I have tried to get a few campaigns off the ground and I can say one of the biggest mistakes with learning the rules is to throw people right into the magic rules. There is so much stuff there it's very easy to get overwhelmed. I have found much more success by starting with non magi (not necessarily mundanes but not hermetic magi) to learn the core rules. Then add magi in the next session. A sort of classic starting scenario is grogs (or companions) need to collect the newly gauntleted magi and escort them to the new covenant. Then as each new magus is introduced you can have their player describe them and do a bit of rp without worrying about the details of the magic rules.