Thank you for your interest in UMass Amherst's College of Information and Computer Sciences (CICS). This page provides scholars visiting CICS to interview for faculty positions and those considering offers with information about UMass Amherst and the greater Amherst community.
Learn about CICS on our mission, vision, and values and CICS at a Glance pages, or find out about recent research and education activities in the latest issue of our Significant Bits newsletter.
Check out UMass Amherst's Points of Pride to see why CICS is UMass Proud to be part of a top-ranked public university.
Office of Faculty Development - Resources for Prospective Faculty
You’ll find information about our area school systems, public transportation, our partner employment program, paid parental leave, our childcare reimbursement program, and much more.
International Programs Office
Our International Programs Office (IPO) will work with new faculty members to determine the best visa for their position and familial needs. They will also work with TT faculty members wishing to obtain permanent residency in the United States.
The Amherst area offers diverse cultural activities, excellent restaurants, and amazing natural surroundings. Amherst is located in the beautiful and cosmopolitan Pioneer Valley, which lies between the hills surrounding the Connecticut River.
Home to the Five Colleges—Amherst College, Hampshire, Mt. Holyoke, Smith, and the University of Massachusetts—the area is full of educated folks. 42% have graduate degrees—nearly the highest percentage in America. Neighboring Northampton has been recognized in recent years by numerous publications as a top-rated town for the arts, for families, for historic preservation, and for outdoor activities.
The presence of a large university and four major colleges means there is a wealth of cultural activities of every stripe: art, music, theater, and fascinating speakers. Museums10 is a consortium of the art museums of the Five Colleges, along with the National Yiddish Book Center, the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, and Historic Deerfield, among others.
The valley supports an art cinema, Amherst Cinema. There is also an active music scene, centered around the many venues of the Iron Horse entertainment group, in addition to local music festivals like the Green River Festival.
The beautiful natural surroundings of the Pioneer Valley invite outdoor activities all year round. Wonderful hiking and camping are available locally and in the nearby Berkshire mountain range. Quiet scenic roads with rolling hills make the area excellent for biking. Autumn in the Northeast is legendary—people from all over the country visit the area to witness the changing colors of the leaves. The Pioneer Valley has historically been an agricultural region, and many small farms still exist, with well-established organic and community-supported agriculture. In winter, excellent skiing is just a short distance away at the Berkshire East and Mount Snow resorts.
The diverse population of students results in an unusually strong restaurant scene. Thai, Chinese, the best ice cream known to man (including the famous Herrell's ice cream shop in Northampton), French, Indian, Korean, Mexican, Moroccan, plus a ridiculous (the New York Times says "unsustainable") number of sushi restaurants.
The area is also a mecca for beer connoisseurs, hard cider aficionados, and coffee lovers.