i’m currently a senior in high school and i’ve been looking at f&m. i think it sounds so great, but i’ve heard that lancaster is super isolated and that there’s nothing to do. i saw a video someone made of their trip to lancaster for the weekend and it didn’t look like the town had very much (i grew up in houston though, so i’m probably a little biased). what is lancaster like to those of you that have been??
You sound like a big city person. I love Lancaster and it is among the largest of the Centennial Conference towns. Maybe you should focus on big city schools. Have taken my kids to dozens of schools. The best ones were the small quiet ones. Williams, Amherst and Swarthmore are quiet places. Middlebury is my new favorite college town. Maybe you are better suited to NYU or George Washington University?
I am from Houston too! I am currently a freshman at Franklin and Marshall college. Lancaster is what you make of it. I personally have had plenty to do, whether it be club-based or just going into the town. Of course it isn’t as bustling as Houston is, but if you do some research, you can still have plenty of fun. Anything specifically you are particularly worried or concerned about?
Food glorious food. It’s a funky little city in Amish country - the Amish were doing farm to table and organic years ago while the rest of the country was happy snacking on Pringles. Really good food in the area, and a great art scene. Central market downtown is the oldest farmers market in the country supposedly (but really, who was tracking the farmers markets 100 years ago 
Nonetheless, Central market is very cool, and the shops/cafes around it are great. Daughter is looking at Skidmore in super polished Saratoga. Wonderful, but an off campus bagel and coffee will be north of ten dollars. Lancaster has less polish, more grit, but the guy at the food truck on Fulton St will go out of his way to accommodate you.
I’m from houston also, and am applying to franklin and marshall class of 2020! I’ve visited twice, and took the liberty to explore a bit. While its certainly a small town, I didn’t feel isolated. It seemed like one of those places that ultimately was what you made of it.
My son and I toured Franklin and Marshall and spent a lot of time in the town itself. We loved it! In fact, we thought the town was one of the best things about the college. First of all, the food is super cutting edge and not expensive, the art scene is great and there is a wonderful revival of warehouses and old buildings being made into coffee houses, interesting businesses, and lofts. We are from Los Angeles and my son thought the town was super interesting and (even better) affordable. If he doesn’t get into Haverford ED (we find out on Tuesday), he will be applying to F&M for sure and it might even be his first choice.
Honestly, there isn’t much to do in Lancaster. There are plenty of good restaurants and a few art galleries, but beyond that there isn’t anything to do. This is why F&M students are involved in greek life, because it gives them access to parties and social events that can occupy their time on the weekend. If you don’t want to join the greek life but enjoy sitting in your room, watching Netflix and going out to eat, you will be content with F&M. If not, I wouldn’t make F&M your top choice.