Advanced Academy of Georgia

The Advanced Academy of Georgia is a residential early college entrance program at the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, Georgia. It was established by Dr. Beheruz Sethna in the 1995–1996 academic year.

Academics
The Advanced Academy does not focus on a specific discipline, and therefore requires a minimum GPA, minimum SAT and ACT scores, and that its applicants be on the College Preparatory track. The program traditionally accepts students during their sophomore and junior years, though younger students considered to be exceptionally gifted have been accepted in the past.

While enrolled, students are free to pursue whatever discipline they want, provided they meet the credit requirements for graduation at their high-school. This often means that in-state students must take two classes to fulfill each required high-school credit, as the Georgia State Board of Education regards 3 credit hours as being worth .6 Carnegie Units. However, most students are able to not only meet these requirements, but often earn additional credit hours, if not graduate from high-school a year earlier than their peers.

Student Life
Students are housed in Gunn Hall, a dorm on the south-eastern corner of campus designated for Academy and honors students. The first floor is designated for honors students who choose to live there, and the second and third floors are designated for Academy students.

Since the students are housed together, they often form strong relationships during their time in the program. The administration of the program encourages this sense of community, providing (and enforcing) activities such as Thursday Night Dinner, at which guests come and speak to the students of the Academy on a variety of subjects, and regular events in Gunn Hall and around the campus specifically for the Academy students.

The Decathlon is a very significant event in the academic year of the Advanced Academy for many students, in which the second and third floors of Gunn Hall compete against each other in many different events, including sports, board games, a scavenger hunt, and an engineering contest, known as the "Challenge." The Decathlon tends to inspire a great deal of camaraderie among the residents of a floor, while creating a great deal of competition between the floors as a whole. The Decathlon generally takes place on the weekend preceding Martin Luther King Day in January.