Fast Facts About Williams

Overview

Established in 1793 with funds bequeathed by Colonel Ephraim Williams, the college is private, residential, and liberal arts, with graduate programs in the history of art and in development economics. The undergraduate enrollment is approximately 2,000 students.

The student-faculty ratio is 7:1.

Williams admits U.S. students without regard to their ability to pay. The college meets 100 percent of every admitted student’s demonstrated financial need for four years, and is the first school in the country to offer “all-grant” financial aid, with no loans or required earnings contributions. Just over half of all Williams students receive financial aid from the college.

There are three academic divisions (languages and the arts, social sciences, and science and mathematics) that encompass 26 departments, 37 majors, and several concentrations and special programs. The academic year consists of two four-course semesters plus a one-course January term.

Fraternities were phased out beginning in 1962. Coeducation was adopted in 1970.

The school color is purple. The mascot is the Purple Cow. Sports teams are called “Ephs.”

Williamstown is located in the Berkshires in northwestern Massachusetts, 135 miles from Boston and 165 miles from New York City.

President

Maud S. Mandel
Ph.D. (1998) University of Michigan
About President Mandel

Faculty

  • Total number of instructional faculty: 348
  • Tenured faculty as a percentage of total faculty: 59%
  • Percent of the faculty with doctorates or other terminal degrees: 97%

Faculty as of Fall 2023

Student Enrollment

Undergrad Graduate
Total 2,055 56
Men 991 24
Women 1,044 31
Another Gender 20 1
  • Undergraduate Non-U.S. enrollment: 8%
  • Undergraduate U.S. minority enrollment: 41%

The greatest share of our undergraduates come from New York, Massachusetts, and California, in that order.
Enrollment as of Fall 2023

Class of 2027 Admission Statistics

  • Applied: 11,465
  • Admitted: 1,145
  • Percent admitted: 10.0%
  • Entered: 541
  • Early decision as % of entering class: 46%
  • U.S. students of color: 42%

2023-2024 Comprehensive Fees

  • Tuition: $64,540
  • Board, room, & fees: $16,620
  • Study away fee (as applicable): $1,500

Financial Aid Statistics

  • 52% of Williams undergraduate students receive need-based financial aid
  • 18% of undergraduate students receive Pell Grants
  • 28% of aided students’ parents pay nothing
  • Average aid package:
    • 100% grants (Federal, state and Williams)
    • No required campus jobs
    • No loans

Financial aid statistics updated October 2023

Major Fields of Study

Four-year average distribution of majors, 2020-2023:

American Studies: 12
Anthropology: 4
Arabic Studies: 5
Art: 36
Asian Studies: 3
Astronomy: 1
Astrophysics: 5
Biology: 56
Chemistry: 35
Chinese: 8
Classics: 6
Comparative Literature: 11
Computer Science: 54
East Asian Languages & Cultures: 2
Economics: 112
English: 49
Environmental Studies: 12
French: 12
Geosciences: 12
German: 2
History: 45
Japanese: 3
Mathematics: 59
Music: 8
Philosophy: 14
Physics: 16
Political Economy: 13
Political Science: 52
Psychology: 55
Religion: 6
Russian: 3
Sociology: 11
Spanish: 10
Statistics: 16
Theatre: 7
Women’s & Gender Studies: 7
Student-Designed Major: 1
Note: Approximately 45% of students graduated with more than one major.

Graduation Statistics

Of the 548 first-year students who entered in 2017, 74% graduated from Williams within four years and 97% within six years.

Activities

Williams has about 220 student organizations on campus. 96% of students are involved in at least one extracurricular activity.

Athletics

Approximately 35% of all students participate in intercollegiate sports (33% at the varsity level). There are 32 varsity intercollegiate teams (16 men’s and 16 women’s), 5 junior varsity teams, 16 club teams, and a large intramural program. Williams is a member of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).

Alumni

There are 31,748 living alumni of record, and 51 regional alumni associations nationwide and overseas. Alumni participation in the 2022-23 Alumni Fund was 46.5%. More than 61% of the alumni from the classes of 1980 to 2000 have earned at least one graduate or professional degree. The most popular graduate disciplines for alumni are management, education, law, and health care.

Financial

  • Audited 2022-23 operating expenditures: $295,907,000
  • Gifts from private support (for 2022-23) : $75,163,570
  • Investment Pool (Market value as of 6/30/23): $3,486,558,000

More Information

The Williams Directories contain up-to-date links to Williams websites where you can find email addresses and phone numbers.

Guide to Consumer Information at Williams

Additional data about Williams available from Institutional Research

Fast Facts about Williams is prepared by the Williams College Office of Communications, February 2024, with data supplied by the Common Data Set, course catalog, and Williams College IPEDS reports.