3.4
Quality3.2
Difficulty53%
Would Retake90
Reviews53%
Would Retake
90
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
90 total ratings5
28
4
20
3
19
2
14
1
9
What Students Say
“I would recommend this professor”
CJ300 - 5.0 rating“Tests are not difficult if you pay attention in class”
CJ101 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
33%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.35 avg changeRatings by Course
CJ101
4.2
(16)CJSECT
4.0
(1)CJ408
4.0
(2)C300
4.0
(1)CJ320
3.5
(35)Difficulty by Course
CJ495
4.5
CJSECT
4.0
C300
4.0
CJ40802
4.0
CJ408
3.5
Reviews (88)
Interesting lectures and assignments that wont make you go crazy, gives you plenty of time to finish them. Very understanding if you get in contact with her if you miss class. Tests are hard, but if you take the time to study youll do fine. Nice Prof!
Good professor, she knew what she was talking about and you learn a lot.She wants you to understand the material not memorize it!Which can make tests tricky, but you should get a B if you study from the book. But the topics are interseting in class.
This class was horrible. She was unclear on what she wanted, and when you tried, she would jokingly laugh at you, and you still would not get any good help on understand. For a theme course, it was incredible difficult.
Prof. Ross was by far my fav. prof. in my 1st semester at GVSU. Very organized. Fun and easy assignments. Lectures are fun and she adds humor. Tests can be difficult but if you study your notes youll do fine. highly recommended for a gen. ed.
Just take good notes, study from notes and book and you'll be fine. If your not gonna study don't bother with this Professor...well don't bother with more than half of GVSU professors then.
Quite possibly the most ignorant, unprofessoinal professor I've ever had. She shamelessly pursues political agenda rather than truth, and is extremely unclear about her expectations of students. Avoid her at all costs.
Sort of crazy and out there but it makes the class fun. Homework is pretty easy. Read the book for tests because she always puts like 6 questions that separate those who did and those who did not read.
Lectures are boring, likes to hear her own voice when the "class" is "debating." Test are much harder than they need to be. She needs to realize it's a 100 level class
She knew what she was talking about, but I got a B in her class and was above the average. Her essays are completely impossible but I at least learned a lot.
Leaves you to sink or swim. Either you know it or you don't - no exceptions.
Course was rather easy. Discusses everything you needed to know numerous times in class leaving little studying needed
The overall quality of the CJ courses dropped like a rock when she became employed. With any luck she won't get tenure. Very politically oriented and grades according to her views. Unclear, seems to run around in circles.
Professor Ross is very energetic and hilarious! She is always there to help her students and even when her 9 o'clock class comes in sleepy she is always ready to teach and have fun. I always look forward to her class in the morning just for her to get me going in the morning and throughout the day!
This professor is not bad at all...i don't know who these people are saying she is hard and stuff like that. I'm a guy and took crimes against women and it was a fun class, and i'm not all into this college stuff. Take her and you wont be disappointed, PROMISE!
Dr. Ross gets a bad rap. i think she was a great prof. her expectations are very clear from the first day. her quizzes can be confusing, but if you study, you'll get an A. go to class everyday (there is extra credit for perfect attendance at the end of the semester)
Ross is an awesome professor. Her tests are a little hard for a 100 level class, but if you just pay attention in class then you really don't have to study too much. She's funny and very personable, and I really enjoyed the class.
Her voice! TOO LOUD! I couldn't even concentrate in class because her voice irritated me so much. Relatively easy class, but I disliked the teaching style too much to learn much. Tests are difficult- beware of the true and false.
She through a 15 page paper at us 2 weeks before the end of the semester. I found that she was not clear enough on her tests. Overall, I would not suggest her.
I wish she would have taught more instead of having students present information. Other than that, her exams are hard, be prepared, and you will do fine. No quizzes, takes attendance. Knows her stuff and gives a lot of outside information that will help you in life.
The class was easy, her tests were fair and she was very understanding. From day one you know what to expect fom her, she allows you to re do the paper and gives you all the information you need for the exam, she is also very passionate about the different crimes and that comes through. night class always done early!!!
I thought she was pretty great. She's very strict, but also clear about what she wants. The tests are straightforward. It's a lot harder to do well on her papers. You do have to do the work. But I wouldn't necessarily bother with the packet of handouts she wants you do buy. You won't use them most of the time.
Ross is kind of annoying, but in the long run the class isn't that bad. She is bad on grading since she feels everyone should get a B, but the class isn't that hard and she is easy to talk to if you need help.
Dr. Ross is a great professor. The class is kind of boring, but she makes it clear what she expects of you and goes the extra mile to make sure you do your best in the course. Always available for office hours and answers e-mails promptly. If you know how to write, you're in good shape. If not, good luck.
It was not easy getting an A in this class at all. I did more writing in this class than in SWS classes. Prof Ross is very strict about what she wants papers to include. The textbook for this class was terribly boring. Overall, the class was extremely informative. It also served to raise awareness about crimes against women.
Shes ok, lets u print off the power points. no speeches or anything similar. dont get to use notes on the exams. makes you correct the true and false. she grades papers harshly. overall she is nice. I got a B & I don't study to much, just read over my notes before a test. she gives u quizes but they aren't used in your in the final grade!
Awesome prof! She is extremely smart and helpful. Take her!
Did more writing in here than my SWS class last year! Her directions are unclear, the papers far too long and graded far too harshly,I never received below a B+ in my SWS class. I would avoid taking her classes at all costs
Took this class as part of my theme in summer (6wks). It was awful! Expects everyone to be CJ majors. Barely had enough time for anything else bc of the take home essay exams (12pgs!!!, 3 exams). Do not take unless you have all semester to devote just to this class. Grades very hard, no one has a B+ or higher at midterm, even CJ majors!
Not a fun class, too much writing, exams are too detailed. She is kind of loud.
Very rude. She is very condescending. She is very sarcastic and tries to joke around but it comes off as she think we are stupid. Ridiculous amount of writing and far too picky. I couldn't stand her, she was very high on herself. Don't take her.
Her "take home essay" portion of exams are like writing separate papers per each question. I did more writing in that class than I did WRT 305! She's an insanely difficult grader. She says she's difficult but fair upfront. However, I believe otherwise. Far too difficult of a grader. I was not expecting it to be a breeze, but come on!
Ross is great. Yes she grades hard and you have to work a lot to get a good grade, but she is more articulate in what she wants than any other prof. Had her for 495 and 408 and both are almost 100% writing-based which helps writing skills a lot. Would have liked to learn more concrete concepts but I would take her again in a heartbeat!!
Wonderful teacher. Great learning environment, boys need to take this class! Everything we discussed in class was so profoundly interesting. Tests are pretty easy, but papers are time consuming. Not a big deal though, because she does not give you busy work throughout the week. If you do the papers, then the tests are quick and easy. Amazing class.
Difficult class, but great prof. She will help you if you ask for the help!
LOVE HER!
She is extremely helpful and makes herself available to her students. She covered material so quickly that it was hard to let it sink in, but I did learn quite a bit. The work is pretty time-consuming, but she explains in detail what she is looking for and does not waste time with busy work. I would recommend this professor.
Very time consuming class, but all assignments prepare you for the tests and papers. Quizes are given but not graded as long as the class participate. Very helpful instructor, wants you to succeed. Test are very long
Best prof so far at GVSU. She is very funny and likes to hear students opinions on issues in criminal justice like gun control, death penalty, etc. Tests aren't too bad if you put a little study time in. Very nice environment and an all around enjoyable experience.
One of the worst professors I have ever had. Her grading is very subjective.What bothered me most about her is that she was disrespectful. There were many times that she would laugh and smirk that were inappropriate. This class covered too many topics that hit close to home for students for her to not be sensitive. Great Class!!Bad Prof!!
She is always willing to help! she's funny and makes the class a lot more interesting. her powerpoints aren't that good, but still helpful! she gives you attendance points that help boost your grade, but her tests are very long. you have to study for the class, but it's worth it! this class helped me decide my minor!
Pretty easy class. Tests are not difficult if you pay attention in class. I pulled B's on every test without cracking open the book.(you really don't need the book for this course)All important information is included in powerpoints she posts on blackboard. She's really funny, and jokes around a lot. Definitely one of my favorite professors so far.
She is a fairly easy going professor, very sarcastic, favors students who interact and take part in the class. She has a sign in sheet every class to see who was there. Tests are based mostly off of the book. Class field trips are fun, but you have to drive. Get on her good side, and the class will be fairly easy.
Dr. Ross is an amazing professor and asset to the CJ department. A fairly easy class and I learned a lot of topics concerning crimes associated with women this summer. Tests are a bit complex and her essays require a lot but if you attend class and keep up with her lectures, you will do fine. NO NEED TO BUY THE BOOK-Everything is in the powerpoints
I did not like her very much. She told us if our e-mails didn't have proper headings, body and closings she would not respond. Really? I understand it's college but the amount of work was crazy, especially when you have other classes. She was also on the rude side. Try and find someone else.
She is always on a huge power trip, really rude if you disagree with her, loud and in your face too. A lot of the grade in the class is based on little details that are only important to her. Not a fan of this class or this professor.
She is annoying. If you love to write 10 page papers and hear about how great she thinks she is this class is for you. I think she thinks that this is the only class students are taking. It is very time consuming and pointless. I would not recommend her to anybody. If you can take this class with somebody else I would advise it.
Dr. Ross was a great teacher to take. All the material on the test was covered in class through the powerpoints. I didn't read the book all semester and got As and Bs on tests due to studying the powerpoints. She is very interactive and entertaining. I would recommend taking her.
Debra Ross is wonderful! I cannot say enough good things about this professor! Although she is a tough grader, gives a lot of readings and expects a lot, she is hilarious, caring and is there for you! If you have to take CJWGS 320 take it with her! I'm looking into more classes in the future to take with her!
I LOVED this class. Dr. Ross is a great professor! I had her for White Collar Crime (CJ 408) and definitely recommend the class! Her lectures are not boring and she relates these crimes to your every day life so you can protect yourself. Her papers are long but if you work hard you will get an A. Her exams are not too tough. Very fair professor.
Dr. Ross expects a lot from her students and she states that on the first day of class. One thing is for sure that her Take Home Essay Exams are pretty heavy, but if you attend lectures (which are very interesting and fun, depends on how you participate) and do the readings you will be fine. PARTICIPATION is A HUGE PART OF YOUR GRADE. Go to class!
Dr. Ross was a good professor and explained things well, but the tests were hard and she's a really tough grader. She has really awesome lectures and she explains things pretty well, but the tests aren't based on memorizing- you have to apply what you've learned. She's hard on papers- acts like she's a English prof. Would take again.
Complains about how you write essays but fails to sufficiently explain as to why she marked you down.
Only problem I had with her is that the discussion board for the online class, she focused too much on grammar. It's two point off per post. You are expected to write "you are" in stead of "you're". Even my English prof said that was a little much for an intro class. Other then that the test are easy, some questions are repeated, and she seems nice
Clear guidelines for discussion posts. If you follow her guidelines exactly, including using proper grammar and punctuation, you will almost certainly get full points for these. 2 discussion posts/week (I took this in the summer) with 2 responses to other students per post (total of 6 posts/week. 3 online exams. Time consuming, but easy to succeed.
Dr. Ross focuses so much on grammar yet she uses the wrong words in exams. For example, she used the 'precipitator', but meant perpetrator; made the question quite confusing. Also, the class is test heavy meaning most of your points come from the three tests you take in the class and not from the 12 discussion board posts/responses.
Dr. Ross is a great professor who gives good feedback and provides a great use of material for this course. I learned so much in this class. She makes it very clear what she expects from you in the syllabus as well as the beginning of the class. Do what she says and you'll be successful!
The class has a lot of content, but it is all really interesting and engaging material. She is stickler for grammar in the discussion boards, but if you use Grammarly you shouldn't have to worry about much. She assigns a lot of reading, but for the exams you really only have to know the content from the powerpoints and the videos
This class was honestly life-changing. I learned so much in such a short period of time. Dr. Ross is not a tough grader despite what the other posts have said. I have made grammatical errors in my posts yet have gotten 100% on them because I understood the material. Make sure you go through the Powerpoints, skim the reading, and watch the videos!
Worst prof I've had. I am a straight-A student and have never had so much nit-pickiness pertaining to my writing. I work in a professional setting, it's not how professionals write. This is the last week of class and there is still 2 months of assignments not graded, which makes it hard to adjust to her level of pickiness. Unnecessarily difficult.
Had this as an online class and the topics were actually interesting. BUT she is an extremely tough grader for no reason and takes FOREVER to grade. She will you give you feedback on discussion boards you did months ago and expect your writing to have changed or to have fixed the corrections she gave when they are already turned in every week.
Take her if you want to learn, not for an easy A. For the first few discussion board, I consistently got points off for minimal grammar issues. At the end of the semester, she was 8 weeks behind in grading. I'm convinced this is the only reason why I stopped getting docked grammar points because she rushed to grade. Shocked I ended with an A.
Dr. Ross teaches this class without a text book, though there is heavy use of photocopied textbook pages she posts. Discussion posts made from emotional, noneducational 3 min Facebook videos. She grades harshly - 6 points of 20 goes towards grammar. She does not reply to emails - confirmed by several students. Unspoken requirement of Grammarly
Ross was weird, she took forever to grade things but if you do well at following directions she never took more than 2-3 points off per discussion post so it was fine not having them graded ASAP. 3 exams and weekly discussion posts. Interesting content but she gives a lot more to read than what is actually needed to complete weekly work.
Honestly this class is a waste of money. Im a month in and I have yet to see her face. This class is entirely taught through a ridiculous amount of readings and videos and weekly discussion posts. She is very picky about these posts but grades them late so you cant improve on the next post. overall just a frustrating class
I had Ross for an online class. She was very nice in my experience. I did not find the work is not difficult at all. There is a plenty of reading and long discussion boards, but she gives you a whole week to complete it. You dont have to read everything completely, just skim for main ideas. The exams werent hard. She is hard on grammar though.
I took Dr. Ross' online class and it was fairly easy. Weekly discussion boards with a lot of reading material. You don't really have to read through all of it just pick out key points to include in your discussion. There were 3 exams that were based on the uploaded powerpoints. Type out the powerpoint and search through it while taking the exam
Dr. Ross is a bit picky with grammar but her whole class is weekly discussion boards based on posted videos and three multiple choice exams. The class was easy and took MAYBE an hour a week.
Didn't feel like I learned a lot because the whole class is weekly discussion boards based on posted videos/readings and three exams. I think the online transition of this class could have been improved. The prof doesn't grade anything until the last week of class either
She really cares about her students and she wants you to do well. Just put in minimum effort and youll pass
The class has very sensitive topics and she did not present them in an educational or unbiased way. It felt like she was ranting about how poorly women are treated and it was not a constructive environment. Her exams were made up of poorly worded questions. Would not recommend.
The material in this class is very relevant today and should have at least SOME pre-recorded lectures rather than just PowerPoint presentations and readings. The tests have very oddly formed questions that are confusing. This professor is slow to grade which makes it difficult to engage in the following week without feedback for areas to improve.
The most unreasonable professor I've ever had. Online course with hours worth of videos and reading every week with a discussion board. slow grader because she is so nit picky feedback is just complaining about other students not responding to your discussion, turning it in too close to the deadline, also cant use contractions which is so weird
It is obvious people either love or hate Dr. Ross. She is a tough and SLOW grader but gives good feedback. You need to show that you at least skimmed the material in the discussion boards and proofread. If you read the material and study for the exams, you should do fine. She is willing to meet via zoom, which I did and appreciated.
This prof was okay. She took super long to grade things, but her criticism was always really good. There was a lot of course content but I found it all to be helpful for my learning. If you put effort into this class, it is easy to get an A/B!
Class was made up of weekly discussion boards & two exams. Grading can be slow, as long as you stay on top of your work it's fine. Disc boards were about the week's readings, slides, & videos. Exams were really straight forward and relatively easy. prof is quick to email back! very interesting topics & class
While I loved the content of this class, it was a lot of work. Be prepared for lengthy readings, PowerPoints, and videos. Each week there are discussion boards, formulated like mini essays. Grammar and content heavy. Exams are based on the the powerpoints. She takes a while to respond to emails and grades very slow. Her grading was mistake based.
Very sensitive topics are discussed in a rather biased way. Does not feel like Dr. Ross uses factual evidence at certain points. The discussions are graded with an AI and it doesn't even feel like she is teaching the class.
The exams are straightforward if you follow the powerpoint and posted readings. It is an asynchronous online class, so you do not have much interaction with the professor, but she responds to emails quickly and meets with students via zoom if you ask. Uses Packback questions for discussions. Relevant videos were posted, but no video lectures.
I liked this professor but she uses packback instead of the discussion board on blackboard. It grades your discussion and I did not really like to use packback. She doesnt give study guides for tests but if you review the modules you should do pretty well. I really dont like that she uses lockdown absolutely hate it but what can you do.
Professor Ross has a fairly easy class, but it feels more of an opinionated based class rather than a fact based class to push a more left agenda onto students. Ross pretty much just talks about gender construct the first few weeks which seems pretty hypocritical that the class is "crimes against women" yet preaches that there is like 60 genders.
This class was incredibly heavy discussion participation based- 4 lengthy posts due per week. Those discussion posts are due on Tues and the week starts on Wed. which was confusing. We had to pay 40$ for pack back even though we could have used blackboard discussions for free. She has ignored multiple emails from me.
We used Packback for discussions. You had to respond to her pinned question, ask a new question and respond to two classmates queations. Dr. Ross emailed feedback throughout the semester. There were numerous videos posted. Three objective exams.
you have to buy an outlet that is not blackboard, so be ready for that. tests are literally from the presentations, and just be careful if there is an opinion-made question for one of the questions, you may be flamed for what opinion you have relating to womans rights.
Had her for crimes against women (online). Class was fairly easy, you just used packback once a week and did discussion posts. Tests are lockdown browser and pretty difficult with lots of dates, but if you study you'll be fine. Only 3 tests, most of grade is based on discussions. Probably gave about an hour a week to the class. Take her!
Professor Ross had clear expectations of what you had to do for each module. She used a different website called PackBack for her discussion posts, but it wasn't difficult to use at all. She is passionate about what she is teaching. Overall, it was a pretty easy class if you do the work on time.
Lectures aren't incredibly detailed, so you will have to do some reading on your own, but very accommodating for things.
for this one specific assignment that was given by this teacher I did get graded as an 83 which is not bad however i had gotten all A's prior. I fixed it nearly the exact tweaks that she asked for in the new one and she gave me the exact same grade and sent me a rude/passive aggressive comment following as if i wasn't doing exactly what she asked.
Passive aggressive and doesn't respond to any emails !
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
33%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.35 avg changeRatings by Course
CJ101
4.2
(16)CJSECT
4.0
(1)CJ408
4.0
(2)C300
4.0
(1)CJ320
3.5
(35)Difficulty by Course
CJ495
4.5
CJSECT
4.0
C300
4.0
CJ40802
4.0
CJ408
3.5