The University System of Georgia, a part of the community in each of Georgia’s 159 counties, provides services across the state. The University System is composed of 35 higher education institutions including 4 research universities, 2 regional universities, 13 state colleges and universities, 8 state colleges, 8 two-year colleges as well as the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography. The Georgia Public Library System, encompassing approximately 389 facilities in 61 library systems throughout Georgia, is also part of the University System.

System institutions conferred a total of 47,615 degrees in Fiscal Year 2008 consisting of 28,247 bachelor’s, 8,605 master’s and 1,243 doctorate degrees.

The majority of baccalaureate-level degrees in the USG are awarded in the fields of business, education and nursing.

Georgia is one of four states with two or more institutions ranked among the top 20 public national universities in the 2008 edition of U.S. News and World Report’s college rankings. Georgia Tech is No. 7 on the list, and the University of Georgia is tied for No. 20.

Georgia residents can attend two of the nation’s Top 20 public universities, Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia, for just $7,284 a year (three semesters) in tuition.

The University System of Georgia enrolled a record of approximately 302,000 students for the Fall of 2009.

For recent University System of Georgia graduates, a college degree is worth an average of $14,000 a year more than a high-school graduate can expect to make. Over the course of a working career, the average graduate of a public college or university in Georgia can expect to earn nearly $1 million more than a high-school-educated neighbor.

In the fall of 2008, the University System employed more than 40,200 faculty and staff.

An economic impact study conducted in 2008 determined that Georgia’s public colleges and universities generated more than 106,000 jobs throughout the state and infused $11 billion into Georgia’s economy during Fiscal Year 2007.

The 3,536 ICAPP graduates produced by the USG between 1996 and 2005 generated a total of 6,168 jobs in Georgia by 2006 and will generate 6,861 jobs by 2035.

More than 2,000 Georgians will become licensed health professionals (registered nurses, pharmacists, medical technologists, imaging professionals) through the first three phases of the ICAPP Health Professionals Initiative.

The System’s budget as a percentage of the total state budget is 12.1 percent in FY09.

The System owns 3,224 buildings and facilities, more than one-fourth of the State’s buildings and the largest number of any State agency. These facilities contain 77.8 million gross square feet and have a value of more than $6.2 billion.