The North Carolina State University College of Textiles is the largest of its kind in the United States, offering one of only two accredited Textile Engineering programs in the country. The COT produces more than half of the textile graduates in the United States each year. Almost 20 percent of the graduates serve as corporate managers, and half of those are either board chairpersons or presidents of their companies.

The textile industry is involved with more than producing fabric and apparel. Composites, artificial organs, fireproof materials, tire sections and computer circuit boards are just a few of the modern products in the textile industry. More than 150,000 people have been implanted with a knitted polyester artery developed at the COT. The industry continues to need more college graduates with skills in design, engineering, electronics, chemistry, management, computers, apparel, marketing/sales and quality control.

In 1991, the COT moved to the North Carolina State University Centennial Campus, where students learn in state-of-the-art laboratories that are unequalled anywhere in the country. Here, students can participate in the Mars Mission, funded by NASA, where one of the world's only automated, three-dimensional braiding machinery creates space-age fabrics and fibers. Special projects are also being conducted to address environmental issues through the Industrial Electrotechnology Laboratory enabling students to learn about more about energy-efficient systems for manufacturing facilities.

Because of the strong emphasis on research, development or management in the textile industry, the COT prepares its students with professional skills to meet the demands of a rapidly changing world. COT students gain strong backgrounds in mathematics and science, and it pays off; almost all the graduates have professional job offers within three weeks of graduation from the COT. Starting salaries for textile graduates are also among the highest on campus.

College of Textiles History at NC State
College of Textiles Achievements
COT History Book
About NCSU