Attend the class cohort. They have the slides saved and available in case you can't, but going to a live one is far better as they mention things that are not on the slides.
Attend the MSN welcome cohort. Again, slides saved if you need it...and again, attending live is far better.
Attend other cohorts as needed, as they have valuable information. I have a date with the Writing Center one this weekend.
Make an appointment with your Course Instructor early on in the course to say How-Do and ask any questions you have. The first performance assessment seemed very intimidating, but after I spoke to the CI, I was able to clear things up and feel somewhat less intimidated.
They're very strict about APA. You will feel like an inept fool who has never used APA before. You will be paranoid about incorrect APA. You will be paranoid about paraphrasing. You will have nightmares about in-text citations and only putting one space after a period instead of the usual two. Even if you were an APA master in another program, you will still feel most if not all of this. I feel much better after that Writing Center appointment though.
Speaking of which, make appointments with the Writing Center early, at least a week before you plan to submit an assessment. I fortunately did make my appointment early. I'm glad I did because when I went to reschedule it for a day later (I still hadn't finished my draft), they were booked solid through August 1. I tell you, as soon as I start the next cohort, I'm figuring out when my assessment is due and immediately scheduling that Writing Center appointment.
Word's "Find and Replace" is a fast way to correct that "only one space after a period and not two" problem.
Email instructors and the Writing Center as needed. They will get back to you fast. Really fast. Take advantage of this.
WGU loves the Oxford comma. I love the Oxford comma. Finally, a kindred spirit!
And finally, don't forget to use Turnitin to check your work before submitting any assessments, as they are very strict about plagiarism as well as what percentage of work can be directly taken from other sources even if cited correctly. The goal is 30%. Under 15% and you're doing great. Under 5%, you either didn't use any other sources or you are at paraphrasing skill level: ninja.
Anyhow...I'm finishing up this first assessment to get it submitted by the weekend. Then it's right onto the next class, which I can't recall off the top of my head, but I think it has to do with research. No rest for me, alas.
