When Drexel University College of Nursing opened its doors in fall 1999, it had 16 full-time, cooperative undergraduate nursing students. Eight years later, it has a total of 860 cooperative students. Drexel, situated in Philadelphia, is now the largest supplier of baccalaureate-prepared RNs in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and its average first-time pass rate on the NCLEX-RN exam is 99 percent. This brief history focuses on some of the unique aspects of the Drexel program.

The school came into being when Drexel University, which had a tradition of cooperative education, approached the MCP Hahnemann University School of Nursing and Allied Health Professions. Drexel ...