Amherst College Top Questions

Very diverse in every way despite our size (geographically, financially, ethnically, etc). Moreover, everyone's view is respected and appreciated. As an RC, I would know about racist, sexist or other negative incidents but I've heard of very few if any involving Amherst students. You would, however, feel out of place at Amherst is you were a hard-core conservative. You might also have a tough time with the social life if you don't drink, simply because most people do and they tend to act like silly buffoons as a result. Students wear anything to class -people definitely aren't obsessed with dressing up for class or social or sporting events. We do what we want and what we feel comfortable with -that runs the gamut from sweats, to khakis and polos, to torn jeans and tees, to dresses... Mainly, whatever in your closet is clean. No one talks about money even though many students have a lot of it. I feel bad for people who go to schools where money is an important value.

The student body is surprisingly diverse for such a small school. However, because of the size of the school, ethnic/cultural organizations don't put on huge events and tend to host parties or small food events throughout the year. Many students tend to self-segregate into their ethnic/racial groups although everyone has friends who are very different from them. Mainly, you see one major divide at Amherst: white, preppy kids on one side and everyone else on the other. That doesn't mean that people aren't friends across this divide, it's just that everyone tends to spend time with their own kind. Most people have opinions on politics and society, (even if their opinions don't seem that intelligent) and most people tend to be moderate to liberal. Kids on this campus are not hippies but they're also not all jocks. It might surprise you to talk to a person you thought you had categorized and find that they don't fit the mold at all.

I think this answer will really vary on who you ask, but I think that there's a lot of interaction by all groups of people on campus. The only problem is that sometimes there's some tension when it comes to socio-economic backgrounds and the school doesn't really do much to help with the integration of people from vastly different economic backgrounds (they're working on it though...).

Amherst is traditionally an elite, preppy school-i.e. the student body was mostly white and rich. The Marx administration is doing away with that stereotype though. It has launched an initiative to increase Amherst's racial and socioeconomic diversity. Depending on their social circles, some people might tell you otherwise, but in my experience the student body is fairly diverse in many ways. I have friends from all over the place, of various races, religions and sexual orientations. Of course, there is still room for improvement, but I think it's on the right track. There have been tensions on campus about both race and class, most recently over the opening of a multicultural resource center. I recently attended a lunch that was an open discussion on class; it was clear from the opinions expressed there that people do feel that class is an issue on campus and people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds can often feel excluded or marginalized. Nevertheless, the fact that these conversations are taking place is a positive step and nobody is completely alone. The one area where there is little diversity is political views; both the town of Amherst and the College are very liberal. There is, however, a small but vocal conservative contingent that has actually been quite active lately (we are currently in the middle of Pro-Life week, although I don't think the majority of the campus cares.)

The student body at Amherst is becoming more and more racially and socio-economically diverse. The school has been really good with recruiting international students as well. However, it seems that people are often picked based on external qualities that would make them diverse rather than based on diversity in opinions, lifestyle and beliefs, which makes the community more homogeneous than it might appear at first. Most students are still from very wealthy backgrounds, more than 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} are liberal.

There are tables in the dining hall that are pretty much designated for the sports teams, who always eat together. But across the room could be a table of international students, hip indie kids who work for the radio station, a table of girls all carrying the same designer hand bags, and then of course the racially affinitive tables. But this isn't always the case. Lots of people intermingle with each other but there's also a lot of cohesiveness among similar people. People aren't quite as accepting of those who have experienced lives different from their own. There are many openly gay people and an active LGBQT club that has respect on campus but we've had numerous reported incidents of intolerance towards gay students. Most students here are upper/middle class from the New England area (and a lot from California) and aren't always socially conscious of others economic situation. When talking to a fellow freshman about his $300 Prada sunglasses, he was somewhat disgusted to hear that I paid only $89 for my prom dress.

most groups on campus are fully aware that they hold significance as an affinity group, because amherst loves itself an affinity group. people involved in these groups tend to be gung-ho. most kids feel out of place at amherst. it's how you know you fit in. jeans & a tshirt is normal. uggs are an infestation. north face is standard. 'course, you don't have to rock that... just as long as you're warm in the winter. the thing about amherst is that while everyone claims there are different types of students, there aren't, not here. everyone is a high-achiever, most people went to private/charter schools and most people have the same SES. hypothetical 4 tables: jocks. mostly white. if male, very large, very hungry. often rude. if female, very skinny, wearing some weather inappropriate outfit. often rude. // auxillary. similar to the jocks, except that they don't actually play sports. // ethnic. the black/latino/everybody else kids who are/can pass off as hood. // awkward. the ones who take it upon themselves to be the single representation of every awkward characteristic of every amherst student. most amherst kids hail from CA, NY or MA. most kids are rich. some kids are politically aware, but activism is hard to tell because everyone's crazy about obama. most kids are left; republicans feel discriminated against here. future plans are not in style.

Amherst is a fairly diverse campus, with a large community of foreign students and students from every socioeconomic background. I don't think there's a way you couldn't feel out of place! The only clique-y activity I've noticed around campus is the slight tension between the competing interests of our two all-female a cappella groups. Students are very politically and socially active, lending to an environment highly focused on information and action. It's really a charging atmosphere!

I joined DASAC, mainly an all-black hip hop and stepping group at Amherst and felt very welcome. It was a lot of fun, and I definitely met more students from that crowd than I would have met otherwise. I've never felt excluded from anything, and I cannot think of any negative interactions that I've had with any other student regarding race, religion, or LGBT issues. Students wear anything from sweatpants/pj's to dresses and heels (women) and khaki pants and button down shirts (men) to class. Some people are more stylish, some more practical. I tend to wear athletic gear when I haven't done laundry in a while, but most days I wear jeans and a t-shirt. Most students are either very wealthy or not well-off at all. I haven't found many people from middle class families like my own, but it has not affected my happiness level at all here at Amherst, and I've enjoyed visiting the vacation homes of my wealthy friends and meeting their distinguished parents.

Most people are rich white people, but there are significant numbers of affluent African-Americans, well-off Asian-Americans, and of course wealthy international students.