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University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the Massachusetts Agricultural College. It is also a member of the Five College Consortium, along with four other colleges in the Pioneer Valley.
UMass Amherst has the largest undergraduate population in Massachusetts with roughly 24,000 enrolled undergraduates. The university offers academic degrees in 109 undergraduate, 77 master's, and 48 doctoral programs in nine schools and colleges. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity". According to the National Science Foundation, the university spent $211 million on research and development in 2018.
The university's 21 varsity athletic teams compete in NCAA Division I and are collectively known as the Minutemen and Minutewomen. The university is a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference while playing ice hockey in Hockey East and football as an FBS independent school. In 2025, UMass joined the Mid American Conference as a full member.
The university was founded in 1863 under the provisions of the Federal Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act to provide instruction to Massachusetts citizens in "agricultural, mechanical, and military arts." Accordingly, the university was initially named the Massachusetts Agricultural College. In 1867, the college had yet to admit any students and had not completed any buildings but had been through two presidents. That same year, William S. Clark was appointed president of the college and professor of botany. He appointed a faculty, coordinated the completion of construction, and, in the fall of 1867, welcomed the first class of approximately 50 students. Clark became the first president to serve long-term after the school's opening. Of the school's founding figures, there are a traditional "founding four" – Clark, Levi Stockbridge, Charles Goessmann, and Henry Hill Goodell.
The original buildings consisted of Old South College, North College, the Chemistry Laboratory, the Boarding House, the Botanic Museum, and the Durfee Plant House.
The fledgling college grew under the leadership of President Henry Hill Goodell. In the 1880s, Goodell implemented an expansion plan, adding the College Drill Hall in 1883, the Old Chapel Library in 1885, and the East and West Experiment Stations in 1886 and 1890.
The early 20th century saw expansion in enrollment and curriculum. The first female student was admitted in 1875 on a part-time basis and the first full-time female student was admitted in 1892. In 1903, Draper Hall was constructed for the dual purpose of a dining hall and female housing. The first female students graduated with the class of 1905. The first dedicated female dormitory, the Abigail Adams House (on the site of today's Lederle Tower), was built in 1920.
By the 1970s, the University continued to grow and gave rise to a shuttle bus service on campus as well as many other architectural additions; this included the Murray D. Lincoln Campus Center complete with a hotel, office space, fine dining restaurant, campus store, and passageway to the parking garage, the W. E. B. Du Bois Library, and the Fine Arts Center.
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University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the Massachusetts Agricultural College. It is also a member of the Five College Consortium, along with four other colleges in the Pioneer Valley.
UMass Amherst has the largest undergraduate population in Massachusetts with roughly 24,000 enrolled undergraduates. The university offers academic degrees in 109 undergraduate, 77 master's, and 48 doctoral programs in nine schools and colleges. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity". According to the National Science Foundation, the university spent $211 million on research and development in 2018.
The university's 21 varsity athletic teams compete in NCAA Division I and are collectively known as the Minutemen and Minutewomen. The university is a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference while playing ice hockey in Hockey East and football as an FBS independent school. In 2025, UMass joined the Mid American Conference as a full member.
The university was founded in 1863 under the provisions of the Federal Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act to provide instruction to Massachusetts citizens in "agricultural, mechanical, and military arts." Accordingly, the university was initially named the Massachusetts Agricultural College. In 1867, the college had yet to admit any students and had not completed any buildings but had been through two presidents. That same year, William S. Clark was appointed president of the college and professor of botany. He appointed a faculty, coordinated the completion of construction, and, in the fall of 1867, welcomed the first class of approximately 50 students. Clark became the first president to serve long-term after the school's opening. Of the school's founding figures, there are a traditional "founding four" – Clark, Levi Stockbridge, Charles Goessmann, and Henry Hill Goodell.
The original buildings consisted of Old South College, North College, the Chemistry Laboratory, the Boarding House, the Botanic Museum, and the Durfee Plant House.
The fledgling college grew under the leadership of President Henry Hill Goodell. In the 1880s, Goodell implemented an expansion plan, adding the College Drill Hall in 1883, the Old Chapel Library in 1885, and the East and West Experiment Stations in 1886 and 1890.
The early 20th century saw expansion in enrollment and curriculum. The first female student was admitted in 1875 on a part-time basis and the first full-time female student was admitted in 1892. In 1903, Draper Hall was constructed for the dual purpose of a dining hall and female housing. The first female students graduated with the class of 1905. The first dedicated female dormitory, the Abigail Adams House (on the site of today's Lederle Tower), was built in 1920.
By the 1970s, the University continued to grow and gave rise to a shuttle bus service on campus as well as many other architectural additions; this included the Murray D. Lincoln Campus Center complete with a hotel, office space, fine dining restaurant, campus store, and passageway to the parking garage, the W. E. B. Du Bois Library, and the Fine Arts Center.
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