1.9
Quality3.7
Difficulty8%
Would Retake97
Reviews8%
Would Retake
97
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
4
4
10
3
21
2
17
1
45
What Students Say
“And HE DOES NOT HELP AT ALL”
SOM306 - 1.0 rating“Worst professor I had”
SOM306 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
40%
Textbook Required
89%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.53 avg changeRatings by Course
SOM686
3.5
(2)SOM1867
3.0
(1)SOM304
3.0
(1)SOM468
3.0
(1)SOM306BH
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
SOMSOM
5.0
SOM464
4.4
SOM360
4.4
13230
4.0
FIN303
4.0
Reviews (97)
he means well but you can not understand anything he says
Yao does try hard, but he is very unclear and does not help too much.
No Comments
don't take him, multiple choice test, but they are not that easy. notes are really that clear, he is hard to understand. There is white irish professor that is much easier.
He is not bad at all. Multiple choice may be hard, but you can use a cheat sheet. Most people in the class get 100% on the multiple choice with the cheat sheet. Easy tests (with cheat sheet) he has an accent though.
the is a pretty strait forward prof, test are not easy, he can hardly care less about the student. ask him a question, he completely blows you off. DON'T TAKE HIM.
Going into the final i had a D, multiple choice test are tricky even with a cheat sheet. hardly learned a thing.
This is probably the worst teach I have ever had and I can not believe that he is allowed to teach at all. You can't understand a word he says and he probably doesn't even care either. Does not respond to questions either. DON'T TAKE HIM!!!!!!!
he is not he best teacher in the world but i can guarantee you most of the bad reviews are because people got bad grades since they expected to be spoon fed the material, which he doesnt do. tests are not difficult if you study. bad accent. a lot of math.
HOnestly this professor is not bad at all. EVerything is based on the book he recommends on took. His multiple choice test is not that hard. AS long as you attend class, do all the homework you'll be fine.
Smart, but not a good teacher! Not helpful at all unfortunately!
Took him over the summer and was the easiest summer class I've ever had
No Comments
Hard to know what is expected, but for presentations you are graded on the amount of questions you ask,
hard class. read the concepts. you get an 8.5x11 cheat sheet for midterms. know+understand equations...you'll be fine. do the hw, dont have it for that day? give it to him next class and he'll give you credit! tests are multiple choice. got an A and B...dont know on the final yet.
This is a challenging class. He doesn't seem to care much about the students so you'll have to figure out a lot of the material on your own. If you do the homework and understand it well, then you should be okay.
Great teacher. Tells you what he expects from you and gives you that. Grading system is really fair. Good humored, nice guy and good class. Doesn't put unnecessary stress on the students like some of these other instructors.
If you would like to learn anything in a class I suggest you take someone else besides Yao. Although he may have the desire to teach his students the material, he has no clue how to communicatate with students. The objectives of the class were never made clear and he got really pissed when students asked questions. Someone to avoid! Good luck.
He was very knowledgeable on the subject and had many anecdotes to share. He was a fair grader. But my only complaint is that he does play favorites.
Arrogant and unhelpful. I earned my A. No thanks to Yao. Teachers like that need to get another job or a personality transplant.
I didn't like his style of teaching, but he is tests are not hard. He is a funny guy. He won’t tolerate excuses. Do the problems and go to his class. Take his midterms serous. You’ll do fine. Got an "A-" in his class.
Professor Yo is VERY knowledgable but because of the language barrier understanding him and asking questions is hard!he does let you take a "cheat sheet" to his Midterm and Final which is cool but he does assign homework and randomly checks to see if you've done it. he also has suprise quizes. on the plus side: his tests are MULTIPLE CHOICE!!!
Everything is on Powerpoint and he emails them to you. you dont really need to go to class unless you want a better understanding of the subject if you cant do it yourself. He has a CASE STUDY if you take this class over winter or summer you can avoid it. its really not a fun project at all! Cant Speak! Tests arent too har. Homework once a week
i agree with the person below. stay home study the powerpoint and do the homework he assign. tests are right from the homework problems. sometime just the numbers are changed. cant cheat in his class. case study is f*** hard since i took it in fall.
He is a really great professor. it is true that it is hard to understand him, but he knows it and he does the best to make sure that his student understands him, and he also makes sure that his student does good, and passes class. He provides powepoint slides. As far as the HW, his tests are based on the HW prob., and he gives the same types of ?'s
He is hard to understand and the textbook is by far the worse I have ever had. In its examples it doesnt tell you where the numbers come from, you spend most of the time trying to figure out where the numbers come from and why its there.
Yao has a monotone style, I thought he was robot, but later started telling funny stories about his experiences which do no really relate to SOM. Took this course over the summer, there were 13 A's in a class of about 40. Very easy course, just look over the handouts and read the book and you too can get an A.
No Comments
Very bad teacher. Can't understand him and extremely unorganize. I asked him about his TA's hours and he didn't know. 2 mid and 1 final and one paper. He reads from the powerpoints (which anyone could do at home-sign of a bad teacher). Read the powerpoints and some parts of the book. Teacher really doesn't care, doens't take role-good luck.
Class is a bit difficult, however you are allowed a cheat sheet for the test. Uses a generous curve on test. Also there is a language barrier, but at least Dr. Yao tries to be humerous. Got an A with minimal effort because I have a 50% learning curve. lol
Class is okay as I got a B+ while always going **** to class because it was so boring. Teacher is unorganized, is all over the place and hard to understand. Thick ascent. Have good cheat sheets is the key.
It is all true. I am sure this Prof means well but the class is a bit of a joke. Between the communication barriers and the horrible book, this class was not pleasant. I ended up doing well but I still would not recomend him. Do the HW and know how to do it for the exams. Good Luck
The worst teacher! . I felt like I wasted $584 on a class and didn't get anything out of it. I didn't learn anything. You get one page of notes and there are two midterms and one final and a paper. The book is crap-the worst reading material ever! He cuvres.If u want to do well and learn take anyone else they have to be way better than this guy.
Accent is pretty bad, but you get used to it. Tests are difficult, but you get cheat sheets. You need to go to class to understand calculations. Take him during a short session, like PACE, because the case analysis will be a joke of an assignment.
Nice guy. I still don't know what the class was about. He's difficult to understand, not because of the accent but because you never know what he's going to talk about and uses handouts that are unlabeled and out of order. Attendance is helpful because of the mystery handouts that are only in hard copy. Good luck!
Easy class. He provides the answers to the homework in class. Just copy the answers and turn in the homework for credit. His tests are based on the homework. He also allows a page of notes for the tests. If you don't understand the problems, you can come to his office. He's very eager to explain. I recommend his class.
I regularly work with people with heavy accents and I had to devote my full attention to understanding him. Topic really requires that you've read the material so that when he discusses it in class you're hearing it the second time. Not a hard topic if you study.
good teacher, just show up to class and you will be fine. tests are straight forward. I would take him again.
He is a very funny character, and although he is very excited about teaching the subject, he is often sidetracked by his personal stories, and the outcome does not always relate to the class. The grading is fair, but the reading is horrible. But if you can at least read the text and slides, you should be fine. CHEAT SHEET IS ALLOWED!!!
I loved Professor Yao. He has a great sense of humor, and if you can understand him, he explains things very clearly. Do the homework, and the tests will be a lot easier. A GOOD CHEAT SHEET IS KEY! If you see him during office hours he will explain whatever you want. I recommd. Yao if you are willing to do homework and study (like any class).
Significant language barrier-difficult to comprehend. I have to be honest and say that I only attended class twice throughout the entire PACE semester. He allows 1 page of notes for each midterm and 2-side page for final. That's how I passed the class. Just do the hw and make sure examples are on your cheat sheet. Exams ARE DIFFICULT!
A very good professor and easy class. His midterms were easy as long as you DO the homework. No projects or cases. Just 2 midterms and 1 final. If you want to get an easy "A", take his class.
He has a thick accent, but it's not that bad. Success in this class is based on teamwork, so get with a good team. Two tests which are fairly easy and he reviews the material a week before the exam. He grades fairly and overall he is very apporachable. Presntation skills is a must because this class requires 4 presentations.
Most BORING class ever. Took the class that met once a week for 3 hours. He took 3 hours to explain what he could've explained in an hour. Goes off topic way too much. Easy class, got A's on both midterms, and I'm sure I'll get an A on Final. All with limited effort. Boring, but easy class. Cheat sheet for midterms and final.
Terrible professor. Takes way too long to explain simple concepts. Take plenty of coffee to this BORING class. Easy class if you study. Had to get a lot of help from TA because he refused to help me. I would not recommend him. You get a cheat sheet for all exams.
Agree with many - horrible accent and the MOST BORING class EVER!!! He was not helpful when I asked to look at my midterm to see what questions I did wrong. He said he didn't have time even though it was his office hours and I emailed him prior to make sure I can see him! Does not take time to go over exams or to do a review. WOULD NOT RECOMMEND!
I really don't know who the hell have decided to have him as a professor.He thinks is fun to waste the class time to explain how fun was for him to go out with his wife and his personal life are so interesting.No one learned any thing in this class and most of the people I talked to they're just trying to pass.He has the worst pronunciation ever!!!
I chose Yao over other professors because I needed a class that I could leave early / be absent fairly often. I made the right choice. I used the powerpoints as guides and did the problems at the end of the chapters (on my own) and I've gotten As on both tests. You get used to his accent.
terrible accent. You have to teach yourself in this class. Go to tutoring. I'm just happy I passed!
Worst teacher ever,I quote from his own words "Because u guys are getting A and B in this class,that is bad, that is bad, i will made final difficult" "Dont even think to finish final, cuz u wont" Final came up to be impossible, at least 5 problem were not taught in class. He want us to solve an LP model with 5 variables in less than 1hr F yao..
No! I DONT UNDERSTAND! Be prepared this guy cannot speak english. Midterm, Final and Project. The Book sucks. He took chapters from other books and meshed them. I seriously don't think this guy even knew what he was teaching talking about. What a moron. Do urself a favor take anyone else and u will be fine. I was happy that I passed.
Besides the desire to teach, one must also have the skills. Yao has neither.
Huh? Thats exactly what I was thinking after every lecture. Very, very, very HARD to comprehend, does not like answering questions. Tests and quizzes are hard. I took the risk of taking him in VCAP thinking I'd be fine, worst two months of my college life. Dont bother coming to class because you end up teaching yourself for endless hours.NotWorthIt
Worst Professor I have ever had. The tests are very difficult to pass, powerpoint lectures are useless in every sense of the word, allowed to have a cheatsheet throughout each exam, exams are based on mostly CALCULATIONS that he barely goes over during class. I do not recommend this professor to ANYONE. Very poor teaching style.
There were 3 multiple choice tests-2 midterms, 1 final. All same level of difficulty and most questions were statistical calculations, so the class was EASY! Pr.Yao jokes during class, but the material is boring by itself. Dr.Yao is helpful He will give you a better grade at the end if you continue to progress showing better score on a tests.
Dr. Yao was not the greatest professor, but he wasn't the worst either. You don't even have to attend his class to pass, as long as you read you will be fine.
I've had teachers far worse than Yao. NOTTTT!!!! there isnt a teacher on this planet who's worse than this guy. Dooo whatever you can to stay away even if it means not taking the class until next semester. I dare you not to listen to me. Then we'll see who's hitting themsleves in the head for not listening.
Course consists of 1 midterm 1 group project and a final. Textbook was used for weekly homework assignments lectures are strictly on his website. Lectures can be lengthy. Hard to catch his drift you'll probably remember his favorite phrases rather than the material "know what I'm saying"
He grades very fair. Go to class, take notes, especially when he tells you before-hand that the lesson that day will be important. He's tough to understand in the beginning, but you'll get used to it. 2 midterms & a final. You can use a page of notes for tests (2 for final). Read chapters, understand how to calculate problems and you'll be fine.
Do the problems from day 1, read the textbook carefully, attend class and listen carefully. He doesn't appear so friendly at first, but if you show hard ethic he will respect you. i am happy I took his class.
He may seem hard to understand at first, but don't give up. He's super funny, and allows a cheating sheet for exams. Make sure you read the chapters for the concepts, and how to solve calculations according to his lecture. I've gotten A+ in my exams so far. I'd take him again.
You go to class watch videos and he shows you how to do the calculation but its not clear. He goes over everything so fast so you need to read the book,understand the concept and have idea about calculations otherwise you will be confused. If you show hard work and go to his office hours he is helpful and will give you better grade. He curves.
He seems like a confusing teacher with no clear instructions for what to study for exams or how to do the final project, but its not like that. Do your homework (freebie points that add up). Understand overall concepts in every chapter, but know the hw problems in detail (exams are based on hw). Project is applying concepts from text on a company
Biggest obstacle in his course is his thick Chinese accent he has barely any verbal english communication skills and does not describe what is on the powerpoint. when asked to specify he says phrase like "add this, then subtract, take logarithm bam easy yah?" and he continues with the prewritten powerpoint. In short he's a routine teacher. AVOID!!!
Heavy Chinese accent, hard to understand. Make sure you attend all the classes, some slides he shows aren't in the PowerPoint so bring your cell phone (fully charged) and take those pictures. I recommend you bring your laptop. Tests are tough.
Worst Teacher! lectures are powerpoint and he only reads of from of it. he doesn't bother to explain anything and on top of that you cant understand him at all.
Dr. Yao's class is pretty simple as long as you do the homework and attend lecture. Lectures get really boring but he usually lets you out early. Exams are from the textbook. He doesn't try to trick you on the exams. He is also very generous with grades. If you improve on your exams, he bumps your grade. The final was VERY easy.
Not a bad class, aced the first two midterms with over 100 percent on both, I think it was becuz of the extra credit, or curve. I did not do that great on the final though, did not study a lot of the material, but still ended up with an "A." Kinda a hard class, but if you study and make a good cheat sheet, you'll ace it. I recommend.
Just don't take him. As simple as that
This man is VERY rude to student, but his comments are funny if you have a sarcastic sense of humor. Don't bother showing up to lectures as they are really no help at all. Read his book and definitely buy the workbook. Master the workbook and you will ace the tests.
This guy sucks, and his tests are impossible. Hardly relates to the book as well, even though I read the heck out of it.
Worst Professor I have ever take, he does not thoroughly explain the material, you can barely understand him and the only thing he gives credit for are the exams, there is no homework or participation to help with your grade. I did an extra credit for him and he "forgot" to use that toward my grade. He doesn't care at all. Avoid him at all costs.
Hard class. Buy the workbook-exam problems are similar to workbook's. Exams are time consuming and heavy on calculations(60%) and concept from the text(40%).Each problem better to practice AT LEAST 3 times before exam and do it before you go to class. 2 midterms, cum. final, Participation, BH had extra group project and 1/2 cheat sheet on mids
First off, this guy is hilarious. The few times I went to class I just kept laughing. He makes jokes about his wife, and talks about his life. I thought SOM was the driest business class that we have to take. The book is so boring to read but he asks a lot of questions from it. Just read it and master the calculations in the green book.
His accent is way too thick and if you dare ask for explanation he will literally act as if you're dumb. Somehow I received a C and I still have no idea what I learned. Wish I had a better professor for this material. Upside is he gives you cheat sheets and the final is multiple choice. If you have him, study on your own and get tutoring!!
He knows the material but perhaps I dont work well with his teaching method. You basically have to teach yourself.
He shows no respect at all, this kind of professor should not exist in the CSUN at all ruining the whole educational environment. In the first day of class his class was mostly full, but after students got to know his attitude and teaching method, many of them chose to drop including me. And HE DOES NOT HELP AT ALL!! Avoid him if you can.
Worst professor I had. I went to every single class and had trouble understanding half of the things he said. He has a very thick accent and makes people feel dumb when they ask him questions. You seriously have to teach yourself the material.
One of the worst professors I have ever had. Please stay away. Please dont take his class
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. He does not teach at all. He discourages students from asking questions. He will embarrass you in front of the class even if you ask a valid question. His grading is VERY CONFUSING. The whole class grade is only based on 3 exams. He doesn't care if his students show up or not. No outside help, not helpful during office hours
All I can say is good luck. He's the only professor that teaches SOM 464 and the class is only offered in the fall. Doesn't want to help students or answer any of their questions. If you try to ask him for help, he will shun you and/or make fun of you in front of everyone.
This class is so hard! You are only graded on 2 midterms and the final. He does let you have a cheat sheet but you really need to study for this class on your own. Attendance wasn't mandatory at first and then after the first midterm (since we all did awful) he started to take attendance. He also doesn't curve! You need to learn it on your own!
Worst professor ever I ever had. He doesn't explain anything and you have to teach yourself pretty much. Can't understand anything and he's lazy. He literally just reads off slides and does some problems that it. Horrible professor. Stay away. He gets mad cause you ask questions and says everything is easy when its super hard.
He is the worst professor I have ever encountered at CSUN. He attempted to each us a new program called, "SAP" but had absolutely no knowledge in it. He did not know how to help us. Not only that, but he is a horrible professor. He doesn't care about you, if you pass, or if you understand the concepts. AVOID IF YOU CAN!!!!
My first fail in my entire life. This professor should not be allowed to teach. I am embarrassed for CSUN for having this idiot as a professor. I feel like I complete fool for not dropping him, but I couldn't. I hope he gets the karma he deserves! DO NOT TAKE HIM!
The head of this school should take students' complains about this unfit professor VERY SERIOUSLY !!! It's time consuming & frustrating to see ALL THESE complains about this professor. Two thumbs down, this is ALL I can say !!!
AVOID AT ALL COSTS. He does not care about you, and gets mad when you ask questions. This is an online class, and he had absolutely no resources available on canvas. DO NOT TAKE HIS CLASS.
States that he will punish you and keep you from graduating if you dont do what he asks. Very unprofessional Professor, should get his teaching credential revoked and fired from CSUN. Racist Professor, and does not care about DRES students and their accommodation. AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE. CSUN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS GUY, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
Do NOT take this professor under any circumstances. Worst Ive ever had. Only reason I may pass this class is because its online due to covid. Makes no effort to engage you, is incredibly boring, and you will walk away having learned nothing. Needs to be terminated and Ive never said that about a professor, or anybody for that matter.
This is the worst prof that I have ever taken. Please avoid. Grade is determined on three tests. He makes each test harder than the last. He actively tries to fail students. He is difficult to understand for lectures and spends most of the time covering material that makes up a small portion of the test. Do your best to avoid this professor.
Had to learn everything by myself. His lectures were long and dreadful. It was almost impossible to understand him, and he didn't care about questions. He has no resources available besides the book which he makes you buy because he wrote it. Made the second midterm and final, citing that my class did too good on the first exam.
SOM 464 is ONLY taught during fall. This guy is the ONLY teacher who teaches this mandatory SOM course. CSUN. READ REVIEWS. UR FORCING KIDS 2 RETAKE A WHOLE EXTRA YEAR. THE ENTIRE CLASS EMAILED THE PREZ AS A GROUP AND WE WERE TOLD TO STUDY HARDER. Its not just YAO that doesnt care about students, its CSUN. Thanks for ruining careers and dreams �
Rude, doesn't care about students, won't answer questions
I've never met such a disrespectful professor in CSUN. I have to take this class for my program and I've never encountered such unprofessionalism. If you ever ask a question he gets super offended and asks derogatory questions like "Can you read?" "Are you even listening?" "Can you not see?" HORRIBLE.
I have to take this professor as a mandatory upper division and honestly he's the worst professor I've taken at CSUN by far. The homework assignments he's a tough grader on, plus for the SAP he doesn't teach you at all. You're basically stuck learning it all alone. When you ask questions he blatantly calls you out in front of everyone. Terrible.
Read the book, the professor is not going to hold your hand, he gives an outline and you have to fill in the rest; this is a college course that is not something your going to pass by doing no work; just put in the work and you will do very well.
Yao is old school and means well. He expects alot from his students so be ready for exams, HW and SAP assignments. You will need to read and practice on your own if you want to pass. He curves at the end and will help you if you show progress. NOT an easy class, make friends quickly and do all the assignments. SAP was a great skill you will learn.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
40%
Textbook Required
89%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.53 avg changeRatings by Course
SOM686
3.5
(2)SOM1867
3.0
(1)SOM304
3.0
(1)SOM468
3.0
(1)SOM306BH
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
SOMSOM
5.0
SOM464
4.4
SOM360
4.4
13230
4.0
FIN303
4.0