At its founding, The University of Georgia made history as the first public, state-supported college in America. These days, the school is known for its vibrant student community. UGAs college town of Athens was rated among the best college towns in the country by U.S. News, and the competitive Bulldogs sports teams compete in the NCAA Division I Southeastern Conference. There are more than 700 student clubs and organizations, including more than 60 Greek chapters that involve around 25% of UGA students. Community service is a particularly big focus, with student-run philanthropies such as UGA Miracle, a yearlong fundraiser and 24-hour Dance Marathon for Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta. First-year students must live on campus, but Atlanta is 60 miles away for those itching for a road trip.The University of Georgia has renowned graduate programs in its College of Education and Law School. As both a land and sea grant university, UGA is active in research and promotion of agricultural and sea-based programs. One unique offering at UGA is the Eugene P. Odum School of Ecology, the first school of its kind when it was launched in 2007. Notable alumni of UGA include U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, Food Network personality Alton Brown and AFLAC CEO Dan Amos.

The University of Illinois is located in the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign in east-central Illinois, only a few hours from Chicago, Indianapolis and St. Louis. The schools Fighting Illini participate in more than 20 NCAA Division I varsity sports and are part of the Big Ten Conference. The university boasts one of the largest Greek systems in the country, and almost a quarter of the student body is involved. Its not hard to find something to do on campus with more than 1,600 student organizations,including professional, political and philanthropic clubs. All freshmen are required to live on campus.The University of IllinoisUrbana-Champaign comprises 15 colleges and schools. Its School of Information Sciences, College of Engineeringand Department of Psychologyare among the best in the country. The schools College of Business, College of Educationand College of Laware also highly ranked. The University of Illinois is considered a school with the highest level of research activity, according to the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. It was the first school to provide disability access to all university services, curricula and facilities. Notable alumni include Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic Roger Ebert and the co-founder of YouTube, Steve Chen.