The University of Massachusetts - Amherst

The friendliness of the faculty varies. Some will bend over backward, some claim they will but remain unaproachable. I personally make eyecontact and learn names as soon as I can, the more connections you make the friendlier the U seems. The students are busy and tend to hang around with folks they already know. The coursework in the SOM is good, except the Junior writing requirement, which is frustrating busy work at best. There is an attempt by some of the faculty to improve, but some are closeminded and pompous. As soon as you get here start creating a support system for yourself.

1st Year Female -- Class 2004

Education Quality: A, Campus Maintenance: F

The university can be overwhelming, but I like to think of it as overwhelming in the sense that it offers so much. UMass bears the advantages of most large public institution, namely a diversity of resources, students, academic, sports, and social programs as well as relative affordability. Professors were often experts in their fields (e.g. I took a literature class with the world's leading Beowulf scholar). Some classes and discussion sections are taught by graduate assistants but they were usually very good. The five college system, which comprises UMass, Hampshire, Amherst, Smith, anf Mt. Holyoke, is unparalleled: as a UMass student you can take courses and use the libraries at any of these private colleges. The towns of Amherst and Northampton are exceptional for their sizes (12,000 and 31,000 permanent residents respectively). Wonderful restaurants, cafes, non-profit organizations, international music acts, festivals, and so forth abound. Join the Honors Program, live in a quiet dorm like Orchard Hill, move off campus after two years into one of the many interesting New England communities. Do your Junior Year abroad. Approach your faculty, ask to do independent studies for credit under their expertise. I recommend UMass highly, despite the shortcomings that have been referred to thus far. You have to seek out the vast opportunities here, and I can assure once you start looking they won't be hard to find.

4th Year Male -- Class 1998

Surrounding City: A, Individual Value: D

I was surprised by how friendly people were. I had expected them to be pretty nasty. And I found that the large campus is nice- so many people to meet, so many things to do! Also, UMass Amherst is far from a "concrete campus". They do a really nice job of keeping the place looking good, despite a few pretty ugly buildings. The required classes are generally boring and unfulfilling, but once you get into more major-specific classes, things get better. And the professors have always encouraged me to visit them if I had any problems, and to seek extra help if I need it.

2nd Year Female -- Class 2006

Social Life: A+, Scholastic Success: C