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.
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
- Nearest big city
- 16 miles to Springfield, MA
- To the ocean
- 67 miles
- Nearest airport
- 28 miles to Bradley (BDL) · major hub
How Hampshire College compares
More selective than 54% · #36 most selective of 63 in Massachusetts
Higher than 49% · #51 of 66 in Massachusetts
Higher than 57%
Higher than 30% · #58 of 67 in Massachusetts
Cheaper than 32% · #22 cheapest of 65 in Massachusetts
Lower than 18%
Lower than 50%
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
- 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)
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)
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.
By offense type, per year
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.
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.
$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.
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.
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 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
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Amherst, MA US station (4.2 mi from campus).
What Hampshire College graduates study — and earn
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 →
Truett McConnell University
Cleveland, Georgia · Distant rural · 69 mi to Atlanta
- Students
- 744
- Admission
- 78%
- Net price
- $22k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $47k
Milligan University
Milligan, Tennessee · Midsize suburb · 51 mi to Asheville
- Students
- 818
- Admission
- 72%
- Net price
- $21k
- SAT
- 1189
- GPA
- 3.4
- Earnings
- $47k
Malone University
Canton, Ohio · Small city · 19 mi to Akron
- Students
- 798
- Admission
- 76%
- Net price
- $21k
- SAT
- 1081
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $49k
Guilford College
Greensboro, North Carolina · Large city · 6 mi to Greensboro
- Students
- 1,001
- Admission
- 80%
- Net price
- $22k
- SAT
- 1105
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $48k
Belmont Abbey College
Belmont, North Carolina · Midsize suburb · 11 mi to Charlotte
- Students
- 1,276
- Admission
- 75%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1099
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $48k
Anderson University
Anderson, Indiana · Small city · 35 mi to Indianapolis
- Students
- 1,057
- Admission
- 79%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1035
- GPA
- 3.0
- Earnings
- $49k
Colleges near Hampshire College
Amherst College
Amherst, MA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,911 students
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
Amherst, MA · Public · Bachelor's · 23,671 students
Mount Holyoke College
South Hadley, MA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,169 students
Smith College
Northampton, MA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,544 students
Conway School of Landscape Design
Northampton, MA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Holyoke Community College
Holyoke, MA · Public · Associate · 3,591 students
College of Our Lady of the Elms
Chicopee, MA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 949 students
DiGrigoli School of Cosmetology
West Springfield, MA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 21 students
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.














