Learning through service
Learning through service
Make a difference while gaining professional experience.
Drake Bulldogs have a strong drive to make a difference, whether helping to create a health clinic in Uganda or organizing a chapter of Next Course Food Recovery Network to reduce food waste and hunger in Des Moines. At Drake, you can serve through your classes, student organizations, athletics teams, fraternities and sororities, residence life, or a final capstone experience. You can also earn academic credit through a service-learning project in which you share professional skills with an organization or nonprofit.
These experiences not only gives you a life-changing opportunity to learn about the world, ignite a passion for service, and effect change, but also develop solid leadership skills and leads to better employment prospects.
What makes it possible
- Community connections: Drake has partnerships with more than 100 nonprofit organizations and schools.
- A culture of service: Some 80% of Drake undergraduates engage in community service by the time they graduate.
- A track record of success: Drake was named to the Peace Corps’ Top Volunteer Producing Colleges and Universities list in 2016.
Career benefits
- Getting noticed in the job market: Participation in service-learning leads to higher likelihood of employment, according to a study conducted at University of Indiana—Bloomington.
- Success in your field: 81 percent of employers said an internship or service project that ties real-world experience with classroom learning helps prepare students for success (Association of American Colleges & Universities study).
