MMI Week 1

The first week here at M.M.I. in Orlando, FL is just like the first week in any school to be honest. A lot of policy and procedure, time spent buttoning up financial aid paperwork, quite a bit of "this is what we're going to cover" and a little "why not sign up for more classes" just for flavor.

The school is VERY persistent in ramming the attendance policy down our throats. Showing up ranks higher on the scale than getting good grades. They say its because the employers they have consulted with told them that attendance was a bigger factor in the hiring process than grades. This is just a little confusing to me but whatever. I'm shooting for both so this policy doesn't really matter to me.

The schools drug and alcohol abuse policy is VERY strict so potheads get ready for a change if you want to stay. They do testing not only when an accident has occurred or when student, or faculty member, behavior warrants it but they also do random testing. The computer picks a few student ID numbers and off you go to get the swab test. Once more this policy doesn't really bother me so I've brushed it off but I thought it was important to note that they do care about getting you ready to be out in the real world as if most of us attending haven't been there already.

We do get a nice discount from Snap-on, who have an office and dedicated employee on the campus. That's a great bonus in my book and could very well save me, or any student, thousands of dollars in tools, boxes and equipment.

One thing to watch out for if you ever go to the school, for visiting or attending, is the parking lot during shift change. Everyone rushing to get out and the incoming group fighting for that closer parking can be quite the show and getting hit by someone not paying attention isn't out of the question. I've seen it almost happen a few times already.

The police in the Orlando area have become used to the shirts the students wear and, from I've heard and seen, are attracted to it like Jaws to a kid on a raft. It's amazing how many people here can't grasp the concept that, and this is another topic rammed down our throat, a clean driving record is essential to getting a job as to fix a bike one must test ride said bike.

On to the subjects covered this week.........

Being a short week, with the 3rd being an observed holiday and with having spent the first 2 and a half days going over procedures and other stuff, we really didn't get too deep in much. We did start to cover the basics of engine combustion. I'm not too thrilled with the lack of a text book in this teaching style they use. They have printed out a power-point presentation with some information missing that you must fill in from the lecture. It's hard to study by and it lacks a structure for later research so I've been taking the time to redo it as we go and I've made my own study guide and scanned in the pics from the sheets they gave us. It might take a little time but it helps me to understand the topics and it should help later on if I need to look back on something.

Next week is supposed to be a lot more detail so I should have a little more to post on what we've learned.