Hampshire College
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Outcomes
Hampshire's rigorous, active, interdisciplinary, and collaborative approach to education produces remarkable results!
Of all higher degrees held by Hampshire graduates:
55% are in arts and sciences
10% are in fine arts
10% are in health care
10% are in law
5% are in education
5% are in business
5% are in other fields
For Ph.D.s awarded in 2000-2004, when adjusted for institutional size, Hampshire ranks 30th in the nation in the percent of its graduates who have earned Ph.D.s in all fields combined. Hampshire ranks particularly high in:
History (1st)
Sociology (16th)
Anthropology (20th)
Institutions where the largest numbers of Hampshire graduates have earned higher degrees (in decreasing order of frequency):
Columbia University
University of Massachusetts - Amherst
New York University
Harvard University
Yale University
Boston University
University of California - Berkeley
Cornell University
Smith College
University of California - Los Angeles
University of Pennsylvania
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Northeastern University
GRADUATE SCHOOLS
Hampshire students often find that their experience with rigorous, interdisciplinary work and their ability to work independently are of great help when moving on to graduate school. That and their impressive, graduate-level Division III projects, of course. The following is a sampling of graduate programs recently entered by Hampshire graduates:
Architecture, M.A.: Yale
Art and Music Education, M.A.: Art Institute of Chicago
Cognitive Science, Ph.D.: UC-San Diego
Computer Science, Ph.D.: University of Hawaii
Elementary Education, M.A.: Columbia
English, Ph.D.: Princeton
Expressive Therapy, M.A.: Lesley University
Geology, M.A.: University of Pittsburgh
History, M.A.: University of Wisconsin, Madison
Human Sexuality Education, Ed.D.: Widener University
Judaic Studies, M.A.: Brandeis
Law, J.D.: Cardozo School of Law, Northeastern, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, University of Minnesota, Yeshiva University
Library Sciences, M.LIS.: San Jose State University
Medicine, M.D.: Yale University
Middle Eastern Studies, M.A.: NYU
Molecular Biology, Ph.D.: UMD-Baltimore
Music, M.A.: Smith College
Mythological Studies, Ph.D.:Pacifica Graduate Institute
Neuroscience, M.S.: UC-Davis
Painting, M.F.A.: Univ Illinois Chicago
Performance Studies, M.F.A.: NYU
Psychology, Ph.D.: University of Illinois, Urbana
Religion, M.DIV.: Harvard Divinity School
Social Ethics, M.T.S.: Vanderbilt
Social Work, M.S.W.: Smith College
Statistics, Ph.D.: North Carolina State University
Urban and Environmental Policies, J.D.:
Vermont Law School
Writing, M.A.: Emerson College
EMPLOYMENT
The skills and experiences Hampshire graduates have from negotiating their education with a faculty committee, initiating projects, formulating solid proposals, and engaging in internships translate into the ability to seek careers in areas that reflect their passions. Employers love Hampshire graduates because they: have the ability to work well with others, take initiative, are self-directed, are problem-solvers, communicate well, and are willing to take risks.
Hampshire students have access to the resources of the Career Options Resource Center (CORC), which provides students with ample "how to" information, including how to conduct an effective job search, interview well, and write a resume and cover letter. Additionally, CORC is the primary on-campus resource for internships and graduate school research.
Hampshire students are invited to participate in job fairs at any of the Five Colleges. Last year, 497 different organizations visited the campuses in an effort to recruit graduates.
Hampshire graduates are employed in an extremely wide variety of fields. The most popular fields in which Hampshire alumni become employed include education, medicine, commercial art, business, social justice, writing and publishing, environmental sciences, and law.
ALUMNI QUOTES
“Getting a job after Hampshire was no problem at all; the work of my Division III thesis was regarded by my internship mentors as equivalent to graduate work, and they gave me glowing recommendations. Twenty-five years later, I’ve been contacted by a women's history professor at Georgetown University, asking permission to cite my Div III thesis and telling me that she would be ecstatic if her graduate students produced such a paper.”
- Margaret Mason, F73
“The critical analysis of my work that existed on a level above an arbitrary letter/number grade allowed me to gain a deeper insight into how I function, and the strengths and weaknesses I have… You don't get letter grades in the real world. You get communication. Written evaluations are communication of your progress, much like my regular meetings with my boss are indications of my progress in my work place.”
- Duran Goodyear, F96
"I think that Hampshire inspires and allows people to be individuals. It forces you to think beyond what you (and a million other kids) were taught and to think for yourself. In my evaluations at work, my strengths always include the ability to work independently and to take on new projects."
- Kendra Castaldo, F97
"Hampshire provides education the way it was meant to be and is a model we should be emulating in our public school system today.”
- Barrie Bierman, F86
“I learned that I could find my own path, and I didn’t need others to tell me what the one right way to do things is. My current company is the third one I’ve founded in the decade since I graduated. The real world isn’t about proving what you’ve learned, but about using what you’ve learned. The skills Hampshire requires are the skills used in the world… Hampshire gives you the chance to succeed or fail on your own merits. It isn’t enough to be a good student; you learn to be a courageous one. It isn’t enough to know the answer; you learn to share the answers. Four years at Hampshire is a four-year headstart on learning skills that’ll help you make your own way in the world.”
- Ben Waggoner, F88
“One of the most valuable things about a Hampshire education is putting into practice the life philosophy that learning is not enough, and that knowledge, the wisdom to be had from it, the value and joy of these things, are not found at a specific destination that floats on the surface, but in the exploration and depths of the journey itself.”
- David E. Mauk, F73
“Ten years after I graduated, most of those I'd consider my important friends (whether I see them often or not) are Hampshire alumni. Crazy as they may be, they're still the people that make the most sense to me.”
- Jakki Spicer, F89
“[The most valuable thing about a Hampshire education was] having to convince a committee of Professors to collaborate with you on your life’s work. If you can do this at 18,19, 20 years, you can do this for the rest of your life—as an entrepreneur, a fundraiser, an independent filmmaker, a grantwriter, you name it. I really took advantage of the NEED to be a self-starter at Hampshire. Doing this successfully at Hampshire allowed me the confidence to do it anywhere. I have moved across the country once, up the coast once, job hunted, gone for challenging internal promotions, and even changed industries several times, and have never looked back. I believe I am who I am today in part because of my Hampshire education. I seem to be a lot more grounded while at the same time a lot more flexible and self-aware of my capabilities than most people my age. I’ve had to go through less pain to get to the self-knowledge that I have acquired."
- Annie Shull, F87
“Hampshire students defy being quantified. Grades are not enough to truly show the work they have done. Hampshire was one of the best experiences of my life. It was empowering and no one can take that away from me. It taught me how to learn. I hope my daughter will choose to go to Hampshire.”
- Elizabeth Dubelman, F80