Impact.

It’s what this University’s founders had in mind when UMass was established 160 years ago.

It’s what we strive for today.

The University of Massachusetts System offers invaluable educational opportunities in a wide array of disciplines and engages in important research activities recognized throughout the world. The general public tends to understand UMass’s role in these key areas, but is often unaware that the institution is also a major contributor to the statewide economy.

Classes for more than 70,000 University of Massachusetts students, including more than 11,000 members of the Class of 2027 and approximately 3,000 transfer students, began this week at the university’s five nationally ranked campuses in Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell and Worcester.

A complete official count will be made public later in the fall, but the size of the UMass student body is indicative of the role the university plays in driving the upward economic mobility and the prosperity of the Commonwealth.