ZIST

From what I've heard about Earth, a very large portion of the significance of childhood is getting into a good college.

There are various reasons for this: One can learn more, one can be proud, one can live life the way one chooses. Most of the time it's for money. However it's spun, the fact remains: college is very important.

Things aren't as different in Andromeda as it may seem. A large portion of my studies at the Intergalactic Military School go toward achieving acceptance at a galactic academy of knowledge and learning. There are the big ones, there are the small ones, and it would be a lie to say that there are not some that are significantly better than others.

Generally, the Zirconian Navy only takes people from the really good academies. The best one of all for an aspiring naval officer? It's none other than the Zirconian Institute of Space Travel (ZIST). No other educational institution shares its reputation for knowledge of travel in interstellar space. 90% of the Zirconian officership graduated from ZIST; the remaining 10% have excellent political connections. Needless to say, I want to attend ZIST.

It's quite difficult to get in. As it stands, my performance is quite a long shot away from acceptance. That's why I've been trying my hardest to make myself acceptable to ZIST, so that I can pursue my dream.

What's nice about ZIST is that they post their course materials online for access to anyone who wants to learn. It's absolutely excellent.

What I decided to do today was take a basic Space Physics exam, one of the official exams from ZIST. I opened it up on my hologram screen and began to work through the problems.

None of them were too terribly difficult, simple questions about the paths of ships due to combustion and impulse drives, so I did well. I scored a Queen on the exam (the Zirconian grading scale is based on chess pieces) and I'm quite proud of it. I figure ZIST might be more likely to accept me if I tell them I've done their work.

Of course, I know odds of my entrance are slim, so I've got several other academies I'm looking into. All I know is that I'd better start obtaining some political connections in the Zirconian government. In the mean time, I still have this blog, to tell all y'all about the galaxy that would simply be a name to you otherwise. I'll post again tomorrow. Peace out, space trout!