| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Public two-year community college in the North Carolina Community College System; campus-based |
| Campus | 1, in Marion, NC (54 College Drive), plus continuing-education centers in Old Fort and downtown Marion |
| Credentials | Associate degrees (AAS, plus AA/AS/AE for university transfer), diplomas and certificates |
| Programs | About 40 program areas and some 150 credentials in the 2026-27 catalog |
| Accreditation | The Commission on Colleges and Universities (formerly SACSCOC), reaffirmed 2021 |
| Federal aid | Yes (OPEID 00808500) |
| 2026-27 tuition | $76 per credit for North Carolina residents, $268 for non-residents |
| Students | 1,249 in fall 2024, 22% full-time |
| Founded | 1964, as the Marion-McDowell Industrial Education Center |
| Facts checked | October 2026 |
McDowell Tech: McDowell County’s community college
McDowell Technical Community College, often shortened to McDowell Tech or MTCC, is one of the 58 public colleges in the North Carolina Community College System and serves McDowell County. Tuition is set by the state, so it is the same at every North Carolina community college. The college began in 1964 as the Marion-McDowell Industrial Education Center, a satellite of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Institute, and moved to its site at I-40 Exit 86 in 1970. It was chartered as McDowell Technical Institute in 1971 and took its current name in 1988.
Almost all credit classes are on the Marion campus. Most students study part-time: of 1,249 students in fall 2024, 78% were part-time. The college added its own registered nursing program in 2022; before that, students reached the ADN through a consortium with Isothermal and Cleveland community colleges.
Programs at McDowell Tech
The 2026-27 catalog lists about 40 program areas and some 150 credentials, from short certificates to two-year associate degrees and university-transfer degrees. The table shows the main career programs. Catalog pages give credits and courses but rarely say whether a program can be taken online, so ask before you plan around online study.
| Program | Credentials | Length / intake | Prepares for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Associate Degree Nursing | AAS; ADN-Transition track | 2 years; 24 seats a year, fall start | NCLEX-RN (registered nurse) |
| Practical Nursing Education | Diploma, 46 credits | 3 terms (fall, spring, summer) | NCLEX-PN (practical nurse) |
| Emergency Medical Science (paramedic) | AAS, 73 credits; Bridge AAS | – | State paramedic exam; CAAHEP-accredited |
| Emergency Medical Science (EMT) | Certificate, 15 credits | – | EMT level |
| Basic Law Enforcement Training | Certificate, 37 credits | – | Police or sheriff’s office work |
| Health Information Technology | AAS; Medical Coding diploma; certificates | – | CAHIIM-accredited; on campus and online |
| Welding Technology | AAS, diploma, Level I and II certificates | – | – |
| Computer Integrated Machining | AAS, diploma, four certificates incl. CNC Machine Operator | – | – |
| Electrical Systems Technology | AAS, diploma, Level I and II certificates | – | – |
| Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration | AAS, diploma, Level I and II certificates | – | – |
| Automotive Systems Technology | AAS, diploma, two certificates | – | – |
| Building Construction Technology | AAS, 68 credits; diploma; certificate | – | – |
| Accounting and Finance | AAS; four certificates | – | – |
| Business Administration | AAS and certificates: General, Marketing, Operations Management | – | – |
| Information Technology | Three AAS tracks: Information Systems, Software and Web Development, Web Administration and Design | – | – |
Machining, electrical and welding are taught in the Universal Advanced Manufacturing Center, a building on College Drive dedicated in 2014. Nursing, paramedic and law-enforcement programs have limited entry, and Associate Degree Nursing takes 24 students a year. The college also teaches Cosmetology, Esthetics and Nail Technology, Early Childhood Education, Graphic Design, Photographic Technology, Social and Human Services and Cyber Crime Technology.
What the main programs cover
Associate Degree Nursing
The North Carolina Board of Nursing approved McDowell Tech’s own ADN on 13 January 2022, and the first class started in fall 2022. The program admits 24 students a year, each fall, and clinical placements are at Mission McDowell Hospital and Rutherford Regional. It prepares graduates for the NCLEX-RN, the exam for a registered nurse licence. The catalog also lists an ADN-Transition track. The catalog lists a nursing testing fee each semester and a yearly professional liability insurance fee.
Practical Nursing Education
The 46-credit diploma runs over three terms, fall, spring and summer. Its core is the nursing sequence NUR 101, 102 and 103 and NUR 117, taken with BIO 168 and 169, ENG 111 and PSY 150 as the science and general-education courses. Entry is limited, and graduates sit the NCLEX-PN for a practical nurse licence. As with the ADN, the catalog lists a nursing testing fee each semester and a yearly liability insurance fee. Graduates who later want to become registered nurses can look at the college’s ADN and its Transition track.
Emergency Medical Science
The paramedic program is a 73-credit associate degree that includes EMS 110, the EMT course, advanced EMS courses and clinical work. It is accredited by CAAHEP on the recommendation of CoAEMSP. The catalog also lists an EMS Bridge version of the degree. The 15-credit EMS certificate covers EMT training (EMS 110) plus MED 121 and 122. Applicants need a Career Readiness Certificate at the WorkKeys Gold level, which they can earn at the JobLink office on Baldwin Avenue in Marion.
Basic Law Enforcement Training
Basic Law Enforcement Training is a 37-credit certificate built around one long course, LET 110, which meets for 28 class hours and 27 lab hours a week. It is the college’s basic training program for students aiming at police or sheriff’s office work, and entry is limited. Students who want a degree rather than an academy can take Public Safety Administration, which has Law Enforcement Services, Correction Services, Emergency and Fire Management Services and 911 Telecommunicator tracks; these are administration degrees and do not replace the academy.
Health Information Technology
The associate degree trains students to manage patient records, coding and health data, not to give patient care. CAHIIM lists it under Continuing Accreditation, with its last action on 24 February 2021, and as offered both on campus and online. Students who want a shorter route can take the Medical Coding diploma or certificates in Medical Billing and Coding, Release of Information or Informatics. Like the nursing programs, it carries a yearly professional liability insurance fee.
Welding, machining and electrical
These three trades share the Universal Advanced Manufacturing Center on College Drive. Welding Technology and Electrical Systems Technology each offer an associate degree, a diploma and Level I and Level II certificates. Computer Integrated Machining has an associate degree, a diploma and four certificates: General Machining, CNC Machine Operator, CAD/CAM and Manual Machine Operator. The certificates give students a credential for one shop role without committing to the full diploma or degree. The electrical program page names no licensing exam, so check North Carolina’s electrical licensing rules separately.
Tuition and how students pay
North Carolina sets community college tuition for the whole system. For 2026-27, residents pay $76 per credit and non-residents $268, with a cap at 16 credits a semester, according to the college’s 2026-27 catalog. The catalog lists general fees of $101.30 a semester (student activity, insurance, technology, campus access and student success fees) and a $5 ID badge each year.
| 2026-27 | NC residents | Non-residents |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition per credit | $76 | $268 |
| Tuition cap per semester (16+ credits) | $1,216 | $4,288 |
| General fees per semester | $101.30 | $101.30 |
| ID badge, per year | $5 | $5 |
| Full-time year (two 16-credit semesters), tuition and fees | About $2,640 | About $8,784 |
Other costs depend on the program: students in nursing, health information, cosmetology, early childhood and several other programs pay a $14.50 yearly liability insurance fee, the catalog estimates textbooks at $500 to $800 a semester, and students are enrolled in Cengage Unlimited e-textbook access ($210 a year) unless they opt out. College Navigator puts the 2023-24 average net price for full-time, first-time students on aid at $8,024.
McDowell Tech takes federal student aid. The EMS program points students to HEERF, SECU and GEER scholarships, and after Hurricane Helene in 2024 state-funded emergency tuition grants and scholarships helped McDowell Tech students, as the NC Governor’s office noted in June 2025.
Open admission, with limited-entry health and safety programs
McDowell Tech has open admission, but nursing (ADN and practical nursing), Emergency Medical Science and Basic Law Enforcement Training are limited-entry programs with their own application steps. The ADN starts once a year, in fall, with 24 seats. Practical Nursing runs fall to summer. EMS applicants must first earn a WorkKeys Gold Career Readiness Certificate.
Accreditation and results
McDowell Tech is accredited to award associate degrees by The Commission on Colleges and Universities, the name the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) has used since 1 September 2026. Its accreditation was last reaffirmed in 2021, and no public sanctions were found.
Two programs hold programmatic accreditation: the paramedic program from CAAHEP, and Health Information Technology from CAHIIM. The Associate Degree Nursing program was approved by the North Carolina Board of Nursing in 2022.
| Measure | Result | Period and source |
|---|---|---|
| Graduation rate | 48% within 150% of normal time | Full-time, first-time students who entered fall 2021; College Navigator |
| Transfer-out rate | 13% | Same cohort; College Navigator |
| Retention | 80% of full-time and 57% of part-time students returned | Fall 2023 to fall 2024; College Navigator |
| Paramedic program | 100% state exam pass rate, 100% positive placement, 87.5% retention | College’s 2024 CoAEMSP annual report, on its EMS program page |
The paramedic results are the college’s own. Paramedic classes are small: the college’s earlier outcome tables show 3 to 7 paramedic students tested per cohort, so one result moves the rate a lot.
The North Carolina Board of Nursing publishes NCLEX pass rates for both of the college’s nursing programs; check its latest report before you apply.
Before you enroll
- There is no plumbing program. Building Construction Technology includes one course, Basic Plumbing (PLU 115), but no plumbing credential.
- Cyber Crime Technology is a digital-forensics and cyber-crime investigation degree. Network security appears only as electives, so it is not a network-defense program.
- The Associate in Engineering is a transfer degree for students heading to a four-year engineering program; Applied Engineering Technology is the technician degree for going straight to work.
- Out-of-state students pay about 3.5 times the resident rate: $268 a credit against $76.
- Fewer than half of full-time, first-time students graduate within 150% of normal time (48% for the fall 2021 cohort), and most students attend part-time.
One campus in Marion, with workforce centers nearby
The Marion campus at 54 College Drive teaches essentially all credit programs, with machining, electrical and welding in the manufacturing center on the same road. The two main continuing-education sites, neither of which teaches credit programs, are the Old Fort Workforce Education Center in the Historic Rockett Building on Main Street in Old Fort, which opened in early 2025 after a delay caused by Hurricane Helene and teaches NCCER construction core, Certified Production Technician, OSHA-10, First Aid/CPR and trail development; and the Downtown Center at 35 South Main Street in Marion, which also houses an NCWorks/JobLink Career Center.
Career centers, and no student housing
The college has a Career Center on the Marion campus, and NCWorks/JobLink Career Centers at the Downtown Center and the Ford Miller Employment and Training Center on Baldwin Avenue help with job searches. McDowell Tech lists no student housing. Clinical placements are built into the nursing and EMS programs.
What students say
On Niche, McDowell Technical Community College is rated 3.7 out of 5 from 53 reviews, with an overall grade of B (checked 12 October 2026). Individual reviews praise supportive, engaged instructors, small classes and teachers who went beyond what was required. Complaints appear mostly in Niche’s own summary of the reviews: slow communication and less friendly treatment in the admissions and financial aid offices, and worries about student loans and the cost per credit. With 53 reviews posted over several years and covering the whole college, the sample is small, so treat it as a rough guide.
Facts checked October 2026.
Programs & Courses
Nursing and Health
- Associate Degree Nursing (RN)
- Associate Degree Nursing: Transition
- Practical Nursing Education (LPN)
- Nurse Aide
- Health Science: Therapeutic and Diagnostic Services (Nurse Aide diploma)
- Health Information Technology
- Medical Coding
- Medical Billing and Coding
- Healthcare Management Technology
- Healthcare Management Technology: Long-Term Care
- Associate in General Education: Nursing (transfer)
Emergency Services and Public Safety
- Emergency Medical Science: Paramedic (Associate)
- Emergency Medical Science Bridge
- Emergency Medical Science (EMT certificate)
- Basic Law Enforcement Training
- Public Safety Administration: Law Enforcement Services
- Public Safety Administration: Emergency and Fire Management Services
- Public Safety Administration: Correction Services
- Public Safety Administration: 911 Telecommunicator
- 911 Communications and Operations
- Cyber Crime Technology
Skilled Trades and Manufacturing
- Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Technology (HVAC)
- Automotive Systems Technology
- Building Construction Technology
- Computer Integrated Machining (incl. CNC Machine Operator)
- Electrical Systems Technology
- Welding Technology
- Applied Engineering Technology
- Mechatronics Engineering Technology
- General Occupational Technology
Business
- Accounting and Finance
- Business Administration (General, Marketing, Operations Management)
- Office Management (General Office, Office Finance, Office Software)
Information Technology
- IT: Information Systems
- IT: Software and Web Development
- IT: Web Administration and Design
Design and Media
- Graphic Design (incl. Social Media certificate)
- Photographic Technology (incl. Videography)
Cosmetology and Esthetics
- Cosmetology
- Esthetics Technology
- Manicurist/Nail Technology
- Cosmetology Instructor
- Esthetics Instructor
Education and Human Services
- Early Childhood Education
- Infant/Toddler Care
- Social and Human Services (incl. Addiction and Recovery)
University Transfer
- Associate in Arts
- Associate in Science
- Associate in Engineering
- Associate in General Education
Campus Locations
Marion, NC 54 College Drive, Marion, NC 28752