page_title: Atlanta
section_title: Tertiary education
hierarchical_section_title: Atlanta / Education / Tertiary education
caption_attribution_description: English: Tech Tower
context_page_description: Atlanta is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. With an estimated 2019 population of 506,811, it is also the 37th most populous city in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, home to more than 6 million people and the ninth-largest metropolitan area in the nation. Atlanta is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia. Portions of the city extend eastward into neighboring DeKalb County. The city is situated among the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and has one of the highest elevations among major cities east of the Mississippi River.
  Atlanta was originally founded as the terminus of a major state-sponsored railroad. With rapid expansion, however, it soon became the convergence point among multiple railroads, spurring its rapid growth. The city's name derives from that of the Western and Atlantic Railroad's local depot, signifying the town's growing reputation as a transportation hub. During the American Civil War, the city was almost entirely burned to the ground in General William T. Sherman's famous March to the Sea.
context_section_description: Due to more than 15 colleges and universities in Atlanta, it is considered one of the nation's largest hubs for higher education.
  The Georgia Institute of Technology is a prominent public research university in Midtown. It offers highly ranked degree programs in engineering, design, industrial management, the sciences, and architecture.
  The University of Georgia, chartered in 1785, is one of the top public research universities in the nation with "Highest Research Activity" and based about an hour away in Athens; however, the Atlanta Center of its Terry College of Business is in the Buckhead area of Atlanta and the university has a metropolitan Atlanta Gwinnett Campus that occupies 60,000 square feet of the Intellicenter.
  Georgia State University is a major public research university in Downtown Atlanta; it is the largest of the 29 public colleges and universities in the University System of Georgia and is a significant contributor to the revitalization of the city's central business district.
  Atlanta is home to nationally renowned private colleges and universities, most notably Emory University, a leading liberal arts and research institution that operates Emory Healthcare, the largest health care system in Georgia. The City of Atlanta annexed Emory into its territory effective January 1, 2018.
  The Atlanta University Center is also in the city; it is the largest contiguous consortium of historically black colleges in the nation, comprising Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Morehouse School of Medicine. Atlanta contains a campus of the Savannah College of Art and Design, a private art and design university that has proven to be a major factor in the recent growth of Atlanta's visual art community. Atlanta and nearby Athens also boast American Bar Association accredited law schools: Atlanta's John Marshall Law School, Emory University School of Law, Georgia State University College of Law and University of Georgia School of Law.
  The Atlanta Regional Council of Higher Education (ARCHE) is dedicated to strengthening synergy among 19 public and private colleges and universities in the Atlanta region. Participating Atlanta region colleges and universities partner on joint-degree programs, cross-registration, library services, and cultural events.
caption: Tech Tower on the Georgia Tech campus
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