Sally

My favorite aspect of Amherst is its flexibility. There is a saying among students that "there are no real rules at Amherst," because it often seems that so-called "rules" are really more like guidelines, for they are often open to interpretation. The administration is eager to make each student's experience as good as possible, and is willing to make the necessary changes to suit everyone's personal needs.

When I see them on campus, I always tell prospective students that at Amherst, their experience will depend on them and what they choose to make of it. It is up to each student to manage his/her own time, and to balance work with pleasure in order to stay focused and keep a little sanity. Nobody can do all the reading, but if you don't do any, you aren't going to get as much out of a class as you could be. You may get by anyway, but to really milk an Amherst education for what it's worth (which is a substantial amount), you need self-discipline and a lot of motivation. Fortunately, the school provides a lot of outlets and a strong support network, whether it is at the writing center, through a school-provided tutor, or from the professors themselves, who seem to be available almost 24 hours a day. There is always someone ready and willing to sit down with you and help you sort out your life, and figure out solutions if you are having problems.

I have never once felt that there was not enough to do at Amherst. Most of the student body is involved in something, which is reflected in the broad range of activities.

My school has the reputation of being one of the most rigorous, academically demanding schools in the country. Its acceptance rate is one of the lowest and it has been ranked the #1 or #2 liberal arts school by US News and World Report for the past several years.

It is accurate to some extent--getting into Amherst is significantly harder than staying there. The classes range from quite manageable to extraordinarily difficult, and require varying amounts of time, which does not always correlate to the level of difficulty. While grade inflation does exist (students say that "you have to TRY to fail out of Amherst"), maintaining a high GPA is also very difficult and requires hard work and, as much as I hate to say it, some good old-fashioned “smarts”.

To tell the truth, a college experience only depends on the school to some extent. I believe that whether or not a student has a positive college experience depends more on the person and the attitude with which they approach school than on the school itself. I love Amherst, and I can't imagine myself anywhere else, but I'm sure if I had gone to another school, I would be raving about it too.