Academic calendar
Fall Semester 2026 runs Sep 1, 2026 – Dec 31, 2026. Calendar aliases that share a date range are grouped together, with every source term still shown.
- Fall Semester 2026Relevant now
- January Interterm 2027
- Spring Semester 2027
Campus language
Search the full glossary. Nothing is sampled or hidden when the search field is empty.
Showing 17 of 17 terms
A
- AAS
- Association of Amherst Students, the student government body.
C
- CAB
- Campus Activities Board, the student-led group that organizes major campus events.
G
- Grab-n-Go
- The quick-service takeout meal option located in the basement of Valentine Dining Hall.
M
- Mammoths
- The official mascot of Amherst College.
- MRC
- Multicultural Resource Center, providing support and programming for students of color.
Q
- QRC
- Queer Resource Center, supporting LGBTQ+ students and allies.
S
- Schwemm's
- Schwemm's Coffee House, a late-night cafe and social space in the Keefe Campus Center.
- Science Center Cafe
- The cafe located within the Science Center offering coffee and light snacks.
T
- The Bubble
- The feeling of isolation or being disconnected from the outside world due to the small, self-contained campus environment.
- The Five Colleges
- The consortium of local schools including Amherst, Smith, Mount Holyoke, Hampshire, and UMass Amherst.
- The Greenway
- The Greenway Residence Halls, a modern housing complex including King and Wieland Halls.
- The Hill
- Refers to the first-year dorms located on the hill, such as James and Stearns Halls.
- The Octagon
- A historic eight-sided building on campus used for various academic and social purposes.
- The Socials
- A historical reference to the now-demolished Social Dorms, sometimes still used by upperclassmen to describe the area where they stood.
- The Triangle
- A cluster of residence halls consisting of Cohan, Garman, and Lipton.
V
- Val
- Valentine Dining Hall, the primary dining facility on campus.
W
- WGC
- Women's and Gender Center, focusing on gender equity and support.
Places and practicalities
Buildings, logistics, and other local references drawn from the approved campus snapshot.
- AC Card
- The official student identification card used for building access, dining, and library services.
- Arms
- Arms Music Center, housing the music department and performance spaces.
- betty_s_kitchen
- Betty's Kitchen
- Fayerweather
- Fayerweather Hall, the primary building for the Department of Art and the History of Art.
- Frost
- Robert Frost Library, the main campus library.
- frost_caf
- Frost Café
- Keefe
- Keefe Campus Center, the hub for student organizations and activities.
- Moodle
- The learning management system used by faculty to share course materials and assignments.
- PVTA
- Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, the bus system providing free transportation between the Five Colleges for students.
- SCC
- The Science Center, a major academic building for STEM fields.
- science_center_caf
- Science Center Café
- The Path
- The main paved walkway connecting the central campus to the Greenway dormitories.
- valentine_dining_hall
- Valentine Dining Hall
- Workday
- The administrative platform used for course registration, student employment, and personal records.
Quick answers
Useful facts students can verify from the guide above.
- What academic term is relevant now?
- Fall Semester 2026 runs Sep 1, 2026 – Dec 31, 2026.
- How much campus context is included?
- 17 approved campus terms and 14 local details are included in full.
- Are all approved campus terms included?
- Yes. The complete approved glossary is available in the scrollable, searchable campus-language section.
- Where does this guide come from?
- Calendar dates, campus terms, and local details come from DormWay's approved campus reference library.