16 Things We Love About Drexel

Exactly one year ago today we launched the Drexel chapter of Her Campus. It’s been a fruitful year full of ups and downs and I am so happy to have had the chance to bring this organization to our campus. Here at Her Campus Drexel we have a passion for all things to do with our school. Drexel is always changing, so there’s always something new to love. To celebrate our birthday, April 16, check out our 16 favorite things about good ol’ DU below and add your own in the comments below!

 

Simply read this list all at once and you’ll get the picture: Shake Shack, Zavino, soon-to-be CoZara, Joe Coffee, Yogorino, new Starbucks, Landmark, Academic Bistro, Richky’s Café, Happy Sunshine, Insomnia Cookies, Salt-peppa-ketchup?, Rival Bros., Spot Burger, Street Food Philly, and more. That’s all within about 5 blocks, people. 

 

South Street craziness, Northern liberties hipsterdom, University City smarts, Center City chic, Old City history: the perfect mix of urban life with neighborhood character. Philly is the best backdrop a Dragon could ask for. I mean, The City of Brotherly Love is home to Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross impersonators who are married. What more could you ask for?

 

Drexel Dragons are go-getters. We aren’t watchers, we are doers, and we’re all president of our own Get Sh!t Done Committee. Doing everything from helping Entrepreneurship majors thrive at the Baida Institute or pushing us out of our nests and into the world of Co-op, Drexel is all about the “Live It” attitude. 

 

And the students? They take that Drexel Spirit accelerator and floor it. Whether they’re starting a new organization, creating their own business from scratch, landing their dream Co-ops, producing a TV series, or recording an album, our classmates are always doing something new and exciting. Everyone here has a big story and an even bigger dream.

 

We’ve had Chiddy Bang (ok, well, sort of), astronauts, NBA players, CEOs, actors, boutique owners, artists and so much more graduate from Drexel over the years. With the “Live It” spirit alive in so many current undergrads, who’s to say how long this list will get in the coming years?

 

As a prominent institution in Philadelphia with a lot of powerful connections (duh, see above!) it’s no surprise we get the occasional celebrity appearance. Salman Rushdie, Arianna Huffington, Seth Meyers, Snoop Dogg, OK GO, and many, many more have stopped by. And that’s just over the past few years! 

 

OK, so we might not have the biggest gym in the world or even a football team, but our athletes are some of the most incredible students on campus. From the basically famous basketball stars to the dozens of other Division I teams, there’s quite a lot of fire power on campus (get it??). Club sports and intramural sports are huge on campus too! We think that “go, go, go” attitude follows us Dragons on the field as well as off.

 

This feature is purely based on beauty. We got pretty lucky with our school colors — unless, that is, you chose Drexel based on its school colors, in which case…good job? Blue and gold are pleasing to the eye when together and neither color is too obnoxious to wear in large quantities. (It must be a tough life, Syracuse). Best part? They look good on everyone, thank gosh.

 

Is there a more powerful, intimidating, badass creature in all of zoology (real or fantastical) than the dragon? We think not. Let’s just say the Quakers don’t have us quaking in our boots and we could eat the Blue Hens alive.

 

Ok, ok, so being next to the University of Pennsylvania isn’t terrible. We get double the campus to enjoy, double the friends to make and people to party with, double the networking opportunities, double the shopping and restaurants, and (most importantly) double the trees. Plus, they don’t need both Starbucks or CVS’s to themselves. 

 

 

The most college-y faux-holiday of all time: Wear Green and Drink At 9AM and Pretend It Has Historical Significance Day! It’s pretty great that Drexel is placed right in the middle of the best free bus stops: Cav’s, Blarney Stone, and Slainte. We are safely assuming here that A. J. Drexel knew this day would come where prospective students would need to see what “fun at college” looked like. Therefore, he predicted where the best spot for an all-day rager would be, put his university there, and scheduled Accepted Students Days around it for years to come.

 

It’s literally the most beautiful building inside and out on campus. Plus, it has an observatory, a cafe, a massive (if basically useless) auditorium, fun, old-timey staircases and clocks, statues to rub before finals, and looks amazing during the holidays. This is the building that you saw freshman year and thought, “Wow, I go to a real college.”

Whether you’re a part of Greek Life or not, it makes a lot of Drexel’s social scene go around. If you’re in Greek Life, you’ve met lifelong friends, put forth hours of community service and philanthropy work, and created countless memories. If you’re not in Greek Life, you owe a frat a thank you for your first Powelton Party. Don’t act like you weren’t there.

 

This is one of the best-kept secrets of Drexel. Recently moved to the new URBN Center, the costume collection is under tight supervision in state of the art facilities which protect its amazing treasures. Their latest exhibit is all about Grace Kelly. Enough said.

 

You know you love animatronic dinosaurs and butterfly houses. The Academy’s rotating exhibits are top-notch and continually wow the scientific community. Now that Drexel has acquired them, we get in for free! Dinosaurs and butterflies for everyone!!!

 

Yes, you read that correctly: we love construction. Not for the noise or the dust or the leering construction men, but for what it stands for. It stands for change. It stands for evolution and improvement. It stands for a legacy. The more construction on campus, the more it improves, and the more your degree is worth. When we return as alumni we may not recognize it, but it will be a better Drexel that we can call ours.