<p>New Doolie’s your time at the Academy will be marked by several milestones. The Acceptance Parade was one of those milestones. Parents Weekend, Mid-Semester Prog, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, 100’s night, Recognition etc. </p>
<p>As you begin the next part of your Academy experience please remember this one admonition. The Academy will dismiss you faster for Academic Deficiency then any Military Deficiency. Ask for help and get it before you find yourself behind. have fun but study hard. Academically many of you are no longer the big fish in a small pond, now your the guppie swimming in the ocean. </p>
<p>You all have a great network of additional resources here and in your squadrons. Use them to succeed.</p>
<p>Your instructors give you silibi, USE THEM! If you can do the readings/problems assigned as HW, you will have a much easier time on graded events. That is the difference between a C and an A--preparation and practice.</p>
<p>Let me reiterate the truth and wisdom here. Working hard academically is a relatively easy thing you can do that will make a huge difference. Later on in the year, it gets easy to skip a reading here or there, to stop doing homework, and to let a bit of apathy creep in. Work hard! Prepare. Study over a period of time. Do the reading and the homework. It makes such a huge difference and opens a lot of doors. </p>
<p>My advice would be to work especially hard during first semester. You'll put in for summer programs this winter, usually around December. The powers that be generally have things sorted out by February, which means that they're basing your program selection (and we're talking about some of the best programs at USAFA) on only one semester, so do your best! Shameless plug: GO FOR JUMP! :D</p>
<p>And of course, academics are important for grad school and other boring stuff too. ;)</p>
<p>1) There is no substitute for advanced preparation.
2) If you don't understand a concept, ask...chances are some others in the class don't understand it either.
3) You snooze (during work hours), you lose. Plan your day so you get sleep at night.<br>
4) See number 1.</p>
<p>One more nugget: the single biggest thing that helped my son his first year (and since) was to take advantage of the offices hours that each instructor posts for EI (extra instruction - hope I have the acronym right -- or is it AI for academic instruction??). This is a lifesaver and, amazingly, few cadets really take advantage of it. ANY course you're having trouble with, get it before you are behind. Time will of course be an obstacle.</p>
<p>you're right, AFDad.. it's EI. teachers have been harping on that alot these first few days: come get help BEFORE you need it. definitely something i'll remember</p>
<p>Definitely! Get EI if you don't get something. Also, you don't necessarily have to get EI from your instructor. I had an instructor who did not help much at EI, and got upset ("go back and read the book again, before you come to me"...which I already had). I stopped going to EI for that class, after he got upset twice. I didn't realize there are a lot of instructors willing to help you, if you just ask! </p>
<p>[Fortunately, I've only had one instructor that was that bad.]</p>
<p>The EI route is great advice. I used to teach at a local university and nothing frustrated me more than the students who were having trouble and refused to come in. Invariably the best students were the ones who came by for clarifications. I can also tell you (and this would obviously vary with faculty members) the students who were struggling, but did come in, were more likely to get the benefit of the doubt if they were on the bubble for a letter grade,</p>