Changing Professors

[SlaskWroclaw18]

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So I just got a my schedule for my freshman year including the professors so I decided to look up my professors on RateMyProfessors so see what previous students said. So I am looking and the reviews were really good, yeah! Now I look up one of my professors for one of my pre-req science courses and then the reviews just basically criticize him. The reviews basically say that he is a horrible teacher, stays offtopic, and that you must basically teach yourself to learn the material.
Okay, but I don't want to base my opinion on a website because the reviews could be based on disgruntled students, etc. so I ask a friend who is going to the school. Though she did not have the professor, she says that she heard from other classmates that the professor gives hard tests and that the class average for tests is usually a 50 but he curves generously. I am not worried about the difficulty but I am worried about learning the material. Shhould I strive to change professors or just stick with this class because maybe he turns out to be great?

 

[orangeANDgreen]

. Shhould I strive to change professors or just stick with this class because maybe he turns out to be great?

No matter which professor you have you can learn the material if you study it. He may give harder tests which may force you to study (and learn) it even better than an easier teacher. At my school, our orgo professor has the worst reviews because she gives impossible tests and everyone said to stay away from here. I had no other option but to take her and I feel she was the best teacher I have ever had in the sciences.

If it isn't going to change your whole schedule or force you to drop classes you wanted to take, go ahead and consider the other professor, otherwise I would stick with him.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

RateMyProfessor is notoriously negative. I'm sure I have some low scores on there because I was "hard". Being "hard" isn't a bad thing, and having to learn some material on your own is a good skill to cultivate.

 

[SlaskWroclaw18]

I understand with these courses the material, tests, etc. will be tough and I am not trying to lookfor an easy A (not that I dont want the a anyway) but compared to the other professorsI have an option to take, they get favorable reviews (I feel like I am buying a car her😛) yet their test are still hard, etc. With this particular professor it's said that he is a very intelligent man but his teaching methods are very vague and confusing and that a lot of the material will have to be self taught in order to do well in the class. But like you said, this might turn out to be one of the more influential, better classes of my collegiate career so I just don't want to jump to conclusions just because of some website that anybody can write something in.

 

[SlaskWroclaw18]

RateMyProfessor is notoriously negative. I'm sure I have some low scores on there because I was "hard". Being "hard" isn't a bad thing, and having to learn some material on your own is a good skill to cultivate.

The reviews make him seem more as an incompetant (stressing that this is not MY opinion but rather what I read) teacher rather than a hard one. That is where I am concerned.

 

[cheapnfl]

very nice post.
i ahve accepted you post informations.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Like T4C says, there are plenty of disgruntled students who weren't handed easy A's posting on RateMyProfessors, so you have to take that into account. Basically, disregard any post that seems exceptionally biased unless all of them are that way. If you can find a review that seems reasonable and is just as negative, you might consider making a change.

 

[SlaskWroclaw18]

I am lost now. I would say about 75-80 % of the reviews are negative. What I am able to draw from about all the reviews:
-Very Hard Tests (well its a science course)
-Curves Insanely (Students are saying that they get 30s on the test and the it is curved up to a B!)
-Very unclear teaching methods
-Self teaching is needed to pass at least (I figured)
-Extremely Intelligent
-Prominent Researcher in Science Community (His studies were mentioned in BBC, etc.)
-Tendecy to get off-topic/ramble

 

[bacillus1]

Well, if you want to switch, you can try, so you don't end up worrying about it too much. If you can't switch, not a big deal. Don't stress over it.

 

[aidama]

I disagree with the statement that RMP is negatively biased. Like every resource it's a useful tool and you have to judge when and when not to use it - take every review with a grain of salt.

Personally, it helped me choose between some teachers.

 

[SlaskWroclaw18]

Well I changed professors, not much hassle at all, the new class was the same days as the old one and since it was the last class of the day, it did nothing to my schedule. Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[absolutdokta]

I would always read ratemyprofessor before siging up for a class. Despite what reviews said about some professors I had during undergrad I've only had one professor that I really wanted to strangle every day in class. Some that everyone else hated, I absolutely loved, and maybe once or twice the other way around. Take ratemyprofessor reviews with a HUGE grain of salt. Some students (especially in courses that freshman and sophmores take) are just lazy and easily disgruntled. I honestly think the class and professor are what you make of them (with the few here and there that are utterly horrible, but hey its all part of the college experience)