Hampshire College
Hampshire College at a Glance
Reviewed by James A. Barham, PhD, Vice President and Academic Editor. Influence ranks come from our InfluenceRanking™ methodology; other figures come from federal data, with the year shown under each section. Report an error
Hampshire College Featured Rankings
- #4 Best Colleges and Universities by Academic Stewardship
- #7 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Massachusetts 2026
- #8 Small Colleges in Massachusetts
- #15 Private Colleges in Massachusetts 2026
- #16 Best Colleges in Massachusetts
- #31 Best Small Colleges 2026
- #34 Best Liberal Arts Colleges 2026
- #48 Best Undergrad Colleges 2026
- #48 Best Undergrad Private Colleges
About Hampshire College
According to Wikipedia, Hampshire College is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1970 as an experiment in alternative education, in association with four other colleges in the Pioneer Valley: Amherst College, Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Together they are known as the Five College Consortium. The campus also houses the National Yiddish Book Center and Eric Carle Museum, and hosts the annual Hampshire College Summer Studies in Mathematics.
Hampshire College Admissions, Retention, and Graduation Information
| Annual Applications | Acceptance | Retention Rate | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2,216 | 75% | 78% | 58% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and NCES); acceptance rate for fall 2024; test scores for fall 2024; applications and enrollment for fall 2023; retention for students who started in fall 2023; graduation rate within six years for students who started in 2019.
How Much Does Hampshire College Cost To Attend?
| Tuition and fees (in-state) |
|---|
| $61,124 |
| Income | Average Net Cost |
|---|---|
| 0 - 30K | $13,749 |
| 30K - 48K | $15,251 |
| 48K - 75K | $18,165 |
| 75K - 110K | $25,447 |
| 110K+ | $37,221 |
Source: U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and NCES); tuition and fees for 2025–26; net price for 2023–24, for first-time, full-time students receiving financial aid.
How Much Do Hampshire College Graduates Make?
Ten years after starting college, former Hampshire College students who received federal financial aid earn a median of $47,422 a year, and 91% of those not still in school are working.
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard; students who started college in 2011–12 or 2012–13, measured in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars.
Hampshire College's Demographics
Students enrolled at any time during the 2023–24 school year, including part-time and online students.
| Student Body | Under-Grads |
|---|---|
| 771 | 771 |
Source: National Center for Education Statistics; 12-month enrollment for 2023–24.
Where is Hampshire College?
Hampshire College is located at 893 West St, Amherst, MA 01002-5001.
How Safe is Hampshire College?
No violent or property offenses were reported on Hampshire College’s campus in 2024. Its figures can also be looked up in the U.S. Department of Education’s Campus Safety and Security database.
Relative to its enrollment, Hampshire College has a violent crime rate of less than 0.01% and a property crime rate of less than 0.01%. Amherst has a violent crime rate of 0.16% and a property (including theft) crime rate of 0.32%. Sources: campus: U.S. Department of Education Campus Safety and Security data, on-campus offenses in 2024 (violent: murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property: burglary, motor vehicle theft and arson, which excludes ordinary theft); city: FBI Crime Data Explorer, offenses reported to the city police in 2024.
What Is Hampshire College Known For?
Hampshire College is known for its academic work in the following disciplines:
- Literature
- Physics
- Computer Science
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Anthropology
- Mathematics
- Communications
- History
- Political Science
- Biology
- Philosophy
- Education
- Economics
- Law
- Chemistry
- Earth Sciences
- Medical
- Religious Studies
Hampshire College's Top Areas of Influence With Degrees Offered
Each rank compares how much Hampshire College's faculty and alumni have shaped a field with other schools, using Wikipedia, Wikidata and scholarly citation databases such as Crossref and Semantic Scholar. World and U.S. ranks reflect modern influence; the historical rank counts influence across all time. How we rank influence
Hampshire College ranks #118 in the U.S. and #319 worldwide for influence in Literature.
literature DegreesHampshire College ranks #127 in the U.S. and #504 worldwide for influence in Physics.
physics DegreesHampshire College ranks #132 in the U.S. and #478 worldwide for influence in Computer Science.
computer-science DegreesHampshire College ranks #146 in the U.S. and #331 worldwide for influence in Psychology.
psychology DegreesHampshire College ranks #155 in the U.S. and #563 worldwide for influence in Sociology.
sociology DegreesHampshire College ranks #160 in the U.S. and #480 worldwide for influence in Anthropology.
anthropology DegreesHampshire College ranks #188 in the U.S. and #749 worldwide for influence in Mathematics.
math DegreesHampshire College ranks #195 in the U.S. and #665 worldwide for influence in Communications.
communications DegreesHampshire College ranks #261 in the U.S. and #741 worldwide for influence in History.
history DegreesHampshire College ranks #278 in the U.S. and #1110 worldwide for influence in Political Science.
political-science DegreesHampshire College ranks #278 in the U.S. and #1084 worldwide for influence in Biology.
biology DegreesHampshire College ranks #280 in the U.S. and #923 worldwide for influence in Philosophy.
philosophy DegreesHampshire College ranks #281 in the U.S. and #1152 worldwide for influence in Education.
education DegreesHampshire College ranks #299 in the U.S. and #1655 worldwide for influence in Economics.
economics DegreesHampshire College ranks #398 in the U.S. and #1367 worldwide for influence in Law.
Hampshire College ranks #473 in the U.S. and #2338 worldwide for influence in Chemistry.
chemistry DegreesHampshire College ranks #558 in the U.S. and #2271 worldwide for influence in Earth Sciences.
earth-science DegreesHampshire College ranks #608 in the U.S. and #2238 worldwide for influence in Medical.
medicine DegreesHampshire College ranks #923 in the U.S. and #4317 worldwide for influence in Religious Studies.
religious-studies-hub DegreesWho Are Hampshire College's Most Influential Alumni?
Hampshire College's most influential alumni include professors and professionals in the fields of Psychology, Literature, and Computer Science. Here are some of Hampshire College's most famous alumni:
- Lee Smolin
- An American theoretical physicist .
- Gary Marcus
- An American psycholinguist.
- Jon Krakauer
- An American writer and journalist.
- Alan Edelman
- An American mathematician and computer scientist.
- Ken Burns
- An American documentary filmmaker.
- David Shulkin
- A 9th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
- Tom Hull
- An American mathematician.
- Naomi Wallace
- An American playwright.
- George Bonanno
- An American psychologist.
- Benjamin Mako Hill
- A Debian hacker, intellectual property researcher, activist and author.
- Ellis Henican
- An American political analyst.
- Heather Boushey
- An American economist.
