Campus Map
Campus Map with important Institute buildings
Living
For conference guests staying on the UMass campus, you will be living in the North Apartments Residential Area. Each apartment includes four bedrooms, two bathrooms, internet, and a full kitchen with appliances as well as a full size refrigerator. As per their name, the apartments are located on the north end of campus, and are approximately a ten minute walk from the Integrative Learning Center (ILC) and the nearest dining hall (more information about dining is below). The heart of campus, where Campus Center and library are located is about fifteen minutes, and the southern part of campus can be reached in about twenty minutes from the North Apartments area.
Institute Events
Events will be held in two main buildings on campus, the Integrative Learning Center (ILC) or in the Campus Center, both of which are pictured below. The Campus Center is a relatively tall building in the center of campus, recognizable by its signature brutalist architecture style. This Campus Center also houses many food options, which we’ll talk about later in this guide. The ILC is located off of North Pleasant Street, one of the main roads that runs through the campus. It is also near the pond on campus, which is a nice place to take a break outside between sessions. Be careful of the geese though!
Food
If you’re worried about your dining experience during the conference this year, don’t be – you’re in good hands! UMass Amherst has been ranked number one in campus food by the Princeton Review for six years running, and has no shortage of spots to eat on campus.
The main dining hall at UMass, Worcester Commons (/?w?st?/ for the non-New Englanders), is located right between the North Apartments, where conference attendees will be staying, and the Integrative Learning Center (ILC), which houses the majority of linguistic events at UMass. Attendees will be able to purchase one of two meal plans, both of which cover three meals a day during the week. One plan allows attendees to get three meals a day including weekends. Both of these meal plans are optional. Regardless of whether you purchase a meal plan or not, you can eat in the dining halls from 7am-8pm. It operates in an all-you-can-eat buffet style. If you do not have a meal plan a meal can be purchased for $10.50, $14.00, and $17.00 for breakfast, lunch, and dinner respectively.
Have food allergies or restrictions? UMass has a wide variety of food options to cater to any dietary preferences or restrictions. In terms of allergies, all ingredients in food served anywhere on campus are listed on cards near serving stations. Additionally, the top eight allergens are identified on those cards for all food on campus. If you would like to contact the UMass Dining to further discuss your dietary restrictions or preferences, please contact dietitian@umass.edu or call +1 (413) 545-2472.
The Campus Center, right next to the ILC, hosts a food court called the Blue Wall, distinguishable by its titular blue lights. The Blue Wall has a variety of opinions available, including sushi, salad, sandwiches, and desserts. The Student Union (in the Campus Center) also has a buffet-style restaurant called Harvest, which is similar to the dining halls, but on a smaller scale. Your meal plan cannot be used at these locations. Here is a list of restaurants in the Blue Wall and the Campus Center.
An easy way to keep track of all of these locations, as well as their hours and volume of customers is the UMass Dining App. It shows you what restaurants are open, as well as how busy they are at any given time. It is completely free to download and use.
Other Useful Places to Know About
The campus store is located in the Campus Center, not far from the Blue Wall and Harvest. It has many essentials such as chargers, batteries, and writing utensils, as well as a wide selection of UMass merchandise.
The library is located in the center of campus – and you can’t miss it! It’s one of the tallest libraries in the country, standing at 26 stories tall. The library has tens of thousands of volumes on linguistics, languages, and any other topic you need or want to explore available physically or digitally. Additionally, it houses many floors of study spaces, including ones housing computers, printers, copiers, and more. As the tallest building on campus, it also offers amazing views! The building also serves as a nice marker to use if you ever get lost on campus.
The recreation center is located on the southwest corner of campus. Non-UMass guests can purchase membership for $55 dollars for summer admission (May 23-August 26, 2023), or pay $10 for one-day access. More information about membership can be found here. General information about the recreation center and its facilities can be found here.
University Health Services is located up the hill from the ILC at 150 Infirmary Way. Conference attendees who are not UMass students do not have access to most of the services offered. However, if you are in need of urgent care and cannot get to the Urgent Care in Amherst, this is an option for you. To see the resources available to you in case of medical emergencies, please see our Support Resources page.
Getting Around Campus
The UMass campus can seem a bit daunting at first, but it’s very easy to navigate with some practice. You can walk to just about anywhere on campus in about fifteen minutes. The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) runs many buses through campus that can take you from one of the many bus stops on campus around UMass or into surrounding areas. The Transit app is very useful in navigating bus stops and routes around the area. Some of the bus lines that service campus are free to ride while others require you to pay a fare.
Biking is a great way to get around the area as well. Bringing your own is welcome, but various bike rental plans are available through Valley Bike. This company provides semi-electric bikes that can get you around the entirety of the wider Amherst area. They have several different rental options, from paying per ride, to monthly memberships. Pricing information can be found here.
While you can navigate around campus in a car, you cannot get to the heart of campus while in your vehicle. However, there are several main roads that run through campus, and a parking garage located just next to the Campus Center, in addition to parking lots located near dorms. Attendees staying in the North Apartments will be able to park their cars in a parking lot just behind the apartments.
This guide is brought to you by two stellar LSA Institute volunteers: Pluto Davis and Robbie Kite. If you see them at the Institute, give them a high five.