Things you need to know about Drexel

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I finally graduated from Drexel University. If you are looking into programs, please be aware of the high HESI exit exam pass rate(950) they require. Although you successfully pass all courses, Drexel has the right to withhold your diploma and your right to sit for the state boards if you do not get the required score on ONE test. They do not tell you that about 50% fail the HESI on the first attempt. If you do not pass after two attempts, you need to take another course and pay more tuition over and above the $100,000 you have already paid. If you have been offered a job, you also risk the chance of the hospital not holding the position for you. Although you may find a professor or two who are good educators, basically the administration only cares about their published pass rate on the boards. What they neglect to publish is that they do not allow all students who passed the required courses to take the test. Is this ethical?????? There are many good universities in the are they have wonderful progams and do not use the HESI punitively. If I had to do it over, I would not attend Drexel.

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I don't think it's uncommon. Not only does my school do this.....but all the ones in the area do. There's a very long, drawn out thread about this....it was this week, it shouldn't be hard to find.

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100,000 $ for your RN?

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It is important to understand what you're getting into before you start a nursing program, but none of the things that have been described about Drexel were a secret. Finding them out is part of doing your research before choosing a school.

Passing HESI is a part of passing the course, and no nursing school allows its students to sit for NCLEX without meeting the degree requirements. And if you ask, they do tell you what the pass rate is, as well as the retention rate. You just need to make use of open houses, the nursing dept, handbook, etc.

As far as faculty goes, I can only speak of the professors I had, but the majority of them were great, and I really can't complain.

Truthfully, I didn't really mind HESI, and I kind of appreciated it when I passed NCLEX in 75 questions on the first try. And while Drexel was certainly expensive, it definitely didn't cost me $100,000.

Nothing is perfect, and nursing school can be frustrating at times, but I think we have to take responsibility for our own education and choices, as well.

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Thank you, you are totally correct, but as a young student I didn't know the right questions to ask. I am just making other young students aware of the situation. My sister graduated from Villanova Univesity and had no idea about the HESI tests. Villanova does not use their standarized testing as a requirement for degree, only as a tool to help students identify their weak areas. And, yes, Drexel is very expensive and I paid $25,000 per year in tuition.

And, yes, I personally, did not feel I got any support from Drexel administration when I failed my first attempt at passing the

HESI. My peers who were in the same situation felt like Drexel threw us out like trash. When they contacted us to tell us we failed, the e-mail stated "Drexel does not offer remediation at this time". It was only after students pushed back that

they offered remediation. A remediation course after that attempt is an additional $2,000 over and above tuition.

Prospective students also need to know that the requirement of 950 is very high, many others on this site have

stated their requirement is 850 and they were having trouble with that score. I failed the first attempt at .2 and was

very stressed out thinking I could possibly fail another attempt at less than 1 point. Maybe as time passes I will grow to value my Drexel education, but at this point I can only think of the extra anxiety and stress this program

puts on their students. Does passing a HESI at such a high rate make you a better or safer nurse??? Or does it

help to raise the reputation of the university?

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Although one is responsible for doing their research about programs prior to enrolling, I would not have known to ask about the exit HESI. I have only recently become aware of this requirement. I wanted to thank the OP for their viewpoint.

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Does passing a HESI at such a high rate make you a better or safer nurse??? Or does it

help to raise the reputation of the university?

Well, both. Why would Drexel want to graduate nurses that might pass the NCLEX, but can't perform at what the school considers to be a safe level? Aside from the NCLEX pass rates, Drexel graduates reflect back on the school. Passing the exit HESI is the standard they want graduates to meet, so there that is.

They had our class sign a letter that detailed the HESI policy before we could be registered. Granted, that might be late notice if that's the first time you hear about the HESI, as you'd already have paid your deposit, but it's not dropped on you in the last quarter.

I'm a second degree student, and I learned a lot of tough lessons with my first degree. It's taken me a couple of years to get over the stunt financial aid pulled on me (don't get me started) but in addition to knowing to question, question, question until I hit upon the right question, I also know to document and keep records because it didn't happen if you don't have the paper trail to prove it. I still get riled up about all of it- it was really unfair and frustrating and seemed designed to make things difficult for students.

There should be a life skills manual handed out to high school seniors, because I think a lot of people have "wish I knew what to ask/do/consider/etc" encounters as young adults.

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I'm confused, hiddencat, are you a Drexel grad? If so, when did you sign a paper regarding the HESI policy?

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I'm confused, hiddencat, are you a Drexel grad? If so, when did you sign a paper regarding the HESI policy?

I just started the ACE program. We were sent the letter in early August and classes started in late September. It was also discussed in the open houses I went to and in orientation.

My first degree was at another school in another major. Sorry for any confusion.

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Posted in May:

Originally Posted by rld44 viewpost.gif

I am a Drexel student. I have taken the HESI 4 times. My scores have been 895-915 (approximately & consistently). Our school requires a score of 950. Approximately 35-40% of the students never achieve this score until they spend an additional $2400 and 2 months in remediation to pass the 950 requirements.

Recently, Drexel, started allowing students who failed the tests to review the HESI questions, answers and rationales for missed test questions. Review of the HESI questions from the last test shows that HESI makes mistakes in scoring. So far 5 questions in the last test have been challenged as being incorrectly scored. We have some support from the faculty, but no support from administration as this poses significant implications to their graduation requirements of passing the HESI with a 950 if the test has errors.

There are 8-9 students who are pursuing legal actions at this time. Several have taken steps to join class action law suits being tried in other states. I am on the fence with my next step

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