Stats and Strengths

Essential Facts and Figures

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• 34,015 students, 2,336 faculty and 6,733 staff
• Student-faculty ratio 14:1
• 12 colleges representing all major academic fields
• 600+ student organizations
• Educating more North Carolinians than any other university
• $1.48 billion budget for fiscal year 2016
• $349 million in sponsored research awards for fiscal year 2016
• $998.6 million endowment
• Cooperative Extension Service provides services to citizens in all 100 counties and among the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

Ranked Among the Best

• #1 best value among North Carolina public universities (SmartAsset.com)
• #3 veterinary medicine program nationally (U.S. News & World Report)
• #8 return on investment nationally for degrees in science technologies (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard)
• #9 online MBA nationally (Princeton Review)
• #10 best value among public universities nationally (U.S. News & World Report)
• #15 statistics program nationally (U.S. News & World Report)
• #20 nationally among colleges specializing in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Forbes)
• #22 online engineering degree program (College Choice)
• 11 graduate programs among the top 30 in their field nationally (U.S. News & World Report)

Academic Excellence: Brightest Students, Best Faculty

• 2016 freshman class boasts the highest ACT and SAT scores in university history
• 100+ students were national scholars and fellows over the past five years
• NC State students won two Goldwater scholarships, five Fulbright scholarships, one Churchill scholarship and a record-breaking 32 National Science Foundation graduate research fellowships in the 2015-2016 academic year
• The Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program has hired 41 world-leading educators and researchers in 20 interdisciplinary clusters, including bioinformatics, personalized medicine and public science
• 23 faculty are members of the National Academies
• NC State ranks in the top 20 nationwide for producing Fulbright Scholars

Driving Economic Prosperity

• 100+ startups and spinoffs based on NC State research, attracting a total of $1.6 billion in venture capital
• No. 6 nationwide in commercialization agreements based on university research; No. 1 among universities without a medical school
• 850+ U.S. patents and 1,500+ worldwide, yielding 500+ consumer products
• NC State’s Industry Expansion Solutions has created $3.4 billion in economic benefit for the state’s manufacturers since 2000
• NC State and its students, alumni and associated startups generate $6.5 billion of North Carolina income annually

A National Leader in Attracting Sponsored Research

• One of only two universities in the nation leading two National Science Foundation Engineering Research Centers:
  • The FREEDM Systems Center, researching smart-grid technology
  • The ASSIST Center, developing wearable, self-powered health monitors
• NC State leads three federally funded collaborative institutes tackling some of our world’s biggest challenges:
  • $140 million PowerAmerica initiative, developing an advanced power electronics manufacturing sector for the Department of Energy
  • $60 million Laboratory for Analytic Sciences, studying data analytics for the National Security Agency
  • $25 million Consortium for Nonproliferation Enabling Capabilities, combating the spread of nuclear weapons for the National Nuclear Security Administration

Interdisciplinary Partnerships That Make a Difference

• Eastman Chemical, LexisNexis and ABB are among our on-campus partners benefiting from next-door proximity to NC State faculty, staff and students.
• NC State’s Supply Chain Resource Cooperative, Entrepreneurship Initiative and Nonwovens Institute combine academic scholarship with real-world experience to create knowledge, teach students and benefit partners.
• NC State’s expertise in clean energy, biomanufacturing and nonwoven textiles stimulates formation of industry clusters, drawing companies and jobs to North Carolina.

NC State's Centennial Campus

• A public-private research campus where 70+ corporate, government and nonprofit partners work alongside 70+ NC State research and academic units
• Home to the College of Engineering, the College of Textiles, the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Institute for Emerging Issues, a think tank focused on tackling big issues that affect North Carolina’s prosperity
• Office of Technology Commercialization and New Ventures: Helping faculty and entrepreneurs commercialize discoveries made at NC State
• Technology Incubator: Supporting high-tech startups by facilitating unparalleled access to world-leading researchers
• James B. Hunt Jr. Library: Winner of the prestigious Stanford Prize for Innovation in Research Libraries, and one of the most technologically advanced learning and collaboration spaces in the world

Rising Levels of External Support

• $162.6 million in gifts and new commitments for FY16; 82 percent growth since 2010
• Gift receipts rose nearly 7 percent over the previous year to $129 million, topping $100 million for the fifth year in a row
• Two $5 million gifts funded the Michele M. and Ross M. Annable Scholarship Endowment, a need-based scholarship program in the College of Veterinary Medicine

Recent Accolades and Achievements

• Joseph DeSimone, William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State and Chancellor’s Eminent Professor of chemistry at UNC-Chapel Hill, received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, awarded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Patent and Trademark Office to recognize those who have made lasting contributions to America’s competitiveness and quality of life and helped strengthen the nation’s technological workforce.
• Jay Baliga, Distinguished University Professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of NC State’s Power Semiconductor Research Center, was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
• Rodolphe Barrangou, associate professor of food science, is a 2016 winner of the Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, given in honor of research constituting a seminal scientific finding that holds great promise of ultimately changing our understanding of or ability to treat disease.
• Barrangou is also a winner of a 2016 Canada Gairdner International Award, given to biomedical scientists who have made original contributions to medicine with the goal of contributing through research to increased understanding of human biology and disease.
• Trudy Mackay, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished University Professor of biological sciences, received the 2016 Wolf Prize in agriculture, given to outstanding scientists for achievements in the interest of mankind.
• Kenneth R. Swartzel, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor Emeritus, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering.
• The National Science Foundation presented its prestigious Early Career Award to 11 NC State researchers in fields spanning chemistry, civil engineering, electrical and computer engineering, mathematics, materials science and engineering, mechanical and aerospace engineering, and statistics.
• Statistician Alyson Wilson, director of the Laboratory for Analytic Sciences, was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
• Amstat News ranked NC State No. 1 in the nation for producing statistics Ph.D.s.
• Susan Nutter, vice provost and director of libraries, was named the 2016 Academic/Research Librarian of the Year by the Association of College and Research Libraries, a division of the American Library Association.
• The James B. Hunt Jr. Library was named a 2016 Landmark Library by Library Journal.
• Senior physics and math major Mia de los Reyes was one of only 15 students nationwide to win a Churchill Scholarship, which she will use to pursue a one-year master’s degree in astronomy from the University of Cambridge beginning in fall 2016.
• Two students — Christopher Cooper and Vishwas Rao — received prestigious Goldwater Scholarships, awarded to outstanding undergraduates preparing for careers as mathematicians, scientists and engineers.
• NC State sent five athletes to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, setting a new record for Wolfpack athletes competing in the Olympics. Swimmer Ryan Held won a gold medal for the United States in the 4×100 relay.
• The Wolfpack men’s swimming team won its first-ever NCAA relay championship and its second consecutive ACC title.
• At the end of the 2015-2016 academic year, five athletics department programs finished in the top 11 of their respective national polls, and nine teams finished ranked in the top 25.
• NC State’s student-athletes excelled in the classroom as well, posting the athletics department’s highest-ever graduation success rate and academic progress rate.
• NC State’s athletics program ranked 32nd in the national Directors’ Cup competitive standings for 2015-2016, up 35 spots from 2010-2011.
• Forbes magazine named athletics director Debbie Yow one of the 25 most powerful women in sports.

Updated Nov. 15, 2016.