A Great School For The Right Person
Written: Jul 28 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great Engineering/Business programs, Co-op, and awesome location, plus real-world teaching
Cons: Lack of normal summer vacations starting sophmore year, small campus that isn't very green
The Bottom Line: If the school is for you, you will get a great bang for your buck, and the hands-on School/Co-op learning will help you through school and into your career
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| realmonster's Full Review: Drexel University |
I just finished my first year at Drexel and I was very impressed with the school overall. When I was first applying to schools, I read the negative Epinions about the school and was honestly worried, but fortunately I had a very positive experience.
The reason I chose Drexel was because of a) the Co-op experience, b) it's great location in Philadelphia, and c) because it's Business school is very good. Unfortunately, the Engineering school is much better known, and everytime I mentioned I was going to the school, people were like "Ahhh, so your going to be an engineer!" and I had to tell them definitely not (Physics and math are not my friends). Below I will talk about some of the positive and negative aspects of my 1st year in different catagories:
ENVIRONMENT
Drexel has a very different environment than most schools, and it scares some people. Instead of having a nice, isolated campus, Drexel is located in the middle of the 5th biggest city in the US. For me it is great though- everywhere is easily walkable and the subway has 2 stops on campus, giving you easy access to anywhere in Philly. And there are also cheesesteak and Chinese food carts around campus in addition to the cafateria which serves a good variety of pretty average college food. The drawback is the campus is smaller and less green (trees, what trees!?) than most other colleges. Additionally, next door neighbor super elitist University of Pennsylvania has a much bigger and nicer campus which causes a little bit of bitterness on our part, but most people can and do use Penn's campus resources too. And dispite what some people may think, Drexel's campus is very safe, and in better areas than Penn, LaSalle, and definitely Temple.
The dorms are also pretty nice, especially if you get into the honors program which I was lucky enough to get into. Freshmen in the program get to live in 2 bedroom, 4 person suites with your own bathroom, living area, and a kithen area with a stove, large fridge, etc- not exactly your typical dormroom. But even the normal dorms are great compared to most universities that I have visited.
CLASSES
OK- so for the reason you are supposed to be at college- to go to class! I thought that my classes were very good, especially in my field of Business the classes were very professional and well-done. Some of the "core" classes that you have to take are less interesting, but I figure that is the case at most schools. Most of my teachers were great and very helpful, however there were a couple duds that were more difficult to handle. The Engineering and Business schools are particularly good (with the Engineering being the most popular), but the College of Media Arts and Design and others are becoming increasingly good and popular. Basically, classes are what you make of them- if you like the subject and get involved you'll have a good experience.
CO-OP
The reason that most kids go to this school is a good one- the Co-op program is supposed to be excellant. Unfortunatly I cannot comment much on the subject because I don't start Co-op until this fall, but almost everyone I have talked to has had a great experience with it. You get paid and get to work with great companies around the country and even world if you so choose. If you are on the 5 year plan you get 3 six-month CO-ops, which is what I am doing. A WORD OF WARNING THOUGH- you will not have normal summer vacations on the Co-op plan (besides your one after Freshman year), and may even have school in the spring and summer and CO-op in the fall. You'll have to get over it. The lack of summer vacations is a drawback for some students but for me I would rather have a real job where I was getting paid good money and gaining real experience then moping around my parents house all summer and getting paid $7.25 and hour for a crappy job. It's your choice. I was even not looking foward to going home for this summer, especially since I don't live in the Philly area and can't really see my Drexel friends over the summer.
SOCIAL LIFE
This is not an aspect that Drexel is known for, but it isn't abismal. The main reason that it is decent is because you can always find something to do in Philly, and even around campus there is usually parties and other stuff going on. There are also a bunch of clubs and organizations, plus the school offers discounted trips and sporting events and a couple free on-campus concerts and comedy events which are really cool. Still, I know I am missing out a little bit compared to people who go to a big university and have tons of stuff on campus. There are also a lot of commuters which hurts the socail life a bit, and because some of your friends might be in classes and others on Co-op, it can throw things off a little too, but it also helps you meet more people. If you are a sports fan like me, there are a lot of intermural sports available (flag football, basketball, soccer, vollyball, etc.) and a number of division 1 sports. The Dragons basketball team is very good and the games are great fun (they are predicted to make it to the NCAA tornament this coming year), although a lot of the student body is not really concerned about sports (except the Eagles, which have a pretty big campus following).
THE INFAMOUS ADMINISTRATION
The administration is probably the biggest knock on Drexel as demonstrated by a lot of the Epinions you'll see. I have heard many horror stories, but personally I didn't experience any real problems with them. I know that it has changed for the better in recent years and I am sure I will have some problems in the next 4 years, but I had a surprisingly good experience with them. I can't guarentee the same for you (no warranties are expressed or implied), but so far I was very pleased.
OVERALL
Overall, Drexel was an excellant choice for me. I love the school's environment, and hands-on real world education that you will NOT get from most schools, including Penn and Villanova. Plus it was the most fun year of my life. If you don't mind working for 6 months straight a few times, walking accross busy streets to go to class, and missing out on a few summer vacations, you should do great here. The school is really what you make of it- if you become bitter and pessamistic at everything you probably won't like it- but if you want something a little different that will help your future career, you should at least give Drexel a look!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
realmonster
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Reviews written: 1
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