The Drake Student Services Center is designed to provide assistance with common campus needs, including:
If you have questions or need any additional information about these services, visit Student Services Center web site or contact them at studentservices@drake.edu. You can also visit the office in the Olmsted Center or call at 515-271-2000.
Student Services Center web site
Cowles Library is the main library of Drake University and the largest private college library in Iowa. The Library provides extensive print and electronic resources used in class assignments and research. Faculty librarians and Library staff work with researchers and students at every stage of the research process and provide instruction in cutting-edge research methods. Library faculty teach a variety of courses in the Drake curriculum, including First Year Seminars, Blueprint for Success, and courses that satisfy the Information Literacy and Engaged Citizen AOIs.
Cowles Library houses more than 250,000 print books, government documents, and scholarly journals. Students can also access an extensive collection of online resources, including an ever-expanding collection of more than 1.1 million eBooks and more than 250 databases covering the entire range of academic disciplines at Drake. Other resources available include physical and streaming video, datasets, technology and software, and physical and streaming music. The high quality and broad scope of the library's electronic resources is a distinguishing feature of the Drake learning experience. Cowles was the first library in Iowa to offer an online service (SuperSearch) that accesses dozens of databases in a single search.
In addition to providing materials in our own collections, Cowles Library partners with libraries around the globe to expand access to scholarly materials at no additional cost to students. Students can directly borrow books from libraries across Iowa through FastTRAC, and they can request books and journal articles through the library's interlibrary loan service.
Students can obtain assistance in person, chat, or text message through our popular "Ask a Librarian" service. Students can also get full access to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal using their Drake credentials. Subject and class-specific research guides, compiled by Librarians and Drake faculty, are found in the Research Guides.
The Library provides high-quality study spaces that include quiet study areas, study rooms, group study space, computer collaboration equipment, whiteboards and a popular campus café. The Midnight Hall section of the Library is open for study when the rest of the Library is closed. The Library collaborates with other departments to provide direct academic support through the Writing Center and the Speaking Center, and through Academic Access and Success to support tutoring in courses such as Accounting, Biology, Chemistry, and Psychology, as well as assistance with time management and study skills. Many campus groups and organizations meet in the Library, and a wide variety of cultural events and speakers are supported throughout the academic year.
Drake University Archives & Special Collections is responsible for collecting, preserving, and making accessible the permanent records of the University as well as rare and unique collections that document the history of the Drake Neighborhood, Des Moines, and the state of Iowa. The Archives is a place where history comes alive for students, faculty and staff, alumni, and the community through primary source research and instruction. This unit also provides internships and student work experiences related to archival practice, exhibit curation, and digital projects.
Drake Information Technology Services (ITS) supports the innovative use of technology to enhance the experience for students, faculty, and staff in support of Drake’s mission.
Electronic Resources
All students are provided with a Drake account that gives them access to technology services and campus systems, including password management, file storage, and more. The Drake email is the official means of communication for students, faculty, and staff.
Technology Support
The Support Center provides in-person, phone, and remote assistance with passwords, software, network, and general technology issues and requests. To report an issue or request a service, submit a ticket at service.drake.edu.its, call 515-271-3001, or visit the lower level of Carnegie Hall. Support after business hours is available via phone.
ITS provides technology resources online, such as step-by-step articles, laptop recommendations for new students, and up-to-date information on Drake technology news and alerts. Learn more at drake.edu/its.
Students looking for ways to enhance their academic success (improving reading comprehension, studying efficiently and time management) are encouraged to contact the Access and Success Coordinators. One-on-one consultations are available by appointment only. Students are encouraged to utilize the various resources (tutoring labs, supplemental instruction, writing workshop) offered. Whether full- or part-time, undergraduate or graduate student, you can experience academic success if you: (1) go to every class (2) go to every class prepared (3) initiate and maintain contact with faculty and (4) take advantage of the academic resources offered by the academic departments.
In addition, the Office of the Provost at Drake University sponsors the Peer Mentor/Academic Consultant (PMAC) program (including Welcome Weekend) under the direction and supervision of the Associate Provost for Academic Excellence and Student Success. PMACs are not course-specific tutors; they are generalists who focus on issues that are applicable to student success regardless of a students’ college, school or major.
Having a better understanding of what to expect inside and outside the classroom, becoming more aware of resources available on and off campus, and being able to make “informed” decisions are the objectives of semester-long interactions with the PMACs. Programming focuses on:
Transfer students come to Drake with experience from another institution and are offered an orientation session in either the fall or spring semester, called the New Student Program. The New Student Program is tailored to transfer and nontraditional students’ needs and is enhanced by Peer Mentors. Peer Mentors are students who also transferred to Drake from another institution and serve as a student resource for the university. If you are interested in assisting with transfer student programs or have questions, please email orientation@drake.edu.
Drake’s Career Services focuses on professional development rather than job placement. This focus is a perfect fit for higher education due to its emphasis on learning a process. Career development, at its best, begins your first year and builds with each internship, research study, service project or part-time job. The focus on Drake True Blue Skills will help you learn to tell your story effectively to potential employers and graduate programs. Ultimately, this process culminates in seeking out and landing a job. Career Services offers comprehensive services for students both in and outside the classroom.
Career Services has many tools to assist you with career exploration at any point in your academic career. Career assessments are used to gather information to make career suggestions based on your interests, skills, and values. Career coaching is available to explore the careers possible within your intended major.
Career Services hosts an All-University Career Fair each spring. Representatives from many businesses and graduate schools attend to talk with students. In addition, targeted fairs are held for students pursuing pharmacy, actuarial science, accounting/finance, and diverse candidates.
Career Services will provide the following services to you at any point in your academic career:
Networking Guidance
Handshake (Drake’s online job posting board)
Internship and Shadowing Contacts
Resume/Cover Letter Development
Mock Interviews
True Blue Skills Development
Salary Negotiation
Deciding to attend graduate school requires self-assessment. Career Services will guide you through researching your program of choice at several different schools. Career Services will also assist with applications, references, personal statement development, and mock interviews.
Student Disability Services assists students with disabilities in identifying and requesting necessary accommodations. Staff members work with students with all types of disabilities, including but not limited to learning disabilities; attention deficit disorder; mobility restrictions; mental health; visual, hearing, physical and psychological disabilities. Disability services include assessment of learning and support needs; classroom and test accommodation assistance; campus accessibility consultation; and support for faculty and staff.
Student Disability Services web site
Drake International helps provide an exceptional learning environment and prepares students for responsible global citizenship by:
Drake's offers study abroad opportunities in more than 60 countries. Options range from an intensive three-week international study seminar taught by a Drake faculty member to a full year of direct enrollment in a foreign university. Many options include internships, language immersion, service projects or independent research, and housing options range from hotels and hostels, to residence halls, apartments, or home hosting with local families.
While all credits taken on Drake-affiliated programs may be applied to a Drake degree, students must work closely with their advisers to ensure that courses taken abroad will meet specific degree requirements. Early planning is recommended because many students discover that the sophomore year is the easiest time to study abroad.
Grade point requirements for study abroad vary by program. Students with stronger grades have a wider range of opportunities, including programs at prestigious universities such as Oxford, the Sorbonne, or University of Sydney.
Fluency in a foreign language is not required to study abroad, but does broaden a student’s options. In countries where the official language is not English, students often report that richer experiences with local people when they attempt to use the local language.
The cost of a program abroad varies widely, but most students are able to find a program that fits their financial requirements. Financial aid is available for Drake-affiliated programs, and need-based scholarships are available for students who choose programs with internships, service projects or other types of experiential learning.
Drake also offers a unique Teach in China program that arranges for recent graduates to teach English abroad.
Drake hosts approximately 300 international students and scholars from more than 50 countries. To facilitate their success, the Center for International Programs and Services provides:
This program offers intermediate and advanced-level English language study, focusing on proficiency for academic purposes and orientation to U.S. culture. Courses are designed primarily for students seeking full enrollment in Drake's undergraduate and graduate degree programs, although individuals also enroll to satisfy personal and business goals.
Drake's IEP prides itself on flexibility, high quality and personalized attention to students' needs. Small classes of up to 15 students are taught by faculty members dedicated to the student's total experience in the United States. Full-time students spend approximately 18 hours per week in classroom study that involves reading, writing, speaking, listening, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary.
To benefit from Drake's IEP, students should have completed beginning-level English study and have the equivalent of a U.S. secondary school diploma. IEP admission may be granted with or without admission to a Drake degree program.
The information in this catalog does not constitute a contract between the university and the student. The university reserves the right to make changes in curricula, admission policies and processes, tuition and financial aid, academic standards and guidelines, student services and any other regulations or policies set forth in this catalog without giving prior notice.