Arts and Sciences Summer Institutes

The College of Arts and Sciences at Drexel University offers a number of research-rich summer programs that enable students to bond with each other while gaining valuable experience that will support their academic and professional futures. Students will:

• Discover Drexel's nationally ranked hands-on model of education.  
• Engage in rigorous academics and cross-departmental experiential learning.
• Work side-by-side with our dedicated faculty experts and mentors. 
• Explore ambitions and gain invaluable experience that may be applied in the real world.

Big City Journalist Boot Camp

In today’s 24-hour news cycle culture, journalists need to have good instincts and a strong ethical code. This dynamic five-day summer program is cross-presented by Drexel's Department of Politics and Department of Communication, and provides students with an introduction to the exciting and rapidly changing environment of news media and journalism. This is an intensive, hands-on experience where students will learn about the theory and history of media and journalism in Philadelphia, and about relationships between journalism and public relations in today's digital/social media environment. Campers will pitch and produce stories for various local media outlets, including radio stations, newspapers, podcasts, and blogs, amongst others. 

Big City Journalist Boot Camp will be hosted at Drexel's University City Campus in Philadelphia, but students will also spend time shadowing working journalists at various sites throughout the city.  

Coding and Decoding Secret Messages

Mission Possible!  Drexel’s Mathematics Department will lead students on a fascinating journey into the world of cryptography, the art of secret communication through coding and decoding. This cryptic and highly specialized technique involves the skillful transformation of plain messages into enigmatic text, rendering them comprehensible only to their intended recipients. In an age marked by the widespread use of modern communication technologies, the need for security in transmitting vital messages over the Internet has become a paramount concern. Future James Bond’s will have the opportunity to utilize software such as Excel or python.  

Global Philadelphia

Hola! Bonjour! Salve! Konichiwa! Hello Philly! In this weeklong camp, presented by the Department of Global Studies and Modern Languages, students will be introduced to the many global and cultural facets that Philadelphia has to offer. From French architecture to Chinese, Korean, and West African food, to Japanese art and Latin American dance, students will learn from cultural experts and experience Philadelphia's global culture first-hand through activities and excursions throughout the city and surrounding areas. Students will use their smartphones to document their activities during the week with photography and video and will share these through Cartoneras, a book style originating in Argentina, which they will create and design themselves. 

Math, Music, and Coding Camp

Can you feel the beat?  Have you ever wondered why music sounds the way it does? Why are some combinations of notes pleasant while others are unpleasant? Why do some sounds make us feel joy and others bring nostalgia? 

Students in Drexel's Math, Music and Coding Camp will investigate these harmonic questions through the lens of mathematics. In this one-week program presented by the Department of Mathematics, we'll explore how math can help us make sense of different aspects of sound and music. Each day, students will apply musical and mathematical concepts using a coding platform called Sonic Pi, an open-source live coding language for music creation and performance used by professional musicians, VR developers, and programmers. This program is open to students regardless of musical background. We will be using algebra and trigonometry, but calculus is not a prerequisite. 

Sociology of Health and Illness

Health equity and access will be explored in this five-day summer program, hosted by the Department of Sociology, students will be introduced to sociological approaches to healthcare and key findings about the social organization of healthcare in the United States. Perfect for students considering future careers in healthcare administration, this camp will feature discussions, active learning exercises, journals/reflections, and guest speakers from a variety of disciplines to help students learn about sociological approaches to health and illness in our country. Students will learn in sessions on campus and through field trips including to a functional fabric medical device laboratory and a midwifery and doula practice.