Amherst College Top Questions

I feel that no one would feel out of place at Amherst. The student body is very diverse and in the case that anyone feels alienated, the Resident Counselors and staff will do the best they can to help that person feel more comfortable in Amherst. However, I have to admit that the campus is extremely liberal. There are conservatives, but not as many as there are liberals so they might feel a little uncomfortable. Still, I have conservative friends and they feel at comfortable at Amherst. Students do not usually talk about the money they might make in the future, but it comes up in conversation once in a while. However, Amherst has a network of successful alumni that come to speak and have provided their contact information on our Amherst site. So this makes it easier for Amherst students to learn more information about their profession or get internships if our alumni offer any.

There are many different identity groups on campus. I personally am involved with the Global Rights of Women and there is certainly a lot of interest on campus in affinity groups. The campus is not as active as I would like, but has a core group of very dedicated activists and people who at least contribute money if not time to good causes. People wear all sorts of things to class - from sweatpants to popped collars to dresses to skinny jeans and ripped tees. Different students do interact although I would say that there is definitely a divide between the athletes and the non-athletes. Amherst students are mainly from New York, Florida, Connecticut, DC and California, although I have many friends from all over the world - including Zimbabwe and Venezuela.

identity groups are abundant and active. a lot of club events (and especially organization meetings) struggle with low attendance rates, even with bribing students to come with the promise of food. most students are liberal, and the liberals are definitely loud. there are three or four good (and entertaining) student publications. most people don't keep up with news off campus. there's virtually no pre-professionalism. there are a few off-campus frats, but it's easy not to know anything about them. though the admissions office is quite proud to present the school as a bastion of liberalism, the political discourse on campus can be close-mindedly liberal, which even a self-described liberal student like myself can find distasteful.

Students are generally quite liberal. This often means that they are "accepting", but don't do much in terms of liberal action (aka protest, campaign, etc.). A majority of students are relatively wealthy, but there is a range of socio-economic backgrounds, which often gets glossed over (and not discussed). There is good racial diversity, though race as an issue isn't often discussed by white students. The LGBT community is stronger than it's ever been. The Pride Alliance is a very active group on campus.

A lot has been made of certain recent incidents on the Amherst campus involving race and gender questions. However, the school has met them head on. Anyone of any background can feel comfortable in the inviting environment. However, some self-segregation does exist. Most Amherst students come from an upper-middle class background, with a majority coming from the largest states, New York and California. Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and the D.C. area are also well represented. A decent number attended prep school, but not an overwhelming number. Amherst remains a relatively apathetic campus politically, but during an election year, things heat up. Certainly left leaning, with the breakdown following 50{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Liberal, 10{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Conservative, 10{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Very Liberal and 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Moderate. Many juniors and seniors are concerned about their futures, especially the job hunt. However, it does not dominate conversation as it does at some schools like Wharton-UPenn and Stern-NYU.

There is no "average" student on the Amherst College campus. At the core we are academics, but there are several layers that make up personality for each individual. It is important here not to automatically put up barriers of "us" and "them" because everyone has something to offer and you can miss out on getting to know some great people that way.