More University of Georgia education graduates take jobs in state

More teachers graduating from the University of Georgia are getting jobs in the state.

Among UGA’s 2014 graduates with a teacher-preparation degree, 62 percent, or 325 graduates, were hired by a Georgia city or county school district. The in-state hiring rate is an increase of 11 percentage points from the previous year, when about 51 percent of new UGA teacher graduates took jobs in Georgia schools, according to a report from the College of Education’s student services office at UGA.

UGA officials credit the increase to the improving economy and new school construction. About 45 new schools have been built in the state since 2013, particularly in high-growth areas such as Gwinnett and Forsyth counties.

UGA College of Education enrolls about 4,300 graduate and undergraduate students each year. The majority of the college’s more than 1,200 education graduates were employed after graduation in 2014, with about 72 percent working full time.

Data on 2015 graduates will be released next spring.