<p>I think upperclass housing is supposed to be pretty good. You have a decent chance at getting a single as a sophomore, and virtually all juniors and seniors live in singles, if they choose to. The upperclass dorms are very nice, and many have been renovated recently or are being renovated. Something like 98% of students live on campus, so very few move off, which is a testament to the excellent housing situation and the centralized social life.</p>
<p>What's the gay scene at Amherst/5 colleges like?</p>
<p>Dryad: International students make up a decent amount of the Amherst population. I know of kids from China, Japan, Korea, UK, France, Nepal, just to name a few. There is the ISA on campus, International Students Association which holds special orientation meetings to help those from other countries feel a little more at home and help share your experiences. </p>
<p>The town of Amherst itself is small, but has windows open to many places. The town itself is comprised mostly of small shops and local restuarants-most of which offer decent college student-geared food (read: large portions, decent price, quality a little off). Then you have Northampton, 20 minutes by car, 45 by bus. This town is really a lot of fun. Restaurants here are of higher quality. There are more shops to peruse and concert halls and venues like that to take in some good cultural experiences. It's worth checking out many times while you attend any of the 5 colleges.</p>
<p>Then 25 minutes by bus, 10 by car, you have Hampshire Mall, a small place you can go to see a movie for 5 bucks, or do some minor shopping. The larger area mall is the Holyoke Mall, 40 minutes or so by car (no bus).</p>
<p>I have zero experience in the English department so I wouldn't know, sorry!</p>
<p>MusicNerdish: I wouldn't know personally, but the gay community in the area seems very proactive. Given that our school/area is fairly liberal, the gay community has no problem being accepted, and have some fun events. There was a 'gay' party held in one of the social dorms this year, 'queer' coffee house open mic night, stuff like that which is absolutely accepted on campus. Being near Smith/Northampton (OK, maybe I'm being stereotypical) also lends itself to being accepting of the LGBT etc community. But as kind of a side note, I'm actually not being stereotypical when pointing to Smith as an LGBT hotbed. While at Smith I asked one of my newfound friends "So, honestly, is Smith as lesbian as people say it is?" (Maybe not the best way to state it, but hey, I'm a blunt kind of guy... which is why I'm doing this in the first place)... and she responded with a resounding yes. Over 50% of students and faculty are gay there, and a lot more experiment. So I feel like this area is more pro-gay than most. You'll feel comfortable here at the very least.</p>
<p>To those who've asked about upperclass dorms:
Sophomores generally have the choice between a 1 room double in a nice, newly renovated dorm (This year those are Pratt and Morrow, to those of you referring to a campus map), a 4 person suite in one of the lower quality social dorms (Crossett and Stone), a spot in a theme house, many of which offer sophomores the chance at singles (which is my current situation), or to 'opt out' and try your luck and random assignment. Opting out means not selecting a room during the room draw period and going into the summer without a guaranteed room. That being said, everyone always gets placed, and some get placed extremely well. I know of sophomores that opted out, only to receive a single in King (one of the nicest senior dorms on campus), or you could end up being stuck up on the "hill", a set of dorms on campus which features the furthest walk (5-15 minutes from campus) which is considered the least desireable housing at Amherst.</p>
<p>Juniors and Seniors have the choice of singles in the nicer dorms, 4-6 person suites in the better socials, theme houses, badically anywhere their hearts desire.</p>
<p>Rooms here are nice and big, for the most part. My single in Marsh Arts House is 15x15 (more than big enough for 1 person). In my opinion, from the dorms I've been in on other campuses, we have some of the better housing I've seen.</p>
<p>I think that covers it all for tonight. Any more questions?</p>
<p>I wonder if you can comment on the experience of science students in an environment that is heavily oriented to humanities and social sciences (In 2005 Amherst graduated 15 chem majors and 3 physics majors, vs.82 Social Science majors and 55 English majors). How do these students feel about having a relatively small academic peer group? How do they feel about the small number of professors in the science departments? And, while I know the party line is they get lots of personal attention etc., etc., do they feel this offsets not being in a more intensive research environment?</p>
<p>Cause this is Thrilla Night!</p>
<p>Sorry, people, that made no sense.</p>
<p>Dryad. The English department is supposed to be very strong. My one intro English class is very good, and people seem to be similarly pleased with their English classes.</p>
<p>lol, what's up dean... bored at home already? (btw guys, Amherst is one of the only schools around that gives the whole Thankgiving week off... sweet)</p>
<p>I know a couple science-oriented kids and they've never complained about a lack of resources. One student came in for interterm to oversee research a professor was doing his freshman year last year.</p>
<p>My physics-oriented friend went to Yale grad school for physics (I don't need to comment on the prestige of Yale, do I?) And his thesis work is on its way to being published soon. He's a brilliant guy with what I would assume to be solid work (hell if I can understand it). I don't think his research would have been any better had he been in a bigger enrivonment, but I can't say that for sure. Maybe they would have had more equipment for him... who knows. All I know is that he is a prime example that science majors can achieve great things here, even if they are not at a research based university. We still have really good facilities for any enthusiastic undergrad.</p>
<p>"The town itself is comprised mostly of small shops and local restuarants-most of which offer decent college student-geared food (read: large portions, decent price, quality a little off). Then you have Northampton, 20 minutes by car, 45 by bus. This town is really a lot of fun. Restaurants here are of higher quality."</p>
<p>Don't lie! I am an EXTREMELY picky eater and Amherst has plenty of terrific, high quality food, and a weekend farmer's market throughout the fall and spring. Yes, there is a subway, and a few student-oriented pizza places...but what are you talking about? Northampton may have more restaurants, sure, but Amherst has a fantastic selection for a little place, and the food (even the Mexican eateries) are very quality (good fresh food, high quality ingredients, etc. etc. etc.) Everything most people could want is available there, unless you have very bizarre tastes in food.</p>
<p>You can get a bus to Holyoke, but it takes a while. You need to take the B43 to Northampton, then wait outside the Academy of Music for the bus to Holyoke. It isn't practical, but people do it. </p>
<p>And it isn't true that over 50% of Smithies are gay, but Northampton is considered the lesbian mecca of the U.S.A. There's a saying, "Northampton: Where the coffee is strong and so are the women" which you'll find on mugs there.</p>
<p>Not all Freshman dorms at Amherst are as gorgeous as James and Stearns though, guys. You may get shafted!</p>
<p>True. Although North, South and Appleton are still pretty good. And the new freshman dorm that was the old geology museum will probably be really nice.</p>
<p>By quality off, I'm saying it's not like a sit down, higher end place that some people may be accustomed to. You won't be disappointed with the food though, especially as a starving college student who needs to get away from Valentine for a night. I actually enjoy eating out in town a lot, at places like Fresh Side, Antonio's and Arigato. Just don't expect dishes to rave home about, but expect to not break the bank. It's a more than fair trade off.</p>
<p>Believe me, if you want to get to Holyoke... rent one of the Zipcars on campus (A student car rental service, $7/hr or something like 50 for the day) or borrow a car. It'll be dark before that bus gets you there.</p>
<p>A Smith student herself, and a senior at that gave me that statistic, so don't kill the messenger. I'm pretty sure she included LUG's (Lesbian Until Graduation) under that 50% as well. Go find out for yourself, if you're really interested I suppose.</p>
<p>The freshman dorms are about to get a lot better now that the trailers/mods are being taken away from Freshmen. Pratt museum is being renovated and will house those students starting next fall. It should be a great new dorm, owing to its new-ness. North and South can be a little small room-wise, but more than adequate in most cases, unless you or your roommate is a packrat. Appleton has really nice sized rooms, and Williston(which will more than likely be made 100% Freshman next year) has the tendency to be on the small side.</p>
<p>Chez Albert, Pinocchio's, Paradise of India, Amherst Chinese, and the tapas place whose name I've forgotten...are all lovely sit-down places. There aren't a ton, but there are plenty, and they're good. Lone Wolf has amazing sit-down breakfasts and lunches, and there are a bunch of other sit-down places that cater more to a college student (Amherst Brewing Company, Pasta e Basta, Thai Corner, the Japanese place, etc). Amherst has most everything Northampton has, though Northampton has some fantastic vegetarian places (Bela, Paul and Elizabeth's) and a habachi place and a bit more ethnic restaurants. There is still an incredible amount within walking distance from the campus, and even more if you're including the whole town of Amherst and willing to drive 5 minutes north or into Sunderland. For whatever someone could insult Amherst College, the local restaurant scene is not reasonably one of them. They're fantastic. There's a lot going on there (even an African restaurant, which I haven't been to, but it's been recommended to me). The Mexican food at both Bueno y Sano and la Veracruzana is to die for. You can get fairly healthy large whole wheat burritos stuffed with cactus leaf, portabellos...la Veracruzana has amazing guac, and delicious flan. They're both heavenly. At the farmer's market on the weekends, you can gett terrific quality freshly baked breads, goat cheese, Massachusetts-made maple syrup and maple cream, fruits and veggies...</p>
<p>The only bad thing with the Amherst food scene is there is no real place to buy groceries in Amherst (or, it's positive if you hate Supermarkets, I suppose). There used to be a few health food stores, but they both shut down for bizarre reasons. Just along route 9 in Hadley there's a jumble of supermarkets (Whole Foods, Big Y, Trader Joe's, Stop & Shop) and if you go into Northampton there is a fantastic small health food store as well as a smattering of supermarkets (that are all inconvenient to the center of town). There are also places like a Korean grocery store, a Chinese grocery store...</p>
<p>Valentine food isn't top notch (generally, and again, I'm a very picky eater. Some people, for reasons that baffle me, absolutely love it) but whatevs. Maybe I am too hard on Val, I've never found a better college cafeteria, but, if you're like me, you'll be eating out 2-3 meals every day instead of going to Val, and that gets a bit costly. That's my only real complaint. </p>
<p>And yes, I wouldn't advocate that anyone take the bus all the way to Holyoke, but I've done it and it is possible. Assume it will take about 2 hours to get there, but you could get lucky and have it take less.</p>
<p>JMERRILL WENT TO YALE! YAY!</p>
<p>Sorry, people, that also made zero sense. </p>
<p>GOD I'm BORED</p>
<p>P.S. like Thrudge says, Williston sucks. I live in it. If those were single rooms, it'd be totally awesome, but it's not, sadly.</p>
<p>So what's the deal with interterm?</p>
<p>Break is from mid December to the end of January. You can do whatever you want in that time; stay at home, work, or do an internship. Amherst has "winternship" programs in DC and NYC, you can take courses at the other 5 colleges, workshops like home building or a variety of other things, there are some travel courses at the other schools (eco-village study programs all over the world through UMass, a history of Western Ireland course in Galway through Hampshire, outdoor leadership programs all over the place...really extensive courses offering, though of course some of them cost money). Amherst also offers fellowships for action to some students over winter break, which provides them with money to volunteer at a place they determine in the USA/rest of the world. Basically, there are a billion options, you are only limited by your imagination (and, to a lesser extent, your wallet, though that can be avoided if you're saavy!)</p>
<p>For those who just want to stay at Amherst and not be as motivated as crazy internships and such, Amherst also offers non-credit, fun classes to take in the 3 week interterm period. Some can be intensely intellectual, while others are more fun, such as Photoshop workshops and how to use Windows Vista. There is also the Inteterm Colloquia, 3 lectures spanning 2-4 days this interterm about current topics in the world. You can sign up for them in the fall. Or heck, you could just come back to the dorms a couple weeks early and party with your friends. As unregistered said, the possibilities are basically endless.</p>
<p>When discribing the Amherst dorms, how can you leave out the Waldorf-Astoria and the Plaza? My son got stuck in the double-wides this year, and is not a happy camper. (Apt, since it feels like camping out except that he can't start a nice toasty campfire to keep warm.)</p>
<p>My school in NYC, for instance, is offering Urban Education winterships for Amherst students, and two are coming. They are paid $800 by the college and will work in our school for three weeks; Amherst also pays for their stay at the YMCA in the 60s. Pretty good deal for all of us!</p>
<p>Apologies if I forgot Waldorf and Plaza. That would be an odd mistake for me to make, considering I too was in Waldorf my freshman year. But here's why I think I neglected to include those two dorms in freshman housing:</p>
<p>They are not planned to be freshman housing next year (!) The students that Waldorf and Plaza usually hold will be moved into the new freshman dorm formerly known as Pratt museum/the old geo building, and most likely the bottom 2 floors of Williston. Waldorf and Plaza are likely to remain as upperclass singles.</p>
<p>Overall though, besides kind of a bad location, Waldorf and Plaza aren't bad roomwise. There's plenty of room for 2 people in one of those doubles. The main drawbacks are its location away from the rest of the freshmen, and the stigma of living in a modular dorm. I mean, it isn't the best housing on campus by any means, but it's not a death sentence to live there, either. I would probably pick a more spacious double in Waldorf over a tiny room in Williston.</p>
<p>Hey, how many outdoor opportunities are there aat Amherst? Like at similar schools such as Williams and Middlebury, how they have students skiing and canoeing year-round. Are there such resources at Amherst and do the students take advantages of them?</p>
<p>Amherst owns a lot of acreage around the school that is a nature preserve. D takes hikes there all the time. Do you like to skate? The rink is open for the students at certain times when the teams and classes aren't there. Also, at the beginning of school, freshman are offered a camping trip as one of their choices. D isn't a huge athlete,so I know others can answer even more.</p>