The North Carolina College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts was founded as the state's land-grant institution in 1887, and formally opened its doors two years later. In 1917, the school was renamed the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering, reflecting its broadened instructional and research activities. The college's extension program was established in 1914, and a major reorganization of the institution occurred in 1923, with the creation of schools over its fields of study.

In 1932, "State College," as it was known, greatly reworked its curricula upon becoming part of the Consolidated University of North Carolina (later the University of North Carolina System). Undergoing unparalleled growth in size and academic programs after the Second World War, the school took on a new designation appropriate to its degree-granting and research status in 1963, when it was restyled North Carolina State of the University of North Carolina at Raleigh. Two years later, the institution was renamed North Carolina State University (officially the North Carolina State University at Raleigh).

In another key administrative change, the university's schools were redesignated colleges in 1987. That same year saw the ground breaking of the institution's Centennial Campus, a major center of academic, corporate, and governmental research. By 2007, N.C. State had a student body of over 31,000 and a faculty of nearly 2,000.

For more online information, see a Brief History of North Carolina State University and Historical Sketch of North Carolina State University.