February 24, 2022
by Jere W. Morehead, President
As demand for a UGA education has grown, so has the quality of our student body. Every year, undergraduate students enter the University of Georgia with more impressive credentials than the year before. They seek rigorous courses that will challenge them, renowned faculty who will mentor them, and opportunities to make a difference.
UGA continues to enhance our world-class learning environment to provide innovative education that helps students achieve their goals. The experiential learning requirement now ensures that every student benefits from a high-impact learning experience outside of the classroom—whether through research, internships, study abroad, service-learning, or entrepreneurship—and has made UGA a national leader in undergraduate education. Smaller class sizes; greater emphasis on writing, data literacy, and active learning; and programs such as Double Dawgs—which offers more than 250 pathways for students to earn both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in five years or less—also are preparing our students for success. And state-of-the-art facilities, from the Business Learning Community to the Science Learning Center, provide students with modern spaces for instruction and collaboration.
Beginning in their first semester on campus, UGA students assist faculty with research to solve the grand challenges of our time, from COVID-19 to human trafficking. They transform their ideas into business ventures and artistic endeavors. They travel the globe, building relationships and bridging cultures. They lead organizations that raise millions of dollars to support children’s health and other efforts to improve our quality of life. Over the past two years alone, our students have been selected for the Rhodes Scholarship (UGA’s 25th), Gates Cambridge, Churchill, Schwarzman, Udall, Goldwater, Knight-Hennessy, Boren, Fulbright, and many other highly competitive awards.
I am inspired every day by the accomplishments of UGA’s extraordinary undergraduates. The positive impact they make gives me great hope for a bright future for our state, nation, and world.