The quarter system at Drexel University requires significant adjustments on the student’s part in many areas when first starting here, especially if they have transferred from a school that runs on a semester system.
One of those is having to attend class during the summer.
Summer class is rough at first, because growing up in the United States, students have always (or almost always) had their summers off from kindergarten through 12th grade. Growing up that way, you get used to being able to spend long periods at the beach or in the mountains. The weather is nice and most people would rather spend time outside. The more you’ve enjoyed the weather, the more you learn that the last thing you want to do during the summer is work.
At Drexel, you could choose to take a summer off after your sophomore year, but you would graduate a term late as a consequence. If that doesn’t matter to you and you feel you could use a break, by all means, please knock yourself out.
However, you’ll learn that summer class may be worth it in the end, especially if you make your way into the workforce before you graduate. Attending summer classes helps students adjust to the feel of the real world before they enter it. In most professions, you don’t get your summers flat-out off, so summer classes allow students to transition into this unfortunate reality.
In the real world, you can request time off for the summer as job benefits permit, but you’re very constrained in doing that as you’re responsible for tasks that absolutely must get done on time. There’s no taking the beach and mountains for granted.
As an adult, you’re supposed to make something of yourself in order to be productive in society. You still have the chance of going on vacation as often as when you were a child, but the difference now is that you’re the one managing your own time to allow the chances of it happening. It feels like less of a vacation, because you’re working around responsibility and not relaxing at home when not on vacation.
So, what does that mean for you as a Drexel student?
You can make your summer easier and allow a better chance for more time off by planning your schedule ahead and taking a higher number of credits in the fall, winter and spring terms.
Besides, there are more resources on campus during those terms than during the summer, so that really helps in the long-run if you end up struggling in your classes.
As always, if you have any questions about scheduling, never hesitate to reach out to your advisors! Course offerings vary from term to term, and your DegreeWorks requirements can get confusing, which can lead you to settling on not quite what you want.
Just because you’re a Drexel student, it doesn’t mean you have to completely deprive yourself of summer fun.