The University of Massachusetts (UMass) is a world class public university and one of the largest in Massachusetts. It comprises 5 different college campuses, with the majority of students being placed into UMass Amherst. UMass has a reputation as being a really friendly and accepting college, with it topping the leagues for the most LGBTQ+ accepting college as well as placing top 20 for most students of colour enrolled at a public university.

UMass also has plenty to offer, with a variety of undergraduate degrees and being one of the best-funded research institutions in the state. UMass Alumni have become Nobel Laureate, Pulitzer Nobel Laureate, Pulitzer Prize winners, Breakthrough Prize winners, and much more. If UMass sounds like the place for you, keep reading to find out more about how you can boost your chances of being accepted!

Research Most Competitive Courses at UMass 

So you’ve decided that UMass is THE university for you, great! Now it’s time to figure out what you want to study. UMass has a range of different courses from Business to Psychology to Politics, and it is renowned for its Nursing and Computing programs. However, these programs are also the most competitive, with the University having special requirements for students who want to study them. 

Here is a list of the most highly selective majors at UMass, and the requirements that you’ll need to get in.

NB: a note of caution on the acceptance rates. As a public university, UMass offers preferential treatment for in-state applicants. Acceptance rates are far lower for out-of-state or international students than the overall average.

Meet UMass Entry Requirements 

UMass uses GPA and course rigour as one of its main parameters for its admissions process. Among enrolled 2021-22 first-year students, 30% hailed from the top 10% of their high school class, while 69% earned a place in the top 25%. However different subjects have different entry requirements, with some courses even being specific about the grades they require for individual subjects, such as engineering and computer science. 

Unlike other Universities in the US, UMass does not require SAT/ACT scores and they are an optional component. For students who did sit the SAT exam, they had a score of around 1370, and an ACT range of between 28-33.

For international students, the University website does not outline any specific grade requirements, however you can expect them to be aligned with the requirements for its home students. Students should be aiming to place in the top 25% of their year groups in order to be sure that they secure a place. 

There is also an English language requirement that all overseas students must meet in order for their applications to be considered. Currently UMass has a wide array of qualifications that International students can use to show their proficiency in English including the TOEFL and IELTS exam scores. 

In order to demonstrate competency in English, all undergraduate applicants must either achieve the minimum score in one of the English tests the university accepts, or prove that they are exempt from the English language requirement.

For details on the full list of English qualifications accepted and the rules on English language exemption, please visit the university’s website.

Prepare Documents 

College Essay

Moving onto one of the most important steps of your UMass application: the college essay. Your college essay is your opportunity to show off your unique personality and interests, use it to convince the admissions officer that you deserve a place on your course because you will make the absolute most of it!

Top tips for the perfect college essay.

Find your Why 

In order for your personal essay to be successful, you have to get to the root of why you want to study your major at UMass. Is it because you want to make an impact on other people’s lives? Is it because you think you can be a source of innovation? Because you’re passionate about political movements or because you have always been the person your family called to fix broken remotes and laptops? Whatever reason you have for wanting to study your chosen degree, don’t be afraid of sharing the parts of your life that it comes from.

Don’t be stereotypical 

As much as it is important to share your reason for studying your chosen course, starting off your personal statement with “since I was 5 years old I’ve wanted to be a … ” might be the quickest way to bore the admissions officers. Instead of using well rehearsed lines about thoughts you definitely didn’t have at 5 years old, speak about the lessons you found interesting at school, the museum that you went to, the ted talk you watched or the business you shadowed. These are much more likely to keep the admissions officers attention, and show that you have made efforts outside of school to pursue and further your academic interests.

Keep it relevant

While the admissions officer wants to get to know more about you and your interests, they do not need to know that you have a purple belt in karate or that you’ve had a pet dog since you were 8. Make sure that everything you mention in your personal statement can be linked back to either 1) what makes you interested in the course, 2) what makes you suitable for the course, or 3) what would make you a valuable member of your class.

Spelling, grammar and clarity of voice

My final tip is this – Please read over your work – out loud. In the excitement of getting all your thoughts down on paper you may have made a few (or a lot) of grammatical errors, which is why you have to read over your work. If you can’t read it out loud, then an admissions officer probably won’t be able to either, and then you’ve written a thousand words worth of brilliance that the world will never get to appreciate. So make sure that you watch out for things like run-on sentences, that your paragraphs have a clear flow and that your personal statement has a beginning, middle and end. 

Apply for Scholarships and Financial Aid

Lastly you should know how you are going to be funding your studies. Although most financial aid at the University of Massachusetts is not available to international students, you can be considered for merit scholarships as part of your application. You can read more about those here.

Also be sure to make a note of deadlines, it’s best to start looking at the scholarship offers after you have finished your application to give yourself the best shot at being chosen. 

Top Tips for Getting into the University of Massachusetts

1. Research, Research, Research. The more you know about your chosen major, the more dedicated and passionate you come across in your application. 

2. Stay Organised! Keep track of upcoming deadlines and make sure you have scheduled in time for preparation in between your revision schedule.

3. Be yourself. The most important piece of advice I can share is to be yourself! Be genuine about your interests and passions, and really show the University how much they can gain by having you as a student there!

4. Stay off of chat rooms/student groups/social media threads, or anything that will make you think more negatively or question your worth and ability! The fact that you are aiming for a world class education already speaks volumes about yourself, you do not need to be a Nobel laureate or a CEO to be able to get into the university you want to go to, and having those things won’t guarantee you a place either! 

FAQs

What is the UMass acceptance rate?

The UMass acceptance rate is around 63 %, making it far from intimidating. The acceptance rate also varies by subject, with some subjects, notoriously nursing and computer science, being harder to get into than others. 

Is UMass a good university?

UMass is a world class university, ranking within the top 200 universities globally

Is UMass an Ivy League university?

UMass is not an Ivy league university.

How hard is it to get into UMass?

Although the overall UMass acceptance rate is around 63%, this is skewed by the fact that, as a public university, UMass offers preferential treatment for in-state applicants. It is a competitive university to apply to for out-of-state or international students, with an acceptance rate of around 27% for these applicants.

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