Entrepreneurship and Innovation Three-Year Option

Major: Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Calendar Type: Quarter
Minimum Required Credits: 181.0
Co-op Options: None
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 52.0701
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 11-1011

About the Program

The three-year BA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation program is a unique, accelerated plan of study that teaches entrepreneurship as a habit-of-mind that applies to both the student's career and life. Entrepreneurship is about being proactive, enterprising, and innovative. The three-year degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation offered by the Close School is rigorous and sustains all the standards of our four- or five-year degree programs. It is a degree that is particularly appealing to the student who is determined, disciplined, and goal-oriented—as we find that many entrepreneurship students are.

Our holistic approach to teaching challenges students to think and act as an entrepreneur within companies, startups, or self-employment. We have developed a curriculum that teaches resilience, collaboration, negotiation, and communication. Students will learn how to manage growth, secure funding, or manage a family firm. We stress interdisciplinary work and flexibility with all Drexel schools through the required academic minor and offer three-year students advanced experiential learning in our exclusive Entrepreneurship Practicum. Students will also have access to the Baiada Institute for Entrepreneurship.

This is a rigorous program designed for the highly ambitious student ready to enter the workforce early, planning to launch a new venture upon graduation, or lead innovation in an established company. Ideal students are high achievers or self-starters.

Benefits of the Three-Year Degree

One of the main benefits of this program is that students receive the same education and experience from a typical four- or five-year degree program but in just three years. This results in:

• Decreased living expenses for 1-2 years
• Better utilization of school time and opportunities
• Expedited path to graduation and career advancement
• A unique, custom-designed practicum

The three-year degree not only takes a shorter time to achieve, but also offers students opportunities for funding, mentoring, and incubator space while giving them real-world experience and the ability to work alongside some of Philadelphia’s most driven and creative young entrepreneurs.

The three-year degree program offers practical experience and business education from highly regarded entrepreneurs who have been involved in many successful startups and ventures of their own. Our professors and mentors are TEDx speakers, experienced business executives, and serial entrepreneurs ready to help you learn and build your entrepreneurial mindset.

Questions about this program?

If you have any questions or would like to speak with an advisor, please contact:

Justin Fithian
Assistant Director of Academic Advising and Student Success
Charles D. Close School of Entrepreneurship
418 Pearlstein Building
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Email:​​ jmf465@drexel.edu 

Degree Requirements

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Humanities/Fine Arts options: Undergraduate courses (100-499) in Africana Studies (AFAS), English (ENGL), Humanities, General (HUM), Global Studies (GST), Jewish Studies (JWST), Philosophy (PHIL), Women's & Gender Studies (WGST); Any course from the Westphal College of Media Arts and Design

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Language options: Undergraduate courses (100-499) in Arabic (ARBC), Chinese (CHIN), French (FREN), German (GER), Japanese (JAPN), Korean (KOR), Spanish (SPAN) OR the following CS Language sequence: CS 150, CS 171,

A computer science course cannot satisfy both a technology requirement and a computer language requirement.

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Science options: Undergraduate courses (100-499) in Bioscience and Biotechnology (BIO), Chemistry (CHEM), Food Science (FDSC), Geoscience (GEO), Physics (PHYS), Physics-Environmental Science (PHEV)

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Social/Behavioral Science options: Undergraduate courses (100-499) in Anthropology (ANTH), Communications (COM), Economics (ECON), History (HIST), Political Science (PSCI), Psychology (PSY), Sociology (SOC)

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Technology options: Undergraduate courses (100-499) in Computer Science (CS), Information Science & Systems (INFO), Management Information Systems (MIS), Software Engineering (SE)

Writing-Intensive Course Requirements

In order to graduate, all students must pass three writing-intensive courses after their freshman year. Two writing-intensive courses must be in a student's major. The third can be in any discipline. Students are advised to take one writing-intensive class each year, beginning with the sophomore year, and to avoid “clustering” these courses near the end of their matriculation. Transfer students need to meet with an academic advisor to review the number of writing-intensive courses required to graduate.

A "WI" next to a course in this catalog may indicate that this course can fulfill a writing-intensive requirement. For the most up-to-date list of writing-intensive courses being offered, students should check the Writing Intensive Course List at the University Writing Program. Students scheduling their courses can also conduct a search for courses with the attribute "WI" to bring up a list of all writing-intensive courses available that term.

Sample Plan of Study

Option 1:  Summer Classes First Year

Option 2: Summer Vacation First Year

Entrepreneurship and Innovation Faculty