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Amherst Giving Days: March 24-26, 2026
Giving Days are your chance to help today’s Amherst students experience the moments, memories, and life-changing experiences that make Amherst...Amherst. Please join us by making your gift before midnight on Thursday—thank you!
An Amherst Education Prepares You for the World
Our rigorous liberal-arts education empowers you to explore ideas freely, create novel connections, and advance knowledge for the greater good. Amherst fosters innovative and critical thinking and prizes curiosity, a foundation that prepares our students for fulfilling careers, service to society, and a lifetime of intellectual engagement.
Amherst Facts
More Facts80%
Percentage of Amherst alumni who report that they have attended graduate or professional school
88%
Percentage of Amherst courses that have fewer than 30 students
Meet Our Mammoths
Take Courses That Inspire You
Our approach to education is simple: Take courses that excite and inspire you. With no core educational requirements, you choose the courses that matter to you. Our open curriculum means your classes will be filled with inquisitive, engaged classmates who are committed to the topic.
AcademicsDistinctive Courses
Our open curriculum lets you choose among interesting classes taught by exceptional faculty.
- Arts
- Humanities
- Science & Math
- Social Sciences
Arts course in Art and the History of Art
Sustainable Design: Principles, Practice, Critique
Description
Explore sustainability in architectural design via canonical literature and social science-based critical theory. We will examine key tenets of the sustainable design discourse and locate sustainability within the larger environmental movement.
Humanities course in English, SWAGS, Black Studies
Global Women’s Literature
Description
What do we mean by “women’s fiction”? How do we understand women’s genres in different national contexts? We will examine topics in feminist thought and draw on postcolonial literary theory, essays on transnational feminism, and historical studies.
Humanities course in Philosophy
Wittgenstein: Mind
Description
Ludwig Wittgenstein asked himself, “What is your aim in philosophy?” and answered, “To show the fly the way out of the fly-bottle.” What did he mean? We will examine Wittgenstein’s revolutionary approach to mind, language, and philosophy itself.
Science & Math course in Computer Science
Thinking Like a Computer Scientist
Description
Analytical thinking is inherent in every aspect of computer science. This course will introduce mathematics as the primary analytical tool used by computer scientists, and explore set notation, symbolic logic, proof techniques, and more. Students will gain experience with formal reasoning.
Science & Math course in Chemistry
Nanomaterials
Description
Materials with structural features at the nanometer scale have become increasingly important in a range of technologies. In this course, we will emphasize applications relevant to alternative energy, including photovoltaics, photocatalysis, and batteries.
Social Sciences course in Political Science
Punishment, Politics, and Culture in the United States
Description
Who a society punishes and how it punishes are key political questions as well as indicators of its character. This course considers connections between punishment, politics, and culture. We will consider whether we punish too much or too little, and the ways race has shaped the ways we punish.
What Are Mammoths Made Of?
Every Amherst College student arrives with unique skills, insights, creativity, and passion. At Amherst, you’ll thrive individually, and you’ll make the herd stronger. So what exactly are Mammoths made of?
You’re curious about people, places, and everything else.
Our students lead with an inquisitive nature, exploring and embracing the unknown.
You pull things apart to find your own answers.
Amherst students start by knowing something. Then they brainstorm, make new connections, and put everything back together in surprising ways.
You care about the world and about each other.
Mammoths are a supportive bunch, whether forging a path or working together toward the greater good.
Celebrating 50 Years of Coeducation
Beginning in 2026 and extending through 2027, we are celebrating one of our most meaningful milestones: the 50th anniversary of coeducation at Amherst. We’re marking five decades of the contributions of women students, faculty, staff, and alumni. We will honor the trailblazers who pushed coeducation forward, and the subsequent generations of women who added new chapters to the story of Amherst.
Learn about 50COFaculty Spotlight
Ivan Contreras, Mathematics
“Graded Contact Geometry and the AKSZ Formalism,” a paper coauthored by Ivan Contreras, associate professor of mathematics, has been published in the journal Differential Geometry and its Applications.
Faculty ProfileWilliam Taubman, Political Science
William Taubman, the Bertrand Snell Professor of Political Science, Emeritus, has won the New York Historical’s annual Barbara and David Zalaznick Book Prize in American History for McNamara at War: A New History.
Faculty ProfileJallicia Jolly, American Studies; Black Studies
Jallicia Jolly, assistant professor of American Studies and Black studies, has received a grant from the Robert Wood Foundation.
Faculty ProfileNews
Events
Xale - A film screening and Q&A with Moussa Sene Absa
4:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Fuji: A Mountain in the Making
4:30 PM - 6:00 PM
Composition Masterclass with Dr. Steven Takasugi
5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
Nondiscrimination Statement
Amherst College does not discriminate in admission, employment, or administration of its programs and activities on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex or gender (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender expression and gender identity), age, disability, genetic information, military service, or any other characteristic or class protected under applicable federal, state or local law. Amherst College complies with all state and federal laws that prohibit discrimination, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, Title IX, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Equal Pay Act and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Inquiries should be addressed to the Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer, Amherst College, P.O. Box 5000, Amherst, MA 01002-5000.