Hutchinson attended Clifton College, before matriculating at Christ's College, Cambridge in 1884. He took the Natural Sciences Tripos and gained a first in parts I and II. He received his B.A. in 1888 and his M.A. in 1892. He was elected to a Fellowship at Pembroke College in 1892. In 1901 Hutchinson married Evaline Demezy and they had 3 children. In 1928 he was elected Master of Pembroke, a position he held until 1937. He was also Professor of Mineralogy from 1926 to 1931. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1922. He played a key role in the development of the Natural Sciences at Cambridge and during the First World War was employed in chemical work for the Admiralty.