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ECU listed among nation's top universities in new ranking

East Carolina University once again ranks in the top tier of national universities in a new listing by U.S. News & World Report. 

ECU is one of the top four nationally ranked public universities in North Carolina, along with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, N.C. State University and UNC-Charlotte. ECU is listed 113th among public schools nationally, and 207th among all national universities, according to the magazine’s 2018 “Best Colleges” guide released online Sept. 12. 

ECU Provost Ron Mitchelson said it’s an exciting time to be a Pirate. 

“ECU’s ascent in the national rankings mirrors our growing reputation as a great national university,” Mitchelson said. “We are committed to excellence in our instruction, our research and our service. With our current emphases on funded research and internationalization to benefit our students, that reputation, along with the rankings, will continue to grow.” 

As defined by U.S. News, public universities range from small liberal arts colleges to large research institutions and offer lower tuition to residents because they are funded in part by the state. National universities can be public or private and offer a full range of undergraduate, master’s and doctoral programs while emphasizing faculty research. 

The magazine ranked 311 national universities, among which 132 are publics. 

ECU tied with Central Michigan University, Florida A&M University, Montana State University, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, University of Colorado-Denver, University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, University of Montana and Western Michigan University. 

Scores for each institution were based on several measures: graduation and retention rates (22.5 percent); assessment by academic peers and high school counselors (22.5 percent); faculty resources (20 percent); student selectivity (12.5 percent); financial resources (10 percent); graduation rate performance (difference between actual and predicted graduation rates, 7.5 percent); and alumni giving (5 percent). 

ECU’s record-breaking fall enrollment of 29,131 students represents all 100 counties in North Carolina, 50 states and the District of Columbia, and 44 countries. It’s also the largest undergraduate enrollment recorded at ECU – 23,265. The class of 2021 is the third-largest freshman class on record. 

ECU is the UNC system’s largest producer of educators and nurses and the only one with professional schools of medicine, dental medicine and engineering. 

In other categories ranked by U.S. News, ECU tied at 103rd in engineering programs at universities where doctorates are not offered. ECU also tied at 290th in business programs. The undergraduate engineering and business program rankings were based solely on peer assessment surveys. 

U.S. News provides rankings for national universities, national liberal arts colleges, regional universities and regional colleges. More information is available at www.usnews.com/colleges.

ECU students walk and skateboard to class on the first day of the fall semester.