Submissions

Drexel Magazine exists to support the University’s strategic communication priorities, to nurture pride and attachment, and to demonstrate Drexel’s ongoing value to alumni.

Drexel Magazine captures the distinct qualities of a University that broke multiple molds when it was established — check out our history — and it continues to blaze new paths in translational research, experiential education and educational opportunity. Our values are innovation; social impact; collaboration; inclusion and opportunity; and entrepreneurialism, and our brand is defined by our cooperative model of education: ambitious, relevant and connected. Our special sauce is the Drexel Co-op program, a classroom-to-career experience shared by all Dragons. It’s what makes a Drexel education unique.

We publish stories about careers transformed by experiential education, innovative research with life-changing potential, partnerships that improve our community, and how our alumni are living Drexel values. We seek stories that reveal Drexel’s history and traditions, demonstrate our alumni’s influence in the world, and connect Dragons to current events.

All content — whether describing a local art collaboration or a medical device startup — should demonstrate how the University and its people are engaged in impactful, practical experiences with real-world relevance.

Who Are Our Readers?

Our primary audience is 200,000+ alumni who are keenly interested in the growing prestige and influence of their alma mater, hungry for stories about research discoveries, and curious about the successes of fellow alumni.

How to Pitch Us

Most articles are conceived by staff in the Division of University Marketing & Communications and assigned to freelance writers; we don’t accept unsolicited submissions.

However, we welcome pitches about alumni or contemporary topics with strong ties to Drexel. Writers should familiarize themselves with past issues and our style guide.

Outside submissions are especially welcome for the What I Do series:

“What I Do” Guidelines

Everyone goes to college hoping it will lead somewhere — to a career, a purpose, an impact. And one of the first questions we ask someone we’ve just met is: What do you do?

What I Do is a storytelling series that lets Drexel faculty, students and alumni answer that question the way we all wish we could — not with a job title or résumé, but with depth about what drives them, where they’ve struggled and what they’ve learned along the way.

Told in their own words (steered and edited by a writer) and shaped into conversational narratives, these stories show how a Drexel education connects to big ideas, bold choices and personal meaning.

Loose structure

“As-told-to” format, open-ended interviews, careful editing. About 1,000-1,500 words.

1. The Spark — What first drew them in? What makes this person tick?

2. The Big Idea — What are they trying to figure out or change?

3. Turning Points — Moments that shaped their path.

4. Drexel’s Role — How their time here influenced them.

5. The Impact — Why their work matters, and who it affects.

6. What’s Next — What they’re working toward now.

Send your story proposal to magazine@drexel.edu. Come to us with a story and a unique angle, not just a topic. We like a narrative fiction style with a sense of character and place, multiple sources, journalistic legwork and descriptive writing. Show why you think this story needs to be told, why now, and why it belongs in Drexel Magazine. Include your main sources and expected word count. New writers should include links to relevant writing clips.

We accept pitches year round, but only publish in November and March; if writing about a seasonal topic, pitch at least four months prior.

Photography

Professional: We may purchase unsolicited photography from professional ­­photographers if high-quality, newsworthy and relevant to Drexel. Want to shoot assigned photos for us? Share your portfolio and rates with magazine@drexel.edu.

Unsolicited: We’re grateful to readers who share images to which they own copyright; however, unsolicited submissions will not be returned.

How to Submit

See above for submission forms, or use emails below.

Submit updates and photos to Class Notes or remembrances to Friends We’ll Miss by emailing Sara Keiffer at seb434@drexel.edu . Tell us about your weddings, new babies, promotions, awards, trips or special traditions with fellow alumni. Drexel Magazine does not publish obituaries of faculty, professional staff, students or trustees. ­­­­

Send letters to the editor to magazine@drexel.edu signed with your degree and class year. Letters will be edited for clarity.