Amherst College

Amherst College remains one of the most selective institutions in the country, consistently holding the rank of 2 in the U.S. News National Liberal Arts Colleges ranking through 2027. Gaining admission is extremely difficult. In 2025, the college admitted just 9% of applicants, an admit rate higher than 20% of peer schools among 30 similar private liberal arts colleges. The college faced over twelve thousand rejections as thousands competed for a small entering class. The enrolled yield rate was 38.8%, which is higher than 53% of peer schools compared to a peer median of 36.2%. This shows that while Amherst draws slightly better than most peers, fewer than two in five admitted applicants ultimately decide to enroll. For prospective students, these figures indicate an exceptionally selective admissions process where receiving an offer of admission is rare.

Applicants aiming for Amherst College need testing credentials near the top of national distributions. In 2025, the median SAT score among enrolled students was 1540, which was higher than 87% of peer schools among 30 similar private liberal arts colleges. For students who submitted ACT scores that same year, the middle 50% composite score range stood between 33 and 35. Across both testing formats, successful applicants who submitted scores demonstrated mastery across reading, writing, and mathematics sections. For prospective students, these metrics indicate that admitted applicants who submit testing present academic records near the highest percentiles. While test submission represents one part of the broader application evaluation, candidates targeting Amherst should expect that competitive academic benchmarks require exceptional standardized performance alongside rigorous secondary coursework.

Amherst College conferred 537 bachelor degrees in 2025, with degree completions moderately concentrated as the top three fields accounted for 33.3% of all graduates. The largest majors are Econometrics and Quantitative Economics, followed by Computer Science and Experimental Psychology. Academic rankings align well with some of these preferences: undergraduate Economics ranked 43 in U.S. News for 2027. While Computer Science is among the most popular majors, its undergraduate program ranked 110, so it does not rank among the nation's leading programs despite student demand. In the job market, 2023 earnings data show strong outcomes for quantitative fields. One year after graduation, median earnings reached $116,660 for Computer Science graduates and $109,806 for Economics graduates. International students are noticeably represented in both Computer Science and Economics, making these quantitative pathways the most prominent academic and career tracks on campus.

Amherst College enrolled an entirely undergraduate student body in 2025, divided between incoming freshmen, continuing undergraduates, and a small transfer cohort. Within the incoming first-year cohort, domestic minority and global representation was prominent across campus groups. Asian students numbered 98, accounting for 20.4% of new first-year students. International students comprised 76 learners, representing 15.8% of the entering cohort. Continuing undergraduates mirrored this overall composition, with Asian and international students maintaining sizable contingents alongside White, Hispanic, and Black peers. Female students constituted a majority across both the first-year and continuing undergraduate populations. For prospective applicants evaluating the student mix, these enrollment patterns show an undergraduate environment where Asian and international students form substantial segments of each entering class, contributing to geographic and cultural breadth across campus.

The student body at Amherst College consists entirely of undergraduate students within a narrow, traditional age band. In 2025, students aged 18 to 19 made up 44.9% of total enrollment, while those aged 20 to 21 accounted for 42.3%. Only about a tenth of undergraduates were aged 22 to 24. With zero graduate students enrolled, campus social and academic life is focused exclusively on traditional college-age peers. This creates a cohesive residential undergraduate environment where coursework, campus dining, and extracurricular activities are shared among students of nearly identical life stages.

Amherst College has steadily increased its global representation at the undergraduate level over the past decade. In 2025, undergraduate international students comprised 13.3% of the student body, rising from 9.6% in 2016. This proportion is higher than 70% of peer schools among similar private liberal arts colleges. Because Amherst is exclusively an undergraduate institution, it enrolls zero graduate international students. Among bachelor degree recipients in 2025, international students made up 11.5% of the graduating class. These students concentrated heavily in analytical and technical subjects. In Computer Science, international graduates accounted for 35.6% of all degrees awarded, while in Econometrics and Quantitative Economics, they represented about one-seventh of degree recipients. In contrast, humanities and social science fields such as English and Psychology saw little to no international graduate representation. For international applicants, these patterns suggest an established academic community, particularly within quantitative departments.

Prospective students looking at Amherst College have several notable higher education options located nearby in Massachusetts. Just 1 kilometer away is University of Massachusetts-Amherst, a large institution ranked 59 among National Universities in 2027. Close by, two well-known liberal arts institutions offer nearby alternatives: Smith College, situated 7.2 kilometers away and ranked 22 among Liberal Arts Colleges, and Mount Holyoke College, located 8.6 kilometers away with a rank of 34. Further west, Williams College is located 42 kilometers away and holds the rank of 1 on the 2027 Liberal Arts College list. These neighboring schools provide families with convenient opportunities to compare Amherst alongside other leading liberal arts colleges as well as a major public research university within the same region.

Campus safety reports at Amherst College indicate a moderate overall incident rate that has decreased over the long term. In 2025, the college recorded a crime rate per 1,000 students of 16.6, down from 23.1 in 2016. Across the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, the most frequently reported incidents were 22 cases of sexual harassment, 20 reports of rape, and 18 disciplinary referrals for liquor law violations. Property and violent offenses occurred in smaller counts over the same span, including ten motor vehicle thefts and eight assaults. These figures show that relationship and sexual misconduct represent the primary safety concerns documented on campus, while alcohol infractions constitute the main disciplinary category. Families reviewing safety should recognize that while physical violence and vehicle theft remain low, reported sexual offenses require ongoing institutional attention.