Georgia Tech Army ROTC Collection

The Georgia Tech Army ROTC began in 1917 with two authorized units, the Infantry and Coast Artillery. Two years later, a Signal Corp was established, and Air Service, Motor Transport, and Ordnance units were added by 1921. As of 2009, more than 7,000 lieutenants have received their commission from the Yellow Jacket Battalion. Georgia Tech serves as the headquarters and host institution for the Atlanta area. Students from Emory University, Agnes Scott College, Kennesaw State University, Southern Polytechnic State University, and DeVry University are able to enroll in the Georgia Tech ROTC. Georgia Tech alumni have served in all American campaigns since World War II.

Shortly after the founding of the ROTC in 1916 and its establishment at Georgia Tech, ROTC was replaced by the Student Army Training Corps. After World War I, in January 1919, ROTC was reorganized at Tech. At that time the first two years of ROTC were compulsory for all freshmen and sophomores who were deemed to be physically fit. In the early 1920s, Georgia Tech had six units in operation, two more than any other institution in the country. In 1921 over 300 students from Tech attended one of the six-week summer camps that were then operated by the War Department. In the summer of 1922 the Signal Corps and Motor Transport Camp was held at Georgia Tech.

During World War II, the Army Specialized Training Program replaced ROTC. By the summer of 1943 there were 1,000 trainees in the ASTP program and 1,050 Navy V-12 trainees. The ASTP trainees were required to have four hours of military study and one hour of drill every week, in addition to physical training. The War Department discontinued the ASTP program in March 1944. Most of the students in ASTP went to serve overseas right after this date. Georgia Tech's advanced ROTC program was the first in the nation to be reactivated, in October 1945.

In the postwar era, several changes occurred in the ROTC program. The first two women cadets enrolled in the air force program in the fall of 1954. Compulsory ROTC ceased in March 1965, and after that the program became gradually less popular. Enrollment in the Air Force ROTC dropped to 185 in 1972, but later regained some of its former popularity.

In 2009, the Army ROTC is an elective course. The Basic Course includes Army history, organization and structure. The Advanced Course offers training in tactical operations and military instruction, management, leadership, and command.