Student Profile
Amanda
- Class: Sophomore
- Major: Engineering
- Gender: F
- High School: Chopticon High School
- Transfer Student: N
Big Picture
The best things about Drexel are the Co-Op program and being IN Philadelphia. If I could change anything I would add football since that seems to always be a way to increase school spirit and the tuition is ridiculously high for what it is. I feel the size is great, its perfect for me. I know people, but not everyone. When I tell people I go to Drexel I usually get a "So you're an engineering major?" followed by "thats a rigorous engineering program." I usually spend most of my time on campus in North where most of my friends and myself live. I also spend a good time in class...lol, usually in one of the engineering buildings or friends live a few blocks away from campus where I spend a lot of time as well. I wouldn't say Drexel is a "college town" because it is in Philadelphia which is a major city. You feel like you're in a city not really even on a college campus at times. I like it that way though. I went to a school with a real campus and really did not enjoy it. Even with the schools around it I wouldn't call it a college town, just a school in a major city. Drexel administration has been great for me. They have never messed up my billing and when I transferred back here (I transferred in and out) they really helped me to get back on track and get back into the swing of things. I cannot really think of any controversies on campus. There is a lot of school pride. I am a member of the DAC Pack, the school's spirit team for mainly basketball and I love it. Most people have school pride. Drexel is unusual because of the quarter system as opposed to the semester system, some people hate it, I love it because classes go by quicker and you take more different courses. It is challenging to keep up sometimes though. I think being in West Philly is unusual also, but I love not being constrained by a campus setting or boundaries. You really need common sense to ensure safety. My greatest experience at Drexel was moving into the Engineering Learning Community in Myers Hall. We really became great friends almost like family. We ate together, hung out together, spent our weekends together, took trips together, lived together, and studied together...everything. Although we are spread out now, we still all are great friends and do a lot together. The most frequent complaints from students are definitely tuition, its really pricey here.
Academic Life
Some professors know my name, some do not. It depends on the subject and how the course is divided (recitations, lectures, labs, etc.). It also depends on the professor. Some professors for Biomedical Engineering courses refuse to know names as to grade as fair as possible. Others you will only know if you use their office hours. Others, will learn your name. Most of the TAs will definitely know your name. My favorite class has been CHEM 101 because they really do a lot to assist you. They are awesome professors to begin with, but they also give tons of mock exams, run review sessions, and have online problems to do. My least favorite class has been ENGR 210 (Thermodynamics) because my professor is extremely picky over format and the way a student does each problem. He tends to be kind of arrogant and a know it all as well. I would say that most students here with the exception of Pre-Med students are not very competitive, although there are few Business majors that are very competitive too, most are not. My major is Biomedical Engineering and with that you have to choose a concentration. I chose Biomedical Systems and Imaging because I enjoy more electrical and non-biology things. You have to get a C in every class within Biomedical Engineering. If you're more of a biology person you can also concentration in Neuroengineering or Tissue Engineering. If you enjoy more of the mechanical aspects you can concentrate in Biomechanics. Drexel's academic requirements for the engineering majors is challenging and most semesters will require you to take the maximum amount of credits, 20. However, the co-op and even the courses gear you toward getting a job. The opportunities are endless after graduating from here.
Student Body
I feel like its impossible to be "out of place" at Drexel. There are student organizations for anything you can imagine and if there isn't you can create it fairly easily. This isn't high school anymore and most people get along. Some students wear their pajamas to class or dress very casually, there are some people that go to class in their work clothes because they're on co-op, some that do research in between classes and come to class in labcoats and there are others that look like they came out of Vogue. Another thing I like about Drexel is even with the large amounts of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania residents, there are people from everywhere. I know people from South Korea, Michigan, Alaska, Nevada, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, California, Florida, and France. Those are just people that I know personally. People are also all from different financial backgrounds. There are people here that are loaded but there are also people here that rely on large school granted scholarships and student loans to be here also. Students are politically aware for the most part, especially with the recent presidential debates held at Drexel. People tend to be more left, although there are also a large amount of more right leaned people and moderates. Students always talk about how much they'll earn, hence theres a facebook group called "I go to Drexel so I'll be making more money than you." I think it just shows that people feel with their 1-3 co-op cycles, the available research, and the value of a Drexel degree that they have confidence is procuring a job in the future that pays well.
The Best Things
co-op, city setting
The Worst Things
high cost of tuition
