"getting started"

A

andrew

New Member
is the freshman getting started program really worth going to? i'm debating on whether i should go or not. if i do so, i'll have to put down quite a bit of cash for a plane ticket from ALB. what are the advantages of doing this? will i really be ahead of somebody that doesnt go?..also i've noticed that the class listing has been posted for this fall, what classes should i register for (freshman comm. avit. student). i def. want to start flying asap. thanks.
 
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. If so, then I'll be missing work at the airport for a couple days and would need to know so I can plan accordingly.

Andrew - I noticed you are from Vermont. Where in VT? I'm from Southern New Hampshire (the Tax-Free State that borders your East Side.)
 
id really save your money. all you get really is a tour of campus...

HOPEFULLY you can figure out the majority of things you need to know in the first 24 hours you are here. maybe just fly up here a few days before school to allow some time to get oriented.

the campus is pretty small and straightforward, just find one of us JC guys and we'll help ya around.
 
I think its a pretty good deal - some advantages are that you get to talk to some advisors to help set up your schedule, you'll get registered early and almost be guaranteed a flight lab your first semester that way, and also you get a lot of pidily things done early you won't have to worry about when you return in the fall such as get your student ID etc. Also when I went there I met two of my best friends whom I still keep in touch with regularly and hung out with all through college (that was back in summer of 99) granted that was pretty rare and there wasn't a ton of time to get to know people - it just worked out. Of course it isn't necessary but it gives you a better idea of what you're in for, see the campus etc.
 
I didn't do the getting started program because I thought it was useless to waste the money on the airfare to get out here. The only downside was not getting into a flight lab the first semester. But yeah, this campus is easy to figure out and you can register for classes over the phone. Thats what I did and it wasn't too bad. And if you need any help, we are all here for that. I am not too scary :D!
 
I did it last year, it was alright, they help you out with everything you neecd to know as well as regestering and knowing how to use crewlink, peoplesoft, and AIMS. its also good to do this to see how beautiful this place is in the summer, after that it goes downhill. and you get to meet some people.
 
If you want to get started flying right away, I would come up this summer to start flying and you can do the getting started while you are here if you want. If you fly during the summer you can get ahead and get out of here sooner. I came up here for the summer right after I graduated high school in 2003. Now, not quite 3 years later I will be graduating in May and have a class date with Pinnacle for the monday after graduation.
 
Thanks for your help guys. i talked to my father about it and we're going to make a road trip out of it. its a long drive but we've done it before (VT-FL) i figure i cant hurt going out there for a couple days.. plus i dont have to spend a dime!!
 
Hey Andrew I'm driving out there for the fall when classes start and I was looking over the maps the other day with my Step-Father. It seems about 200 miles less to drive through Canada for us. Since you're in the same area you might want to look into that, I hadn't thought of it before!

Adam
 
i graduated from high school may 24 and was up at und on june 5. i came early cause i wanted to get ahead of everybody else and i wanted to make sure that i liked flying. i had a lot of fun doing the private pilot course over the summer. i may even get the chance to graduate early. i was always told to get to flight instructing so you can build time.
 
I did the 1,300 mile drive from Idaho for the "Getting Started" program 4 years ago. I don't think it was really worth it just to come up here and see the campus and "fancy" Aerospace toys for a day. They did help me with the registration process and I got placed in a bunch of useless classes I didn't need for my major. I did the same drive again about 3-4 weeks later when I officially started school here. That was the last time I drove from ID to ND! I'd rather fly...
 
UND_Flyer said:
I did the 1,300 mile drive from Idaho for the "Getting Started" program 4 years ago. I don't think it was really worth it just to come up here and see the campus and "fancy" Aerospace toys for a day. They did help me with the registration process and I got placed in a bunch of useless classes I didn't need for my major. I did the same drive again about 3-4 weeks later when I officially started school here. That was the last time I drove from ID to ND! I'd rather fly...
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Try San Diego, CA to Grand Forks, ND in a 24 foot packed-to-the-max Uhaul with a car towed behind, going 55 MPH... 2,100 miles :D Man I could only go 30MPH many times because of the climb into the Rockies. It was actually fun, but I had no clue what I was getting into because I had never even visited UND nor North Dakota anytime prior...not even the apartment I signed the lease for. It all worked out though - amazingly.
 
1500 miles drives are pretty sweet. the things we do to stay awake are usually rather entertaining. when i went to florida it was myself, my father and my older brother packed into a little subaru, and despite taking 25 hours to get there, it was a cool trip.
 
Staying awake in a car when you are tired is so weird, it is not like your eyes shut, you just zone out, keep between the blurry white lines, concentration is not possible, just like a computer you just do what your input senses are, a robot on a wheel, no cognitive thinking just processing. Talk about driving on 'drugs'.
 
That's not to much of an option for me. Im not gona drive 11 hours, when I can do it in 9 and a half. Its amazing what 7-10mph more over the speed limit will give you. Watching for squad cars alone helps keep me awake. I like to play the "what headlights are those" game. I can spot a lot of cars now just by their headlights. Especially crown vics and impalas. :) I can see those little turds dang near a mile in advance!

Doesn't it just absolutly scare the crap out of you when you lose track of who's behind you.:eek: :D
 
UAL747400 said:
I like to play the "what headlights are those" game. I can spot a lot of cars now just by their headlights. Especially crown vics and impalas. :) I can see those little turds dang near a mile in advance!
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No way! I thought I was the only one who played that game.... :)
 
UAL747400 said:
That's not to much of an option for me. Im not gona drive 11 hours, when I can do it in 9 and a half. Its amazing what 7-10mph more over the speed limit will give you. Watching for squad cars alone helps keep me awake. I like to play the "what headlights are those" game. I can spot a lot of cars now just by their headlights. Especially crown vics and impalas. :) I can see those little turds dang near a mile in advance!

Doesn't it just absolutly scare the crap out of you when you lose track of who's behind you.:eek: :D
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That's why I make very constant usage of the rear view mirror. When I am cruising at a good rate of speed the rear view mirror is part of my "instrument scan", in addition to the radar detector. I love seeing the Crown Vic lights behind me way in advance - they're so easy to spot.

One thing I hate is when I moved here I had to adjust to the fact that the general public owns Crown Vics too. The white color ones are the worst deceivers! You'll creep up to them and find that they're an 85 yr old couple driving to church :D

I've always wanted a retired police Crown Victoria to drive around for fun and see how many people hit the brakes when they see me coming up in their rear view mirror. I'd install a car pusher to the pumper and siren haha. You can get them for $500 at auctions sometimes. ...plus it'd be a good drifting car :D
 
I want a mercury marauder. Its a police intercepter with a nicer interior. Plus the shifter is on the floor and isnt to hard to convert to a manual trans apparently. Crown vics are also arguably the most reliable and durable cars ever made. That means thrashing the crap out of them and then going to get your grocieries. :buck:

There's one kid up here thats got a retired interceptor. I dont know how, but I always come across him somewhere between minneapolis and fargo.
 
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