<p>Rochester is not Boston, the ultimate college city - where I live - but it is not a suckhole either. Having spent the day at UR and eating last night downtown, I’d say the campus is compact but with excellent facilities and is both close to downtown and isolated. The ride is about 10 minutes max. </p>
<p>The school is the same size as where I went and is arranged in a similar way, so you see people and thus at least recognize most everyone fairly quickly - except grad students, especially if you’re not in the science buildings much. A school of this size will largely provide its own social life over time; we’re talking 5k undergrads, not 1500. As you get older your social world may move into circles that extend more into the city. You may also have an internship in the city, because Rochester is a real city with big corporations and a government, etc.</p>