University of Massachusetts-Amherst Top Questions

Full disclosure, I transferred to UMass from Roger Williams University, so I was much more informed when choosing UMass than I was when choosing a school as a senior. That being siad, I wish I had taken more time to understand the housing options for incoming transfers. If you choose the wrong option, it's very easy to become isolated (both socially and physically) from your peers. And on the flip side of that, you can also end up in a 24/7 party-not the most productive situation if you're actually going to school for academic reasons.

I wish I had known that the students around campus would be really friendly. I was nervous about meeting new people and finding good people to be friends with. I had stressed over it too much. However, everyone was very welcoming and I had a lot more in common with them than I thought I would. Everyone was from somewhere different and thrown into a new environment. I wish I knew how friendly they were so I didn't have to worry about making friends that much.

As a high school senior, all of the major stressors that we experience come from the pressure of choosing a college, of establishing a future for ourselves. Looking back on this time I wish I could have told myself, "hey, it's gonna be okay. No matter which path you choose, good things will come if you look for them". UMass has taught me that you can achieve more than you ever believed possible if you put in the work and effort to make it so. Opportunies are knocking at every door here, you just have to take them.

Get involved in clubs to meet people as soon as you arrive on campus. For such a large campus you could get away with not meeting many people.

I wish I had known how good the academic programs were here at UMass Amherst. I'm from a local city, and I feel like throughout my whole high school career, students bashed this school, and left it as their "safety school" eventhough many students still did not get accepted into the university. The University's diverse campus provides for a wide-range of opportunity and I actually love attending a large university for the limitless choices and experiences. It's stigma of being a party school is also highly overrated, so no worries if you don't do that.

I wish I had known that there were so many opportunities that I could have taken part in starting from day one.

I am new to the school as I will be starting the online RN to BSN program as of January 20,2014.

I wish I would have known how big it was. Its like a moving, breathing city within a city. Anything you need you will definitely find on campus.

That when I transferred from my last school it didn't matter that I would finish my requirments on time. I still need to take an extra semester to have enough credits to graduate. My advisor was not clear on this.

I wish I'd had more know-how on how to navigate the financial world of a college student.

Before coming to UMass I wish I had known how truly awesome it is. Everything about the school is great, the size, academics, opportunity for growth, and many more things. For me, transferring to UMass was the best decision ive probably ever made. There are always fun and exciting things going on around campus, so its hard to feel left out. UMass is a great school and although it is big, its much easier to make a large school seem small than it is to make a small school seem large. Umass is the schhol for me.

I wish I had known more about dorms and location.

I always knew that UMass was a large school, but never really expected to be in classes with 200-400 other students. I wish I really knew what to expect in classes like these so that I would not get lost.

I wish I had known how to live at school and juggling activities and getting to class and eating. How much harder these classes were then the community college I attended and this huge State college. I also wish that the teachers were a little more friendly at Umass, they seem harsh and cocky at times.

I wish that someone had told me not to go home as much, I missed a lot of events and opportunities to find my niche and meet new people and now I am just trying to find my group of friends now, where as most other people I know have already found their place.

I wish I would have known that I would not be personally attened to how I was in community college. I wish I would have known that "book vouchers" are non existent and you must pay out of pocket until you receive your financial aid refund. I wish I would have known how expensive acquiring a parking sticker is. I wish I would have know that Teacher Assistants handle the majority of the responsibilities I am used to going directly to the professor for. I wish I would have known that owning a personal computer or laptop is essential.

nothing, I was pretty well prepared

I wish I had been able to meet a few of the professors before coming to the school. With a vast difference in quality between several of the professors I currently have, I would have been more knowledgable about who to take and who to avoid.

I wish I had known my major.

Before coming to this school I would have liked to know that the campus is not as confusing as it seems. I was very scared for my first week of classes because I thought I would not be able to find my classes. Even though Umass is a very large school, the layout of the academic buildings is very simple to follow and get use to.