Twin Counties residents seeking a degree in higher education don’t have to look far. Whether choosing between two community colleges or the community’s four-year institution, N.C. Wesleyan College, aspiring students have access to quality education without having to leave home.

More than 10,000 students throughout Eastern North Carolina and beyond have received their diplomas from N.C. Wesleyan College.

The private, co-educational liberal arts college has a population of approximately 1,500 students and is located at 3400 N. Wesleyan Blvd.

The college offers need-based and performance-based awards, scholarships and generous financial aid packages. Small class sizes are a strength of N.C. Wesleyan, where qualified and caring professors provide academic support to students one-on-one.

Approximately 700 traditional students are enrolled at the college, with 450 students living in dormitories on campus.

N.C. Wesleyan offers 22 degree majors as well as minors and numerous co-curricular and extra-curricular clubs and activities. The college’s student population is diverse and includes exchange students from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America.

N.C. Wesleyan also fields men and women’s sports teams that compete in NCAA Division III.

The college recently added master’s degrees in both elementary education and business administration and features evening and weekend classes for working adults.

Nash Community College, located at 522 N. Old Carriage Road, is a public, two-year, post-secondary educational institution serving approximately 13,000 students each year and has a current enrollment of 3,342 students.

The community college’s mission is to provide an affordable educational environment which prepares students for college transfer and rewarding careers.

Through high quality instruction, technology, workforce development and community partnerships, Nash Community College provides lifelong learning opportunities to individuals, communities and organizations.

College transfer programs, including associate in arts, science and general education degrees account for 22 percent of Nash Community College’s enrollment, and 84 percent of students in an associate in arts or science degree programs who transfer to University of North Carolina senior institutions have a grade point average of more than 2.0 after two semesters at their chosen university.

Edgecombe Community College is composed of two campuses, one in Rocky Mount at 225 Tarboro St. and the main, 120-acre campus at 2009 W. Wilson St. in Tarboro.

Edgecombe Community College serves approximately 13,000 students every year, and in 2009 experienced the largest increase of any community college in the state.

The college has continued to see more and more students enroll each year, earning the fifth highest growth in the nation among public two-year colleges of its size by Community College Week.

Edgecombe Community College offers more than 90 curriculum programs resulting in two-year degrees, one-year diplomas or certificates. The college’s College Transfer program enables students to take courses that parallel those required during the first two years of study at four-year institutions.

The college is Edgecombe County’s major provider of workforce training and retraining, and 81 percent of the 439 graduates in May 2011 received Career Readiness certificates from the nationally recognized job skills assessment program which provides students with indisputable credits when applying for jobs with prospective employers.