2.9
Quality3.7
Difficulty43%
Would Retake90
Reviews43%
Would Retake
90
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
15
4
24
3
17
2
14
1
20
What Students Say
“I liked that we read Dracula, as I never had before”
ENG1B - 2.0 rating“Definitely a tough class just because he grades super hard”
ENG1B - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
39%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
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ENGL1C
5.0
(1)ENGLISH1A
5.0
(1)ENGLI001A
5.0
(1)ENGLISH004
5.0
(1)ENG
4.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
ENGLI1C
5.0
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Reviews (90)
good prof., likes discussions, if you don't discuss or do the reading he will quiz you so don't be dumb and not do your hw! interesting discussions. understanding.
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Disliked his class as he was not organized and very liberal. Was helpful during office hours though.
Good prof. Picks interesting required reading. Very informative, but lectures all class, every class, so avoid if you like group work/discussion.
Very understandable, uses many methods to get his point across, has a fun attitude, you will enjoy his class, especially if he shows The Matrix in class to provide a contemporary look at Renee Descartes’ theories.
Wortst instructor I have ever had. So disorganized, can't teach. Talks too much during class about his own views. Not helpful at all and very confusing. Class was a waste of time
Smart as hell. Nice as hell. And caring as hell. Prof. Hinkley is one of the most caring Prof I've had at UCR. His style is not conventional, but his brillance and dedication are clear. He meets students half-way and cares to help, but cares to streach us. Everyone should take him.
Not the best teacher! always talking about his personal life (hey teach we get it you are french canadian!!) Needs to be more organized and needs to learn how to post grades that way people can actually keep up.
one of the best professor's at UCR. he is very helpful and interesting guy. he required reading is also very interesting which i cant say about many other classes. if he is teaching you should definetly take his class.
he is a cool teacher but talks too much. he is good one on one and getting straight to the point on information. the final he gave this year was take home. few in class quizzes on short clips of films or on topic.
Hinkley is a good teacher, but he teaches you how to write in his style. He does not assist you in trying to find a style that fits your writing capabilities...also, he did not have good office hours and did not answer emails promptly. He talks a lot and tends to get off subject and gives you extensions if needed, but overall he doesn't help you
Not too hard since he lets you rewrite your essays and you are guaranteed a higher grade.
This Professor may always sound easy when it comes to essays, but watch out, he's a very hard grader. I went to his office hours twice to correct my paper, turn in my revised draft(which he corrected 2 times) and still ended up with a C+! If your not a very good writer, avoid at all costs.
Do NOT ever take Hinkley. There IS NO WAY you will get an A, let alone a B. I would avoid him at all costs. My friend let him proof-read his essay 4 times, yet he still got a C! AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
awesome. halarious. never prepared but always making through the class. you have to read the book but its fun interesting. have to write some essays but good class overall
He's a funny man yet an unorganized teacher and a tough grader. At first he may sound like an easy professor by letting you rewrite your poor essays and attending his office hours for extra credit, but its not as easy as you think with his difficult standards. Beside that he does make class interesting and less boring.
Not a good teacher at all-not organize, joke around too much in class. Doesn't explain clearly & above all GRADE ESSAYS REALLY HARD!
Professor Hinckley has a tendency to ramble off topic in class a lot, but then again that might be a good thing since you dont do much work in class. BUT he still grades essays really really hard, but if you show up enough in office hours, he will definitely help you a lot. So don't take his class if you suck at writing, but overall he's not so bad
funny man. bad teacher. will help analyze stores but doesnt help with writing. he has a set way of explaining stories and if you don't write up to his expectations you will fail. felt defeated from this class
Good teacher. Funny but a little unorganized. I thought he was easy on grading. I got pretty good grades.
Fun lecturer to be around, but doesn't explain what he wants well enough. He could give you a prompt but you'd be confused as hell unless you go to office hours prior to finishing your essays. Tends to ramble during class when the time could be used for working on stuff. In 1B, the way he grades is strange and irregular. Ok teacher.
I thought it was supposed to be about literature, but every class would have LONG boring talks about politics, conservative this, liberal that...HORRIBLE! and he was USELESS in office hours. went to get help w/ essay, and when it came to turn it in, he was like: this is unclear...seriously?! couldn't say that in Office hours?!
he is horrible. he doesn't keep his word and he doesn't know how to teach. in class, he talks about what he wants and always run out of time. he delays things at the begining of the quarter and cramp everything at the end. he would say you don't need to agree with him on some stuffs but trust me, i learned it the hard way. just agree with him, if n
I have no idea how he grades what he grade. He doesn't post grades online so you have no idea what you have either. So I was suprised to find out that I received a C+ when I SHOULD have had an A before leaving for winter break. Don't take his class because you won't learn anything and it won't help your grade either.
attendance is mandatory! avoid if you dont attend class. he takes roll often. FAVORITE teacher at ucr. he tends to talk most of the time so you just chill and listen. he teaches life lessons from whats learned in his class. he's very down to earth and very fair on grading. do your essay revisions for good grades! he is funny take him!
GREAT teacher. Yes, he does talk a lot but most of his stories are very entertaining. He is understanding and not a hard grader. One of the best professors I've had.
this professor sucks! he is cool at first, but does not help! Even going to office hours isnt enough! DONT GET HIM!
Whatever you do, do NOT take him.He does not teach what so ever. His grading system makes no sense. He only passed 2 people out of 23 when I had him. STAY AWAY from him!
Very easy class. Kind of irritated that the St. Martin's Guide was "mandatory" but we may have used a handful of times - waste of $. On the other hand, he allows a lot of revisions & is always helpful during office hours. The papers were very easy & there are a lot of chances for extra credit.
He gets off topic a WHOLE lot! He doesnt very much teach, all he does is rant about stuff. He seems nice at first but he grades HARD! Waste of money for the books too! we hardly used them. He isn't organized, i would suggest you not take him.
pretty easy overall. gets off topic a bit, but its not an issue considering there are only 4 writing assignments all quarter and the quizzes are passable without doing any of the reading
He gets off topic a lot. We had to get the St.Martins but it's better if you grab the FREE PDF version because we used once or twice in class. He has four essays. If you want a higher grade I really recommend going to his office hours and having him correct your essay. That way he'll remember you. Go to class even if you learn nothing.
I actually really liked him. He was unorganized and got off topic easily and took forever to give papers back, but he was a very fair grader. Attend class and you'll do fine.
I really enjoyed his class. I went to his office hours a lot and figured out more things and got a lot more out of our class by talking to him. He's super helpful and he really wants his students to come by.
DO NOT TAKE HIS CLASS! For the whole hour and twenty minutes of class, we probably discussed English for ten minutes, he easily gets off topic. Also, he grades hard, will not give an A or B out. He contradicts himself when it comes to grading. Look for another English teacher.
Do not take his class. He is disorganized, and he goes off topic frequently. I should have passed, but he lost my papers and did not grade them, so I have to take English 4 again. He is a nice person, but he is a terrible teacher.
Hinckley is by no means an easy grader. He's a good guy and you do learn a lot from his class, but getting an A is damn near impossible Worked my ass off and pulled a B when he said 90% of the class was in the C+ to B- range. Go to office hours, do your revisions, attend all the classes, actually put in some effort and you should be solid.
Cool guy who talks about politics and his life stories most of the time. However he is a hard grader and expects spectacular essays to get an an A. Go to his office hours and he will help you out. Got points for just showing up....
The professor makes it super hard to get an A. Why would you allow revisions, but take the average of the two grades. Makes it impossible to get an A. Also, I went to office hours like 4 times for one essay and he said it was a good paper. I get it back and it was a B+. He doesn't even tell you what he is exactly looking for in an essay. Don't take
He's nice but an extremely hard grader and expects a lot out of his students. Gives out a handful of essays but they're doable if you manage your time wisely. If I knew before, I would've switched professors because I know other students who did half the work I did just because they had a different professor. If you have him, change professors.
Constantly goes off topic. Tough grader. Unorganized (changes schedule frequently, missed one class without sending out an email, and left our in class writing assignment in his car).
Hinckley is a tough grader! 1st paper I write I got a D. Fortunately, he allows re-writes so that helps a lot. If you want to do good in your paper, before you turn it in make sure you take it to ARC or something to get it revised. Other than that you can be a liked student especially if you incorporate what you know from other classes to his.
In the first lecture he told us off the bat that he's a tough grader, so it was no surprise. He was a good professor. If you needed help he would always be available. I personally liked his class. The only downer is that he doesn't post much on iLearn.
He is a nice teacher, but tends to talk about his personal too much, so he might actually teach about 10% of the class. He sets very high expectations, your paper might be an A in another class, but here its maybe a D . I liked that we read Dracula, as I never had before. But other than that your going to wish you had an easier teacher.
Definitely a tough class just because he grades super hard. He would say I did well on my papers then give me a C or B.
Ddint help at all. I needed help with an essay and he just rushed it because he had to leave. Talks too much about his personal life and barely even teaches.
Most of the class was him talking about himself, he would often dismiss us early despite not really teaching anything, he doesn't post grades online, won't do online turn-ins but lost a student's papers multiple times, and the list goes on. Nice guy though- passed me, but I get the vibe he only did that so we didn't call him out on the other things
I had taken 2 other college English classes and got decent grades so I thought I would do well in Hinkley's class, but no. He grades super hard and just gives out C's and D's..
Doesn't teach--Period. He constantly talks about his personal life and stories that have nothing to do with class. He's a harsh grader, yet does nothing to help us improve. I have friends taking the same class with different professors and they seem to be doing a lot better. Don't take his class.
Grades hard on essays however gives good feedback and you're guaranteed a better grade after the first paper.
Tough grader but fair/thorough in his grading. Really makes you work for the grades. He makes it extremely clear that he hardly gives A's and his essay prompts were simple enough but make sure you have proper information and citations. Lectures are boring but sometimes he gives info helpful to essays and exams.
It's extremely difficult to get a B, let alone an A, in his class. Students are expected to work extremely hard and hand in top notch essays in order for him to give out an 80 or better. He lets his students do rewrites, which means we have even more writing assigned to us. He takes attendance but simply talks to us about his life during lecture.
Really difficult to get an A.
If you're a lazy student, dont take his class. Here's how the first week of class goes: He'll tell you "people think my class is hard but it really isnt". He'll make sure you're very comfortable. Then week 2-6 will be very slowpaced, barely any deadlines. Then week 7-finals week, there'll be so many deadlines. Oh did I mention he is a tough grader.
Be prepared to hear all about things that are not relevant to the course, during lecture. He is really harsh on grading and handed out about 3 more essays than all the other 1B classes which was frustrating. He is unclear about what he wants in essays so I would suggest you go to office hours. Plus you're more likely to score higher if you go.
This class was a complete mess. He is disorganized, unclear about his expectations, hardly ever even at his office hours, changes schedules last minute, assigns everything in the last two weeks, doesnt teach, talks about completely unrelated topics, and grades ridiculously hard with little explanation as to why he graded it that way. Save yourself
I really enjoyed 1B with Hinckley winter quarter, he grades fairly. If you write a poor paper in three hours the day it's due, expect a poor grade. He gives good feedback, especially in his office hours. You are allowed to rewrite papers to improve your scores. Hey may be mildly disorganized and ramble a bit, but he is entertaining, fair, and kind.
Listen, there is no easy A when it comes to English. However, Hinckley is extremely helpful to students who care about their grade. If you really want to achieve an A in his class, he will help you. He allows you to revise almost every essay (besides the final essay). Which helps you hone your writing skills and improve your essay scores!
Professor Hinckley likes to go off on tangents, he talks about things you don't want to hear about. He's very nitpicky and tough grader. If you don't think you did as bad as he graded your paper, go to his office hours and ask him to regrade it. I don't recommend him because he's not good at teaching.
Worst class ever taken!!! Hinkley is very disorganized in class; He just lectures the entire class going off on tangents that do not pertain to the subject at hand and talks about himself and his life too much. If you go to office hours and he doesn't like you analysis in an essay he will just change your topic.
please drop out of this class. He is very unclear of what he lectures. He goes off-topic all the time, he's a really hard grader when it comes to essays, and I feel like I have learned nothing in his class the whole time.
This teacher was horrible. He did not help at all when it came to education and learning. All he does is go off-topic and grades your paper harshly. He has favorites too.
He gives good feedback, but his grading is unbarebly tough. Only 2-5 people get A's. You NEED to go to his office hours! He rambles a lot and many times it is quite questionable, but when we discussed course materials (books) he had many insights. This class would be better if he were more organized (syllabus came 2 weeks in + fixed 2 more times).
PSA:Took him online for summer, spent the entire course "trying" to figure out zoom then gave up on it! 10 quizzes, 2 major essays, a research essay, final essay, and an exam! EXTREMELY DIFFICUlT grader, super harsh on every detail, you can rewrite essays but there's literally no point since the most you'll go up is 5 points DONTyou've been warned!
very difficult grader!! what sold me was you can rewrite essays but there's literally no point as it won't bump you up much (3-5 points max) has too high of expectations and was only available to help via email!! we did not have a single zoom session, you're basically on your own! the book we have to read is soo boring! STAY AWAY bruh i warned you
Hes a tough grader but also very willing to help you so go to office hours. His lectures are interesting just make sure you do the reading assigned so you can participate in class. He also posts some comments on the readings in his course materials that offer a lot of insight so read those before lecture. Interesting class overall
tough grader but overall hes a great guy. if you want an A youre gonna have to work for it & he notices if youre trying or not. avoid doing the bare minimum and youll do fine in the class. show him you want an A and hell see your goals and work with you. super caring guy. i recommend unless u plan to be lazy all quarter
He was the worst English teacher I have ever had. He tells me in office hours my essay is good then when he grades it he gives me a D. He did this multiple times. He doesnt care about his students and he shouldnt be teaching because all he does during class is talk about how much he hates trump. Screw this guy he from 63rd
Highly recommend not taking his class... WORST TEACHER I HAVE EVER HAD... stay away and save yourself the stress from taking his course
toughest grader Ive ever met and I think he does this just to mess w students. He doesnt care bout his students success, all he does is give bad grades w out telling you what to improve on. He told me that my last two essays were much improved from the first one I wrote and I somehow got a WORST grade. Makes no sense and he just needs to retire
Professor Hinckley's class was definitely challenging, but I am sure most are capable of passing as long as you put in the effort. He's an entertaining person to listen to and he gives very flexible deadlines. Some may think he's a tough grader but honestly, the reality is most English professors are sadly. Hinckley is a good choice.
David is by far the hardest grader Ive had w/ the Eng series. Dr. TMI (as he says) goes on tangents of his personal life and trys to relate it back to the discussion. Be prepared to read poems+2 books and if he isnt backed up on grading expect weekly quizzes on reading. Eng majors would prefer this class, but watch out stem majors.
Although the prof. does give a lot of reading assignments and is a difficult grader he does provide positive feedback on papers and has extra office hours to help his students. Focus on what he says during lectures as they help answer quizzes he gives and builds upon specific themes for the entire quarter. Only hw are readings & work on essays.
Professor Hinckley is a really tough grader, but gives a lot of opportunities to recover your grade. It should be noted that a lot of these assignments have deadlines near the end of the quarter, but even still they are doable. He's understanding about deadlines and literally gave the entire class until the last day of the quarter to submit work.
Absolutely awful professor. I've taken a couple English courses before this so I assumed I would do fine, but boy was I wrong. Essay are graded extremely harsh, barely giving any feedback, and he requires hard copies of your essays or he won't grade them at all. He does not care about the success of his student at all.
If you're considering taking this class because you enjoy/are good at English, don't read any of the reviews below. If you suck at English then it's not really Hinckley's fault you got bad grades, was it? He gives plenty of feedback and opportunities to fix your grade so if you fail, that's on you. As long as you read (and care), you're good!
The amount of reading is acceptable, but never expect a high grade. The professor is humor and patient. Some people might think he talks too much out of topic, but I think this makes his classes relaxing.
Advice: -Do the assigned reading - makes the discussions easier to understand -Take notes on discussions - shows up on pop quizzes -Email him for help on papers He gives specific feedback even over email -GO TO HIS OFFICE HOURS If you bring him your work he will make edits/tell you how to improve -Put in the effort and follow all instructions
SHOW UP TO CLASS! He takes participation very seriously and is actively looking to give students extra credit so long as they participate and show that they're listening. Do all the work, including the rewrites, go to office hours, and show him you want a good grade. It'll help believe me. Nice guy, just talk to him and don't judge too quickly.
he is just an ok teacher. he likes to believe because he read the books he knows every single thing about the time and era, but does not. if you do not like a teacher who goes off on tangents every five seconds, he is not the teacher for you. four essays, one presentation. overall just ok.
Professor Hinckley was nothing but nice but his grading and feedback were never consistent. If he doesn't agree with whatever you are writing about he will just give a tough grade with no feedback and is very nitpicky. He does go off on tangents and I don't think I actually learned anything other than accommodating myself to his expectations.
working with him outside class can help your grade bc he is an extremely tough grader on essays and will only boost your score (maybe) if he sees you putting forth your best effort. hardly gives out good grades and never puts anything in the grade book so you have to ask him if you want to know your grade
Does not teach or talk about anything relevant to course materials, just rants about how much he hates trump. Very difficult grader and inconsistent. Pushes hard for you to email for help, then is vague and contradicts himself when you get comments on your essays. All essays are rewritten, so there are really 8 essays and an oral presentation.
He's tough, but gives good grades to those who deserve it. Super accessible outside of class through email, easy to talk to, and encourages people to go to office hours. No hard deadlines and invites participation in class. You can rewrite essays and there is a presentation most people do well in. Overall, good guy. Would definitely take him again.
Prof Hinckley can be a tough grader but also helps you improve your writing. He always shows enthusiasm for his lectures and connects them to real-life examples so that we will be able to understand. He is super easy to get in touch with if you need help.
Tough but fair. good feedback and helped improve (Coming from not a good college writer but excelled in high school). If you truly try (GO TO OFFICE HOURS), and show him effort, he'll be fair. ranting can become boring asf but sometimes can make things interesting and relaxing. be prepared to read weekly and write papers.
stem majors WATCH OUT!! his lectures are so incoherent. his opinion of a "a really REALLY good essay" is a B-. HE IS A TOUGH GRADER and has a strong opinion on words that you cannot use or you will get docked HELLA points. if you are taking him good luck, you will need it
Professor Hinckley can definitely be controversial at times, he's a super tough grader (the kind that doesn't believe in giving A's) but if you read the novels and try your best to communicate with him you will do. He also was very flexible with deadlines and often extended them. Beware of many pop quizzes and he suspects everything to be ai.
Some of the reviews are definitely biased towards their dislike of him but he's a great professor,a pretty tough grader when it comes to writing but is willing to meet up and give advice. A tip I would say is to be ATTENTIVE and TAKE NOTES in class.He notices and will remember you and put you in his good graces and be nicer to you when grading.
He really is a tough grader, but for good reason! His class is a lot of work, you're going to not only read the assigned texts, but also take notes and be able to critically analyze them thoroughly. Be prepared for a lot of work, this isn't an easy class. Definitely go to his office hours! One on one feedback will help improve your work drastically
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
39%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.59 avg changeRatings by Course
ENGL1C
5.0
(1)ENGLISH1A
5.0
(1)ENGLI001A
5.0
(1)ENGLISH004
5.0
(1)ENG
4.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
ENGLI1C
5.0
ENGENG
5.0
ENGLI1A
5.0
ENG4
5.0
ENGL004
4.2