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About Williams

Fast Facts

Academics

3 academic divisions:

languages and the arts, social sciences, and science and mathematics

50+ areas of study

including 26 departments, 37 majors, and several concentrations and special programs

Approximately 45%

of students graduate with more than one major

7 to 1:

student-faculty ratio

a row of seated students dressed in graduation caps and gowns at commencement
Student success

Graduation Statistics

Of the 547 first-year students who entered in 2019, 79% graduated from Williams within four years and 95% within six years.

Enrollment & Admission

2,067 undergraduate students and 49 graduate students

  • Undergraduate non-U.S. enrollment: 9%
  • Undergraduate U.S. minority enrollment: 40%

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

Class of 2029

  • Applied: 15,520
  • Admitted: 1,336 (8.6%)
  • Entered: 567 (584, including deferred students)
  • Early decision as % of entering class: 44%
Icon of a yellow coin with a dollar sign on it falling into an open purple hand

Nation’s first all-grant financial aid.

100% grants, no loans and no work requirements.

Vector illustration of a yellow cow with purple spots

The school color is purple.

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

Location pin icon

Williamstown is located in the Berkshires in northwestern Massachusetts

135 miles from Boston and 165 miles from New York City.

Comprehensive Fees 2025-2026

  • Tuition: $72,170
  • Board, room & fees: $18,580
  • Study away fee (as applicable): $1,500

Financial Aid

Williams is the first college in the country to provide all financial aid as grants that don’t need to be paid back. No loans. No work requirements.

  • 53% of Williams undergraduate students receive need-based financial aid
  • 19% of undergraduate students receive Pell Grants
  • 28% of aided students’ families pay nothing

Student Life

  • 230+ student organizations. The vast majority of students are involved in at least one extracurricular activity.
  • Approximately 30% of students participate in varsity sports in a given year.
  • 32 varsity intercollegiate teams (16 men’s and 16 women’s), 16 club teams, and a large intramural program.

Alumni

  • The oldest alumni association in the world, founded in 1821.
  • 31,825 living alumni of record, and 51 regional alumni associations nationwide and overseas.
  • 43.7% alumni participation in the 2023-24 Alumni Fund.
  • The most popular graduate disciplines for alumni are management, education, law and health care.

More Information

Accreditation: Williams College is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (formerly the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges Inc.).

Guide to Consumer Information at Williams.

Additional data about Williams available from Institutional Research.

Enrollment and financial aid statistics as of fall 2025.

Fast Facts about Williams is prepared by the Williams College Office of Communications, last updated in April 2026, with data supplied by the Common Data Set, course catalog and Williams College IPEDS reports.