Bard College at Simon's Rock: the Early College

Where Independent Minds Get Their Start

If you’re on the verge of 11th or 12th grade and certain you don’t want more of the same, Simon’s Rock can show you what education is like when everyone shares your love of learning. We’re the only residential college experience designed for thoughtful, exceptionally motivated students who are ready to start college early.

37 & 15

Number of states and countries our students come from (respectively).

275 Acres

Our wooded campus is in the heart of the Berkshires, an area known for its natural beauty and rich cultural life.

globe

16

Average age of Simon‘s Rock students when they enter.

85%

Percentage of students receiving financial aid.

students

1

There‘s only one way to become a Rocker, and that‘s to apply.

95%

Percentage of full-time faculty holding highest degree in their field.

35+

Number of majors.

10

Number of Fulbright Fellows since 2010.

1

Minimum weekly meetings with your advisor.

Top 20

Our ranking among all U.S. colleges for percentage of alumni who complete their PhD.

450

Number of full-time students. Ninety percent live on campus.

24/7

Availability of our professional residence directors who live in each residence hall.

“One of America’s smartest colleges”
Business Insider picked Simon’s Rock as a top choice‚ if you want to be among the most intelligent students in America.

40%

Percentage of Rockers who are students of color.

92

Academic Rating from the Princeton Review—higher than Harvard and Princeton.

student with pad

8:1

Our student faculty ratio.

#1

Number 1 Small town in America, as ranked by Smithsonian Magazine.

40%/60%

Ratio of male to female students.

11

Average class size.

78

Percentage of recent Simon’s Rock graduates who have gone on to graduate study.

Top 10%

Academic challenge and educational experience, the National Survey of Student Engagement.

2.5 hours

Our distance from Boston (west) or New York (north).

6

Alumni listed on Forbes “30 Under 30” list of most creative minds.

I'm interested in:

Get your (metaphoric or real) hands dirty.

Theory is great. We love theory! But we’re also crazy about application and putting that theory to work in the world. Create wearable tech, try sustainable farming (chickens included!), become a connoisseur of the exquisitely balanced equation, solve a problem no one has before. Our faculty and the Fisher Center can send you in a multitude of fascinating directions.

SCIENCE, MATHEMATICS,
& COMPUTING

You see more when you stand at the crossroads.

We’re not big on silos of knowledge. We think the most enduring and provocative insights about individuals and cultures emerge where disciplines intersect. Join us at this vantage point and delve into the people, institutions, values, and challenges that never fail to excite, inspire, and madden us. Discover where you stand in the flow of history and ideas.

SOCIAL & POLITICAL STUDIES

Make something out of nothing—or a lot.

There are no artsy “types” at Simon’s Rock—everyone is a cauldron of creativity, and it’s just a question of whether you’re simmering or at a full boil. In either case, this is your chance to study and work in amazing facilities with real practitioners across the spectrum of the arts. This is where inspiration meets aesthetic clarity—and the result is something all your own.

PERFORMING & VISUAL ARTS

Speak it. Read it. Analyze it. Breathe it.

If you can express it or create it with a language, you can study it and own it here. Literature, film and other media, creative writing, cultural studies, linguistics, brilliant conversation—you can pursue it in your native and/or acquired tongue. We offer instruction in five languages and immersive study abroad opportunities, so you can embrace fluency in all its manifestations.

LANGUAGES & LITERATURE

Blaze your own educational pathway.

You’re invited to explore, dig in, and even dabble in and across all our intellectual offerings. Construct your own roller coaster of knowledge and ideas. We’ll be waving our hands in the air right alongside you.

EVERYTHING

Meet Our Community

Sam, Started at 16

Sam

Started at 16

Andre, Started After 10th Grade

Andre Santana

Psychology

Ishan, Started at Age 16

Ishan

Started at Age 16

Colin, Started at age 15

Colin

Started at age 15

Mia, Started at age 17

Mia

Started at age 17

Moamer, Started During 11th Grade

Moamer Alsaedi

Organizer of Campus Pride Week

Ishmael, Started at age 17

Ishmael

Started at age 17

Marisa, Started at Age 15

Marisa

Started at Age 16

A Place to Challenge and Inspire