Throw a Starbucks cup in the Fairlie Poplar district of downtown Atlanta and you're likely to hit a book bag-carrying Georgia State University student. Round a corner in Midtown and you might run smack into a Georgia Tech kid on his way to class.

The Atlanta region ranks seventh among the nation's 50 largest metro areas in the number of college students, says a report released today by an Atlanta-based higher education consortium.

That is up seven spots from 1989, and Atlanta's enrollment rate is growing faster than that of any other major metro area with more than 100,000 students, according to the study commissioned by the Atlanta Region Council for Higher Education. It shows Atlanta has grown into a "national powerhouse" in the higher ed market, said Michael Gerber, the president of the council.

The report used data from 57 Georgia institutions, including the University of Georgia. Gerber said UGA was included because of its strong connection and sizable presence in the city.

Sam Williams, the head of the metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, called the report welcome news. "We're surprised that the growth has continued to accelerate. Atlanta really is a college town," he said.

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HOW WE RATE

Here's how Atlanta's colleges stack up against the nation's 50 largest metro areas:

> Seventh in college students enrolled (176,171 full-time equivalent students)

> Third in African-American students (47,548 full-time equivalent students.)

> Seventh in degrees awarded (35,802 bachelor's degrees and higher, per year.)

> Fifth in spending on university research ($1.01 billion in higher ed research, expenditures.)