University of Massachusetts-Amherst

Overview

Rankings

• #13 Best Engineering Colleges in Massachusetts
• #18 Best MBA Programs in Massachusetts
• #19 Best Communications Colleges in Massachusetts
• #26 Best Bachelor's Programs in Massachusetts
• #26 Best Master's Programs in Massachusetts
• #27 Most Test-Optional-Friendly Colleges
• #27 Best Biology Colleges in Massachusetts
• #33 Best Business Colleges in Massachusetts

Academics & Admissions

Is It Hard to Get Into University of Massachusetts-Amherst? Acceptance Rate & Requirements

Based in Amherst, Massachusetts, University of Massachusetts-Amherst offers a realistic path to admission, with roughly 60% of applicants receiving an offer. Admitted students typically arrive with an average SAT score near 1,423. The graduation rate is roughly 83%.

Acceptance Rate

60%

Retention Rate

92%

SAT Average

1423

ACT Midpoint

31

SAT Range

1310–1500

ACT Range

30–33

Full-Time Faculty

81%

Faculty Salary (mo)

$14,663

Student–Faculty Ratio

18:1

Diversity Index

0.64

First-Gen Students

22%

Applicants

45,451

Admitted

28,871

Inside the Admissions Office

School-reported Common Data Set · unknown

The acceptance rate tells you how hard University of Massachusetts-Amherst is to get into. Its Common Data Set tells you what happens once you are admitted: how many students say yes, how many arrived without test scores, and whether applying early tilts the odds. 17% of admitted students go on to enroll here, making it a school most admitted students ultimately pass on.

Yield Rate

17%

of admits enroll

Submitted SAT

25%

of enrolled freshmen

Submitted ACT

3%

of enrolled freshmen

Cost & Financial Aid

How Much Does It Cost to Attend University of Massachusetts-Amherst? Tuition, Net Price & Aid

Published tuition at University of Massachusetts-Amherst is $40,449, but few families pay that. The number to watch is net price, what students actually pay each year after federal grants and institutional scholarships. Here it averages about $22,383. Students from families earning under $30,000 typically pay closer to $10,164 after need-based grants. The median graduate leaves with about $22,763 in federal student loans.

In-State Tuition

$17,772

Out-of-State

$40,449

Avg Net Price

$22,383

Median Debt

$22,763

Pell Grant Rate

20%

Federal Loan Rate

47%

Students Like You

Tell us a little about yourself to see what students like you have typically experienced at University of Massachusetts-Amherst — the net price for your income, your admission odds, and the outcomes that follow. These are patterns from federal data, not predictions.

Graduate Outcomes

Is University of Massachusetts-Amherst Worth It? Graduate Earnings & ROI

Ten years out, alumni of University of Massachusetts-Amherst earn a median of $71,631, well above the national average for bachelor's degree holders.

6 Years After Entry

$60,347

8 Years

$66,904

10 Years

$71,631

Debt-to-Earnings

0.32x

Earning > $25K

75%

Social Capital

Data: Opportunity Insights Social Capital Atlas

How Connected Is University of Massachusetts-Amherst? Social Capital & Cross-Class Networks

Social capital, the web of cross-class friendships that researchers link to long-run upward mobility, runs high at University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Its economic connectedness score is 1.80, where about 1.0 is the national norm. Its friending bias is low (0.01), a sign that students from different economic backgrounds actually mix rather than self-segregate. Around 9% of students take part in civic and volunteering activity.

Economic Connectedness

1.80

Cross-class friendships

Friending Bias

0.01

Lower = more inclusive

Volunteering Rate

9.0%

Support Ratio

0.99

Community support

Institutional Finances

Data: NCES IPEDS

Investment Income

$-51,567,905

Top Programs

The fields University of Massachusetts-Amherst awards the most degrees in, by share of completions. Where federal field-of-study data exists, we show what graduates in that major earned early in their careers. Each links to its degree guide — or see what someone with your income, scores, and major would pay and earn here in the Students Like You simulator.

• Business & Marketing 17% $75,624 early-career
• Biology & Biomedical 10% $45,495 early-career
• Social Sciences 9% $58,928 early-career
• Computer Science & IT 8% $92,955 early-career
• Psychology 8% $37,976 early-career
• Engineering 7% $89,730 early-career
• Health Professions 5% $81,566 early-career
• Communications 4% $47,847 early-career

Early-career median earnings by major (typically 1–2 years after completion, bachelor's level where available), in today's dollars (CPI-adjusted). Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard field of study. Distinct from the school-wide 10-year median; suppressed for small programs.