The Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC), formerly the National Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (NCEC), was founded in 1996. The intent of the organization is to provide a coordinated vehicle through which participating members can collaborate and communicate on the specific issues and challenges confronting university-based entrepreneurship centers.

The GCEC current membership totals 200 university based entrepreneurship centers ranging in age from well established and nationally ranked to new and emerging centers. Each year a global conference is held on the campus of an GCEC member school. In past years the host universities have included: University of Maryland, University of Southern California, Ball State University, Wake Forest University, Babson College, Texas Christian University, University of Portland, University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill, the collaborative Midwest effort of Northern Kentucky University, University of Cincinnati, and University of Dayton, Syracuse University, and University of Arizona. The conference, which is held in October of each year, continues to be the major focal point for the organization.