N.C. A&T Ranks High Among U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Online Programs 2025”

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (Jan. 29, 2025) – As online learning in higher education continues to grow at an exponential rate, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is among those leading the way with nine nationally recognized high-quality programs.

Three of N.C. A&T’s undergraduate programs and six of its graduate programs are included in U.S. News and World Report’s 2025 Best Online Programs rankings, with two among the top 10 and two others in the top 30 nationwide.

Online degree programs provide significant benefits to learners no matter where they are in their educational journey or life stage. Distance education offers students accessibility and flexibility, enabling them to balance academic commitments with personal and professional responsibilities. Online programs are typically less expensive than in-person instruction, help learners develop unique skills to make them more competitive in the job market, and provide significant opportunities to network with a broader peer group.

N.C. A&T was particularly strong in programs focused on veterans, ranking sixth among online master’s in information technology programs for veterans; 21^st in online bachelor’s programs for veterans, tied with Pennsylvania State University and two other universities; 26^th in online master’s in education programs for veterans; and 42^nd in online MBA programs for veterans.

A&T’s online master’s in information technology program tied for 10^th with Rice and Boston universities; online bachelor’s programs tied for 39^th with 11 other universities; online MBA program tied for 72^nd with two other schools; master’s in education program tied for 85^th with 11 schools; and online bachelor’s in business programs tied for 87^th with eight schools.

“N.C. A&T is committed to ensuring that quality education is accessible to learners, regardless of where they are. Our distance education offerings are a vital part of this mission and the rankings are a testament to the dedication of our faculty, advisors and staff,” said Tonya B. Amankwatia, Ph.D., assistant vice provost, Distance Education and Extended Learning. “Together, we are creating flexible, supportive and transformative learning experiences that empower learners and help them thrive in a rapidly evolving world.”

The rankings come at a time of strong growth in in-person and distance learning for A&T, which also offers online certificate programs in addition to its nationally ranked online degree programs. A&T enrolled a record 14,311 students on campus last fall.

The numbers of students taking only online courses or a mix of online and in-person courses both grew significantly in academic year 2024-25. Students taking a mix of courses grew by 550 to a total of 7,698, while online-only learners crested over 1,700 for the first time, up by nearly 5.5% over the previous year with substantial growth at every level.

Over the past five years, A&T online courses have doubled as a percentage of overall A&T courses and enrollment in A&T online degree and certificate programs also doubled over the same period.