Skip to main content
Office of Research and Innovation
Centers and Institutes

About

NC State’s centers and institutes reflect the university’s commitment to interdisciplinary scholarly pursuit, in research, instruction and public service. These dedicated units work with our higher ed peers, government and industry to create meaningful solutions. They provide hands-on learning opportunities for our students and create economic growth for our state.

Our cutting-edge centers and institutes are frontrunners in their field, blazing trails for other researchers to follow. Research and innovation on topics ranging from climate change to textiles add value to the everyday lives of our state’s citizens, helping NC State maintain public trust and remain at the forefront of global excellence for research and discovery.

We’re proud to be home to interdisciplinary organizations that are leaders in such a diversity of fields, from the advancement and implementation of wide bandgap semiconductors, to improving the use of the precious element phosphorus and understanding the impact of environmental stressors on human health.

Working with government sponsors, agencies and industry, our centers and institutes break down disciplinary barriers and bring together some of the brightest minds to seek solutions to society’s grand challenges.

Centers and Institutes List

Unit Types

Centers

Centers work to promote research and advance education across complex problems of importance to North Carolina and the nation. They do not have jurisdiction over academic curricula, but may offer courses in cooperation with academic units.

Institutes

Institutes similarly work to promote research and advance education across complex problems of importance to North Carolina and the nation but typically have a broader scope than centers. Institutes also do not have jurisdiction over academic curricula, but may work with academic units to offer courses.

Consortia

An NC State Consortium is an association of a university unit with three or more industrial companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or the pooling of resources to achieve a common goal in research, instruction and/or public service.

Consortia List

  • Controlled Environment Agriculture Consortium (CEAC)
  • Consortium on Sustainable and Alternative Fibers Initiative (SAFI)
  • Urban Water Consortium (UWC)
  • Stormwater Consortium (SWC)
  • Consortium on the Properties of Additively Manufactured Copper (CPAC)
  • Consortium for Nuclear Power (CNP)
  • Precision Engineering Consortium (PEC)
  • Southern Forest Resource Assessment Consortium (SOFAC)
  • Animal Health and Nutrition Consortium (AHNC) formerly Animal Food and Nutrition Consortium) (AFNC)

“The Center for Educational Informatics designs and develops next-generation learning technologies. With a focus on personalized learning for K-12 STEM education, CEI makes transformative advances in technology-rich learning for education, training and health care.”

– James Lester, Ph.D., Center for Educational Informatics

Center for Educational Informatics

Ask Us a Question