You have survived both Calculus I and Calculus III. Congratulations!
This is a tough course. We cover more material than you did in Calculus II. Finding qualified tutors can be difficult. We won't be able to cover every detail and type of problem in class. You have to be self motivated.
Review Calculus I and Calculus II before the semester even starts! Some of the methods (like the Chain Rule) from Calculus I aren't used a lot in Calculus II, but will be needed in Calculus III. So, don't cripple yourself before the course even begins—review thoroughly before the first day of class!
Although you should be constantly preparing for your exams throughout the semester—by setting aside time to review topics covered previously—you should begin preparing & studying for individual exams at least 10–14 days prior to the exam date.
If you were an athlete preparing for track meet, and you slacked off during the weeks before the meet and then stayed up running the whole night before your meet, you'd lose. Yet this is just how many students prepare for exams. The right way to study for a test is to do your work at a steady pace throughout the semester. The point is, that while there are a few facts and formulas you'll need to remember for a test, the real way to do well is to think well. You want your brain to be in top shape.
The first part of the course covers vectors—which many of you will have seen in physics courses already. Sometimes students will slack off, with some even thinking they can cut class. Don't fall into this trap! We will quickly move beyond what you had in physics.
The material in the last part of the course is very difficult. You have to think in 3-dimensional space and at a high level of abstraction.
Some of you are in project-based courses, in which it is normal to have periods of intense work interspersed with some slack time. But in Calculus III, you must put in a steady level of intense work every week.
You cannot slack off here—because of a big project in another class or whatever—and then hope to get caught up later. Cut back on TV and video games. Also, you really cannot afford to get wasted, not even on the weekends.
When you graduate you will be competing with scientists and engineers from all over the planet. If you want make the big bucks later, you have to pay your dues now. So:
Credit for this material is given to Prof. Mike Sullivan at Southern Illinois University.
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