by A. M. Gilbert

Created on: July 19, 2010

The University System of Georgia encompasses 35 public, state-funded schools located throughout the state. All of the schools in the system allow students access to the state HOPE Scholarship, which subsidizes costs for in-state students. As it happens, three of the largest of these universities are also the best known, and two of them are ranked within the top tier of national universities by US News. These schools all have unique attractions for students.

The University of Georgia - Athens

UGA is the largest university in the system with an enrollment just short of 35,000 students. Founded in 1785, UGA is one of the oldest public universities in America and has established a long tradition of excellence; its 2010 US News ranking is a solid 58.

The university is noted for having one of the nation's top journalism programs and annually hosts the ceremony for Peabody Awards, given for excellence in broadcasting.

UGA is additionally one of the top 5 public universities in its number of students studying abroad. Opportunities worldwide allow for diverse experiences for students.

Georgia State University

Georgia State is the second biggest school in the system; its enrollment tops 30,000. GSU is known in-state as a solid school for those looking for a challenging academic experience without the complete rigor of UGA or Georgia Tech and many students transfer to one of the other schools after a year or two at Georgia State.

GSU is located in downtown Atlanta, and the university is deeply connected to the city's art scene.

The Robinson College of Business has many notable alumni, including CEOs of Hershey Foods and Bank of America. GSU is also one of the four research universities in the state system.

Georgia Institute of Technology

Also located in Atlanta, Georgia Tech is the fourth largest of the state's public schools, with an enrollment of just over 20,000. US News ranked the university #35 for national universities; #7 for public ones; #4 in undergraduate engineering; and #4 and graduate engineering. Tech also has top programs in Chemistry, Mathematics, and other disciplines in science and technology. Tech is very research intensive, as can be expected from such a technology-focused faculty and campus.

Tech's housing features a former Olympic village that was built for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. The entire campus has high speed wireless internet; according to the tour guides, at least, once students use the wi-fi at Tech, every other connection is entirely too slow. It's rumored that their library network is faster than the Pentagon's!

GT has an expanding liberal arts population thanks to the Ivan Allen College, which offers degrees in, among other programs, International Affairs, Modern Languages, History, Technology, and Society. Tech also has a large Model United Nations program and a forensics team. Greek Life constitutes a large part of the social atmosphere at the university.

Summary

UGA, GSU, and GT all offer unique, well-rated options in Georgia's public university system. Other options include: the Medical College of Georgia, Valdosta State University (I know someone from the area, who says the theme park is a big attraction), and Kennesaw State University (the third largest in the system, with 22,000 students). More information about all of these universities can be found on their respective websites.

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