Georgia Tech diplomas collection

The first two graduates of the Georgia School of Technology, George C. Crawford and Henry L. Smith, finished their degrees in 1890. Eight students graduated in the following year, eighteen in 1892, eleven in 1893, nine in 1894, and twelve in 1895. All of these early graduates received degrees in Mechanical Engineering. Printed programs for Commencement Day ceremonies appeared in the Georgia Tech Bulletin beginning with the program for June 1895. Commencement ceremonies were traditionally held in June.

By the 1904-1905 academic year, enrollment had increased to 511 students, and with the increased enrollment came an increase in the number of graduations. Thirty-one students graduated in 1905, with degrees in Mechanical Engineering, Textile Engineering, Engineering Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, or Civil Engineering. Another growth period occurred during the first twenty years of the twentieth century, so that by October 1920, the student body numbered more than 2,400. A total of 126 students graduated that year, including thirty-six in Electrical Engineering, thirty-seven in Mechanical Engineering, nineteen in Civil Engineering, fourteen in Textile Engineering, six in Architecture, seven in Chemistry, four in Commerce, and three in the Co-op program. Women students were allowed to enroll in the evening School of Commerce beginning in 1917. The first woman graduate, Anna Teitelbaum Wise, graduated in 1919.

Following World War II the number of full-time students had increased to 5,000. After some declines in enrollment in the late 1960s and early 1970s, increases occurred again, reaching 11,393 students in 1982. By 2001, the total number of graduate and undergraduate students had reached 15,576. Georgia Tech awarded 2,035 bachelor's degrees, 1,080 master's degrees, and 255 doctorates in that year.

Sources: Georgia Tech Announcements, Engineering the New South, Georgia Tech Fact Book 2001.