2.9
Quality4.3
Difficulty47%
Would Retake105
Reviews47%
Would Retake
105
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
32
4
12
3
10
2
13
1
38
What Students Say
“She will always start lecture and quizzes late”
CS111 - 2.0 rating“Only reason most go to class is for that”
CSMATH111 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
35%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.03 avg changeRatings by Course
CS141
3.6
(17)CS111
2.8
(74)CS105
2.2
(13)CSMATH111
2.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
CSMATH111
5.0
CS111
4.3
CS141
4.2
CS105
4.2
Reviews (105)
Tests you on pre-req material (even on the final), which sucks. Gives small extra credit opportunities randomly in discussions or lectures, so if you miss that class, sorry. Only reason most go to class is for that. Puts questions that quizzes that were more complex than what was on homework/prac tests. Prac tests often don't have solutions.
- Quizzes more complex than practice tests and homework - Unclear lectures - Asks problems on Quizzes and tests that clearly aren't in the slides or on the homework. - Practice quizzes don't have solutions often times - Incredibly strict grading, unforgiving regrades
Very difficult class. She isn't very clear going through the lecture in class, often times speeds through the material and ends class early. She gives extra credit for quizzes, but you must attend class to get it. Material on quizzes is very different from the practice and sample questions she gives in class.
The course is based on UCR math department guidelines. The math department requires cs111 to be taught on 4 quizzes, 5 homework, and a final exam. There's an extra credit quiz in the course, however, the extra credit quiz is a tough grader. Elena lectures through her lecture slides. She's very helped during her office hours.
In this class, lectures are fragmented, explanations are never thorough, and expectations are not clearly defined. She will always start lecture and quizzes late. Her quizzes are very strange, given that, she gives you like 30 minutes for 12 problems, and there are questions in the quizzes that don't resemble any of the HW, slides, or discussions.
toughest grader I've ever seen
Class is hard, make sure you study all the theorems and proofs a lot. Don't fall behind in the class. You should also do all the homework and practice quizzes.
Course material is hard. Though attendance isnt mandatory, youll do well just by attending and paying attention to lecture, discussions and office hours. Clear expectations for the quizzes and final. Elena was very fair grader. Its easy to say attending class is waste of time, but, like I said, material is hard. Show up. Pay attention.
Prof Strzheletska is truly passionate about her teaching. Shes strict with her grading to help you better understand the fundamentals of the material. Go to office hours, put time and effort into this class its rigorous but doable and very rewarding. She challenges you to think outside the box & amply prepares you for concepts covered in CS141.
Elena is a very good teacher. She is very passionate about the class, and is clear in what she teach. She is a fair grader. The class is difficult, so put in the effort. Attendance is not mandatory, but is helpful. The quizzes and final are straight forward if you do the HW and participate in class. Also review the proof, and focus on learning.
Elena is strict because she truly cares about students learning the material. Lectures can be confusing as she often just reads off the slides but she is very helpful during office hours, and is more than willing to move/extend them if needed. Provides practice material for quizzes (rely on the quiz syllabus more). Many extra credit ops.
SHOW UP TO CLASS AND TRY ON THE HW IF YOU WANT TO PASS!!!!
Elena is indeed passionate of the subject. However, she is too passionate to the point she doesnt put into account that her students are students and not expert mathematicians. Course materials are easy to learn if you practice, but quizzes are a complete 180. Throws more complicated materials compared to materials presented on slides and hw.
The material in CS111 is not too difficult, if you study, like any student should. HOWEVER, Strzheletska makes it difficult. She gives unreasonable amount of questions for every quiz and test. When students disclosed their concerns with the amount of questions, Strzheletska simply said "study more". Avoid this unreasonable instructor at all cost.
The professor is a tough grader and so are her grader(s). It seems like theres always random points taken off of homework for the simplest things. Skipped a step? Goodbye 20% of your homework grade even though the final answers are correct. The quizzes and tests are easier than homework, the catch is that you are racing against the clock.
Elena is a profoundly nice person and you can tell that at all times she just wants her students to learn. However, she is also a profoundly terrible teacher. As in, I've never learned anything as a result of her attempts at instructon and I haven't met a classmate that has either. She is also very obviously on the spectrum and lacks social cues.
Elena gets a lot of hate but she definitely cares about students. This wasn't an easy class, but I learned a lot more in this class than previous courses. This quarter was online and she implemented a group project that was interesting and a fun way to incorporate algorithms. I did have an issue with dense exams with a short time to complete.
Course material isn't the hard part. Her quizzes are timed and if you want an A on them, do her practice quizzes and literally time yourself so you finish and are confident in your answers to not double check. She explains concepts by repeating procedures/steps. Slides are contradictory & DOES NOT INCLUDE NAMES OF THEOREMS. In a math class.
Participate in class and show up to office hours; she'll remember you and often drops hints to homework if you care enough to ask. If you show a clear intention on trying to understand content, she'll help you through it. If you have a bad math/logic background, be prepared to watch YouTube videos to refresh yourself on certain concepts.
Getting a bad grade in her class has become a self-fulfilling prophecy that results in most students giving up early. Yes, CS111 with Elena is difficult, but it is very doable with her instruction. She is a knowledgeable, caring, and fair professor. The math is not hard. That being said, you will study for this class.
Quizzes make 40% of the total grade and if you fail once, you are likely to get B. Homework grading is crucial, there are always strange reasons to take points off. Lectures are not that helpful, it takes so much time to learn by yourself.
Elena is a GOOD person, and she cares if you are learning or not. If you ask questions during the lecture(which u should attend otherwise will have a hard time), she is willing to answer them. Also, quizzes are 40&, which is super HEAVY. Quizzes are hard and not ez to get 90%. Heavy study class overall. Ready to drop it if u dont study.
If you've taken CS 111 or 141, then you pretty much know what to expect. Elena is very vague when it comes to what she expects from you, so be prepared to spent lots of time going back and for with her (especially for the final project). She likes to keep the TAs in the dark as well so its no use expecting any help from that department.
Her lectures are confusing at best, with homework assignments being extremely difficult. Practices for the quizzes (which account for 40% of the grade) are provided, but solutions are only provided for some of the problems, and there are often questions on the quizzes that resemble nothing that was on the practice. Be prepared and ready for this.
The class as a whole is incredibly difficult, with difficult situations regarding quizzes and exams. The quizzes are incredibly difficult with quiz practices that do not reflect the quiz questions and lack answers. Homework is incredibly difficult and is not graded based on completion but rather very harshly graded on content. She lacks empathy.
If you have another option to take the class with anyone else, go ahead and do so; trust me...
Very bad
Elena's 111 has a reputation for being hard but I think it's just the shock as one of our first upper-divs, along with learning LaTeX. Attending office hours is one of the best things you can do because not only is Elena super helpful in OH, you'd also know that she's pretty funny and cares a lot about her students; with high expectations, however.
Skips a lot of steps on her slides so you won't understand anything if you zone out at least once. This is a math class and there is a difference between listening to somebody read off slides with all the work already done and doing it step-by-step from the beginning on a whiteboard and explaining as you go. Good luck trying to take notes.
CS111 as a course is very hard but if you put in the effort to study and ask questions, you'll be fine. Along with extra credit, she is very helpful during office hours as well and sometimes even gives hints about the questions asked in quizzes and exams.
Elena is a wonderful professor! I don't understand why she got so many bad reviews. She is a very knowledgeable professor and is a kind, caring person. She is willing to help students during office hours and while the course work is very difficult, her quizzes and tests are fair. If you put effort into studying, you'll do well.
The course material in this class is very hard, regardless of the professor. The quizzes and homework are important and ask her for help IMMEDIATELY if you start getting confused. Elena is willing to help you out as much as possible. Going to lectures helps and if you can go to her office hours as well.
I will be honest. The next time I interview for a job, I will probably have Professor Strzheletska to thank for the knowledge I currently have. She is a very good lecturer, so much so that I can still retain a lot of the material in CS111 because of that. She cares a lot about her students and it is not hard to see that she wants the best for us.
Very patient when covering tough material and always answered all of our questions even when it meant repeating something she said a minute ago. I enjoyed her class and to the people who gave a 1.0 rating, don't do that. A 1.0 suggests that the structure of this class is broken. Did we get through all the material? Yes. Were the test fair? Yes.
Elena gets a lot of undeserved hate from students because she teaches difficult classes and has a traditional grading structure. However, she wants you to do your best and overall does a good job of teaching the material as long as you're willing to learn. CS111 is a class you absolutely have to grind for but if you fail it's your fault.
The class is hard but she is really nice. You really have to work to get an A but there may be some extra credit if she likes your class. Overall she is really nice and will answer any of your questions, but it's really up to you on how much work you put into the class because that's the grade you get.
She is a terrible professor. Can't speak clearly during lectures and skips many slides. Her content is unclear and incohesive. This subject is hard enough as it is, and Elena does not make it any easier.
You will probably have to take this professor if you are pursuing anything computer science-related at UCR. If you do, I pray for your success as she is probably the most unfair professor I ever had in my 4 years in undergrad. She grades extremely tough, partial/pity points do not exist with her. If you wish to pass you must grind.
Entire class format doesnt make any sense: every homework is graded long after quizzes are taken so you don't have any feedback going into the exams when the material is already complex enough
Elena is a great prof. I think the problem is honestly just the course content. Discrete math is hard for most cs people from what I can gather online and it's a lot easier for math majors and the same goes for 111 and Elena. If you just listen and practice, 111 isn't impossible or anything and Elena is actually super helpful in office hours.
Is she the best explainer? I don't think so. But is she caring towards her students? Definitely. Go to her office hours and she will ask you questions and make you think, but they will definitely give you a better understanding. She even asks her readers to hold study sessions for the students. They're super helpful, and you should really go.
Worst professor I had so far at UCR. Randomly decided to move final earlier. Asked a "no credit" qestion on the last quiz before the final asking if the given time slot for the final was available. You got -33.3% off the quiz if you didn't know, and -3.33% off the quiz if you had a time conflict. Final was also moved two days earlier at 8 AM.
The content of this class is hard but Elena does her best to teach it in a way for students to understand. If you put in the effort she does the same. Has multiple office hours and if you want more help she offers it. She actually cares about her students.
Literally, you have to put so much time into this class to get any sort of return. It's either you prioritize this class or your three other courses. Her slides & lectures don't help you prepare for the homework and the homework & study guide don't come close to prepping you for the exams. The god-complexes in this class don't make it any better.
If you put in the work you will be just fine. Elena actually cares about her students. If you go to her OH you will see that. OH are super helpful!
I hate her so much
As others have said, lecture and lecture slides don't prepare you for homework, and homework doesn't prepare you for tests. Class average scores for assignments were visible on gradescope and almost every assignment had an average between 40-50%. She is a very harsh grader, criteria is unclear, and she doesn't test on what is taught.
Accessible only through slack, not by email. She sometimes assigned quizzes after 11pm. Not worth going to lecture, just watch youtube vids about the concept and read the slides/watch the recording. Proof heavy, tough grader, class average is low, but she curves at the end. Get as many points as you can on take homes and hw. Hws are very long.
Is Elena harder than other professors? Apparently, but she teaches the two most important CS classes. Put consistent effort in. Trying to study for midterms the night before will get you a C if you’re smart. Start assignments early and go to OH for clarification. She is very understanding if you make any effort to speak to her outside of class.
Not as bad as other people have been saying, but certainly not perfect. Lectures were not helpful for me. I learned best from youtube videos and reviewing the material on my own. Do well on the quizzes and the homework and you'll do fine in the class.
Expectations are not very clear and elena is hard to reach outside of class. She told our class she would refuse to answer questions about an assignment on slack one time because nobody had questions at the time in class. Makes last minute announcements expecting all students to comply and lectures are dull and not helpful. Very unorganized class.
hard to contact outside the class, made important announcements very late spontaneously with little time, the topic is not hard but she makes it hard.
She is not caring about students' grade.
Everyone knows her class is hard but she is also not very helpful and makes things harder than they need to be. She made the syllabus and then completely changed it during the class. Often with very little notice. Deadlines were confusing and kept moving. When ever I asked questions she had condescending answers.
I think students who rate her bad are people who want to get grades for free. CS141 is the hardest class in CS majors and have to study hard to understand the content. She knows students getting hard on this and cares about us so much. Give a lot of hints for homework, due date extension, huge curves in your grades, and good feedback on your work.
Did CS111 & CS141 w/ her. The most devoted & caring professor I know. I had an OH with her until 11PM. If you show that you want the help *consistently*, she will help. But you need to put in the effort. Complaints feel misconstrued & like they're from students who didn't even try except for when they realized they were failing.
Makes jokes during class that I find somewhat funny, but it can also come off as harsh and petty. When we had hybrid classes, she offered zoom, but would get upset when we used it. As for lectures, she moved REALLY quickly, but I guess it's fair since class was only 50 min. Despite this, she is easily accessible in office hours & happy to help
If you're looking for an easy A, look elsewhere. For the most part Elena is very attentive to her class and her students' needs. Lectures are pretty intense, but the class gets significantly easier after the first quiz. Only real problem I had with her is that she seems to assume the worst of her students
avoid her!!!
I think shes calmed down a little judging on past reviews but she gave 5 hw's worth 4% each and 6 quizzes worth 10% each with one dropped. Hw's took a while but helped a lot for quizzes. I thought the quizzes were fair cuz she gave good practice ones that were similar. The final was a lot harder and surprized the whole class with the difficulty.
Every bad rating in this section is students who don't attend lecture and don't do homework. She gives so much extra credit opportunities it's silly. She's so caring in office hours. It is ridiculous the amount of students who don't show up to a single lecture and expect an A+. Then they show up here blaming the professor for their own stupidity.
Before taking this class, I was fearful of Elena because of what everyone would always say of her. After taking her for the first time, my opinion completely was the opposite. Not only is she really lenient, she truly wants us to pass and will give us as many opportunities we want to succeed. Go to lecture, do the homework, do the samples she gives
Its very unfortunate how much hate Professor Strzheletska gets. Not only does she care about her students, but she is always more than happy to clarify. In lecture she constantly encourages us to learn rather than memorize. If you won't attend lecture at least study her notes, they are very detailed and her tests are similar to them. You can pass.
wont say she is an awesome professor because I got an A. Her lecture is not helpful. 80% of the time in her lecture she just read from her slide, the rest of 20% she repeats the same thing in other words. I just skipped her lectures since I realized that. But she offer really good material like sample/practice quiz and some ec to boost your grade.
Seriously, Avoid her!
Professor Elena is a tough professor. If you want to suck at algorithms and pass 141 without using your brain, take another professor. If you care about being good at the material, learning it thoroughly, and being a good engineer, take Elena. She will force you to think and learn, she is a great professor when you give effort.
"I will not cover anything" "its simple just play with it at home" "you should have done the example at home" Real things she said so avoid teaching. She only reads off slides which would be fine, but her slides are terrible. Shes super strict with grading and the material is difficult, but its made even more difficult because elena doesn't teach.
The worst professor I've taken so far. Her lectures just consist of her telling you to do/learn everything at home. Just go for the extra credit attendance. She gets aggressive at times and legitimately just can't teach. You need to rely on the TAs.
Avoid!
I have had Professor Elena for CS010C, CS111, CS141, and CS105 and I think she's one of the best professors. It's funny that her OHs are so empty except the last week when everyone goes to bump up their grade and then have the audacity to complain after literally zero attendance or participation. Go to lectures, attend OH, do the HW. She's great.
Professor Elena is a fantastic professor who made me a better student overall. Not only would she deeply cover lecture material and concepts, she didn't just simply read off slides, but would actually engage with students. I've taken multiple classes with her, and over that course of time she taught me how to teach myself which is invaluable, 10/10
"Just go to office hours," has been said on here.The thing is, not all of us are without a job or involvement in school, we don't have unlimited time. Treats all material as a prerequisite even if it is not a prerequisite it is all taught the same. Learn to self-study using the quiz study guides, I never went to class but studied for hours on that.
Her teaching style is extremely confusing and not helpful whatsoever and not to mention, her lectures are extremely boring and nonengaging. She is mainly reading off the slides and then tries to explain differently which becomes more confusing than it already is. Your best friend taking this class will be doing the practice quizzes and your TA.
Teaching style is repeating the lecture slide in a slower voice to get her point across. If you're lucky she might even mix up a few words. Passive aggressive and chastizes the class for not being ready despite always being late. Only reason she gets a 2 is bc she likes questions. Unfortunately though, her answers don't help. TA's are your savior.
Terrible priorities. She's more focused on scaring students and cheaters than she is on teaching. And she takes pride in it. Lecture is horrible, she is always aggressive and demeaning. Had to teach myself everything. She does not fit in with the rest of the CS department. She should consider an academic disciplinary position, not teaching.
I don't wanna imagine what her romantic life is like with the amount of cheating accusations she throws at us
Here are my tips for this class, DON'T PROCRASTINATE, she is very strict and is very clear on what she expect on her quizzes. TA's will be your friend for this class. I never relied on her lecture as I take notes before hand and relied on discussion heavily. Overall, she is very accessible and she helps you if you need help on Slack.
I love Elena, she cares very much for her students. Just do your work, go to office hours when needed, and discussions are vital. Study homework for quizzes.
Prof. Elena truly cares about her students from her heart. Wouldn't sit on her chair during OH's till she makes sure that every student gets the answer/support they need. Fair grader. If you show that you understand or at least really want to, she'll know. Straight forward in lecturing, would never go in circles. Sample quizzes help. Respected.
She's funny and an interesting lecturer. The projects we did were fun and helpful. The only downside was that her final was incredibly hard and felt a little unfair. She tested us on a lot of material that she sped through in class since most students were seniors, but if it was new to you, you were kinda screwed.
Elena cool, but I hate this class. The people who grade also are stingy and will dock you off on small or non existing mistakes. Sadly, you have to take this class as a prereq.
If you have the option to avoid this professor, I would do it. The quizzes are written in a way where you have never seen the problem before, or you might get lucky and have studied it. It doesn't encourage problem solving but rather memorization of problems. Also this professor is the first one I have taken where they grade in a predatory way.
Lectures are often useless. Does not to go over review topics in class that's essential for upcoming material. Grading is alright, but can sometimes be extremely stingy when you least expect it. She clearly has a love for teaching, but her teaching method is incompatible with most students.
Tough grader. Hard to access outside of class. Can be scary/strict sometimes, lectures are okay but dry. Kind of stingy with grading.
I LOVED her class. It is a hard class, no question about it, but she does her best to make sure that she can provide maximum resources to make it smoother. She is very fair, and despite what some things people say, extremely caring. In all, she is an awesome instructor, and I was really grateful to be able to take classes with her.
I went to her Office Hours a lot and she is very sweet and approachable. I learned a lot. Every quiz and homework is important because I have seen those topics come up in future classes. I like her teaching style, and I really appreciate when she stops to make sure that no one is lost. She *cares*, and she is very knowledgeable.
I think her bad CS111 reviews are unfair. It's just a tough class but she explains things well, and if you go to lecture you'll do fine on quizzes. It's pretty much just math which ig isn't for everyone
Elena was nice but can sound a bit harsh, tbh she just seems to want students to let her know how she can help them and gets frustrated when no one answers and then asks last minute. for us, she was available through Slack, gave ec opportunities, extended deadlines multiple times, and left a lot of the due dates to student suggestions.
I've taken her a few times already (3 CS 111's, whoops). She's gotten better and much less abrasive in her lectures. I appreciate that she explained her lecture style at the beginning of the semester [She's been teaching this class for years and knows how to pace it]. Also her comment to speak up if we don't know something, so we don't flounder.
The professor lacks the vocabulary and desire to give feedback. Most of the feedback given, if any, has been vague or a poor attempt to nudge a student into the correct direction. It has yet to work, as most people are confused and have to ask the teacher assistant. Good luck.
Took her for 2 courses. Offers EC, extended deadlines for us as much as the hair on my scalp. Prioritizes all students over herself available on Slack 24/7. Instant feedback and support. For the review about her romantic life & cheating, as a student myself, the only image ruined here is yours, not the professor's for such a low class metaphor.
Yeah just don't. I don't think any of these positive comments are real. She is way to fixated on cheating and how her ratings come from pissed off students. When in reality she needs to chill. Her graders or whoever grades the assignments, acts like your supposed to teach em how you got the answer too. Which is insane.
This professor is regularly late, disrespectful, and unfair in grading(One from our 5HW, the lowest grade is negative). She likes to threaten students, "If you do not reply to me by voice in online class, I will be meaningful to your final", this sentence comes from the start of her lecture of week 10.
I think a lot of the negative reviews are from students who didn't have the chance to talk to her. In class she's strict, but she does care about her students and responds very quickly. The class is hard, but she was always there to help. The homeworks and quizzes are difficult, but she was always available when you needed clarifications
Idk about her in-person lectures, but her online lectures have been horrible since she switched to online. Unreadable computer handwriting, dumps all info onto the slides and reads it, while doing minimal work herself. Also, dont go into this class expecting curves to save you. Her curves are practically nonexistent. Hyperfocused on cheating too.
The professor mostly reads off the slides. The slides provide information, but not the information you are desiring. The quizzes somewhat relate to what you learn. However, the exams are completely different from what she teaches and emphasizes in class.
50% Quizzes, 20% Homework. There are no examples for the Homework and the Quizzes are harder than the practice quizzes given by a decent amount. Be aware that extra credit makes up 1% of your total grade. 25% on Final and 5% on Final Assessment.
The worst professor at UCR. Please avoid her at all costs. You will not pass this class with the grade you desire. Strict on every single thing. Yells in lectures and takes forever to respond. Gave out a BUNCH of Fs just because she thought students were using AI. AVOID HER!
I learned in this class by reading the slides myself. Some people found her helpful but I didn't. She is also not very responsive and graded things very very late. It's shocking at how disorganized she can be. It's been 4 weeks of her accusing us of cheating and still has not updated us about anything, half of us don't know if we will fail or not.
Elena is not a bad or mean professor, but she was too fixated on catching cheaters in the class rather than focusing on the class itself. The quizzes and homework must be done a certain way, or they will be flagged by the graders for not being done the way "it was taught in class." and study as much as you can for the quizzes and final.
Honestly, bad rep but great professor!
CS105 was one of the easier classes, make sure to pay attention to lectures!
if u pay attention in lecture and find urself a good hw partner, ull be fine. prioritize this class and prepare >14 hours to work on hw with your partner (trust me). even then, she gives late passes as well as extra credit opportunities! shes honestly a v sweet and caring professor! tries her best to be understanding tldr, its a demanding course
A very fair professor and very nice. Despite what people tell you about CIS111 it's very manageable if you just study proactively. I was a lazy bum and attended class like four times and still managed to pull a B. If you study even a little bit you'll be good.
I got over 100%, people complain too much to be honest. drops lowest quiz grade. Final was curved 5%, but we were given like 5% extra credit. easy class
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
35%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.03 avg changeRatings by Course
CS141
3.6
(17)CS111
2.8
(74)CS105
2.2
(13)CSMATH111
2.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
CSMATH111
5.0
CS111
4.3
CS141
4.2
CS105
4.2