Higher Education

Each year, there are around 100,000 college students in easy driving distance of Vance County. The enormous size of that student body is rare in the U.S. More importantly, it gives your business a reliable, diverse, readily adaptable pool of quality candidates to choose from – and each year there’s more coming down the pipeline. From CEO’s and scientists to middle managers to blue collar labor, every kind of candidate you need is right in our backyard.

Higher education here is focused on technical, engineering, and STEM-based learning. Students are taught to be versatile and adaptable for the skills that business demands. In Vance County, STEM-based learning begins in the K-12 years. High school students can earn a college associate’s degree upon graduation, thanks to an innovative program with Vance-Granville Community College. If students don’t continue their college educations, they are ready to enter the workforce immediately.

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Vance County is less than an hour drive from one of the highest concentrations of leading research universities in the nation. The world-famous “Triangle” is bordered by Duke University, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State University. As part of the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area), businesses in Henderson and Vance County get important business benefits from proximity to this rich educational landscape.
 

VANCE-GRANVILLE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
200 Community College Road, Henderson NC
www.vgcc.edu
Student Population: 4,118

Vance-Granville operates a Training Center and maintains a heavy emphasis on technology. There are certificates and degree programs in automotive systems technology; bioprocessing technology; computer information technology; CT/MRI technology; electrical technology; electronics engineering technology; global logistics technology; industrial systems technology; information systems technology; networking technology and welding technology.

 

WAKE TECH COMMUNITY COLLEGE
9101 Fayetteville Road, Raleigh NC
www.waketech.edu
Student Population: 69,954

Wake Tech is North Carolina’s largest community college, serving over 74,000 adults annually. There are six campuses, three training centers, multiple community sites and a deep array of online learning options. The college offers continuing education programs that include customized workforce training and small business support. Wake Tech has major divisions in applied engineering and technologies; computer technologies; and mathematics, science and engineering.

 

SOUTHSIDE VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
109 Campus Drive, Alberta VA
www.southside.edu
Student Population: 4,719

As part of the Virginia Community College System. Southside Virginia has the largest geographic service area of any community college in the state, covering ten counties. Two campuses in Alberta and Keysville are supported by extensive online learning. There are Associate Degrees in Industrial Maintenance; Information Technology and Networking Specialization. Certificates are available in Electricity; Welding; Advanced Manufacturing; Agribusiness and Precision Machining.

 

DUKE UNIVERSITY
2138 Campus Drive, Durham NC
www.duke.edu
Student Population: 15,892

Duke is a private research university located in Durham. The University is one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the United States. Duke holds a top ten position in most national rankings and has produced numerous Nobel laureates and Rhodes Scholars. Pratt School of Engineering includes departments for Electrical and Computer Engineering; Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science; and Civil and Environmental Engineering.

 

NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY
1801 Fayetteville Street, Durham NC
www.nccu.edu
Student Population: 8,207

North Carolina Central University in Durham has been serving students for over 100 years. Today, the University pursues research in biomedicine; biotechnology; information and computer technology. There are two dedicated research institutes focused on biomanufacturing and biomedicine. North Carolina Central (often called “Central” locally) regularly collaborates with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in nearby Research Triangle Park.

 

NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
121 Peel Hall, Raleigh NC
www.ncsu.edu
Student Population: 35,419

North Carolina State is a public research university in Raleigh. With roots dating to 1887, it’s the largest university in the Carolinas and one of the largest in the U.S. There are bachelor’s degrees in 106 fields of studies with historically strong colleges in Agriculture and Life Sciences; Engineering; Natural Resources; Sciences; and Textiles. The engineering program has earned top ten national rankings in nuclear engineering and agricultural engineering.

 

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
153-A County Club Road
www.unc.edu
Student Population: 29,911

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university chartered in 1789, making it the oldest public university in America (two other universities claim this title). State law requires that 82% of incoming freshmen must be state residents. UNC offers programs in biomedical engineering; chemistry; computer science; environmental science; geological science; marine science; mathematics; physics; neuroscience and statistics and operations.