ECU has answered the call to serve North Carolina for 113 years. Founded as a teachers college, today ECU is the only public university in the state with a dental school, medical school, and college of engineering. Opportunities for our almost 29,000 students are vast – from conducting research along the NC coast to studying in the hills of Tuscany; from cheering for the Pirates in exciting athletic competitions to performing in our acclaimed fine arts programs. ECU is committed to student success, serving the public, and leading regional transformation. These are not just slogans; they are at the core of the university. ECU’s motto is Servire, “service,” and its faculty, staff, and students live by this creed every day.

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28K+

students enrolled, Fall 2019

No. 1

producer of medical graduates who practice in NC

$129.5M

in sponsored research for fiscal year 2019

Tour ECU!

Take a 360-degree tour of each of our 16 universities, either on your desktop, laptop, phone, VR headset, or through the GEAR UP NC VR app. The GEAR UP NC VR app is the first of its kind, and the largest VR project for social good to date. This marks the first time a university system has used the technology across all of its institutions.

Download the GEAR UP VR app from the iTunes store or from the Google Play store.

Highlights

Academics

Whether future Pirates are interested in earning degrees in accounting or woodwinds, they will be able to make their academic goals a reality at ECU, which offers 84 undergraduate degrees, 70 master’s degrees, and 18 doctoral degrees. The university boasts a student population of nearly 29,000, including more than 23,000 undergraduate students, about 4,700 graduate and doctoral students, and more than 300 medical students. Study abroad and hands-on research options add to the academic opportunities available.
Learn More About Academics

Athletics

Athletics isn’t the most important endeavor at ECU, but it is one of the most visible. During almost every year in recent memory, Pirate sports teams have been nationally ranked, and Pirate athletes have been named to All-American teams and received national academic accolades. And even with that success, you could say the Pirates are just getting started.
Explore Athletics

Regional Transformation

RISE29, ECU’s student entrepreneurship program, was recognized for its creative programming by the U.S. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship with the association’s Excellence in Co-curricular Innovation Award. Funded by the Golden LEAF Foundation, RISE29 connects students with regional businesses outside of the classroom to combat declining employment and brain drain in eastern North Carolina.
Learn about RISE29