Case Study: Drew University achieves campus-wide high-performance, lower-cost Wi‑Fi coverage with RUCKUS Networks

Drew University Finds Campus-Wide 802.11n Migration Easier and Cheaper Than Existing 802.11g Network

Drew University, a private college in Madison, NJ serving about 2,500 students across roughly 187 acres with over 95% of students living on campus, faced poor Wi‑Fi performance in historic brick and concrete buildings. Rising costs and complexity with their existing gear, spotty coverage in classrooms and dorms, and growing mobile device demand made it clear they needed higher-speed, campus‑wide wireless with simpler management and lower total cost of ownership.

Drew chose Ruckus ZoneFlex Smart WLAN—initially deploying ZoneFlex 7942/7962 APs with a ZoneDirector controller and later expanding with R700/R300 and H500 802.11ac units plus vSZ virtualization and 802.1x authentication—to blanket classrooms and dorms. The migration delivered stronger, more consistent coverage with fewer APs and no external antennas, reduced deployment and operating costs, easier management for a small IT team, and increased capacity and reliability for students and faculty.

Drew University

Christopher Stave

Computing and Network Services Manager