Academics at UMass Amherst
Declare Your Intellectual Independence
Academically, UMass Amherst is the place for you if you want a broad array of majors and classes to explore, faculty who are the best in their fields, the opportunity to dive into high-level research as an undergraduate, and significant academic support to keep your ambition fueled.
Once you choose UMass Amherst, the faculty and staff will strive to ensure that you graduate with a breadth and depth of understanding, with a mind open to the imaginative and the creative, shaped by the disciplines of scholarship and research, and with a high degree of confidence in yourself. UMass Amherst backs-up that promise with an impressive collection of learning resources.
The most important resource at UMass Amherst is the quality of the people here—their intelligence, curiosity, and diversity, and their ability to make education exciting and fulfilling.
Academic Scope: UMass Amherst offers nearly 90 undergraduate majors residing in 10 schools and colleges. You may also round out your major with a minor or a certificate program such as Culture, Health, and Science, Criminal Justice, or Film Studies. Or, you could design your own major through the Bachelor's Degree with Individual Concentration (BDIC), or for non-traditional students with significant life and work experience, though the University Without Walls (UWW).
Research Opportunities: UMass Amherst is a world center for research in such vital areas as polymer science, artificial intelligence, microwave engineering, and the life sciences, with supported research activities now totaling $100 million a year. (The UMass Amherst Research site will tell you more). Many undergraduates participate in faculty research (one of the great perks of a large university), getting a leg up in their preparation for graduate school or a career. But research at UMass Amherst is not just about the lab. It could be fieldwork, writing for the newspaper, directing a play, or running a student business. It’s whatever you can do to get your hands dirty and find some real-world experience.
Exceptional Academic Programs
A few of our stand-out scholarly opportunities
Commonwealth College: The prestigious honors college at UMass Amherst offers the advantages of a small honors college coupled with the big opportunities of a nationally recognized research university.
The Five College Interchange: Enroll at UMass Amherst and you’re entitled to take courses at Amherst, Smith, Hampshire and Mount Holyoke colleges.
Residential Academic Programs (RAP): Think of it as academic room service, or study in your pajamas. Students attend classes and study with other students from their residence hall—in their residence hall.
Study Abroad and Domestic Exchange: Lose the blackboard and make the world your classroom, or stay in the U.S. but check out a new university and a new community.
Cooperative Education & Internships: Work as an ”apprentice“ with professionals from any field and gain valuable experience before graduation.
