Franklin & Marshall College
Reviews

Overall Experience

I really like most things about F&M, with the exception of the rigor of the pre-med course work (especially in the chemistry department). The chemistry department is notorious for harsh grading, insensitive professors, and unrealistic expectations for their students. Every other department, however, has wonderful professors who are more than happy to allow you to engage in independent studies and/or research, and the friends I've made here at F&M will last me a lifetime. Overall, I think it's a great school; you just have to be ready to work.

The Sooner, the Better.

The sooner a student applies for financial aid, the more aid they will receive which is much better than waiting close to the deadline. Also, scholarships are helpful; applying for scholarships can only help you not hurt you. My financial aid package changes somewhat often which is complicating but I'm learning to fix the problem so it won't happen so often.

How to Get Where I'm Going.

There are plenty of options for transportation at F&M. There is a nightly shuttle that transports the students to different areas of campus and near off-campus for safety purposes. Also, there is a shuttle called the Lancaster Loop that transports the students to the Park City Mall every Friday afternoon or Central Market and Walmart every Saturday morning/afternoon. The city bus also runs daily for an alternative option. For transportation during breaks like Thanksgiving and Winter break, there is a shuttle that students can use by reserving a spot online and paying in advance to transport them to the nearest airports or train stations.

Go, Fight, Win!

The students are very supportive of F&M sports. Students are usually lined up in the food section of a tailgate or socializing whenever there are home football games. The athletic facilities are available for everyone, even people who are not on the athletic teams which is cool because it still gives students the opportunity to work out, exercise, or try out a sport they may be interested in. Unfortunately, there are no pep rallies but I guess the tailgates can make up for them.

Awesome Campus and Facilites

The campus at F&M is AWESOME. There's a lot of green space and adirondak chairs on all the lawns. There are two libraries that are both open really late for studying. Dorms are overall good; the rooms in some dorms are really big, and some are smaller, but they're still big compared to dorms at most schools. Most academic buildings are very modern and nice.

Average Looks

There are a few beautiful girls and attractive guys, but on average, most kids just look good because they dress nicely and wear expensive clothes. This is no school for models; it's a place where students care more about their studies than their looks (on average).

Catering to the Creative

My specific reason for choosing F&M was their special English major, with a focus of Creative Writing instead of Literature. I write, and I enjoy literature, but I want to be a writer. The professors recognized that not all students wanted to study only literature, so they fashioned the English major into two tracks: the Creative Writing track and the Literature track. It is nice to have the choice, considering most colleges don't give you the option. The professors are also terrific. They love the talk with students about the courses, everyday life, experiences, practically everything. They also understand that stress of being a college student and are very reasonable people. If they know you work hard but just can't take the heavy work load, they understand if you need an extension. Very negotiable. The workload is on the heavier end, but it's very satisfying to get through it all and know I worked hard for a worthy reason. The curriculum is wide ranging, with many Medieval to Victorian to monster based courses--a liberal education, which is what F&M is good for most definitely. The facilities are okay, but soon they will be even better when the English department moves to a renovated building. I'm in love with the English department, being my home away from home. I spend an insane amount of time socializing with my professors and talking about my plans for the future and how I want to enjoy my time as a early twenty year old.

F&Mily

F&M is small so people have a chance to know many of the students (by no means all of them, however). Dorms are a bit average, the house system works well for freshman but can feel a bit stifling for upperclassmen trying to room with non-house friends. Overall, the common areas are lovely places to study.

Touristy but Charming

F&M is located in Lancaster, famous for its Amish Central Market, which is a fantastic food and gift spot on the weekends. However, the multiple parks and shopping available outside of tourist activities make it a great town.

I LOVE IT

I love this school. It is gorgeous. The boys are generally cute. The girls are nice. The parties are awesome. The professors sincerely want to help you which is huge. For example, I am not a science person. There is 1 lab science required for Gen-Ed requirements. I wasn't doing well in the class but the Professor met with me about 4 times before the final to help me study AND gave me extra credit work to complete in order to bump my grade. I love this school.

Honestly, Not That Strict.

I have never felt that P Safe went out of their way to get in trouble. If people were being dumb and vandalizing or something, they always made sure to sort it out...But, generally, they are there to help you. I have never felt as though they wanted to get you in trouble. They are there more for safety of the students than for disciplinary reasons.

Everything Is NEW!!!

Everything in is tip top condition. Seriously though. I think the oldest building on campus (that hasn't been recently updated) in like 2000...or maybe the late 90's. They just made an entire new dorm that is HUGE! And the gym is beautiful and especially the pool which is the largest in Pennsylvania (I think!). Everything is gorgeous, especially LSP which is my favorite place on campus. It is the science building, but it is the best place to study. It has little alcoves with chairs and tables to work at and it is right near the Quiche and Crepe eatery which is never a bad thing!

Public Safety Is Stern but Not Strict

Public safety is very good at monitoring situations, they are not strict about underage drinking unless things are out of control for example having a large, loud party in the dorms.

More Diversity Than You Think

There is actually a significant international population on campus. In my dorm alone there are students from, Singapore, Ecuador, and India as well as Hong Kong.

Pretty Good

The buildings are pretty good, recently renovated and are always cleaned by f&o

Know where to look

Been there, done that. You can find any party drug, and people to it with, on this campus. However, out of necessity it is very much underground.

Anybody on campus dealing anything other than bud is going to be very secretive about it, since Public Safety will come after you if you get a reputation as a dealer of hard stuff. But at least once a month, kids will bring back small amounts of acid, shrooms, and mollie/E from Philly and New York. And no, "rolling" is not restricted to off-campus partying. People who have rolled at F&M parties have reported great experiences and tolerance for their method of partying among other students.

Some of the smartest, nicest kids at this school like their drugs. It's all out there. It is college, after all.

Grass is not Greener

I can't tell you how many people I have heard complaining about the girls at F&M compared to other schools. First off, remember, there are only 1,000 girls here, compared to 15,000+ at other schools. That's why it seems like there are fewer hot ones.

Proportionally, our ladies are just as pretty on average as anywhere else. They come from well-to-do backgrounds in Jersey, New York, and Philly, so they have good genes and good parents. This also means that they can come off a little prudish, but you can't blame them for wanting to protect their reputations on such a small campus. Many become boyfriended so as to get regular sex without the drama, so remember this when macking on a Friday night. Only the loose ones have sex on the first night...party hook ups are commonplace though, and often a mini-relationship/steady hooking up with a girl will get you what you want.

Best Scene for Miles

People will trash talk the F&M party scene. This is because A) people love to whine...surprise, surprise and B) because they TOTALLY saw bigger ragers at Rutgers/PSU/Maryland. Well duh, we can't exactly compete with the big state schools. However, go 10 mins down the road to Millersville to know just how miserable even a school of 20,000+ can be when it comes to partying.

For a school of 2,000 where everyone has too much work, F&M does a really good job. My fraternity for one puts a lot of effort into our parties with good results. I have had so many nights there I barely remember with friends and girls I will never forget. Sometimes the party scene gets a little slow, but if you have a good social group you will always have multiple frats as well as house/apartment parties to make your weekends fun and memorable.

The guys are...guys...nothing special.

As a freshman I have hooked up with a few people since coming here, and all of them have been very fun! I wouldn't suggest hooking up with people who you have class with if you aren't looking for anything more than a one night thing, it can lead to awkward encounters. For any prospective students looking to come to f&m the one thing you HAVE to know about hooking up and dating at F&M is how small the school is. There are only so many people you can hook up with on a 2200 person campus. It is small and you will see the people you hook up with everywhere. and by everywhere i mean everywhere. you will see them when you look your best, worst, and everything in between. plus, if you wait too long, at least one or 2 people who you know will have hooked up with them before you...sickness gets spead quite quickly here through the student body. also, on the note of relationships, they really do happen here despite what others say...Many of my friends are currently in exclusive things and i hope to be soon as well!

Yum!

I love going out to eat in Lancaster. Unlike most of my fellow students, I try to stay away from WOW (a wingery) and Iron Hill. THey are nice once in a while, to grab a milkshake or dessert or fried food, but there are so many places nearby! Rosa-Rosas is a 5 minute walk from the dorms, and has been a staple of F&M student's dining since their opening, with their delicious pizza and famous spaghetti pizza. Addisu Ethiopian just opened up in the strip mall next to Waffle House in the past year, and is absolutely delicious. They give discounts to F&M students, and if you go at lunch, they make sure you get extra food! Sakura, Blue Pacific, and Ginmiya are all good places to get sushi from, believe it or not. Blue Pacific and Ginmiya deliver, and all three are close by. In close driving distance is the mall, with the typical chains (Olive Garden!) and a Wawa. Downtown Lancaster has local chains such as Issac's, and independent cafes, Sakura, local ice cream places, Korean food, Vietimease food, and fabulous restaurants in general. Whatever you are craving, you can find pretty easily here.

It's the North, there are seasons

OK, I don't get why gscout7 or whatever is complaining so much about. Their reviews are fairly negative, and completely off the mark. That being said, they did just finish freshman year, so, maybe that's why.

OK, so, the weather isn't the best in Lancaster. We didn't choose to come to F&M because of the gorgeous weather, however. You want nice weather and academics, go to Stanford, UCLA, or University of Hawaii. Pretty much, if you go to school in the North, you are going to get warm summers and freezing winters, and random weather during the spring and fall. You really should have an umbrella and rainboots, because it does rain a fair bit. We're also in the North, so snow is a concern. The weather doesn't get as hot as Texas (thank God), but it does get above 90 in the summer when there's a heatwave. I chose this school because it did have seasons, and I knew what I was getting into coming up here. Yes, we get miserable weather some times, but it's Pennsylvania. Sometimes when the wind goes the wrong way, we get manure days (days that smell like manure. Hey, we're surrounded by farms. It happens.), and sometimes it's 40 degrees and raining and the LAST thing you want to do is go to class. Blizzards do occur (I had classes cancelled for 2 days last year), but we also get beautiful days when most of the campus is outside. If you grew up in the North, you'll be fine here. If you grew up in the South or Hawaii...you need to hit the outlets ASAP to get a winter coat.

Wireless Access

Franklin & Marshall's wireless network is excellent for the most part. You can get internet anywhere on campus, except for some of the dorms. As it turns out, that's not that big of a deal since there are ethernet ports in all of the room anyway.

Most Come from Families With Money.

Most people are nice, they are just used to having money as opposed to those of us who do not.

Library

The Library is open and accommodates students well. Also the staff is eager and willing to help with research or whatever you need.

Freshman courses here are somewhat tough

The courses here as a freshman are somewhat tough, but there are many Foundation courses you can take that are very easy and can result in a B with minimal effort. My friend is in Bio and Chem though, and he has a ton of work and is up all the time. When I have to study though for a hard test I study anywhere from 5 to 8 hours, so there really are some tough classes. Most of my professors have been very nice and helpful. Their very easy to reach out to.