority of records created by faculty and staff in the course of conducting university business will probably not require permanent retention.
• Records can be destroyed only if they are listed on the approved retention schedule (linked at the top of this page) AND the schedule indicates that the records should be destroyed after a particular time period.
• Records must not be destroyed prior to the end of the time period specified in the schedule.
• When the schedule prescribes destruction of records, it is the responsibility of the offices that have been maintaining those records to destroy or delete them.
• Policies, Regulations and Rules REG 01.25.12, Paragraph 2.2, has further information on the destruction of records.