Amherst College
Amherst College Featured Rankings
- #1 Earth Sciences Liberal Arts Colleges
- #1 Small Colleges in Massachusetts
- #1 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Massachusetts 2022
- #2 Physics Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Chemistry Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 English Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Economics Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Political Science Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Computer Science Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Sociology Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Philosophy Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Religious Studies Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Math Liberal Arts Colleges
- #2 Liberal Arts Colleges for Biology Degrees
- #3 History Liberal Arts Colleges
- #3 Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Psychology Majors
- #3 Best Small Colleges 2025
- #3 Best Liberal Arts Colleges 2022
- #5 15 Colleges with the Happiest Freshmen
- #5 Anthropology Liberal Arts Colleges
- #5 Most Influential US Universities by State
- #6 Private Colleges in Massachusetts 2022
- #6 Best Colleges in Massachusetts
- #6 Political Science Colleges and Universities
- #7 Sociology Colleges and Universities
- #8 Psychology Colleges and Universities
- #8 Economics Colleges and Universities
- #9 Best Biology Colleges and Universities
- #29 Best Undergrad Private Colleges
- #33 Best Undergrad Colleges 2025
About Amherst College
Featured Alumnus
Joseph Stiglitz ranks among our Top Influential Legal Scholars Today.
Amherst College was founded in 1821. It is a four-year, liberal arts college with an enrollment of over 1,850 undergraduates.
Amherst offers some 850 courses in 36 different academic disciplines. Among the most popular programs are those in mathematics, in economics, and in psychology. Amherst does not offer online courses.
Amherst is associated with six Nobel laureates:
- Physics—Henry W. Kendall
- Physiology or medicine—Herman J. Muller, Harold Varmus, and Jeffrey C. Hall
- Economics—Joseph Stiglitz and Edmund Phelps
Other distinguished Amherst connected individuals include the following:
- Mathematician, Stephen C. Kleene
- Computer scientist, David S. Johnson
- Philosophers—F.J.E. Woodbridge, Barry Loewer, and William Lycan
- Poets—Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Archibald MacLeish, James Merrill, and Richard Wilbur
- Novelists, Chris Bohjalian and David Foster Wallace
- Genre authors—Scott Turow, Dan Brown, Harlan Coben, and Julie Powell
- Translators—Howell Chickering, Robert Fagles, David Ferry, Stephen Mitchell, and B. Alan Wallace
- Nonfiction author, Ted Coover
- Literary scholars, William H. Pritchard and Ilan Stavans
- Film director, David O. Russell
- Actors, Burgess Meredith, Jeffrey Wright, Rob Brown, Hamish Linklater, John Michael Higgins, Matt Besser, and Stephen Collins
- Comedian, Larry Miller
- Cartoonist, Bill Amend
- Stage magician, Teller (Raymond Joseph Teller)
- Musicologist, Philip Gossett
- Astronomers, Raymond Smith Dugan and Andrew Ingersoll
- Physicists, Arthur Zajonc and Henry Way Kendall
- Chemists, William Summer Johnson and Paul D. Bartlett
- Geneticist, David Suzuki
- Microbiologist and taxonomist, Carl R. Woese
- Botanist and agronomist, William Smith Clark
- Blood transfusion pioneer, Charles R. Drew
- Physician and bioethicist, Ezekiel Emanuel
- Architects, William Rutherford Mead and John S. Hagmann
- Historians—Preserved Smith, H. Stewart Hughes, Henry Steele Commager, Joseph M. Hall, Jr., and Perez Zagorin
- Indologist, Robert Thurman
- Psychologist, James Olds
- Political scientist and biographer, William Taubman
- Sociologist, Talcott Parsons
- Economist, John Bates Clark
- Minister and abolitionist, Henry Ward Beecher
- Librarian and Dewey Decimal System inventor, Melvil Dewey
- Frozen food pioneer, Clarence Birdseye
- Stockbroker and Merrill Lynch co-founder, Charles E. Merrill
- Legal scholars—James Boyd White, Lawrence Douglas, and Hadley Arkes
- Science journalist, Daniel Goleman
- Former US Supreme Court Chief Justice, Harlan F. Stone
- Former US Senator, Thomas Eagleton
- Current US Senator, Chris Coons
- Former Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreou
- Current Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta
- 30th US President, Calvin Coolidge
Amherst is regionally accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) (formerly known as the New England Association of Schools and Colleges [NEASC]).
According to Wikipedia, Amherst College is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher education in Massachusetts. The institution was named after the town, which in turn had been named after Jeffery, Lord Amherst, Commander-in-Chief of British forces of North America during the French and Indian War. Originally established as a men's college, Amherst became coeducational in 1975.
Amherst College's Online Degrees
Amherst College Admissions, Retention, and Graduation Information
| Annual Applications | Acceptance | Graduation Rate | Median SAT Score | Median ACT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14,864 | 7% | 92% | 1485 | 33 |
How Much Does Amherst College Cost To Attend?
| Tuition (in-state) |
|---|
| $64,100 |
| Income | Average Net Cost |
|---|---|
| 0 - 30K | $7,895 |
| 30K - 48K | $11,119 |
| 48K - 75K | $16,409 |
| 75K - 110K | $21,178 |
| 110K+ | $50,853 |
How Much Do Amherst College Graduates Make?
If you graduate from Amherst College, then you can expect to earn an average of $83,300 per year. You also have a 89% chance of being employed after 10 years.
Amherst College's Demographics
Demographic data is for full-time, on-campus students.
| Student Body | Under-Grads |
|---|---|
| 2,041 | 2,041 |
Where is Amherst College?
Amherst College is located at Boltwood Avenue, Amherst MA 01002-5000
How Safe is Amherst College?
Amherst College has a violent crime rate of less than .01% and a property crime rate of less than .01%. Amherst has a violent crime rate of less than .01% and a property crime rate of less than .01%.
What Is Amherst College Known For?
Amherst College is known for it's academic work in the following disciplines:
- Economics
- Literature
- Law
- Political Science
- Education
- Sociology
- Chemistry
- History
- Religious Studies
- Mathematics
- Computer Science
- Physics
- Philosophy
- Biology
- Psychology
- Anthropology
- Earth Sciences
Amherst College's Top Areas of Influence With Degrees Offered
Who Are Amherst College's Most Influential Alumni?
Amherst College's most influential alumni include professors and professionals in the fields of Sociology, Economics, and Literature. Here are some of Amherst College's most famous alumni:
- Joseph Stiglitz
- An American economist, professor, and recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics.
- Talcott Parsons
- An American sociologist.
- Stephen Cole Kleene
- An American mathematician and theoretical computer scientist.
- Carl Woese
- An American microbiologist.
- Daniel Goleman
- An American psychologist & journalist.
- John J. McCloy
- An American lawyer and banker .
- Edmund Phelps
- An American economist.
- John Bates Clark
- An American neoclassical economist .
- Henry Ward Beecher
- An American clergyman and activist .
- B. Alan Wallace
- An American author, translator, teacher, researcher, interpreter, and Buddhist practitioner.
- John C. Reynolds
- An American computer scientist .
- Dan Brown
- An American novelist. Dan Brown is author of The Da Vinci Code.
Who Are Amherst College's Most Influential Faculty?
Amherst College's most influential faculty include professors in the fields of Sociology, Economics, and Literature. Here are some of Amherst College's most famous alumni:
- Lawrence Douglas
- An American legal academic.
- Dan Chiasson
- An American writer.
- Alexander George
- An American philosopher.
- Philip Donoghue
- A British paleontologist.
- Koby Altman
- An American basketball executive.
- Amanda Folsom
- An American mathematician.
- Manuela Picq
- A Franco-Brazilian journalist.
- Alicja Gescinska
- A Philosopher.
- C. Josh Donlan
- An American ecologist.
- Richard Beaudoin
- An American composer.
