2.8
Quality3.6
Difficulty48%
Would Retake152
Reviews48%
Would Retake
152
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
152 total ratings5
30
4
27
3
25
2
22
1
48
What Students Say
“Really awful teacher with an awful way of teaching”
CS320 - 1.0 rating“The best way to do well in these classes are to AVOID going to lectures”
CS320ANDCS331 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
8%
Textbook Required
23%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
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Declining
-0.58 avg changeRatings by Course
320323
5.0
(1)CS220CS320
5.0
(1)CS63
4.0
(1)CS320CS331
4.0
(1)CSCI331
3.7
(10)Difficulty by Course
2019SPRINGCS320
5.0
CSCI-320
4.5
CSC320
4.0
CSCI320
3.9
CS320
3.8
Reviews (151)
Excellent prof..acts mean but is very nice and very smart
Took her for 220 I think. She can appear tough and a bit overwhelming at first, but you get the hang of it. Gave alot of review questions, & grades very fairly. When it comes down to it she is actually very nice, and she can be quite funny at times too.
Acts like a **** since her belief is that scaring her students make them study. She tends to insult and embarass students who ask questions but on the flip side she knows how to teach the material. Do the practice problems and the tests will be easy.
I think she is a good teacher, even though she acts mean and her desire is to fail everybody, she still explain the material very nice. You just have to study from her problem book and you should do good.
No Comments
Strict, but fair. Do practice problems, and you'll do okay.
Not a good professor - She specifically tells you she doesn't care, and not to bother her in her office- very unclea, arrogant etc.. If not for the huge curve all would fail.
if you pay attention in class and STUDY from her problem book you will do great. She drops a test and curves big
Yeah, she is tough. Try to do as much as those problems in her book, and be extra extra careful when you answer the question in her exams. Getting a A is not a problem if you spend enough time to study. It is pleasure to learn from somebody smart.
She is one of the top CS professors at QC. Her grading scheme is a bit complex, but extremely fair. If you follow the class, and do ALL [at least a few of each type] problems in her Text book, the class is great, you learn a lot, and it becomes relatively easy. If you don't do her Problem book though, don't expect to pass.
Not at all helpful. Clearly states that any questions aske outside of class will not be answered. Complex grading scale. Do problems from the book or expect to fail miserably. A=65, F<35. STUDY!
i took her for CS 220, 320, and 331...got A+ in two, A in the other...just do all the problems in the problem book and you will have similar results, guaranteed. Grading scheme allows for 2 major failures (my friend got 22, 16, 8, on 3 midterms, took final, got B+, cuz he studied for it!)...now dis a teacher for slackers!
As someone said here, not helpful enough. She's going crazy if you are not her favorite student but asking questions in the class. Yes, she's top in QC, but she's nuts. In a nutshell, this school sucks.
terrible teacher... no compassion, no desire to teach... just a very nasty attitude.. will not answer your questions. must figure everything out on your own. practice problems have solutions but do not explain how they were derived... neither does she! expect to fail unless you got no life...tests have little or no correlation to class material
If you do the problms from the problem book (almost all of them) you ll get the A.
If you HAVE TO take this professor for CSCI 320, ignore or don't buy the textbook - ONLY STUDY FROM THE WORKBOOK. As long as you can do workbook problems, you won't even have to goto class.
Very good lecturer. I'm very glad that I happened to choose her. Students taking Goldberg will never know what Theory of Computation really is.
She's arrogant, stone-faced F granter. Hell she knows the material well, but she doesn't teach well. Got yelled at for trying to ask questions
My guess: She came to teach at Queens College and was very excited about it. Then her enthusiasm was met with arrogance, dishonesty or laziness of most of the students. So she developed her method of teaching, which is extremely clear and quite funny, but maybe a tad dry and very disengaged. Still, highly recommended if you're willing to work hard.
Doesnt help students to understand material.. WILL not help u she even says it first day of class do not ask me for help.. teaches DB about storage/ minimal sql.. DO NOT take her if u want to learn Good SQL, but take her for DB desgign
After spending an entire semester, I still can't enumerate anything I learned. Run the other way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I guess we can't find anyone in this department with such disgust attitude to be a teacher. She is the one. She don't repect students at all from first day of the semester. She don't answer questions, becasue that is her way of teach. Maybe she has some kind problems to hate students.Learn nothing from her. Heave accent, can't understand her words.
Sweetest Lady Ever, If you come early, do your work, and study an A is guaranteed because of how the material works. Its stuff that you HAVE to read. And if you don't do that stop blaming her.
I do not agree with the comment below, that person must be on crack & or it is someone for her. This prof. is useless in teaching Database, read the work book and don't attend, spend $22 for her wkbk and you will pass. she reiterate everything from her wk on exams and at the same time INSULTS STUDENTS for asking questions and THEIR IS NO OFFICEhrs
wow.. for the leture.. i dont really understand...I got a A. just study and understand the work book would be enought. got the privous exam and practice how to anser. u need to familiar all the problems in problem book and think quickly in the test. Dont leave any problem unsolved. then you will get A.
Went to class everyday. The material may seem understandable at first,then bammm!! the exams are extremely hard!!all exam questions are based on her workbook. so in a sense you have to memorize her whole workbook!!
Good teacher. Looks and behave very scary. She has eastern european accent easy to understand. She seems like she doesn't care about you but she does. She is a fair grader. She has a lot of extra points in her class. If you take her be ready to work on your own. attendance is not mandatory and DO THE WORK BOOK like everyday and you'll be fine.
Good teacher.DO THE WORK BOOK like EVERYDAY. She does DATABASES on paper. It sounds like nonsense but its very good if you practice everyday. She has a lot of extra points in her class. If you dont want to do EXERCICES EVERY DAY, DONT TAKE HER DATABASE CLASS. attendance is not mandatory and DO THE WORK BOOK like everyday and you'll be fine.
Crystal clear instructor, and EXTREMELY fair grader. Don't bother buying the textbooks, just buy her practice book, attend every lecture, and do three hours of practice a week(not as bad as it sounds). She's also a great person, you'll see what I mean after a few weeks. She does a great job of helping you appreciate the theory.
she is a kind heart person. Expect to hear words like I'll beat u, I'll fail you. Fair grader.
Grade is decided by three exams, all of which contains a lot of room for extra credit, has a lenient grade replacement system, and are based on her workbook problems. Uses a lot of rigorous notation in class but don't fret; do the workbook and you'll be fine. She has a very very low failure rate. She acts mean but she's actually a very sweet lady.
Everyone that has every taken her will tell you she trys to intimidate you this is true. dont go to class because it will not help buy the book and do every problem. final wipes out first two tests if u did poor. fair grader got a B did not expect it.
She's really not that bad. Do the problems in the book!! that's exactly what the test will look like. If you don't you'll certainly fail.
Awesome professor, makes you work to learn material. Incredibly satisfying to pass her classes. Had her twice and will continue to take her in future if possible.
Very strict, clear lectures but does no provide any help outside of the class, no office hours. The exams are tough but the grading is fair.
Never get sick of the Harry Potter references. Do the book and you'll be fine, she was nice enough to write it just for us.
She is really really bad teacher. She doesn't respect student, can't learn anything from her.
Easy. Just come to class, do the exercises in the book and you'll get an A+.
This is a hard class, I previously took the other professor that thought this class and I had to drop it. She is a fair grader, you have to do the practice book! Lectures are a bit confusing. I pass the first test and the final. She gives students a chance to do better in the final and replaces the worst score. I got a C.
What can I say? Very good professor for both 320 and 331. All you have to do is study her book. Love how she doesn't give any projects that's the best part only 2 exams and a final. Got a B+ for 331 and an A for 320.
It's obvious that she cares about her students and attempts to motivate them through tough love. However, her lectures are sometimes confusing and she terrorizes the ones that actually do come to class! Easy to pass if you work on her book ahead of time (recommending at least 2 weeks in advance), so take her for 320 and practice practice practice.
excellent professor! explains difficult material clearly. i took her for theory of computation and databases and really enjoyed both.
She gives speeches not lectures. Her whole speech has to do with proofs and definitions are very little of it show up on the test. U r basically on ur own to teach urself the materials.
It's easy to get a C in her class. All exams are out of 140 and all you need is a 40 to get a C. Even if you mess up 1st and 2nd test you can still get a C by doing well on final.
Her lecture is not clear and the notes on the blackboard are hard to tell. You have to do the Problem books by yourself. The exams are hard and not enough time to finish. She is tough grader! But the grading policy is nice since you can use the 2nd and final exams score to replace the 1st and the 2nd exams. And you can get B by score 60 out of 140
Really awful teacher with an awful way of teaching
Go to her lectures. Do practice problems. C is guaranteed. First 2 lectures, she seemed funny then she started sounding like a non-deterministic fa looping over same transition function ("You will fail because...", "Tell your neighbor to beat you up...") So so boring. I studied on my own. Grades are not posted yet.
I took Professor Obrenic for both 320 & 331. The best way to do well in these classes are to AVOID going to lectures. Make a study group & work on her workbook and previous exams at least 2 weeks in advance. Do this and you'll get an easy A. Sidenote: 320 is more challenging than 331. Also, she has a super forgiving grading policy.
320 B 331 A. Well, not bad. Students who complained probably got a bad grade or failed. If you do the questions you will pass. 320 is harder. if you are not sure about taking her, then take either 331 or 320 first. so simple
Took her for both 320 and 331. She's tough for sure, but it's a breath of fresh air coming from all the lower level CS courses. Definitely get the problem book and do as many practice problems as you can, it's the best way to study and be ready for what shows up on the exams. You'll learn a lot in both courses, as long as you try.
She's heavy on lectures, liked to write everything on the board which makes it easier to understand the material. Very tough grader when it comes to making small errors on the exam.
The course is graded on a few tests with a curve to make sure that if you put in the effort you will get at least a C. This course must be taken seriously. Just because there is a curve doesn't mean it's easy work. The textbooks can be bought on eBay as the international versions for much less. Would take again, but requires a lot of studying,
One of the best professors Ive had as a grad student here. She knows the material and shes an articulate and entertaining speaker. I enjoyed the lectures. Clear grading policy and lots of extra credit on exams makes the class difficult to fail, but it is also difficult to get an A unless you practice (be sure to do lots of problems from the book)
She has a terrible teaching style, fills the board with intelligible, weakly structured, on-the-fly info. She follows an almost identical teaching-style to a certain 211 professor but luckily does't follow similar test format. Her lectures are diluted with uncalled garb. Her voice is unpleasant and tell bad jokes to keep everyone's attention.
Obrenic is a very interesting lecturer. Her class is often times more theoretical than her exam materials, though I still found value in attending. Grading policy makes an A well within reach.
She gives massive curves and scores up to 150% on her tests, so if you want to pass with minimal effort, focus on the easy things that matter. Make sure you know SQL, Datalog, Relational Algebra, BCNF/3NF, and lossless joins, then skip the first midterm (which covers other topics and doesn't need to count) and ace the second one and the final.
She provides a lot of extra points on her exams. In total, we have 3 exams. Try to score higher on the first exam before Turing Machine being taught. She wrote a lot on the blackboard but often I found it difficult to understand. Exams are similar to the problem book. Do the problems book as many as possible and you'll pass the exam
Obrenic was good took her both for CS 320 (B+) and CS331 (A-) and trust me, I was very lazy and always worked last minute. The only way to survive is to do the workbook. For 320, You must ace the First and the Last exam. For Database, you must ace the Second and last exam. This way should lead you to an A
Concepts that are not that bad in this class become complicated thanks to the way Obrenic teaches it. Her class is boring and you come out more confused if you decided to learn the material beforehand and show up to class. She is the easiest 320 professor thanks to her curve. Just study on your own and dont show up to class and you will be fine.
I also had her for 320. Material is time-consuming but her curve is legendary (40 is passing). Also: make your life easy and start going through her gargantuan workbook ASAP. It'll save you a lot of anxiety from sitting down to that thing and realizing all the stuff you didn't practice. Overall, easy to pass, a little trickier to get an A.
She is not difficult, the subject itself is. However, her lectures are really hard to follow to the point where its not even worth attending. You have to study the material yourself to learn anything in this class tbh. Her test is out of 100 points. If you score a 28 you get a C in the test. If you score a 70 you get a C guaranteed in the class. GL
Just do problems from her workbook or practice her exams from previous years and you will be fine
Graded straight up on tests. She has super detailed and intrinsic lectures that will make you feel overwhelmed quick. She didn't handle the online transition well, resulting in the class having 10 days between tests to watch 20+ lectures (each being as long as one class lesson). Very stressful teacher to deal with, even with a C- being set to a 38!
500+ page workbook completion required for B. be warned. she posted 45+ hours of lecture after the transition to online. in person would be 21 max. mostly her circling the same words for 30 minutes straight. somehow she managed lectures taking longer when there was no student interaction. negative points for wrong answers. crazy waxman-large curve.
Online course-wise she is very good. She talks a bit slow but since the lectures are recorded you can speed up the videos. Only time i watched at regular speed was when she worked through a problem. Lecture content is crucial to passing the course and the supplementary problem book she provides makes taking the test a breeze.
Love her. Cool professor. Actually liked her jokes. That being said the subject is hard and online exams turned out to be harder then the ones you take in person. Practicing workbook and leaving yourself enough time for it is key to passing. Dont forget past exams. Good luck. Definitely take.
Terrible? No, beyond terrible.
Swear to god she is the worst prof I've ever taken IN MY LIFE! She went rampaged and totally NUT when you ask a question during the lecture. You can't complain her cuz she's been tenured. Useless lectures and you aint learning A single thing from her except how to beat yourself up. The most useless class and prof in QC CS curriculum. HANDS DOWN.
You either choose her or Boklan for 320. Neither of them knows how to teach this course(cuz I took both), and if you don't care much about GPA, you should pay more attention to other courses instead of this one since things you learn from this course will NEVER be used in your programming career.
I thought lectures back in 2019 spring were disastrous cuz the class was ALWAYS silent. Until I saw my friend taking her 320 in this semester, Imfao I was wrong. She never disappoints her students when it comes to how bad she teaches as a prof and wants to fail her students. I am happy in a sense that she makes some improvements.
Fall2020 She is 100% a hit or miss teacher. Most students will hate her because she is extremely strict. She disables the chat and the only way to talk to her is if you raise your hand on blackboard collaborate. And when you do raise your hand, she'll put you on the spotlight and destroy you. I like her. She has a charm other teachers don't have.
HORRIBLE!!!!!!! she won't let us ask questions during the Lecture. She basically tells us we are going to fail and that we aren't smart for her class. Her exams are ridiculous. I don't understand why she's teaching.
You can't ask her any question, without her getting mad at you and yelling at you. her exams are stupid and ridiculous. She basically says we will all fail her class, and make sure we fail by asking stupid and ambiguous questions. I'd rather change college than taking her again. STAY AWAY!!
HORRIBLE!!!!!!! she won't let us ask questions during the Lecture. Her exams are ridiculous. She gives good curves but her exams are literally 30 mins long. I knew the materials and solved them but had no time to put half of the answers in her online format. I think it's a good time to retire. She tests students on their speed, not knowledge.
Her time is up, she needs to retire. I feel like her life is sad and frustrating, and she uses that frustration over the students, which is just not fair. Gets mad easily, can't ask her any questions. The exams are 30 mins, and it takes 10 mins to read her rules. She needs to go, unfortunately, the CS dept doesn't do anything about it.
Shame on Queens College for hiring a prof like her. Personally, I paid hundreds of dollars to take this class, pay attention in her class and dont sleep 2 nights straight just to prepare for her exam then she surprise you with a 2 hours exam in 30 min. So instead of focusing on exam and solve it, you just worry about how much time left.
320 is a nightmare at queens college and the professors that only teaches are obrenic and boklan (both horrible). I dont know why she decided that it was a good idea to give 30 minutes for the exams. Also asking question is impossible because she will most likely insult you than answer your question. What a disgraceful professor
320 is a difficult class, and she doesn't help the cause at all. Repeats the same thing over and over again, what she teaches has nothing to do with the exam, extremely ambiguous questions and rules, nearly not enough time. Overall, she is an example of what a professor shouldn't look like. A whole package of all the stupid traits of a professor.
Make some friends from the other section of the course if you want to pass this course. They can help you on your test, and you can help them on their tests. It's the only way to complete her tests, which has a strict 30 minutes time limit. You'll be lucky if you complete half the exam. Don't expect any time to go over your work and fix mistakes.
She is the worst professor I had ever have. Exams are very hard. I see her recorded lectures two times before exams, but I failed.
You can't never ask her a complete question because she can predict what your question will be. She will cut you off then tell you that you are not paying attention, then move on. I start to like her now. She's VERY POLITE to her students, and always wants to HELP them out.
Her exams are really short. Exams isnt hard, just that she thinks its ok to have really short exams to prevent cheating. Which means chegg is useless for this class. If you know the material, you can easily get a C but thats it. If you want anything higher than a C, only possible way is for students to work together on the exam via Discord vChat
320 is a difficult class. But this professor makes it even harder for the students. If you wanna master the concepts you will have to do it by yourself, and put in a lot of hours. Because she doesn't nearly prepare you for the questions she asks in the exam. Not to mention, her exams are extremely short. If you're not 100%, you'll have a hard time.
To understand her lecture and tests , you must be an alien like her because making any sort of communication with her is impossible.
Bruh, what is wrong with this lady?! Her tests are weird and illogical and super hard for NO reason. I cant believe and Boklan and Obrenic just have to make 320 hard for no reason. I wish a different professor would taught this class than those two. Communicating with other students is impossible because she turned off chat, cant say anything
Her lectures are very unorganized and unclear. I needed to rely on other students for help in understanding the material this semester. The only good thing I can say is that her curve is very generous. The exams are okay if you can practice and learn the problem book.
A steaming pile of a mess just like boklan. She once threaten to embarrass a student that asked a question at the start of the semester, but she decided to delete the recording to hide the evidence. Her tests are unpredictable. She even gave negative points on the test even though majority of the answer was correct. If you could epermit, do it!.
The worst experience I have had with any professor. If you can take this class in any other CUNY using an e-permit, do it. I had times when I got negative points on a question because she takes off points for wrong answers. By wrong answer I mean, if you write something in capital letter instead of lower case, that's a wrong answer. AVOID HER!!!
Prepare to play jigsaw puzzle with her online test question format than actually spending time solving the actual prompt.
I took her for 320 & 331 (both online). Her lectures can become boring and it's hard to pay attention. Her exam format online is very confusing, it's hard to earn points and there isn't enough time. Because of her grading formula and curve, it's very hard to fail this class. She has more exams so if you do horrible on one exam, it shouldn't matter.
She was mean but she gives really generous curve. In Youtube, search for "Course Review: CSCI 320 Bojana Obrenic." There is a course review video on her course.
Her lecture class is really boring. She isn't that good at explaining and making it more complicated. However, if you know your stuff or you're a fast learner then taking her class is really easy. NO ASSIGNMENT, NO PROJECT, NOTHING! Except you have to show up and take the exam. Being in class is optional too. Take her if you know the material.
Out of the two options for this class take it with her. very straight forward teaching style. Study the practice book. 5 exams the last being the final with reasonable expectations.
She teaches the subject straightforward. She's the best option you have and you will learn if you put in the work. It's almost impossible to fail because her curves are BROLIC.
If you take her you have to regret for it. Do not waste your time and money.
Never learned anything from her class, got tutoring on the side which is where I actually understood the material. It's impossible to fail this class, her curve is godly, so if you do end up failing you should change your major. She's the best option for this course tbh so you gotta deal with it. It's really not as bad as everyone says.
Better to attend her lecture to better understand the concepts. Grading criteria is very clear and if you work LITTLE hard then you can get good grades. Follow her lectures and instructions.
Her way of teaching database is different. If you want to learn her way and also clear your database concepts, it'll surely help you in your professional life.
You wanna pass 320 then take her class. You will get some outside help and secure yourself a nice grade. She doesn't care about you, she just wants you to get the material and fudge off. Shoot for a good grade in exam one and you can pass her class by exam 2.
I took him to challenge myself but made me humbled after the first exam. It's not that I didn't understand the topic I did I was prepared did all the hw's but on the exams, you have to be clever to pass.
"Beat yourself up!"
The worst prof Ive encountered so far. She will lecture for an 1:15 about the importance of the topic instead of actually showing how to solve the problems she puts on her tests. The only reason people do good in her class is because they buy tutoring videos from a dude named Clint, have taken Boklan and retaking it with her, or pass bc of curve.
She's less evil than Boklan but still horrible. She doesn't care that you're not learning because CS320 is a duopoly. Unless you're a die-hard computer science student this class will make you miserable. Her class is waste of time, you have to know everything from your own research.
gives extra credit on every test, great lectures with good notes, you can get an A in the class without even taking the final if you do good on the first two. gives a problem book that has all her old test questions so its super easy to study. highly recommend over boklan
Overall below average experience. Spends a lot of time lashing out at the class in lectures which gets old very fast. Spends time explaining the theory behind the material but poorly explains how to actually work on her test questions. Only saving grace is the grading scale. You only need to do well on 2 out of the 3 tests to pass.
Purposefully lectures about nonsense instead of showing you how to solve an actual problem. Extremely rude & unprofessional. The good reviews are either trolling or are rating the tutoring videos they paid for instead of the actual professor. Needs to be fired asap, she doesn't even do research, just a waste of the college's budget. Harsh grader
Exam 1 - functional dependency/relational algebra tables, relational algebra, ER-modeling, design tables from word problem, storage structure. Exam 2 - functional dependency(minimal cover), transaction scheduling, relational algebra, datalog, SQL. Exam 3 - mostly topics from exam 2 and new material she cover in class. Study past exams not workbook
How you do in her class solely depends on your ability to solve the types of questions in her problem book accurately under time pressure. It's easy to just pass her class due to her curve. 3rd test is the hardest. Make sure your answers are completely correct and complete. Memorize the 2 pumping lemmas. Don't use capital C
She teaches the material very rigorously and in a mathematical way. It helps to read the Sudkamp textbook before class. Definitely practice with her old tests and try to get tutoring from Clint Weastwood. She makes it so its easy to pass but hard to get an A. She may seem mean on the exterior but she's actually nice inside. Be ready to work hard.
Below average professor. I appreciate that the professor offers a generous curve, it's disappointing that I had to rely on it to make up for the lack of clarity in her lectures. The exams were manageable if you put in the time to practice and learn from the problem book, videos from her online lectures and past exams.
Really clear grading terms and not as hard as everyone makes her out to be, the class itself is really tough material but she gives tons of extra credit on exams and you can get an A in the class so long as you ace the first two exams. Attend lecture, take notes, and do old exams for practice and you'll be more than fine.
Honestly, I feel like her lectures do not help. I never went to any of her classes, but I just learned the material by myself. Just get the problem book and teach it to yourself. Overall, it is really easy to pass her class. Might need to put a little more work in for the higher grades.
Her lecture is super dry and boring. This class is actually so pointless and the only reason you need it is so you can take 316. I have no idea why this class is even part of a CS curriculum. That being said, she's only good because of how her grading system is.
She's definitely the better option for 331, if you plan on just getting rid of this class. Clutched her 2nd exam and skipped the final. She's the only professor that has this type of grading criteria where you never have to worry about taking the final as long as you pass both exam 1 & 2. If you're built different you can pass the class in 1 exam.
Solid lectures, do problems from the problem book on your own. First exam know about storage structure, relational algebra, and a little bit of er diagrams, second exam know about relational algebra, data log, sql, dependencies(boyce normal,3rd normal form) and a little storage structure, third exam same as the second but add in scheduling.
Going to class helps. Don't just watch clint's vids, do both. Pay attention to the way she thinks about problems. Did not buy problem book. She's actually a brilliant lecturer. Her attitude of yelling at students and making fun of them for guessing/trying wrong sucks (aside from when she's joking). I passed without needing to take the final.
I love this woman with all my heart. she made me enjoy her class, and she's a bit crazy. I have so many quotes of hers, but if you take what she says too seriously you won't have a good time. Better choice that Boklan, and very easy to pass, hard for an A. But if you study with Clint and old exams you will be fine. the material is not that bad
The curve will save you if you practice the previous exams, watch Clint, and do the problems from the Problem book. I went to class twice the entire semester and almost got an A if I didn't get lazy with Turing Machines. Keep in mind that she's very rude and arrogant so don't try to ask her for questions or help or you will get screamed at.
Obrenic's lectures are there solely to confuse you a lot more. I stopped coming after a month or two. A lot of unnecessary notes and high-level explanation for absolutely no reason. She also has attitude when students ask questions. Her grading criteria is what makes up for it. Do good exam 1 and 2, then youre out. Put work in and hope for CLINT.
"BEAT YOURSELF UP" is literally what she says all the time to students when she asks are you studying, like maam fix your handwriting please. If i wasnt for Clint Weastwood, we all wouldve gotten an F. Her attitude is so disrespectful, she tries to be funny, but is not.
Eh CSCI 320 overall is a boring and useless class. Obrenic's lectures are terrible so I stopped going by the 2nd day. Without Clint, this class would be a nightmare. You still should take it with Obrenic besides Boklan exists.
The unsung hero of CUNY Queens College Computer Science o7
Her lectures are very sophisticated and inspirational. The class has both practical and theoretical material. The good thing is that she gives you plenty of extra credit on the exams, so you get to choose what you want to do (if theoretical stuff doesn't click, you can skip the question). Seems harsh on the outside, but very sweet on the inside!
I really enjoyed this instructor. She has a really nice grading policy that is lenient for anyone who tries and puts in effort. I think she should make her exams much harder though, because many people get away without attending lectures and putting in little effort.
watch Clint, and don't waste your time going to class. her curve makes it easy to pass with a C and if you study hard enough you can pass the class in 2 tests. Also best time to take her would be in winter or summer semesters because she covers the exam topics sooner otherwise you have the displeasure of the deputy of the CS department (Boklan)
Do the problem book and attend lectures and your set. Topics carry over to the next exam so make sure you get the free points on exams.
i don't understand anything she teaches but she's funny asl lol. if u wanna laugh go to her class otherwise stay home and watch clint videos
I survived.
Only positive is she curves ODE. You just need 40 on 2 exams and your passing. Lectures are USELESS, so you're better off with Clint's videos and tutoring(I prefer tutoring personally, just don't hog 20 time slots like a certain guy did).
All these reviews are true. She curves a lot but you gotta watch Clints videos.
All these bad reviews are.. for lack of better words.. just sad, I hope you can understand what I mean. She's a great professor and one of the best lecturers I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. Yeah, there's not too much time for practice, but you have to do that on your own time. Go to all her lectures and do some practice. That's a review
Professor Obrenic is a fine professor, but her personality is abrasive. She'll give you a hard time for no reason. It's just her sense of humor, but I have social anxiety so it made me nervous to attend her lectures. I opted to self study instead. The course was pretty easy.
She's only seen as a viable option for 320 because Boklan is way worse. She's only good cause of her curve. As a lecturer, she's like Mrs Frizzle mixed with Ivan Drago, strange and abrasive. Just watch Clints videos like these billions of other reviews are saying. Also do problem questions from her textbooks.
It's obvious that the people who wrote these bad reviews didn't utilize Prof. Obrenic's class to its full potential. She's a wonderful teacher, her humor is abrasive but she's HILARIOUS. Stop being offended over everything I totally recommend to take her class, and be an active participant.
On the positive side of things, her curve is insanely generous. I don't know how a semi-intelligent Computer Science student can fail her classes if they genuinely studied. Utilize your resources, such as the textbooks she assigns. Unfortunately, as far as her lectures go, she speaks with a thick accent and is a genuinely unpleasant person.
only positive thing was the simple grading criteria- 3 tests with the lowest dropped. The course is EASY and USELESS. Terrible attitude when someone asks a question (she refuses to answer and only asks if theres a mistake with what she wrote), she tries to be funny but is only successful 5% of the time. And the worst is her handwriting, unreadable
Not all heroes wear capes. Sometimes they role-play as Severus Snape ;)
Grading criteria is generous. I did well on my first tests, skipped the final and still got A+. Idk why people decide to skip class and only watch Clint's videos; do both and everything will be clear She gives no HW and has a problem book of every exam question she's ever given. EC opportunities. Most fascinating lectures at QC. Can be abrasive.
Just complicated her things when going to lecture. not caring , alot of people i know had some serious problems during the semester but she wasnt caring at all. v strict grader, max of fellows ik studies from discord
2nd best option for 320 besides Ryba. Graded off 3 exams, have to average a 40 for a C. Exam problems are very unintuitive and require Clint videos for guidance on how to approach them. Go to one of the CS club discords and join the 320 server to watch his vids. Without him exams are borderline impossible. Her lectures are entirely useless as well.
I graduated a while ago. Looking back, this is the worst prof I've ever had in my entire life. Every where I went to complain about her, they knew her by name, even before I say her name, and they would just tell me that lots of students complain about her regularly. Yet nobody holds her accountable. She has to be investigated! Easy pass though.
bibbity boppity what an oddity.
Similar style lectures to her 320. More problem solving tests. Same super generous grading scale. If you liked her 320, you'll like her 331. If you didn't like her 320, don't take 331. A lot of theory, but also heavy in SQL, datalog, relational algebra. My only warning is that if you relied on Clint for 320, you don't have that clutch anymore.
Professor Obrenic is undoubtedly the funniest professor in QC history. If you take the time to go to her lectures and get beaten up (iykyk), you'll have a great time and it will make the exams easier. The exams are difficult by time constraint, but they are more than studyable. The bar for a C is also quite low (80 point sum between 2 exams).
No comment.
“beat yourself up” and various other possibly obrenic trademarked phrases seem to be the key takeaway of this course astaghfirullah
320 can be difficult but with her curve (taking the higher 2 out of the 3 exams & only 40 pts is a C) she is VERY passable. So many resources out there as others have said, legit do the problem book and ur good! Is very tough-love, always says “she'll beat you up if your answer is garbage”, but means well & is entertaining! Truly the canon choice.
If you do well on midterm 1 and midterm 2 , you dont need to take the final. I wind up taking final which you need at least a 60 to be consider passing her class. I took her during the summer. Exam 1 is regular expression, godel numbers, dfa, ndfa, telescoping and cfg Exam 2 is Pump Lemma, Turing Machine and exam 1 stuff Final is exam 1&2.
Super passable class. If you don't pay attention, you'll likely struggle a lot. She will call your answers garbage if they're wrong, but if you have a brain, you'll realize that she cares a lot about her students. Curve is amazing. Undisputed GOAT.
She is nice. She is caring and is considerate of students. Go to class, participate, and you will learn a lot. Just relying upon previous professors' reviews is not enough. Review materials can be enough to pass, but for A, you have to work for it. Best of 2 exams. She gives a lot of extra credits, seriously, a lot. Go to class, and you will learn.
Practice a lots of questions!! go thru review videos on QC Learning YT. Going to lectures doesnt help much!!! you will get tons of extra credit questions but less time during exams. Overall, she's a fun professor!
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Textbook Required
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