Why Consider Durham Tech?

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Durham Tech's College Transfer Success Course Gets You Started Off Right

This course introduces the college’s physical, academic, and social environment and promotes the personal development essential for success. Topics include campus facilities and resources; policies, procedures, and programs; study skills; and life management issues such as health, self-esteem, motivation, goal-setting, diversity, and communication. Upon completion, students should be able to function effectively within the college environment to meet their educational objectives.

Small Classes, Caring Instructors, and Support Services

At Durham Tech, the average class size is only 16. Small classes mean more interaction with other students and more personal attention from instructors who care about your success. Our well-qualified, dedicated faculty focus their energies on student learning and work hard to teach the skills, competencies, and knowledge today's students need to meet future workplace challenges, to earn a good income, or to transfer to a university. And because they care about your success in learning and in life, Durham Tech's Student Services staff work with faculty to offer a variety of support services, including tutoring, student success workshops, peer mentoring, and much more.

Choosing a Career or Program of Study

If you are undecided about a career or program of study, or even if you have declared a program of study but you're uncertain if it is really the one for you, then Durham Tech is a great place to experiment by taking classes in different departments. You may discover a subject that you love you never even previously considered.

At large universities, classes in specific departments are often limited to students who have been accepted into that program, simply due to lack of space. At Durham Tech, if you want to take a class to learn about art, music, automobile repair, or the legal system, you can. Best of all, you can do this experimenting at a fraction of the cost of what you would be paying to take classes at a university.

Choices Photo Undecided about a career? Read profiles about Durham Tech programs, find out how to succeed in college, learn what students and graduates have to say, and find out about hot careers. Choices for Success! can help you decide what career path is right for you!

Read student success stories and learn first-hand why these students chose their program of study.

Tour our campus and learn about our programs! Each tour has a different focus: University Transfer, Health Technologies, or Career and Technical Programs (Business and Public Service; Industrial and Engineering; and Information Systems.) Take the tour that most closely matches your educational goals. See tour schedule.

Durham Tech Has One of the Top-Performing Transfer Programs in the State

Are you afraid of earning credits that won't transfer to a four-year college or university? North Carolina has a statewide agreement governing the transfer of credits between N.C. community colleges and N.C. public universities and has as its objective the smooth transfer of students. Durham Tech also has individual agreements (bilateral agreements) with several N.C. public and private universities for specific programs of study. And Durham Tech sends more students to UNC-Chapel Hill and North Carolina Central University than any other community college in the state.

Durham Tech's transfer program has been identified by the North Carolina Community College System as one of the top five performing transfer programs in the state for the past five years. Durham Tech University Transfer students receive help from an experienced advisor to assist with planning courses and to ensure students take the courses needed to graduate and transfer.

How do Durham Tech students perform after they've transferred? Durham Tech’s graduates who transfer to institutions in the UNC System do as well or better than native students their junior year. 96 percent of Durham Tech transfer students (98 percent for Associate Degree recipients; 93 percent for students transferring with 24 or more semester hours) have a GPA above 2.0 after one year.

Durham Tech also offers you a second chance at being alarge university, but you did not get accepted as a freshman, then you can look at Durham Tech as a second chance in being admitted into that institution.

Read what The Herald-Sun has to say about why more students are turning to Durham Tech for first two years.

Student Involvement and Leadership

At Durham Tech, we realize much of the learning in college takes place outside the classroom. That's why we have an active Student Senate as well as over 20 student clubs and organizations. From honor societies and community service organizations to special interest clubs and career-specific associations, Durham Tech offers lots of opportunities for student involvement and for increasing your leadership and teamwork skills.

“Getting involved helps you stay connected and broadens your experience as a student. You’re not just coming to class and then leaving." Wright encourages students to “pick an activity and get involved.”

Christine Wright, 2008 Student Senate President
Read more about Christine

Affordable Education and Financial Aid

Tuition and fees at North Carolina's community colleges are among the lowest in the country – and are only a fraction of the cost of a university education.

College or University	Tuition & Fees*	Room & Board*
Durham Technical Community College	$1,680	Rent with the savings or live at home!

Selected State Universities
East Carolina University	$4,477	$7,500
North Carolina Central University	$4,438	$4,729
North Carolina State University	$5,527	$7,966
University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill	$5,626	$7,620
University of North Carolina - Greensboro	$4,147	$5,650

Private Colleges
Meredith College	$24,490	$7,020
Louisburg College	$13,915	$8,632
*Sources: Fall 2009 Institution Web Sites, 2 semesters

Financial aid is also available for qualifying students. Federal financial aid, private scholarships, and the Hope and Lifetime Learning Credits which provide tax incentives make a community college education even easier to afford.

How Earning a Degree Will Benefit You

Students completing a two-year degree earn approximately $291,000 more during their careers than those with only a high school diploma or GED.
The average earnings for students with a one-year certificate are 81.4 percent more than those without a high school diploma or GED and 15.5 percent more than a student with a high school diploma or GED.
The average earnings for a student with an associate degree is 112.3 percent more than someone without a high school diploma or GED and 35.2 percent more than a student with a high school diploma or GED.
For every credit hour of instruction completed, Durham Tech students earn, on the average, $143 more per year each year that they are in the workforce.
Every year that students attend Durham Tech full time, they earn an additional $4,274 per year.
Students enjoy an 18.4 percent rate of return on their investment of time and money in Durham Tech. This compares favorably with returns on other investments, such as the long-term return on U.S. stock and bonds.
The average payback time needed for a student to recover all Durham Tech investments is 7.4 years.

How Durham Tech Impacts the Community

Taxpayers see a return of 16.3 percent on their annual investments in Durham Technical Community College.
Taxpayers recover all investments in Durham Tech in 7.9 years.
Durham Tech pumps $16.8 million annually into the local economy through direct faculty and staff wages, salaries, and benefits.
The college accounts for an additional $192.1 million in earnings off campus.
Durham Tech is responsible for $209 million of all annual earnings in the college's service area. These earnings are equal to roughly 5,400 jobs.

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Durham Technical Community College
1637 Lawson Street
Durham, NC 27703
919-536-7200