<p>Finding scientific research is not hard at UGA. It seems daunting, but all you really have to do is look through prof pages and look at their research then email them asking if they’re interested. You can do research for class credit or maybe they’ll let you in just on a volunteer basis. You can also find jobs in labs working as a lab tech. Speaking from experience, finding research at UGA really isn’t difficult. All I did was emailed the prof and asked if he was interested in supervising ‘independent research’ for a class and if he had any space. There are a few competitive labs, I’m sure, but you shouldn’t have a problem finding one that you like.</p>
<p>And about the third…There are separate graduating awards for Honors and nonHonors students, though honors student can get both. The honors program gives out their own honors (honors, high honors, highest honors) which require various levels of classes and projects. The university itself gives summa cum laude, magna cum laude, and cum laude purely based on overall GPA.</p>
<p>Undergrad research in general is highly encouraged at UGA and not just in the sciences; plenty of people get into the science labs of course (all kinds, from stem cells to cancer research to the complex carbohydrate lab to ecology) but there’s plenty of stuff outside of that. CURO helps coordinate and centralize this to some extent, but professors are very eager to work with undergrads if like jenmarie said you just contact them and ask (or they can point you to another professor). This can be especially helpful in conjunction with UGA Honors’ offerings of combined 4 yr BA/MA degrees. I know several Honors students who actually co-authored with professors while completing their BA/MA and then won NSF grants for their PhD programs. There’s a lot of administrative support for this too. </p>
<p>As has pretty much been established in this thread, Tech sounds like a fine institution for the kinds of specialized programs that it offers; if you’re not interested in those programs/want a better social scene/don’t like Atlanta, UGA is a viable alternative option. For Emory, on the other hand, you have to be willing to believe that the differences between it and the other schools are worth ponying up the $$. </p>
<p>While the average class at UGA is probably less “rigorous” than at the other institutions, there are plenty of challenging classes out there for students who seek them out. </p>
<p>FWIW, UGA and Emory have the same percentage of Pell Grant recipients: 14.1%. Tech has 12.5% (according to the 08-09 numbers that I could find).</p>
<p>Tech and UGA directly compete for a large pool of students (in-state students seeking a science-based education). Since Emory is private, it does not directly compete for these students any more than Rice or Duke does.</p>