“I really want other study tips that I can use as a plan for next year because I do not want to leave Michigan.”
I think that I would suggest three things:
- Catch up on the part of Calculus that you had trouble with (as already discussed). I would pretty much dedicate the summer to this.
- Top universities (such as Michigan and MIT) are often a wake up call for smart students. In high school very often someone who is good at math and science can pretty much just coast along, pay moderate attention in class, and do very well. In high school if you fall behind in math or science it might not take much effort to catch up. At a top university such as Michigan you need to in a sense "respect" the class more. It is important to keep up with the class, and keep ahead as much as possible. Thus at least try to do your homework the day that it is assigned. Get ahead in the reading. Then when you arrive at the next class you have an easier time understanding it and you pick up a bit more. Thus my number two suggestion is something that I suspect that you already have gotten, which is to understand that this is harder than high school and you need to work hard throughout the entire semester and keep ahead.
- Finally, if you do both of the above, then don't worry about your first year. You should be able to keep up and manage some combination of mostly A's and B's. If you get A's and B's, and just a few C's, then you will graduate in three years and you will no longer be an average student, instead you will be an engineer with a degree from the University of Michigan, one of the top engineering schools in the world.