The Mission of the University of Georgia
The University of Georgia, a land-grant and sea-grant university
with state-wide commitments and responsibilities, is the state's
flagship institution of higher education. It is also the state's
oldest, most comprehensive, and most diversified institution of
higher education. Its motto, "to teach, to serve, and to inquire
into the nature of things," reflects the University's integral and
unique role in the conservation and enhancement of the state's and
nation's intellectual, cultural, and environmental heritage.
The University of Georgia shares with the other research
universities of the University System of Georgia the following core
characteristics:
- a statewide responsibility and commitment to excellence and
academic achievements having national and international recognition;
- a commitment to excellence in a teaching/learning environment
dedicated to serve a diverse and well-prepared student body, to
promote high levels of student achievement, and to provide
appropriate academic support services;
- a commitment to excellence in research, scholarship, and
creative endeavors that are focused on organized programs to create,
maintain, and apply new knowledge and theories; that promote
instructional quality and effectiveness; and that enhance
institutionally relevant faculty qualifications;
- a commitment to excellence in public service, economic
development, and technical assistance activities designed to address
the strategic needs of the State of Georgia along with a
comprehensive offering of continuing education designed to meet the
needs of Georgia's citizens in life-long learning and professional
education;
- a wide range of academic and professional programming at the
baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral levels.
With its statewide mission and core characteristics, the University
of Georgia endeavors to prepare the University community and the
state for full participation in the global society of the twenty-
first century. Through its programs and practices, it seeks to
foster the understanding of and respect for cultural differences
necessary for an enlightened and educated citizenry. It further
provides for cultural, ethnic, gender, and racial diversity in the
faculty, staff, and student body. The University is committed to
preparing the University community to appreciate the critical
importance of a quality environment to an interdependent global
society.
As a comprehensive land-grant and sea-grant institution, the
University of Georgia offers baccalaureate, master's, doctoral and
professional degrees in the arts, humanities, social sciences,
biological sciences, physical sciences, agricultural and
environmental sciences, business, environmental design, family and
consumer sciences, forest resources, journalism and mass
communication, education, law, pharmacy, social work, and veterinary
medicine.
The University attracts students nationally and internationally as
well as from within Georgia. It offers the state's broadest array of
possibilities in graduate and professional education, and thus a
large minority of the student body is post-baccalaureate. The
predominantly Georgian undergraduate student body is a mix of highly
qualified students originally admitted as freshmen and selected
transfer students principally from other University System
institutions.
With original scholarship, basic and applied research, and creative
activities constituting an essential core from which to draw, the
impact of the land-grant and sea-grant mission is reflected
throughout the state. Cooperative extension, continuing education,
public service, experiment stations, and technology transfer are all
designed to enhance the well-being of the citizens of Georgia
through their roles in economic, social, and community development.
As it has been historically, the University of Georgia is responsive
to the evolution of the state's educational, social, and economic
needs. It aspires through its strategic planning to even closer
contact and interaction with public and private institutions
throughout the state as well as with the citizens it serves.