North Carolina Certified Economic Developer (NCCED) Program

Course Description
Offered in partnership with the North Carolina Economic Development Association (NCEDA), the certification program provides practical knowledge concerning the practice of economic development in North Carolina to economic development personnel, elected officials, business leaders and others interested in the field.

All are welcome to take NCCED modules, though only economic development practitioners are eligible to complete the Capstone and become certified. Economic development practitioners are defined as those working in a local, regional, or state economic development organization, a utility provider who works in the company’s economic development division or resource providers whose jobs have at least a 75% focus on economic development. Please contact NCEDA directly liz@nceda.org with any questions regarding certification eligibility.

• Complete all coursework and the Capstone project
• Must be a NCEDA Member
• Must be a practicing Economic Developer
• If you plan to seek certification, you must have two consecutive years of practicing experience; years of experience as a practitioner can be served while completing the NCCED coursework
• Participants have 5 years to complete the program from the first course to completion of the Capstone and certification.

Format

• Most modules will be hosted on ECU’s campus in the Willis Building Auditorium located at 300 E. 1st Street in Greenville, NC.
• IEDC Basic Economic Development Course offered at the UNC School of Government https://www.sog.unc.edu/courses/basic-economic-development

Schedule

Course Schedule 2026

Course Schedule 2027

FAQs

• Estimated Program Costs
• The 6 core modules and the Capstone module are $445 per module.
• Please contact UNC School of Government for the IEDC Basic Course cost, estimated cost $750.
• Please remember to budget for travel expenses, which are not included in module cost, as needed for participation.
• One must be a member of the North Carolina Economic Developer Association to become certified. We recommend including the NCEDA Membership and Annual Conference in your budget. The certification announcement and recognition is shared at the annual conference in June.
• You may start the module work at any time:
• Each course is offered once per year.
• All modules must be completed before you are eligible to take the Capstone Project, which is offered annually.
• Capstone Project applications are accepted in December and the course begins in January.
• Most of the modules are offered on ECU Campus.
• The Basic Course is offered by and held at UNC School of Government.