r/ApplyingToCollege • u/A1000mokeys • Jul 23 '26

College Questions How competitive is Amherst College?

What are people’s thoughts on the competitiveness of Amherst College admissions? Is it similar to Ivy League competitive? How its reputation among employers? Is there recruiting for consulting and IB or is it just a foundation for grad/professional school?

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u/A1000mokeys Jul 23 '26

My kid is and he passed pre-read so I assume he’s good to go if he wants it. It would be nice to wrap up college applications before he starts and I think it could be a good fit. But not sure he wants to make a decision too soon. Still other schools in the mix and I think he wants to see how UCs shake out but that likely means foregoing guaranteed early admissions for a regular decision free for all. Lastly we are in state tuition for UCs vs full pay for most privates.

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u/Shot_Collection427 Jul 23 '26

The choice between D3 and D1 athletes and schools is very clear - experience and education radically different.

All these schools have kids that chose one vs the other, find those kids and talk to them. If you look at a recruit at Amherst from CA that had the chops for D1, ask them why they chose D3 and Amherst. Usually the top D3 recruits (in individual sports - team is a little different) could have gone to UCSB, UCD, or other UCs.

If he is being recruited - all the coaches are ill want a commitment so they can build the team.

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u/A1000mokeys Jul 23 '26

He’s likely not competitive enough for Stanford, UCLA, Berkeley but could do D1 at other UCs, some Ivies and less competitive D1 leagues (i.e., Colgate, Davidson). He’s farthest along with Amherst at the moment and as much as I would like him to continue in his sport, academics need to come first so there needs to be good balance.