Before You Start
Welcome to UMass Amherst
Discover which steps you need to take before you start your program.
Contact Your Advisor
We have a team of dedicated personal advisors whose job it is to make sure all your questions are answered and to ensure you have a smooth transition to the university.
Before you start on any of the steps below, contact your local personal advisor. Simply select your region of the world below, and send your advisor an email, Skype, WhatsApp, or WeChat message. We look forward to meeting you very soon!
Africa
China
Latin America
Middle East/North Africa
North America
North Asia
Russia/Central Asia/Eastern Europe
South Asia
Southeast Asia
UK and Western Europe
Complete Your Pre-Arrival Checklist
In order to attend your orientation, you will need Zoom. Additionally, Zoom is the audio and video technology used as part of the AC Live experience. All students regardless of location will need to download the zoom app at zoom.us. You can access it here. You must use the US app downloaded here. With this Zoom app from the US you will be able to access all the Live lectures.
UCommons is the platform you will use for all Live lectures, assignments and course resources. You will receive an email 1-2 weeks before orientation with instructions on how to complete the UCommons set-up. This will be sent to your personal email address.
Register prior to orientation. Follow these instructions to register for Miro Whiteboard. Miro allows you to access an interactive whiteboard along with other important collaborative tools inside the UCommons platform.
-
-
Receiving 1080p HD video requires 20.0 Mbps download speed
-
Sending 1080p HD video requires 10.0 Mbps upload speed
-
You can set up a US bank account and sign up for a US phone plan before leaving your home country with our trusted provider, Ellis.