Category Archives: For Students Archive

Free tools to improve your personal finances

Are you interested in improving your money management skills? Do you wish you knew more about investing and credit? Do you need to learn more about the benefits that employers offer? Drake University has partnered with GradReady® to provide a free digital platform where you can learn about these topics at your own pace from any device. Visit drake.gradready.com to create your account and get started today.

— Ryan Zantingh, Director of Financial Aid

Pre-game Student Alumni Association networking event at Dough Co.

Join the Student Alumni Association and the Central Iowa Regional Alumni Board for a pre-game pizza party at Dough Co. Pizza on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 1:30 p.m.  This is a great opportunity for current Drake students to network with regional alumni and to cheer on the Drake Men’s Basketball team ahead of their game against Belmont Bruins.

All attendees will receive a free slice of pizza and vintage Drake University merchandise. The first 20 student attendees will receive a free drink ticket (21+).

Reach out to Marguerite Stoffel (marguerite.stoffel@drake.edu) with questions.

— Stephanie Kiel, AS’23

Announcing Drake semester study abroad program, DU England at Harlaxton College

Drake is excited to announce DU England: Harlaxton as our second cohort-model semester study abroad program.  The program will be offered each fall, starting Fall 2023, with Professor of Psychology Maria Clapham as the inaugural Drake Faculty-in-Residence teaching on the program.

Harlaxton College is one of the most unique study abroad locations in the UK based at a Victorian Manor and has been operating for over 50 years. Set in 300 acres of beautiful countryside in the heart of England, Harlaxton allows our student cohort to enjoy the British Midlands with the ability to be in London in about an hour.  Harlaxton’s central location in Lincolnshire also brings other major cities and towns within easy reach, allowing academic and culturally important sites to be visited in an afternoon, a day out, or weekend away. The Drake cohort-model program will include the Harlaxton semester experience, with students taking classes taught by British and visiting faculty members, as well as additional specialized activities and excursions exclusive to Drake courses.

Campus visit from Harlaxton representative on Feb. 20 & 21

A representative for Harlaxton College, Jordan Hall, will be visiting Drake University on Monday, Feb. 20, and Tuesday, Feb. 21.  If you are interested in learning more about Harlaxton, we can set up an advising appointment with you and Jordan to get more in-depth information of this exciting new program.

In addition, you are invited to attend a program information session on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 4 p.m. in Olmsted TMR132 to learn about studying at Harlaxton this upcoming fall semester.

If you have questions about DU England: Harlaxton or want to schedule an advising appointment, reach out to studyabroad@drake.edu. To apply to DU England: Harlaxton for fall 2023, you can apply through Terra Dotta here.

— Maria Rohach, Global Engagement

Looking to Publish? DUSSJ spring edition accepting submissions

The web-based Drake Undergraduate Social Science Journal (DUSSJ) is now accepting paper submissions for its Spring 2023 edition. Any current Drake undergraduate (or recent graduate) is eligible to submit a paper on a topic in the social sciences (political science, international relations, anthropology, sociology, economics, history, philosophy, religion, and social psychology). Submissions may be short analytic essays or longer research papers. Papers that feature thoughtful, original analysis, polished writing, and careful citation are especially welcome!

No more than one submission per person will be considered. Submissions will be peer-reviewed by a student editorial board. When submitting a paper, please indicate if it is a research paper or short analytic essay. Also, please indicate the primary discipline and any secondary discipline(s).

Questions and submissions should be directed to the DUSSJ faculty advisor Professor Li and DUSSJ Acquisitions Editor at advisor.dussj@gmail.com

— Kaiya Kielb Young, AS’23

VIP applications open

If you have a heart for helping others and are looking for a way to give back to campus, VIP might be a good fit for you.

VIP students are trained and certified victim advocates who  support individuals who have encountered harmful sexual or dating experiences. VIP students staff a 24-hour hotline to ensure students have somewhere to turn to, be heard, ask questions, and find resources. In addition to the hotline, VIP students engage the campus with sexual and dating violence awareness and prevention events.

We welcome you to explore joining our team by filling out this APPLICATION.  Applications are open now until February 25th.

Time commitment and expectations:

  • Make VIP a priority in your campus commitments
  • Attend all required trainings (details in application)
  • Attend bi-weekly meetings
  • Take 1 or 2 hotline shifts per month
  • Participate in programming

If you have questions please email lynne.cornelius@drake.edu.

— Lynne Cornelius, Dean of Students Office

Reminder: Complete the 2023–2024 FAFSA (financial aid application)

To be considered for need-based grants and scholarships or federal student loans in the Summer 2023, Fall 2023 or Spring 2024 semesters, complete the 2023–2024 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The form is available at www.studentaid.gov. The FAFSA is available to U.S. citizens and eligible non-citizens.

If you need assistance completing the FAFSA, please contact the Office of Student Financial Planning.

— Ryan Zantingh, Financial Aid

Tax benefits for higher education

Did you know that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) provides tax benefits for education? The tax benefits can be used to get back some of the money you spend on tuition or loan interest or to maximize your college savings.

Even if you normally wouldn’t file a tax return because of your income level, be sure to do so! If you don’t, you’ll miss out on tax credits that would put money in your pocket.

Learn more here.

— Ryan Zantingh, Financial Aid

PMAC info session Feb. 3

Welcome Weekend 2023 planning is underway, and we want you to be a part of it. There are multiple opportunities to participate in the PMAC program this year, so we hope to see many applications. These roles include FYS PMACs (working with a group of students), Event Planner PMACs (planning Choose Your Own Adventure events and facilitating Welcome Weekend activities), and Social Media PMAC (a unique role within the Event Planner PMACs that will run the new Instagram page to showcase our awesome PMACs and all the fun activities of Welcome Weekend)

To hear more about these roles and get all your questions answered, please attend our information session on Friday, Feb. 3, in Sussman Theater in Olmsted. The session will be around 30 minutes long and will be very helpful if you want clarification on any part of the process.

You can sign up here: PAB: PMAC Information Session’22/’23 (signupgenius.com)

In addition, you can follow the @drake.pmacs Instagram account for more information about the position.

Applications are due Feb. 12 at 11:59 p.m. For questions, email pab@drake.edu.

— Lesly Velazquez, junior

Become an orientation leader

Orientation leaders are dedicated to providing incoming students and their families with all of the information and resources necessary to ensure their transition to Drake is a smooth and enjoyable one.

We need you to help make this happen. Each year we recruit current Drake students to become part of the orientation leader staff. Orientation leaders play a vital role in this exciting process, working closely with new students and their families on a wide variety of topics including academics, student involvement, housing options, and more.

We highly encourage you to attend our final information session being offered on Friday, Jan. 27, from 12–1 p.m. in Olmsted, Room 310. Click here to sign up.

You will be compensated for your time and effort and gain valuable skills in this position.

Learn more about the position. For questions, contact Marina Verlengia at marina.verlengia@drake.edu.

— Marina Verlengia, New Student and Parent Programs

Academic coaching workshops

Kickstart this semester with Academic Coaching Workshops. The Access and Success team will work with you to develop a success plan for calendar planning, time management, study strategies, goal setting, creating habits, test anxiety, mindfulness and how to find motivation.  Come to all of the workshops or just the topics you need support with. The workshops will take place in Cowles Library, Room 45. 

— Brooke Sanders, Academic Excellence and Student Success