ECU graduate programs earn high rankings
East Carolina University’s master’s and doctoral programs in allied health sciences, medicine and nursing earned high rankings once again this year in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Graduate Schools released Tuesday.
U.S. News’ best medical schools for primary care are presented in evaluative Tiers 1-4 rather than ordinal rankings. The Brody School of Medicine is a Tier 1 institution, one of only two UNC System schools out of 99 institutions listed.
Students are welcomed by pink buds on the Health Sciences Campus.
For the assessment, U.S. News placed medical and osteopathic schools in tiers based on primary care metrics, faculty and admissions data. The highest factor, the number of medical school graduates practicing in primary care specialties, make up 45% of the score. Other factors include the number of medical school graduates entering primary care residencies, student selectivity and faculty-student ratio.
“This ranking supports what we’ve stood for since our beginning — the Brody School of Medicine produces physicians standing on the front lines of medicine, caring for the underserved,” said Dr. Michael Waldrum, dean of the medical school and CEO of ECU Health. “This year, more than half of the graduating class chose primary care residencies, and a record percentage matched at ECU Health, a leader in North Carolina, with a reputation for serving rural communities with the highest standards of care.”
Brody also was recognized for research, one of only two UNC System schools included. Factors consider research activity, student selectivity and faculty resources.
In the College of Nursing, ECU’s Doctor of Nursing Practice family nurse practitioner specialty is in the top 10 in the nation. At No. 9, ECU is one of only two UNC System schools (both in the top 10) in the ranking, which is based on qualitative peer assessment.
“What can I say other than today’s news is incredible. To have our programs ranked so highly by our peers is a testament to the quality of our faculty and staff, the students who choose ECU for their education, and our alumni and supporters for their dedication to our vision for the health care future of North Carolina,” said Dr. Bim Akintade, dean of the College of Nursing.
The overall Doctor of Nursing Practice at ECU ranks 40th of 158 institutions, placing it in the top 25% in the country. This is up from last year’s ranking of No. 74. ECU is one of only four nursing schools in the UNC System ranked. There are 15 distinct ranking factors that make up that score.
Other ECU nursing programs include nursing anesthesia at 19th of 140, placing it in the top 15% in the nation, and nursing midwifery, 10th of 36 (top 30%).
In the College of Allied Health Sciences, occupational therapy ranked 39 of 282, placing it in the top 15% of U.S. schools.
Other ECU allied health sciences’ programs included:
- Audiology — 45th of 74 (top 60%)
- Physician assistant studies — 58th of 206 (top 30%)
- Physical therapy — 65th of 264 (top 25%)
- Rehabilitation counseling — 33rd of 80 (top 45%)
- Speech language pathology — 65th of 283 (top 25%)
Additional ECU programs and specialties recognized in 2025 are:
Not all graduate programs are ranked by U.S. News every year. Many programs in the sciences and humanities are updated every two to four years.
Programs that are offered predominantly online are ranked and published by U.S. News at a different time of year.
For more information, visit the U.S. News website.
(Benjamin Abel, Bobby Ampezzan and ECU’s Office of Institutional Planning, Assessment and Research contributed to this story.)