Absolutely LOVE this course! Professor Rivers gives the best examples and always has a very positive attitude while lecturing. The class is super interesting and his lecturing style is very engaging! He does a really good job when answering people's questions in class. Would 100% take a class with this prof again.

Attendance is not always mandatory. Homework takes the participation mark, and needs to submit in class

Andrew clearly really cares about his subject and is very open to feedback on his lecturing style, what he teaches, how he tests, etc. The usual problems with the Psych discipline/department exist: way too many students in a class, classes are survey style even in upper level, but Andrew was inspiring. Also I passed despite a roughhhh semester.

I don't understand why everyone is so harsh. If you read the textbook, and the class slides, and did not skip class, you'd get an easy B or an A. I think the issue is that many courses don't test textbook material and hence a lot of students who didn't bother reading the text struggled. He gives lots of free marks graded for completion.

His lectures are engaging with slides as well as stories of his own, and you can tell that he's passionate about what he's talking about. He readily answers questions and gives you clear and helpful feedback- just show up to class, listen and read the textbook and you'll find this course easyy

Funny, prepared and concise lecturer, chooses fascinating topics. The focus of the course material is too broad for the level of details he asks for in exam - too many details for so many topics. Class could be improved by cutting class content, fewer activities worth more points. I loved his class, I learned a ton, but still bombed the exams.

Andrew clearly cares about his students and the subject matter he teaches. The tests are fairly easy, and straightforward. I attended a total of 3 lectures, and walked away with an A, though I did spend a good chunk of time reading the textbook. Read the textbook with some interest, and an A is easily achievable.

I genuinely learned so much from taking his class. His lecturing style is clear and eloquent, he always uses very applicable and interesting examples in class to help you understand the concepts, and is an extremely kind and caring person overall. Definitely recommend taking - make sure you read the textbook and attend lectures and you'll do fine.

Dr. Rivers was meant to be an instructor! He is so incredibly bright, and he works so hard to create a good experience for his students in what would typically be a drier course. His field of research is also fascinating, and he brings great experience to the classroom. Very fair exams. Would take a course on watching paint dry with this guy!

I felt like his class was pretty straightforward in the regard that his tests really did just sort of lift heavily off his lecture slides directly, as I didn't even read the textbook and still did well. He's a great guy, but classes could be dry and boring at times, though I think that might just be the material.

Such a gem! He is a very enthusiastic lecturer and he is very accesible outside of class. His exams cover 50% textbook material and 50% lectures so you have to do some reading done. Still, such an understanding prof. I'd definitely want to take his upper year PSYC courses.

I didn't know what to expect - Dr. Rivers hasn't taught psyc218 before, but I think he's a great prof. I've been doing really well and he's very understanding (he changed some due dates) and has had to scale up for assignments/exam which is a nice change. His tests are not too difficult, I didn't spend that much time studying and have an A+ so far.

Dr. Rivers truly cares and understands his students! He teaches well and is always available outside of class and responds fast to emails. His exams are not necessarily easy nor hard but they are fair. So far in 218, he has scaled up both of our midterms and assignments... so nice! Overall, a great prof!

Dr. Rivers is very caring towards his students. His exams are challenging but fair, I definitely would take his class again!

Dr. Rivers is such a great prof. I don't need to study too much for this class and am doing really well right now. His lectures make the concepts pretty clear and he is so kind and caring in office hours. In light of covid-19, he has been very understanding and given us all extensions.

Dr. Rivers has done his best to accommodate everyone, especially since classes moved online. He found a way to make sure everyone had access to the textbook and also has been very lenient about assignments. He is also a great lecturer - would definitely reccomend!

Andrew is one of the best profs I've ever had. Not only he's knowledgable but his caring & approachable. I normally never go to office hours but he was always ready to discuss outside material and let us borrow books from his personal library plus his exams are straightforward. totally recommended!

Go to class! It's not the only way to pass but I guarantee you it is the easiest way. The reason is Andrew is an amazing teacher and if you go to class he will actually TEACH you everything you need to know. He is approachable and does a good job of supporting students outside of class as well.

Had a great time in this course. Dr. Rivers obviously cares about his students and is very passionate about psychology, which, in my opinion, really adds to the experience. He taught thru about 50/50 lectures/text, and made his lectures enjoyable and appealing. He's also really easy to talk to.

So glad I took a class with Professor Rivers, he is incredibly caring and accommodating. He made lectures interesting and was eager to discuss topics with us students. I suggest taking a class with him if you ever have the chance!

Due to COVID my summer class was online. prof. rivers maintained communication with his students. Listens to his students' ideas and concerns in order to make the class better. Need way more profs like him.

Dr. Rivers made concepts easy to understand, and for a stats class he made the content surprisingly interesting. I was also impressed with how he handled changes due to COVID. He was understanding and there was tons of communication about expectations. Overall, a really nice guy who is open to feedback and goes out of his way to support students.

Super glad I took this class with Andrew. Very caring, always made extra attempts to be available outside of class and he showed his dog multiple times in lecture videos!! It was a very paper heavy class but was generally marked easy. Final exam was super easy. I would definitely take his class again, especially if it were in person!

great prof provides clear lectures inspired me

Amazing prof. Super nice and accessible. Will have chats with you if you want to talk about psych with him. Has easy tests though so thats a plus. You still have to at least try though. Lectures aren't even boring. Also engages with students too. Will actually host zoom calls for discussions about psych that are really interesting and engaging!

Andrew Rivers is a great professor who really cares about his students. His lectures are well thought out and interesting. If I had the choice, I would wish that I could have Rivers teach every class offered there at UBC.

Professor Rivers is one of the most sincere and genuine profs I have encountered so far at UBC. He obviously cares for his students and always does his best to accommodate for them. His lectures are interesting and engaging and while the textbook readings can be quite long, most of the work is easy to complete and very fair.

Very clear lecturer and makes the content digestible and easy to understand. Lectures were all asynchronous and weekly readings were assigned. If you stayed on top of your work, the midterm was fair and straightforward. The final was much harder and quite the nightmare however, as some of the questions asked were meant for a different class...

We had a chapter to read weekly and its quiz. The lab component part was a group project and expected a lot from us but as long as you divide the work in the group its fine. We had a midterm and a research report and a final. The lectures were prerecorded and put on canvas weekly. He is a great prof but the exams were hard.

I had prof Rivers 3 semesters in a row for PSYC 308, PSYC 217 and PSYC 218. I aced every single class. I found myself working really hard in these classes because prof Rivers is SO kind and caring. He really wants you to do well. He doesn't really teach much as he doesn't say anything different from what the lecture slides and textbook says.

Andrew is awesome! He is very clear on the topics discussed in class and everything is prerecorded, so basically an online course. There are a lot of papers to write, but it's easy marks. The podcasts activities are the best, easy marks no right or wrong answers, answer the question and automatic 2/2. Midterm is hard but manageable. Recommended.

This was my first time taking a class with Professor Rivers, and all I can say is that he's phenomenal. He always makes time for students and their questions, offers extra help, has clearly defined grading criteria, and made online learning not just bearable but enjoyable. His biweekly podcast assignments were super fun too. He's super kind.

Dr. Rivers is a really kind professor, he's accessible outside of class and also really funny. His explanations are framed in a way that is applicable to the things I experience in my life. His exams require a lot of reading of the textbook and lectures, I think some questions can be framed better though. I personally like the assignments he gives.

Very chill prof, and overtly generous regarding missed assignments. Lectures are explained in a clear and concise manner. I see some reviews on here complain about textbook readings, however it is usually only 20ish pages a week, which is very doable in my opinion. Overall course is interesting and not difficult. Would recommend.

Rivers is one of the most caring profs I've ever had. His lectures are well done and he delivers content exceptionally. He fought for my class to be able to have the average we had worked for and is just a genuine guy. 10/10 recommend

Prof Andrew Rivers is very respectful and caring. There are lots of written assignments throughout the term but they are engaging and easy. As long as you finish it, you get full marks. But these only accounts for 20% of the overall grade, the other 80% are based on midterm and final. They are EXTREMELY HARD!! Tons of readings!!

Professor Rivers was the first person to have a lecture that kept my attention for the entire duration. He's very keen on engaging with students and his passion for psychology is clear. Emphasis is placed on applying the concepts learnt to real life situations so know them well. He was also very accommodating for time zones differences.

Really flexible and enjoyed his class lots! Podcast activities are low stakes and just fun. Lectures are really engaging . He is very accessible in office hours and even set up a few zoom meetings to foster discussions/connections during the pandemic. The final had an low avg but he noted it reflects on his test not us, scaled way up.

He is very engaging and is lectures are very interesting. I'm in third year biology and this was the first class that I was excited to watch lectures or even read the textbook. He cares about his students and is actively responsive. I really enjoyed being in his class and will definitely take his class again in the future.

Dr. Rivers was one of the best professors I've ever had, he is very understanding and more often than not will try to accommodate you the best he can. There is a lot of easy homework to do and a ton of readings for the class but are easily doable and professor Rivers is always there to help!

Super engaging and knowledgeable prof. Took 217 and most of it was based on the group project so as long as you do well on that you should be okay. Midterm was a bit difficult in the way he worded answers for MC though.

I loved Rivers. He is a wonderful guy, super approachable, and his lectures are engaging, despite material that is not the most interesting. He cares about students and is very understanding. The course material is not particularly interesting but somehow he managed to make it a lecture I looked forward to. Would take one of his classes again.

Such a wholesome man!! He really cares for his students and always tries to accommodate us. The content is a little dry but he puts in a lot of effort to make lectures engaging. Very fair and understanding.

great prof!

favourite psyc professor so far! Tests are based on both lecture and textbook. Spend lot of time on reading you will do great.

Truly amazing prof. He is more than welcome to answer your questions and imagine scenarios together so that we can understand the theories better. A lot of assignments (basically one every week) but most of them are for completion. His exams are really difficult and the grades are dispersed, but as long as you completed his asgmts you're good.

Get ready for a million participation assignments. His tests that are far more difficult than what he will indicate and he will also provide no practice questions. He did a "flipped classroom structure", where the 3h long classes did not cover all the lecture material you needed to know. Tests also had a heavy reliance on the textbook.

Dr Rivers is kind and explains concepts as clearly as possible - the course itself is just very tough. He's pretty good.

Prof Rivers never fails to deliver an AMAZING class. His lectures and well-paced, interesting, inspirational, lots of room for discussion on topics that interest the class. Extra office hours and is also an inspirational person in general. Psych 102 can be dry sometimes as it is a lot of terms & definitions, but Prof Rivers makes it SO worth it

I actually enjoyed this class. I took it in the summer so the content was very condensed, but overall it was good. There were many easy assignments which were good as they helped people's marks. He doesn't cover everything in the lectures so doing the tb reading is really important because it teaches you the stuff that wasn't covered in class.

Clear and engaging lectures, interesting podcast recommendations, patient explanations during office hours, and told us several times that he is open to talking about research opportunities. Professor Rivers is very well organized and you can tell he enjoys what he teaches. It's also so cool that he used to teach in a maxiumum security prison!

prof Rivers was great at sticking with the important material we needed to know and the assignments are relatively easy. straightforward lectures with additional information for personal interest. he made me more interested in psychology than i already was, with his passion and willingness to learn with us.

He is very nice and cares about his students. But I feel like there are too many assignments. However, he makes his lectures fun and is a very awesome teacher. I've taken him twice and the way he lectures gives me joy. He is ALWAYS in a good mood

One of the best prof I have had a UBC so far. I always skip my classes (and watch recordings after), but being in Prof.River's class, I ended up attending 95% of his lectures even though recordings are available after class. The way he teaches is *chef's kiss*.

Professor Andrew Rivers was easily the best professor I have had at UBC thus far. He is an amazing lecturer and is very sympathetic and is fast at replying to emails. His grading system is also very fair. I would actively seek out the classes he teaches just so I could have him as a professor again. If you have the chance to take his class, do it.

Andrew is an amazing prof who obviously cares about his students. He responds fast and is very understanding. You can see how passionate he is about the subject and can relate to us as students from his undergrad years. Personally, his lectures/notes didn't help much, but read the textbook and his notes and you'll be fine!

Andrew is truly the best prof I've had at ubc. He offers great lectures that I even love to attend at 9 am. He always responds to my email quickly and he is so nice and patient at office hours.

Amazing teacher and lecture! Exams are not so hard if read the textbook and grading is not very tough

He is a very kind professor. His lectures are attractive and wonderful.

What a professor! I thought statistics was going to be one of the most boring classes in Psychology, but I'm so glad that he was teaching this course. He explains the concepts well and always offers more straightforward alternative methods. Excellent lectures and a caring, charming personality, would definitely recommend him!

don't have a single bad thing to say. his lectures are interesting and engaging, was always willing to help students, and the resources/assignments he assigns were so helpful. he inspired me to minor in psychology! 10/10 prof

Prof. Rivers is incredible and truly exceptional. He is unconditionally passionate for psychology, and shows genuine interest in helping his students succeed. Gives lots of small assignments throughout the term (podcast, IEP) that help improve your mark. Exams are mostly based on the readings, so lecture slides aren't comprehensive of exam content.

I LOVE DR RIVERS!!!!! He is literally the most amazing lecturer, I felt like every one of his lectures were a Ted Talk, they were sooooo engaging! He made learning about psychology super interesting and I wish I spent more time going to his office hours. The few times I did attend were awesome and I gained lots of insight from him.

He made lecture interesting by showing us videos and connecting concepts to our lives. Though, there is ALOT to memorize as he puts material from both the textbook and his lectures in his exams. Otherwise, he was always passionate, kind and gentle prof that I enjoyed having this term.

I did two courses with Andrew and I loved participating in both of them! He is an amazing lecturer, super accommodating and always explains everything with great details, application to real life, examples and videos. His exams were a bit difficult for me, but if you pay attention to what he says in the lectures and read the book, you'll do great.

He's great, lectures were useful. The only thing I'veto complain about is the weight of exams. We only had 1 midterm worth almost 30% and final almost 50% that were long. A bunch of assignments that boost your grade if you do them but they are not that worthy unless you complete all of them. I wish we had practice exams. Nice prof, heavy exams.

By far the best prof at UBC. One of the most accredited psychologists in the country and is teaching undergraduate courses, take him while he's available. Is the most effective prof at getting his students to understand everything he teaches. There isn't a question he can't answer. You can tell he cares, and puts a lot of work into his classes.

If you have the opportunity to take ANY class with Dr. Rivers do it! Absolutely phenomenal guy and phenomenal teacher very down to earth and caring about students who put the effort in. Lectures and slides were very complimentary and ultimately felt like a class you can genuinely enjoy learning in!

Professor Rivers is very caring and kind! Lectures are detailed and topics are interesting. Midterms are fair and there is enough time to finish them without rush. The final is worth quite a bit so make sure you study well for that, but there are many small assignments that will help boost your grade as well. Loved this class and professor!

Andrew is so kind and caring and he is one of those professors that you can tell genuinely enjoys his job. He is very organized, good at explaining topics, and wants the best for all his students. Some people think he is a little boring but I disagree. Exams are tough with super specific questions but not awful.

Both midterms and final exam were MC. Textbook reading is pretty important for those exams. Scope of both midterms were pretty fair and manageable. Great lectures and the other projects were fun and not too tricky. Great professor and inspirational as well.

Andrew is a great professor who cares about his students. Midterms require textbook readings, but recorded lectures and posted slides simplify the process. Small assignments are given to boost grades. It is recommended to attend lectures and read the material in order to succeed.

Rivers is great! Be sure to do the readings because midterms are full of material only covered in readings. He offers lots of opportunities to improve your grade and genuinely cares about students.

Best prof ever!!!

Andrew is an incredible lecturer! He is very knowledgeable, funny and approachable, which is the perfect combination for an introduction course. However, there are lots of small assignments and he requires a textbook (which is actually great and digestible), and the final exam is 40%. But it's an amazing class and worth the effort!

Dr. Rivers gives engaging lectures + has great skill in making material comprehensive. Really feels like he cares for his students' wellbeing + is supportive on top of being interested in what students think. Make sure to keep up with the work + study as assessments can cover a lot of info, but otherwise, an enjoyable class with a respectable prof!

Dr. Rivers is my favourite professor ever. He is so slay. He genuinely cares about his students and their learning. He makes lectures (even in a STATISTICS COURSE) enjoyable and lighthearted. big muah hes the best

He is by far the best psyc professor I have. AMAZING. He is a great lecturer and shows genuine interest in helping his students to success in this mandatory stat course.

The course itself is challenging but Prof. Rivers made it doable and enjoyable (sometimes). He records lectures & is very accessible to students. The course is graded on many components & you don't HAVE to read the textbook but it helps with understanding concepts. Watch the lectures and ask questions, you'll be fine. Prof. is caring & awesome.

Andrew is one of the best profs out there. So caring, down to earth, humble, funny! He allows any version of the textbook, uploads lecture recordings and slides, and gives so much time to talking with students. He never makes you feel stupid for anything.

I was so scared to take 218 but prof Rivers made it extremely easy. He records his lectures, has recorded practice questions, has guidebooks to using different platforms that are needed. Prof just puts INSANE amount of effort into his class and thus makes it easy to prepare for exams and actually understand the content. Best prof

Supa easy grade booster. Top 3 prof for me. I'm in eng, so take it from me when I say, the readings are not that bad. Content tested is a mix of txtbook and lectures. Tip, download his lecture slides, and LISTEN. Make a note occasionally, but typing/writing every word he's saying is bad cuz you'll miss the good stuff. Study and learn smart people.

Prof. Rivers is genuinely the best professor I have had thus far. His lectures were actually enjoyable and he did his best to make boring content interesting. His teaching motivated me and made me excited to come to lectures. The only thing I would say is a negative are the difficulty of midterms and examinations. Definitely catch up on readings!

my GOAT! the reason i'm majoring in psych. be prepared, 102 is heavy in terms of content, but he genuinely wants you to do well and understands the transition from high school to uni is hard. lots of his stuff is just completion. if you have the oppourtunity, TAKE 102 WITH HIM! actualy my goat and my fav prof so far!!!! thank you dr. rivers

really seems to care about student learning

Very nice prof. Loved having him for PSYC 217. He records classes and very helpful outside class. Slides can be a bit confusing, but if you watch the recordings you'll be fine. Literally best prof for PSYC 217!

Dr. Rivers is a very solid prof! He is very considerate and makes fair exam papers. He knows a lot about the field and also shares personal experience. Overall a good experience and definitely recommend him.

Best prof ever! Lots of textbook reading but lectures super interesting.

I'd definitely recommend taking PSYCH 102 with Andrew; he was one of my favorite professors this semester! He genuinely cares about his students and what he is teaching. You need to read the textbook for the midterms and exam, but they're all multiple choice, and Andrew notes which textbook sections not to study. Lectures are recorded too :)

Dr Rivers is one of the most amazing PSYC profs at UBC! He structures his lectures so well that it is easy to follow and understand. He made the course fun and doable!

Rivers is a good prof and I rec him for 217. Make sure you read the textbook and keep up with lecture material. As long as you know/understand the concepts to an extent, you'll breeze the midterms and final. Posts recordings and slides, but slides aren't detailed enough to understand without seeing the lecture. Also offers PSYC advising, chill guy

my favourite prof this semester! definitely a lot of textbook reading for this course but the midterms and final are all multiple choice and are doable if you study well. a super entertaining guy, it's clear how passionate he is about the material and how much he cares about students!

Probably the best professor I've had. I had a really tough first year because of not so great professors and was worried coming into the second year but Andrew ensured that there definetly are some amazing professors at UBC. He is straight forward, kind, and most importantly...cares about his students.

Really chill guy and he does genuinely care for his students. He makes psychology fun although exams are heavily from the textbook but mcq, definitely you do need to read and make notes. I wanted to go to his lectures by choice and he spoke at a good pace. There is a lot of content especially for abnormal psychology, but he makes it fun.

Super engaging lectures! However, they cover a small portion of testable info and the readings are very long. Midterms and cumulative final are multiple choice and hard due to the amount of info and some questions are niche but other assignments are super manageable. Most entertaining class I have taken so far but also one of the hardest!

"Are you ready for your teaching lesson?" Aristotle gulped. Anne Sullivan nodded her head. Maria Montessori took a deep breath. "Yes Dr. Andrew Rivers" They said in unison.

great personality, makes learning stats unintimidating, especially if you don't have a strong math background. easy to talk to and get help outside of class

As the other reviews said, a lot of the actually tested material is very textbook-heavy. Be prepared to spend money on a mandatory textbook in this class. His lecture slides covered around 1-5 questions per ~30-question midterm. Results in this class are self-study dependent, but his lectures are fun if you like learning. Assignments are fair too.

Literally such a good prof!! I love this guy! He's very intelligent (Obviously as a psychologist.) The class is a pretty easy class considering it's a psychology course, but definitely NOT a grade booster!

One of the Best Professor in UBC! He truly cares about students and is very patient! His lectures are engaging, and the PowerPoints are clear and well-organized. Reading the materials is necessary for exam preparation. I am also planning to take his 217 and 218 in the future^_^

Honestly the best class and prof you can have in your first year. Both his lecture and materials were very engaging, the attendance was not mandatory and I still attended every lectures. It's important how you understand the concepts, not just remembering the definitions, you need to know how to apply the problems in situation.

Great professor. He really cares about his students, and I loved his lectures because he would try and make them engaging and usually end class early! He is easy to reach and an overall great person. He is an amazing grader, and most assignments are formative, so I would say it's a good grade booster.

Interesting class; heavy textbook contents but Andrew is an awesome prof! Def would take him again for other classes