2. The University of Massachusetts at Amherst

3. What do the following people have in common? Bill Cosby, entertainer Julius “Dr. J” Erving, NBA Hall-of-Famer Jeff Corwin, Animal Planet host William Monahan, writer of The Departed Natalie Cole, Grammy award-winning singer Jeff Taylor, creator of www.monster.comwww.monster.com Betty Shabazz, wife of Malcolm X They all attended UMass!

4. Location UMass Amherst, the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system, sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, 90 miles from Boston and 175 miles from New York City. The campus provides a rich cultural environment in a rural setting close to major urban centers.

5. Points of Pride Ranked among the nation’s top public national universities (2011 edition of America’s Best Colleges, U.S. News & World Report)nation’s top public national universities Amherst named top college town in North Americatop college town The Daily Beast’s list of the Best College Food in AmericaBest College Food

6. At a big school, you can study anything you want! 8 schools and colleges –School of Management, School of Education, School of Engineering, etc. 6 associate’s degree programs 86 bachelor’s degree programs BDIC 2,294 undergraduate classes

7. UMass Fast Facts (Fall 2010) 21,373 undergraduate students 6,196 graduate students 27.569 total students 1,174 full-time instructional faculty

8. What are class sizes like? 2-9 students – 15% 10-19 students – 25% 20-29 students – 24% 30-39 students – 13% 40-49 students – 6% 50-99 students – 8% 100+ students – 9%

9. What kind of grades do I need? Mean high school class rank: 21% Middle SAT: –Math: 540-640 –Critical Reading: 510-620 Mean GPA: 3.6 (on a 4.0 scale)

10. How much does it cost? Tuition/Fees: $11,732 Housing/Meals: $8,610 Total: $20,342 Though this sounds like a ridiculous amount of money, private schools can cost as much as $50,000 per year!

11. Commonwealth Honors College Requirements: –Combined (critical reading & math) SAT-I scores above 1300 –Weighted high school GPA of "A-" or higher –High school class rank in the top 10 percent Benefits: –Smaller class sizes, rigorous environment, honors advisors, different opportunities, fancy diploma

12. Where did I live? Orchard Hill

13. Why is UMass so special to me? Truly Unique Experiences –Traveled to Sicily to study photojournalism –Studied writing with a Pulitzer Prize winner and with the editor of Yankee Magazine –Studied music with a Grammy nominee –Performed for George W. Bush at the Presidential Inauguration –Taught at Springfield Central High School

14. So, Why UMass Amherst? Tightly-knit Communities Commonwealth College Academics The Five College Interchange Diversity Location, Location, Location Opportunities

15. More Information For more information about the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, check out www.umass.edu! www.umass.edu