<p>i agree - the faculty are generally quite good - there just aren’t enough of them. i chose umass because of its top notch graduate program in linguistics, and i would recommend to undergrads interested in linguistics that they put up with all the crap and go to umass. i also recommend it to people interested in radical approaches to economics, political theory and sociology. i understand engineering and computer sciences are decent here too. but if you don’t know what you’re studying, or you’re into humanities or fine arts, go elsewhere.</p>