Georgia College and State University

From its founding as a women’s educational center in 1889, our institution has consistently been a destination for students looking to make a difference in the world. We are Georgia’s designated public liberal arts university. More importantly, we teach every student how to learn; and we strive to instill a lifelong passion for learning that serves our students well regardless of the career paths they choose. Georgia College is located in Milledgeville, a charming, traditional southern town less than a two-hour drive from Atlanta.

Georgia College was chartered in 1889 as Georgia Normal and Industrial College. Its emphasis at the time was largely vocational, and its major task was to prepare young women for teaching or industrial careers. In 1917, in keeping with economic and cultural changes in the state, Georgia Normal and Industrial College was authorized to grant degrees, the first of which was awarded in 1921. In 1922, the institution's name was changed to Georgia State College for Women. The university has been a unit of the University System of Georgia since the system's founding in 1932. The name was changed to Woman's College of Georgia in 1961, and, when the institution became coeducational in 1967, it became Georgia College at Milledgeville. The name was shortened to Georgia College in 1971. In August 1996, the Board of Regents approved a change of name to Georgia College & State University, and a new mission as Georgia's Public Liberal Arts University.