3.1
Quality3.0
Difficulty29%
Would Retake106
Reviews29%
Would Retake
106
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
27
4
24
3
19
2
12
1
24
What Students Say
“the only word I have for this class and this professor is AWFUL”
COM443 - 1.0 rating“Worst class and worst professor”
COM443 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
98%
Textbook Required
53%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.07 avg changeRatings by Course
INTERCULT
5.0
(1)INTROCOMM
5.0
(2)NVC
5.0
(1)COMM346
4.8
(4)COMM101
4.0
(36)Difficulty by Course
COM443
4.1
INTERCULTURAL
4.0
COMM400
4.0
COM101
3.5
COM346
3.5
Reviews (106)
DO NOT TAKE HER CLASS!! first off, she makes you do these readings that have nothing to do with intercultural comm and turn in an outline at every class,the class is more of a study of language than intercultural comm..her exams are hard,confusing, and detailed, she talks too fast during lecture for u to understand anything. The class just sucks.
This class really...REALLY sucks. The only reason I'm taking it is because it's a requirement, but the class is really boring and it has NOTHING to do with culture. It's like learning how to speak 101.
Well prepared, different, but fun. Study hard and you'll do fine.
Despite what others say, her tests are pretty easy if you study her handouts. Must do a summary every class, but can just copy from articles. Only problem is she lets you do group work during class, which is a waste of time.
how to speak 101 should be the title of this class. a lot of reading. keeps you the whole time. easy subject matter. manageable exams. easy but time consuming assignments and class. very interesting. provides all the readings so you dont have to buy any books. very nice woman.
i agree w/ the person below but she herself isn't very helpful when it comes to one-on-one advice or question answering. her lectures are clear but she isn't
she is hard and hard to understand. shes not too helpful becauser her explanations make no sense. shes a terrible grader, no curves, and astronomical amounts of work. DONT TAKE HER
if u do the easy hmwk questions for the readings each week and study for the test- she is easy! always at office hours. tests are straight foward- this class is simple as long as u put in normal effort- she likes quotes and transcription examples
Bolden is easy enough, but not intellectually stimulating at all. It can be painful just to sit through all 80 minutes of her mandatory classes. The amount of work is completely disproportionate to what is covered in class - lots of papers, detailed sakai research discussions and harsh grading on the tests.
She's not hard at all. Her exams are very fair and straight to the point. A lot of the material is common sense. You do not have to over-analyze it to get it. Most people spend a lot of time over analyzing the material. It's easy to get an A in her courses.
She sucks. She thinks shes witty by making fun of students indirectly. You have homework everyday with a paper every other week, a midterm, a final, and quizzes in class to make sure you are there EVERYDAY. SHE IS THE WORST.
literally the most boring class i've ever had to sit through, makes powerpoint slides DIRECTLY from the book and reads them to the 300+ student class. at least 20 kids walk out throughout the class every time (probably b.c it covers the reading assigned the night before). i've never made it through a full class -- so uninteresting & repetitive
Communications in general is not such an interesting class. If you got o class and take notes you'll be fine, i only used my text book once to cite a page number for one of the papers. Not so much work a few tests and a few easy papers. test was easy and i needed a make up exam twice and she was very accommodating.
She isn't that interesting, but she does use some videos to explain the topics. Read the text, take notes, and use the on-line study guide and the exams will be simple. There are a few short papers that are also extremely easy to get a good grade on.
The class is a pretty boring one but Dr. Bolden tries to make it interesting. She shows a lot of videos and stuff to keep the class fresh. If you read the chapters and study her notes you will do fine on the exams, which aren't tricky or anything. Make sure you show up to class because some test questions are based on things she showed in class.
Class turned out to be pretty interesting. Her class goes by quickly for me. Class is super easy if you attend class and take notes (on powerpoints, clicker questions, videos and other examples she mentions). Aced the exams without opening the book. She's amusing too during her lectures. She's not very helpful with one-on-one issues though
She makes a boring subject and tries to make it interesting. She is actually very funny and cracks alot of jokes, exams are not hard if you take notes, and alot is common sense.
I took the online quizzes before the exam and went to class and got an A. Never opened the book. Has a sense of humor that not everyone gets but I found amusing.
Presiding over a 350 student class, you will probably have little interaction with this prof. She is overall a nice person and wants people to get interested in communication. It's a dry topic but she does her best to try to make it interesting with examples from shows like Somewhat of an accent, but not hard to understand.
shes a very sweet person easy A if you take the lecture notes down and study
Take this class. Period. An easy A if you attend lectures and take notes. There are three exams, 3 very short papers, clicker questions, and extra credit.Super easy and interesting even for non-comm majors. Galina is super sweet and helpful.
This is a great class to take. Extremely easy. all lectures have pre-made outlines to fill in during the class verbatum to the power point. Bolden is very nice. she uses iclickers, so attendance is mandatory if you want attendance to help your grade. very easy exams (multiple choice). definitely take this class.
Professor Bolden was GREAT. Adorable, intelligent, very kind. Pay attention and do the assignments and you'll do well on the exams and get a good overall grade. I'd take the class over if I could! Again, she was great!
Very easy A ONLY IF .. you actually go to class. uses a lot of examples from class on test and its iClicker (only for attendance). The material itself is pretty boring but if you go to class take notes and do the hw, no problem with getting an A.
Reading Response due every week. Midterm was hard. She keeps you the entire 3 hours and will not let out early. 10 min break. Be prepared to transcribe and listen and read a lot of transcriptions as well. She's nice, but the class is awful.
Professor Bolden was an excellent professor. I actually learned in this class. there was clicker points as well - 5%. take her
easy, grade consists of clicker, 3 short 1 or 2 page essays, and 3 tests. take her, she is a great teacher and gives a ton of examples and clarifies everything
A very interesting woman...the class is boring but you have to go for clicker questions since they're used for attendance.
Prof. Bolden is very fair. There is a lot of material but she tries to make the class fun and engaging. Exams are easy if you attend the lectures. There are 3 mini papers and 3 exams for the course She offers many extra credit opportunities. Didn't really need the text book except to use as a reference for the papers. Attendance is mandatory.
Great teacher. Two 50 multiple choice exams and a 60 question final. Also three 1-2 page papers throughout the semester. Clicker questions throughout class make attendance is mandatory. Good extra credit opportunities. Take notes and its an easy A.
Bolden tries to make things interesting by showing clips from TV shows like House and Friends. This is a really easy class with 2 midterms that has 50 questions. 3 papers that are 1-2 pages single spaced. Final is 60 questions. Make sure to do the extra credit! Up to 7 points are offered and they make a big difference on your grade.
Very easy. Midterms 50 points each. Final is 60. 3 assignments 30 each. Participation (I>clicker) is 10. She does review lecture before exams. Material was straightforward and exams are all multiple-choice.
not as easy and "straightforward" as everbody says it is...to get A requires quite a bit of work, and exam questions are somewhat unclear. the A IS POSSIBLE with a decent amount of studying, B+ very easy to obtain.
THIS IS NOT AN EASY A. This class is harder than it should be. She's a decent professor, very nice. But there's little room for error. Textbook is a must if you're looking for an A. Also, cite the book on EVERY assignment (vital for an A). Mandatory class. Do as much extra credit as you can. They help so much. Easy material, but tricky course.
This class was not as easy as I thought it would be. The first exam was really easy. The second was a lot harder (apparently its supposed to be). She gives out extra credit in the first few weeks that arent due until the last day. DO THEM EARLY or else you wont want to. I didnt use the book much, only to cite assignments (mandatory). OK class.
Professor Bolden is good at what she does and is very helpful, but is not lenient at all when it comes to grading. I got an A in her class and found it easy but you need to go to class and write down everything on the powerpoint slides and study them well. You also need the textbook for assignments, and she gives a lot of extra credit options.
Cute lady who cares about communication and wants you to care too. She's very helpful even though the class is big she wants to talk to everyone. I definitely recommend taking her. I keep getting Bs on stuff and I hardly study and never look at the book.
Easiest professor I've ever had! Very easy and as long as you go to class, her notes are very clear and helpful on the exams. Must attend in-class review lecture, VERY HELPFUL. I didn't study much but got As on the exams. her lectures are pretty interesting too and her and the TAs are all so nice. DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!!
Very sweet-hearted in lectures, impossible to communicate with outside class. My computer crashed at 1am the night before an essay was due and when I approached her about she totally wrote me off. Same attitude later in the year with the third essay. Has her TA's do all her work, refused to communicate with me in any meaningful way. No bueno.
Nearly got my 2nd B of my college career in this class. It was a combination of the tests being pretty hard and the material being boring. You have to go to every class and make sure you pay attention to the examples that come in the form of video clip. Write down the clicker questions if you can. Pretty good teacher overall.
Overall she is an okay professor, but has her flaws. She is somewhat difficult to get a hold of outside of class and is not the greatest communicator. I had questions all throughout the course and could never get a hold of, and kept me from a B by .25 pts that she refused to round up. Okay class but if you have the option get a different professor.
Really easy class. If you go to lecture and pay attention, an A is easily achievable. The tests are all based on what she tells you in class. Plays a review game before each test. 3 assignments and clicker pts as well. Definitely take this class.
Not too hard. got to pay attention. i dont think its possible to fail. Need to study for second exam and final to do well though, not just common knowledge like everyone thinks
Not an easy A. No curve. No use of the book. Waste of a class.
If you need a level 400 communication class, definitely take this, 4 exercise papers (which are super interesting and fun), 1 midterm, final or final paper. She is super sweet, kind, super helpful, and responds to your emails promptly!
MUST attend class. She uses iClicker plus includes lots of material in lecture that is NOT in the textbook and is tested HEAVILY in exams. Refuses to post lecture slides online so if you miss class you need to get notes from someone who was there to get the material. Once you have all the notes the tests are pretty easy, but this class is a pain.
easy A if you even try a little. take notes (doesn't post online but leaves them up long enough in class to copy down) exam Qs come straight from class and jeopardy review. she plays a ton of funny videos as examples. easy assignments. i studied max 3-4 hrs each exam and did very well
this is an easy A class if you even try a little. go to class and take notes (doesn't post online but leaves them up long enough in class to copy down) her exams are very easy -study notes, copy down clicker Qs in class, and study the jeopardy review she does. 3 easy assignments. not much effort needs to put in if you attend class and pay attention
MUST GO TO CLASS everything on the exams are straight from her lectures very straight forward 2 exams and final, 3 short assignments about a page ea., participation, DO ALL THE EXTRA CREDIT, pay close attention to exam questions sometimes tricky
She's nice and the class was very interesting. However, you really should go to class and/or read the textbook and you'll do perfectly fine. I was really annoyed though because I ended with a 89.9 and she doesn't believe in curves and wouldn't push it up a point.....
she's okay
She's not that bad. She makes the class interesting by showing clips from TV shows or engaging everyone in activities, and also doing jeopardy reviews before the exams. You need the textbook. She offers extra credit assignments. Questions are a bit tricky - try to remember examples of every term or theory. And you need an iClicker.
i love this class. Professor Bolden is really great, just make sure to do your work on time and read before tests.
Fun lectures with lots of videos, approachable prof. If you come to class, the exams are easy.
So this class isn't super easy, but its easy. If you show up and pay attention then you'll barely have to study for the very easy exams. If you don't pay attention than you'll have to study someone elses notes a little harder. But overall and easy, but sometimes dry class. The lectures are a little dragged out, the material really isn't complex.
not super easy but also not super hard. attendance isn't mandatory but there's clicker questions all the time and always one within the first 5 min of class. tests are fairly ok if you pay attention and study. come to review sessions because the material from her jeopardy is used on exams. a few easy assignments and a lot of extra credit available
The lectures aren't too bad. The videos she shows are usually funny and help give examples of the concepts you're learning. Don't expect to do well on the assignments, even if you work really hard. There is a really strict rubric that they use to grade the papers but they don't let you see it. If you get a 5/10, good luck finding out why.
Professor Bolden is pretty chill. 3 Exams and 4 assignments that aren't hard. Attendance is mandatory and is checked by Iclicker. She uses powerpoints in class, just copy them down and make note of class examples. She puts a couple of class examples on tests, so they're important. Exams relied more on her notes, but reading through chapter is good.
Bad class. I had intro to comm and did poorly. The assignments are graded so hard, so don't expect to get over a 6-7. Boring class
TAs are tough graders on assignments even if you went above and beyond to do well. Bolden mentions things in class but does not fully explain what they are. You must go to class because Clicker questions count attendance. Exams are pretty difficult and there is no curve in the class, although a decent amt of extra credit is given. Difficult for 101
Lectures are very boring. Mandatory attendance because of iClicker quizzes which account for 15 points of your grade. There are also 3 HW assignments, 2 midterms, and a final. Midterms are exactly like the class jeopardy review but the final was something else. DOESN'T CURVE AT ALL. But there is up to 7 points in extra credit.
Fun class but you have to show up. She makes the material relatable - lots of fun clips and examples.
Professor Bolden tends to make lecture fun by showing videos during class and knows how to teach well. However, she and the TA's are harsh graders when it comes to grading assignments and exams can be a little difficult and tricky for a 101 class. She also doesn't round up letter grades regardless, which I was 0.05 points away from a B+.
The course was very interesting because it applied videos that showed how communication worked in an interesting way. The information was presented clearly, but was not so "watered down" that it couldn't be enjoyable. The guided note were incredibly helpful. They were so many TAs that it wasn't hard to get an answer to a question.
She's not great
To be completely honest, she's the worst. There are so many negative things I can say about Professor Bolden but I'll keep this simple. If you don't have to, don't take her.
I did not have any expectations for this class, but I really enjoyed it. She is a great professor, and I actually thought she was a generous grader. She made the class interesting and out together interesting presentations.
Do not take nonverbal just because it sounds easy because Bolden will make it a living nightmare. Grades harshly, exceptionally difficult midterm and finals, and boring classes. Attendance was generated by pop quizzes on the readings (which were so lengthy) during every class. Would NOT recommend or take again
This was one of the hardest most ridiculous classes I have ever taken in my college career. Prof Bolden would give us pop quizzes on material that was never covered. She expected us to read 2-4 schollary articles (about 20-30 pages of dry material) every week. She graded everything very harshly. Do not take her
Worst class and worst professor. Makes simple assignment thats should have been easy A's extremely difficult. Stay away!
The lectures were boring and the tests have true or false questions that need a paragraph long explanation of why its T or F which drains your grade because they are 5 points each. She couldn't the class to participate and does not allow note taking on laptops which was annoying and hurt my note taking for exams. Take another class if you can.
the only word I have for this class and this professor is AWFUL. stay away!
Great class!
Fun class and a fun professor. Would take again!
Trust me, you don't want to waste your time on this professor and get a bad grade in the end. She has no idea how to teach a 400 level course. She only asks kindergarten level questions and uses videos from 1900. She also gives extremely low grades on assignments and exams. She offers no help on assignments which is complicated as hell.
The class is super out of date. Such easy material but grades exams and papers to an extreme for no reason. Actually makes you consider how this women got hired to teach a 400 level class. She was my least lenient professor during covid19 and even made the final 10x harder than the midterm just because. Passable class, but nothing near exciting.
Very average teacher. Class was insanely boring and it was very hard to pay attention. Clicker questions force you to go to class. Exams were multiple choice and a little bit tough, but doable. The assignments aren't bad, but she grades them extremely tough for no reason (most kids get 50% or 60%). Overall very passable class, but very boring.
This was a very boring class. I had to take it because it was a prerequisite. She forced us to buy i-clickers.
Intercultural Comm is a good class. Prof Bolden never had clear grading criteria which was frustrating. Lots of papers and reading required. She is a tough grader but she means well.
Run when you still have the chance
For an intro class, it was too convoluted and the exams contained vague questions & questions that referenced short videos we viewed in class. If you don't remember the details of these videos or what concepts they were used to relate back to, that's 20% of your test grade gone. Only a few assignments and most of the class did poorly on everything.
Directions for essay assignments too vague, and she will grade harshly if you didn't have the same interpretation of the instructions as she did. Horrible professor!
Settled for her after every other session was filled- terrible decision. Gives little to no feedback on assignments that she grades super harshly, is the driest lecturer ever, and refused to post lecture slides since it would encourage people not to attend class. If you have literally any other option don't bother taking Bolden.
Her class was just so boring, she never had enough energy so it translated in how she would give her lectures too. Very awkward when no one answers but its the work itself is not too bad. The tests are where everyone usually fails because she makes her tests weird. Run while you have the chance, would not recommend
Shes a sweetheart, truly, but sometimes her lectures are lacking the energy they should which leads to awkward silences. She's tough with grading at times but is willing to listen if you talk to her. Lots of papers but double spaced. Attendance is mandatory which is annoying. I'd take her again if only option but if s/o else I'd take them first.
I thoughts that her classes were longer than they needed to be, but fine overall. There were 3 heavy papers, 2 exams, and quizzes every class. You should read the material she assigns because thats what the quizzes will be based on. Do not lose her handouts, that is your study material, it is not posted online. Takes attendance and impacts grade
She gave homework assignments which were papers, graded harshly even after attending the TA sessions to get a higher grade. I retained the information quite well, but the midterms/final came and it was a bad. exams are really difficult especially with all of the class references she uses. she honestly has no regard for who you are or how you do
Very good professor, as long as you pay attention and actually do the work, you will be perfectly fine. Very easy assignments outside of class, lecture heavy, lots of good examples provided. Attendance is mandatory through iClicker participation.
She did not teach well and was a tough grader. Some of the questions on the test were nothing we learned in class or in the textbook.
Miserable experience. Was a .5 away from passing grade and would do nothing to work with me. Miserable at communicated and very rude and judgmental when answering. Beyond inconsiderate. I feel bad for anyone who takes this Professor, just stay away at all costs, other professors teach this course 10x easier.
One of the least personable professors I've ever had and a very tough grader. It seemed as though the majority of the class struggled to do well on tests/assignments and she seemed really apathetic about it. I'd highly recommend taking a different professor for comm 101.
Towards the second half of the semester I didn't really enjoy the class, very tough grader I would say and you needed to memorize videos she posted in class because it was going to be on the test which was extremely frustrating. She also did not post slides on canvas and you NEEDED to be in class because we had to use iclickers for attendance.
She's an okay professor. Not what I was expecting for a 101 class, with mandatory attendance, clicker participation, three papers, and three exams. She's sort of a tough grader but did well on the papers but the exams were meh. I'm taking this class again with a different professor and it's easier because I failed and i know the material already.
RUN. Do not take this professor. Extremely tough grader and did not care about the class at all. I could not understand her teaching and attendance was mandatory. Im now in comm theory and doing super well with a great prof while in this 101 class i almost didn't pass. Also her study guides have nothing to do with the exams.
Beware beware beware. Comm 101 is supposed to be easy yet it was the most difficult course I've taken at Rutgers because of her. Test averages were 68 because they were based on what she said not the lecture slides. Few papers but single-spaced multiple pages. Iclicker questions during lectures that affect your grade.
Attendance was mandatory with clicker, 3 papers that are harshly graded, and 3 exams which most of the class didn't do so well on because it was based on what she said, not the notes. Also, she makes this act as if it were a 400 level class which is weird. Overall the class and content wasn't too bad but I wish she could do better.
All notes are on paper and there are no slides online. Exams are closed note, in-person, and on-paper. Each class has at least 1 quiz. To succeed, you have to go to class and complete the study guide before the exam. The exam is not hard at all if you study beforehand and are engaged in class/taking good notes. She is so nice and easy to reach!
challenging but super interesting, have to come to class
liked the class, would recommend
Prof makes the material easy to understand. Cool assignments too.
This class was a real challenge with strict attendance, tough grading, and exams not aligned with course materials. Though tough, using resources like unstuck ai helped me prepare and manage the workload better.
This is one of the worst professors I have had at rutgers. She makes everything unnecessarily difficult plus, course includes presentations in pairs and group. The extra credit also requires presentation. Gives a lot of handouts with only some of the notes from the slides and does not post ANY material on canvas. She also has tough in-person exams.
This is one of the worst professors at rutgers. She has exams in-class, handouts with incomplete notes from the slides are given every class and you are expected to write the notes. She doesn't upload any of the class materials on Canvas, multiple presentations throughout course. Attendance is mandatory and you have peer work almost every class.
If you can take up any other professor before this one, I think you should definitely consider that. Very unhelpful and has a lot of exams, presentations and group work which are most times imo very unnecessary. It was the most difficult class I had despite other academically rigorous courses, this one in particular holds you down because of her
she sucks and doesn't want to even help you pass. TA was also rude and wasn't helpful. She yapps for half the time in class and doesn't try to keep you engaged. This course has a lot of material to cover and she does a horrible job at getting the points across. SAVE YOURSELF AND DO NOT TAKE HER CLASSES. she is terrible.
This course is highly rigorous and demanding. While students will certainly learn to work hard and develop grit, the extreme difficulty—particularly concerning the heavy workload and unforgiving grading created an environment where the focus shifted from deep learning to simply trying to survive the next assignment.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
98%
Textbook Required
53%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.07 avg changeRatings by Course
INTERCULT
5.0
(1)INTROCOMM
5.0
(2)NVC
5.0
(1)COMM346
4.8
(4)COMM101
4.0
(36)Difficulty by Course
COM443
4.1
INTERCULTURAL
4.0
COMM400
4.0
COM101
3.5
COM346
3.5