The 21st annual statistical abstract focuses on the breadth of higher education activities in North Carolina in their quantitative aspect. It ranges from brief enrollment counts to complex analyses of the flow of student transfers among institutions. Both past and current (1987-88) information is provided. Data were compiled from forms mailed to the individual institutions by the Planning Division of the General Administration of the University of North Carolina. Eighty-three tables and 14 figures provide information on current enrollment, enrollment trends, undergraduate transfers, degrees conferred, faculty, library resources, costs to students, admissions, student financial aid, student housing, and general. The four appendices provide: sources of data; definitions of terms; crosswalk of "Abstract" discipline categories and Classification of Instructional Program (CIP) categories; and an explanation of the 1984 change in the definition of curriculum enrollment categories used by the Department of Community Colleges. (SM)