The Five College Consortium
Follow your curiosity, deepen your knowledge and expand your circle even further with the Five College Consortium, an alliance between Mount Holyoke, Amherst, Hampshire and Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. It’s almost like having five schools in one — from a specialized piece of lab equipment to a leading scholar on a specific discipline, you’ll have everything you need to accomplish more than you ever thought possible. And along the way, chances are good that you’ll make more than a few friends.
The five colleges are connected by a free bus system, which means that through the consortium, you can tailor your experience across collaborating schools and disciplines. But whatever you choose, you’ll learn alongside students and faculty who share your interests and are ready to push the boundaries of knowledge together.
“My film studies advisor pointed me toward specific classes and professors. She was so knowledgeable about the film studies departments at the other colleges, and the information she gave me was absolutely vital,” — Cassidy Anthony ’17
Five Colleges by the numbers
With easy registration and welcoming professors, you’ll be able to transition from Mount Holyoke to other consortium schools seamlessly. There’s a good chance your advisor will likely know many of their consortium colleagues personally, so they’ll be able to recommend the one that fits your learning style and goals.
Five College students
With so many students in the area it's easy to meet friendly people — and make friends.
Five College faculty
The professors within the Five Colleges know their colleagues well, especially those in the same field, which will help your Mount Holyoke advisor help you navigate finding the right class for you.
Five College classes
You can precisely tailor your schedule with the best fit of very specific classes and diverse research opportunities to hone skills that are relevant to your field. Do you prefer an intimate class of seven students or a seminar of 150? It’s your call!
Library volumes
Each member campus has its own distinctive library collection, most of which is accessible to Five College students. They also retain infrequently circulating periodicals, serials and books as part of the Five College library repository collection.
Area museums
Museums10, which is affiliated with the Five College Consortium, is a dynamic collaborative of 10 museums that inspire, engage and enrich our communities through shared experiences of art, literature, history and the natural world.
Five College clubs
If you can't find just the right club to join on our campus, chances are there is one on one of the other campuses. Five College students also come to Mount Holyoke, adding perspectives, ideas and energy.
Campus Voices
Five College Stories
Happening at Mount Holyoke
Five Colleges in the News
Mount Holyoke student honored as a Latina Future History Maker
Mount Holyoke student Naomy Poot Ibarra is working to center their family’s Indigenous Maya heritage.
From the club to the classroom — evolving the dance program at Mount Holyoke
Caleaf Sellers sees dance as a form of cultural storytelling, and his work preserves the movements of dance as living, evolving expressions of history, culture and joy.
NEH grant will make museum collections more accessible
A major effort by a Five College-based museum collaboration to create a shared collections resource for students, researchers and the general public has received a $350,000 boost from the National Endowment for the Humanities.