Amherst College
Private College in Amherst, MA. Six-year graduation rate 94%. Median 10-year earnings $77,644.
A decade after enrolling, the median Amherst College student earns $77,644 — comfortably above what the typical bachelor's-granting institution returns. 94% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Median debt at graduation is $13,740, a light load against those earnings.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.18 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 94% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Admit rate 9% — heavily selective, limited transfer slots
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 9% means admission is the exception — plan accordingly. With 13,743 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. 39% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. The score bands below rest on the 39% of enrolled first-years who submitted an SAT score — a self-selected group, and not a cutoff.
Test score bands (middle 50% of submitters)
These bands describe the enrolled first-years who submitted a score, not the entering class. Where most students apply test-optional the submitters are a self-selected, higher-scoring group.
| Test | 25th–75th percentile | Submitted |
|---|---|---|
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading | 740–780 | 187 (39%) |
| SAT Math | 750–800 | |
| ACT Composite | 33–35 | 105 (22%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Amherst College →Academics
94% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. 97% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. The 6:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm. Judge these figures against other institutions of the same type — sector explains more of the variation in completion than any single campus factor. The undergraduate body is just 1,910, which shapes everything from class size to how often a required course is offered.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,907 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $19,049 annually once grants are applied. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $1,086 at the $0–30k band to $47,521 at $110k+. 62% of students receive grant aid, averaging $67,234 — common but not automatic. Only 8% take federal loans. Private borrowing is not captured in this figure.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 488 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $1,086 |
| $30–48k | $1,570 |
| $48–75k | $17,478 |
| $75–110k | $23,639 |
| $110k+ | $47,521 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 160 of these 1,907 students, totalling $863,509 — an average of $5,397 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Hampshire County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)