Chartered as the Georgia Female College on December 23, 1836, Wesleyan was founded through the efforts of a group of Macon citizens and the Georgia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church as evidence of their concern for the education of women. The Reverend George Foster Pierce was elected president of the Georgia Female College in 1838, and the College opened its doors on January 7, 1839. Ninety young women were enrolled in our first session. More than 180 years later, Wesleyan continues to educate women to do the extraordinary in their professions and in service to their communities. With many celebrated Wesleyan Firsts and honorary degrees conferred by the College, Wesleyan continues the tradition of excellence. Wesleyan offers the Bachelor of Arts, the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degrees, as well as eight pre-professional programs - allied health, athletic trainer, dental, engineering (dual degree), law, medicine, pharmacy, seminary, and veterinary medicine. Wesleyan also offers women three accelerated online degree programs: business, accounting, and applied psychology. Wesleyan's five graduate programs enroll both men and women — Master of Business Administration, Master of Education in Elementary Education, Master of Arts in Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Master of Science in Nonprofit Management, and the Master of Music.