Drexel University Paper Format & Writing Requirements
Philadelphia's co-op university, famous for one of the oldest and largest cooperative-education programs in the country, the Academy of Natural Sciences and a Westphal college that feeds Philly's media scene. This page documents what the campus actually requires: citation styles (APA 7, IEEE), the composition sequence, the writing quirks that catch new students, and the assignment genres its programs grade most.
James Parker, MLS
Citation & Formatting Reviewer · Master of Library Science; 9 years as a reference librarian coaching APA, MLA and Chicago styles
Quick answer
Drexel University requires APA 7 or IEEE across most courses. ENGL 101 (Expository Writing and Reading) and ENGL 102 (Persuasive Writing and Reading) open the sequence, and co-op terms add reflection and evaluation documents; the Drexel Writing Center tutors both and co-op report drafts. Top programs: Mechanical Engineering, Nursing, Information Systems (iSchool). The three quirks that surprise new students are listed below — all checkable before your first deadline.
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Drexel University at a glance
Philadelphia's co-op university, famous for one of the oldest and largest cooperative-education programs in the country, the Academy of Natural Sciences and a Westphal college that feeds Philly's media scene.
The campus sits in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, operates as a private institution, and enrolls about 24,000 students — a scale that directly shapes how writing support works. Founded in 1891 with an acceptance rate around 80%, Drexel pairs selective admissions with the large-course writing loads typical of its category.
Citation styles Drexel University actually requires
Drexel courses predominantly require APA 7 or IEEE. That is not a trivial preference: it decides your title page, heading levels, in-text punctuation and reference format on every graded document.
- APA 7: used across social science, nursing and business courses
- IEEE: used across engineering and computer science courses
Verify against the specific course syllabus anyway — instructors can override departmental defaults, and the first paper is where they enforce it.
The writing requirement, decoded
ENGL 101 (Expository Writing and Reading) and ENGL 102 (Persuasive Writing and Reading) open the sequence, and co-op terms add reflection and evaluation documents; the Drexel Writing Center tutors both and co-op report drafts.
Plan the sequence early: composition requirements compound, and students who defer them discover the advanced seminars — where the writing-intensity lives — conflict with major courses later. The registrar's degree audit shows exactly which flags remain; check it each semester.
Three things about Drexel University papers that surprise new students
- The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, founded in 1812, is the oldest natural-science research institution and museum in the Americas, and its specimen records appear in student papers.
- Co-op students on the five-year plan graduate with up to eighteen months of paid work, and Steinbright Career Center evaluations become graded writing in the transcript's margins.
- Drexel Learn, the university's D2L Brightspace install, replaced Blackboard Learn, and course packets still carry both logos during advising-transition terms.
None of these appear in the course description. All of them appear in the rubric. Students who learn them in week one report smoother first-semesters than students who meet them at the deadline.
Assignments Drexel University students face most
- Lab Report — most frequently assigned across Drexel's programs
- Research Paper — most frequently assigned across Drexel's programs
- Case Study — most frequently assigned across Drexel's programs
- Coursework — most frequently assigned across Drexel's programs
- Admission Essay — most frequently assigned across Drexel's programs
Popular programs at Drexel include mechanical engineering, nursing, information systems (ischool) — each pairs the assignment list above with its own capstone or practicum expectations, detailed on our subject pages.
What's your next step?
Two taps to the exact page that unblocks this paper.
Citation Generator
BIBLIOGRAPHYSmith, Jane (2024). The effect of spaced practice on essay quality. Journal of Writing Research, 16(2), 245–268. https://doi.org/10.17239/jowr-2024.16.02.03
Verify before submitting (APA 7):
- Author names inverted (Surname, Initials.) with an ampersand before the last author
- Article titles in sentence case; journal names in Title Case italics
- DOI shown as a live https://doi.org/ link (no 'DOI:' prefix)
- Edition and publisher location rules: editions in parentheses, no city since APA 7
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Frequently asked questions
4 answered1What citation style does Drexel University use?
APA 7 and IEEE — the mix depends on the course's department. Social science and health courses lean APA 7; check the specific syllabus before formatting, and use the citation generator on this page to switch styles without re-learning punctuation rules.
2Does Drexel University have a first-year writing requirement?
Yes — ENGL 101 (Expository Writing and Reading) and ENGL 102 (Persuasive Writing and Reading) open the sequence, and co-op terms add reflection and evaluation documents; the Drexel Writing Center tutors both and co-op report drafts. Plan it in your first year: the requirement chains into writing-intensive courses later, and deferring it creates scheduling conflicts with major requirements in junior year.
3What assignments are most common at Drexel?
Lab Report, Research Paper, Case Study, Coursework, Admission Essay. Each has a full format guide on EssayAtlas — the links below adapt them to your specific courses and programs.
4How competitive is Drexel University?
Around 80% acceptance, enrolling about 24,000 students since 1891. Admissions selectivity matters for writing because graded curves and writing-center capacity scale with class size — use the GPA calculator below to see what your current grades project.
James Parker, MLS
Citation & Formatting Reviewer · Master of Library Science; 9 years as a reference librarian coaching APA, MLA and Chicago styles
Formats for Drexel assignments
Nearby campuses with format guides
Same-state and same-region schools whose writing requirements differ more than you would expect — transfer students and cross-registration students get caught by these every term.