Private nonprofit · College

Hampshire College

Amherst, Massachusetts · Fringe rural

75.3%
Admit rate
$24,034
Avg net price
54%
Graduation rate
$46,938
Median earnings

Hampshire College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Amherst, Massachusetts (fringe rural setting), enrolling 839 undergraduates.

Private nonprofitSmall · 839 undergradsFringe ruralAccessible · 75% admitUSCAACold wintersSnowy

About Amherst, Massachusetts

Amherst is a city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. The earliest known document of the lands now comprising Amherst is the deed of purchase dated December 1658 between John Pynchon of Springfield and three native inhabitants, referred to as Umpanchla, Quonquont, and Chickwalopp. Major employers in Amherst include University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst College, William D. Mullins Memorial Center, Hampshire College, and Amherst-Pelham Regional School District. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Fringe rural
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
67 miles
Nearest airport
28 miles to Bradley (BDL) · major hub

How Hampshire College compares

Selectivity75.3%

More selective than 54% · #36 most selective of 63 in Massachusetts

Graduation rate54%

Higher than 49% · #51 of 66 in Massachusetts

First-year retention78%

Higher than 57%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$46,938

Higher than 30% · #58 of 67 in Massachusetts

Average net price$24,034

Cheaper than 32% · #22 cheapest of 65 in Massachusetts

Median debt at graduation$26,893

Lower than 18%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 50%

Undergraduate enrollment839

Larger than 32%

Percentiles compare Hampshire College with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Massachusetts.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

839undergrads
  • Women56067%
  • Men27933%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White62%
  • Black7.3%
  • Hispanic13%
  • Asian2.1%
  • Other or multiracial15%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
839
Student–faculty ratio
13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
39%
First-generation students
14%
Students over 25
5%
Median family income
$60,322
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$90,765
Endowment
$27,241,084

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Admissions

Admission rate
75.3%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$58,896
Room & board
$15,958
Books & supplies
$1,000
Total cost of attendance
$74,195
Average net price
$24,034

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
54%
Graduated on time (4 years)
3%
First-year retention
78%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$22,195
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$46,938
Median debt at graduation
$26,893
Students with federal loans
62%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
67%

About 51% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
3%
Low-income (Pell)
64%
First-generation
66%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
1,180
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
100%+
Housing charge (year)
$8,946
Meal plan (year)
$6,208
Application fee
Free
Athletics
USCAA
Varsity athletes
95 (49 men · 46 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (5)

Soccer28
Track and Field (Indoor)18
Track and Field (Outdoor)18
Basketball17
Cross Country14

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
5.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
13
Property offenses (2022–2024)
0

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (844 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

4.3reported offenses a year
4.3 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
3.0
Fondling
1.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$13,749
$30–48k
$15,251
$48–75k
$18,165
$75–110k
$25,447
$110k+
$37,221

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$98,481

$18,165/year × about 5.4 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

100%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$40,793
average award, among those who get one

Hampshire College discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $40,793. For many families the real price lands well below sticker.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 228 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$46,938
Typical debt at graduation
$26,893
Debt vs. one year's pay
57%
Out-earn a HS grad
37%

Typical debt would take roughly 5.7 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$46,834
Men
$45,581

Women out-earn men by $1,253 (3%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
83°F
Winter low
14°F
Annual rain
46.6″
Annual snow
36.5″

Average temperature

HighLow
0°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.44.7JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Amherst, MA US station (4.2 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Hampshire College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Hampshire College side by side →

Colleges near Hampshire College

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.