The 'Q'

No, not the inter-dimensional foil of the USS Enterprise, but the first thing that applicants to Eve University encounter.  During my time in the queue it was interesting to see the comments from some of those waiting with me.  They varied from the fatalistic to the downright frantic.  I think it was hard perhaps for some to see the point behind the wait or indeed the length of it.  In this post I'll try to put my spin on why I think that the wait is necessary.
One thing I have discovered in my first weeks and months in Eve is that it's a game which rewards patience.  I have no issue with WoW.  I played and enjoyed it for over a year before changing to Eve in September.  WoW seemed to me to offer instant gratification above the levels offered by Eve.  In saying this please don't get me wrong.  I know it's easily possible to train a few skills to 3 within a few days and be having a blast in Eve without an issue but the strategy and body of the game really begin to come into their own as you specialise and begin to forge a path towards your chosen goal and tick of the skills necessary to make you really good at what you have decided to do with your 'life in Eve'.  And there's the rub.  What you decide to do is up to you and, if you don't really know what there is out there, it's difficult sometimes to make an educated choice.  To assist you there is nothing to beat a group of dedicated and interested players who want to help you be all that you can be.  This relationship is along the lines of teacher and student.  It's a relationship which demands trust and so, as a student of the university, I want to know that all those who I work with and those who teach me, have been subject to as stringent a selection process as is possible.  This knowledge leads to a greater openness perhaps than if it were common place simply to click on 'apply to join' and be straight in.

I know that Eve University is not the only corp to assist new players indeed my first corp tried to help out and I still have a great friend in GamleGamle I made in that corp.  That said though there were only eleven members and we were regularly the only two speaking.  The Uni provides over one thousand members covering all the world's time zones.  There is ALWAYS someone online who wants to help you out and will often go out of their way to do so.  All of those people you can trust because you know they've been as well screened as is possible in New Eden.  There will always be a few that get through who perhaps do not adequately reflect the ethos of the corp or who are intent on doing damage but the nature of the Uni is that they really are the odd ones out and are relatively easy to spot and deal with.

So then, you're in the queue - is it really worth waiting two weeks to get into a corp when there are so many more out there to join that will take you in at the drop of a hat?

My question to you would be 'what do you want from your corp?'  Do you want assistance with the intricacies of the game in your early months given freely by friendly people with a shared interest and no hidden agenda?  if the answer to that is 'yes' then it's most definitely worth the wait.  As I mentioned earlier - Eve is a game which rewards patience and you could do a lot worse than begin learning it in the queue to join E-Uni.

This post wouldn't of course be complete without a big shout out and thank you to the volunteers in E-Uni who use their own game time to interview those of us who apply to join.  Theirs is a role of great responsibility which should not be underestimated.  They're the first officers of the Uni you meet and they present a great face. 

My next post will cover my first few days with the Uni and my introduction to the Mining section.