UMass Amherst Welcomes its Most Academically Accomplished and Diverse First-Year Class

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AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst will welcome its most academically accomplished entering class ever when students return to the Commonwealth’s flagship campus over Labor Day weekend. 

UMass Amherst Chancellor Kumble R. Subbaswamy says, “UMass Amherst has increasingly become the destination of choice for the best and the brightest students, as evidenced by the impressive academic credentials of the Class of 2022. The fact that, year over year, we’ve been able to attract increasingly well-prepared students while maintaining our commitment to diversity and accessibility is truly remarkable and speaks to the dedication to excellence of every member of our campus community.”

The size of the entering class, approximately 5,050 students, represents a 7 percent increase from last year’s class of 4,714.Their average SAT score is 1294/1600 and high school grade point average is 3.90. On average, students in the incoming class rank in the top fifth of their high school class. 

This year’s incoming class is more diverse than past classes. The ALANA (African-American, Latino, Asian, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Native American) population will increase from about 30 percent to approximately 32 percent and the underrepresented minority population will increase from about 16 percent to 17 percent. Half of the incoming class is female. 

First-year in-state enrollment is 3,530, up by more than 80 students over last year’s class. Massachusetts residents comprise 70 percent of the first-year class. Total undergraduate enrollment is estimated at 22,000, up from last year’s 21,766. Total in-state enrollment will be about 17,000 or about 77 percent of the student body.

Commonwealth Honors College will welcome an entering class of around 675. Their average SAT score is 1409/1600 and their high school GPA is 4.29. 

This is the 13th year that the campus offered an Early Action (EA) admission program whereby students apply early for admission and receive notification of their acceptance by mid-December. The number of students using the EA option has increased annually from about 8,000 applicants in 2009 to about 19,000 this year. Almost half of students apply through EA, 75 percent were admitted, and more than 2,700 will enroll in the fall, representing 54 percent of the entering class.

Along with the first-year class, nearly 1,140 transfer students will be arriving on campus this fall, slightly more than last year. The transfers include 378 community college graduates enrolling through the MassTransfer program. MassTransfer guarantees admission to Massachusetts community college students who complete a designated program with a GPA of 2.5 or above. The overall GPA for the entering transfer students is 3.38.