Head First Into One of the Medical Capitals of the World

I applied to 10 colleges, all around the United States. Drexel was barely on my radar, if I am being honest, until I heard about their phenomenal nursing program combined with their co-op.

I did some research and realized the College of Nursing and Health Professions (CNHP) affiliations include hospitals like CHOP, Penn, Jefferson, Einstein, and numerous others that rank in the top health care groups in the nation. What better opportunity than one that finds its foundation in the medical hub that surrounds it?

I was terrified, starting nursing school. You hear rumors and stories about people failing out, crying everyday, passing every class except one and having to wait a whole year to retake it. I was still determined. Determined to be a nursing student and eventually a nurse that could proudly say they went to Drexel and had clinical experiences at places like the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Hospital, the oldest hospital in the nation.

Not only am I making professional connections to last a lifetime, but I am given opportunities of a lifetime working under people who are engaged in changing medicine.

I walked into anatomy class my first year and was greeted by one of the kindest instructors I have ever encountered. Not only was she kind, but she knew how to teach and really get concepts across to students. I remember thinking to myself, don't take this for granted because professors are definitely not all like this. However, I was wrong. Every single nursing professor I have come across at Drexel has been absolutely phenomenal. They know how to connect, how to have fun, how to make concepts crisp and clear, and how to teach students to apply what they learn in the classroom when they go out into the field.

I have been lucky enough to be placed at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Hospital for my last two clinicals, and, during so, I have been reflecting back a lot on my college decision. I could not imagine being anywhere else doing anything else. I am literally a part of cutting edge medicine. Thanks to Drexel, the professors, and the affiliations and connections Drexel has — I have been able to thrive here.

Almost two years have passed since I walked into my first-year anatomy course, and since then I have joined the Cell2Society Research team under the Dean of Research at CNHP. I have joined the Board of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, I have joined the CNHP ambassador team, and I am professional development chair of the Drexel University Student Nurses Association. Not only am I making professional connections to last a lifetime, but I am given opportunities of a lifetime working under people who are engaged in changing medicine. What better place to dive into medicine than the medical HUB of Philadelphia PA, at Drexel University?