2.6
Quality3.8
Difficulty56%
Would Retake86
Reviews56%
Would Retake
86
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
12
4
14
3
17
2
22
1
21
What Students Say
“I hope to never have her as an instructor again”
ECO315 - 2.0 rating“I am an AB student and she was the worst professor I have ever had”
ECON315 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
89%
Textbook Required
63%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.14 avg changeRatings by Course
ECON101
5.0
(1)ECOXXXX
5.0
(1)ECO217
5.0
(1)ECO202Z
4.0
(1)MACRO
4.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
ECON101
5.0
ECON555
5.0
ECONS315
5.0
ECO202Z
5.0
ECON315
4.7
Reviews (86)
No Comments
she is hard to understand (broken english), not very clear in lectures, also not very clear when you ask questions. Mid-term average was a 75%. She gives a study guide with 48 of the 65 questions on the mid-term, Final study guide not as helpful. If you are good at econ, go for it, if you need extra help, try someone else.
No Comments
While probably too hard for Micro, she is genuinely nice and cares about her students. Bonus points for attendance so show up. Weekly quizzes, homework, midterm, final, and two projects. People gave her a really hard time, but she tried. Other professors may be easier, but its still pretty easy to get an A. Be prepared to work a little harder.
Shes a nice person, but she doesn't explain the material clearly at all. Lectures are boring and extremely confusing at times. She gave us homework, but rarely explained how to do it BEFORE it was due. The book didn't help much either. The quizzes and exams are pretty difficult, and she sometimes didn't even give us enough time to do the quizzes.
I feel bad for her because her english is so terrible she can't convey her intelligence to her students. You can tell she knows what she's talking about, the problem is that it's hard to learn from her. I got an A, but that's because she curved
She is very difficult to understand; however, she curves your grade tremendously, if you show up for the majority of the classes. After the final I was supposed to get a C+, with her curve I ended with an A!
She's a horrible teacher. She doesn't reply to your emails at all. And every time you ask her a question, she'll go on and on talking about something else. She also ignores raised hands in class. She also locks the door so students that leave the classroom to go to the bathroom can't come back in. So far, the worst teacher I have had
This woman should not be a professor in the U.S. This woman needs to learn English before she fails kids and then questions why we did so poorly. Despite what she says, purchase the book -- ITS YOUR ONLY HOPE. Don't expect to do well in this course. I haven't ever had a grade this low and I was studying engineering.
great teacher takes school very serious, gives homework quiz every week, midterm and finals and 2 projects but everything prepere you for good grade in the end she is a great teacher
she knows what shes saying and is very intelligent but its impossible to understand her with her accent. She's very rude when you ask her for help as well. I rather read the book than ask her anything!
this is by far the worst teacher i have ever had. TAKE MY ADVICE...avoid her! She speaks with a low voice, not to mention her accent is annoying becuase she keeps saying "just" every 2 seconds. She takes points off for things she never mentioned, and is a very poor grader. Her midterm and quizzes are hard not to mention the letures are useless.
She has a very heavy accent and she demands a LOT of solid work. you need to read the book every night to keep up and understand what shes attempting to say. bonus is not weighted, do the homework! hard class, lots of hw and very hard tests. wouldnt suggest her to the average student.
I strongly reccomend that students avoid having her as a teacher. She is extremely hard to understand and even when you can understand something she says it doesn't make sense. She's not very helpful and is rude to people who don't understand the class even though most people can't even tell what she is saying. She should not be teaching at DePaul.
Dr. Ziolkowska has been my favorite professor at DePaul over the 5 years I have been here. She is friendly and was always available for extra help after class. While she does have an accent, who among the students here or any good school does not? Her exams are straight from the study guide. She gives lots of useful homework as review. Take her!
She was by far the worst teacher I had.Prior to this class I was a straight A student, I got the lowest grade I haver ever received from this woman. She has a terrible accent, and she speaks in a monotone voice every single lecture. Do not take her, by far she is the only instructor that was close to ruining my college experience.
Dear XXX, maybe your terrible work ethic has something to do with your terrible grade. You just cannot expect to be given a high grade because all your other courses were easy. You have to work at each and every one of them. Dr. Ziolkowska was a great teacher and I think you do her a disservice by not taking responsibility for you own learning!
I took Prof. Z. for both ECO 105 and 106 and they were tough. She is highly demanding and difficult to understand at times but she sure knows what she's talking about. She covers more topics in this class than she should but it she makes every other econ class at DePaul a breeze. Take her if you want to be prepared and you'll thank yourself later.
DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR..EVER!she can't speak english, very hard to understand her.She doesn't answer questions clearly, gets confused what she is talking about. makes mistakes in calculation all the time.seems like she has no idea what she is doing.doesn't deliver in her lectures, but gives tricky exams and doesn't curve.AVOID HER AT ANY CAUSE!
Dr. Ziolkowska understands economics. Unfortunately, she does not know how to communicate. Some students walked out of the first class because she was so hard to understand. She talks to the chalkboard. There is virtually no class discussion. As a matter of fact, she did not understand students' questions. She has had no real-world job experience.
This class requires a lot of work on your side, but if you spend time reading the text book and doing the homwork, you can get a decent grade. She could've improved her way of teaching, to make the class more fun and interesting. She was friendly and was easily approachable.
She's extremely demanding and is a VERY hard grader. READ THE BOOK and utilize the study material and lectures she posts online. She always has her back turned and has very little class interaction. In order to succeed in this class, you really have to study and work hard.
She really did a great job! I wonder why you all said very mean to her which is actually opposite!!! Thank you for her great job again!
In the event Dr. Z is reading this, I'm providing this as feedback. She talks very fast and it sounds like singing. She consistently asks the class questions only to answer them herself. She's intelligent but it's a challenge to sit for 3 hours with someone singing her way through derivatives. Please Dr. Z - interact with th class!
I know Dr. Ziolkowska personally, and she is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. She does expect a lot from her students, so be prepared to work!!! I took her my first year, and basically bombed the class, I would do things differently this time!!! Nice person, difficult professor, and yeah read the textbook
You can tell she is intelligent, but nobody could understand her strong accent, and we get distracted watching her do little dance moves or grunting every 3 words. I go to class everyday and try to learn but after 2 minutes I space out.
She's brilliant but the worst instructor I have ever had. In fact, I would rather shoot myself in the face w/a pellet gun, repeatedly, than take her again. She grades on homework problems she's never lectured on, she tests on concepts she's never discussed and can't be found in the book, get ready to spend $$ on a tutor. Save yourself the agony.
Very nice lady, but the WORST teacher in my academic career! Extremely difficult to understand. No interaction with the class. Freely admitted the text was "dense". Available for outside help, but not helpful during that period. I paid for a tutor and STILL got a C in the class. DO NOT TAKE HER unless you're an Economics genius!
Don't answer questions too much in class. You will not be rewarded. Instead she just constantly calls on you to answer questions. If you get them wrong, she makes you feel like an idiot.
Don't believe the hype. These guys must have not studied at all! I had never taken an Econ class before in my life and yet, with participation, hard work, and dedication I got an A. Super nice lady, and no, she is not hard to understand. Enroll in her class if you are a serious student who wishes to learn. If you aren't one, then don't.
She does a fantastic job of relating course material to current economic scenarios and conditions. She keeps things simple enough for everyone to understand. She was available anytime I had questions via email. Her assignments aren't difficult but the tests required about 5-6 hours of studying each to earn an A. She does give study guides that help
Very nice person, but very dry teacher...she teaches things very slowly which can be helpful but the test questions are so specific and are not generally covered in class...I felt as though I was learning the study questions just to do good on the tests...class participation is so inconsistent and defiantly plays favorites...avoid.
10 hw assignments, 4 quizzes, midterm and final. 10% extra credit for missin less than 2 days. Lecture is boring, her accent doesnt help. Gives you a lot of questions that MAY be on midterm and final. Fvck Olga and her color loving self. (Olga=teachers pet)
This teacher is ridiculous!!I dont think i have ever had to deal with someone of her kind before!!She doesnt let you leave the classroom, untill the class is done and if you shell embrass in front of everyone and take 3 points off for distracting her=))Shes very tough...DO NOT TAKE HER!!!I REPEAT STAY AWAY FOR YOUR OWN GOOD!!!!!
THE WORST PROFESSOR AT THIS SCHOOL!I've never written one of these before & I've never disliked a teacher so much as to come on here and write one. Very hard to understand. Speaks in a whisper.Takes points off if you leave classroom. Got problems wrong on midterm that were right and she said that it was "not her problem." Who's problem is it then?
Not bad of a teacher, knows what she's talking about, but really hard to understand. I had an F after the midterm, and ended up with a solid C. Do the Homework, and attend class, and you should be fine.
Don't bother taking Money and Banking with Irena. This was a complete waste of time. She is absolutely incomprehensible, and its hard to believe DePaul or any institution that relies on communication would hire her. She CANNOT speak English and should go back to Poland.I wasted $1,500 on a class that was not only a waste of time but a complete joke
This professor is very intelligent and that is very clear. She knows what she's talking about. While all these comments are very extreme about her, I would like to point out that if you read the chapters, do the homework, and pay attention in class, there is no reason why you shouldn't do well in this class. I did all of the above and did well!
Professor was very difficult to understand, not easy to grasp concept of class due to style of teaching. Most learning was done independantly through textbook, but then were told we were not allowed to use equations from textbook in exams!!
don't believe all these reviews. yes, she does tend to talk towards the chalkboard and is kinda hard to follow at times, but for the most part she's not TOO bad. if u read the book you'll do fine, i had over 100% for almost the entire quarter until i forgot to do 1 hw assignment! she says "just" every other word tho, thats annoying!
As polite and funny as she can sometimes be, I could barely understand what she said because of her thick polish accent. I had to re-read a lot of the stuff she taught. Also, she'll call on you if you leave in the middle of class to take a phone call or whatever. Overall an okay teacher. Just do the homework and you'll be fine.
i also have to admit it was really hard to follow in her class lectures because of her accent. so just pay really close attention and write everything down that she writes down in the board. in addition she always had class notes on d2l, so you have three resources to do hw. but it is a little extra work on your part.
Sorry to say this, but steer clear. She knows Econ, but not an effective graduate level prof. Very hard to understand, crams too much material in, and did not effectively prepare us for the mid term. I dropped the class after getting bad grade on mid term and ate the cost and now taking 555 with much better prof.A's in all my other MBA classes..
Irena is just AWFUL! To think I am paying THOUSANDS to put up with this. She talks towards the chalkboard and is hard to follow. We formed a study group and that was the ONLY way we all made it through. The time we had to devote to the class because of her inability to teach made us all VERY angry and disappointed in DPU! Avoid her like the PLAGUE.
This professor is very intelligent and that is very clear. She knows what she's talking about. While all these comments are very extreme about her, I would like to point out that if you read the chapters, do the homework, and pay attention in class, there is no reason why you shouldn't do well in this class.
She is probably the worst professor I've had so far. It is not a hard class but you have to learn everything on your own. She has a REALLY strong accent. It is very hard to follow her lectures. she gives you the study guide for the mid term and final with the same exact questions you will see on the exams. Make sure to do all questions.
She is impossible to understand and bounce around thoughts while teaching. I had to teach myself through the book and classmates.
If you are willing to pay attention in every class, take good notes, and study for exams, you can easily get an A. She can be hard to understand sometimes, but she does know what she is talking about. She answers all Qs in class and during office hours. Only take her if you are willing to work. If you are Polish, you are almost guaranteed an A.
Irena is a very brilliant economist. However, she cannot teach it so that students will understand it. And they keep giving her 3 or 4 sections in which to make students confused and distressed over material that should be interesting and exciting to learn. I think they should let her go and hire some new folks. AVOID!
Her class will teach you economics: YES YOU WILL LEARN! She has a system with her homework and course outlines that seriously allows you to learn and re-visit covered material in a VERY EASY WAY. She also uses an older book that you can download as a pdf via Google search! She has a Polish accent but you can understand what is taut. Recommended!
You'll get used to the accent over time, but you won't get used to her teaching style. She may know economics, but she does not know how to teach. She will ramble on and on, the course is disorganized and I don't think she has a good enough grasp of English to explain economic concepts clearly. Very nice woman, but I disappointed with the class.
Do not take this woman's class. Her accent is so thick that you can't understand a word she's saying. She will treat you like a child, and will mock you openly if you choose to leave the classroom to use the washroom. I don't know how she ever got hired. Thank god econ105 is common sense, because I didn't learn a thing from this woman.
She is honestly the worst teacher I have ever had. She has an accent so thick that you literally cant understand her and she is just a rude person, she takes off points if you stand up in class. Whatever you do do not take her you will regret it.
Thick accent but a great teacher. She writes out everything so everyone can understand. Have to work hard but the grade will be worth it!
She was a good teacher. PLENTY of extra credit. Grades based off of 8 HW assignements (each of which include extra credit) midterm, and final. Final HW assignment is extra credit, plus any in class (sometimes group) work is extra credit too. Slight language barrier, but very funny as times and cares about the students. I would take her again.
Very hard to understand her accent. I really advice avoiding her class.
I suggest not taking this teacher unless you have to. I shoot for an A in my classes & with her I didn't stand a chance. She is very difficult to please. She will not even cut you slack on homework, so don't count on those to help your grade. She will not answer questions in class & doesn't even allow you to get up to use the washroom. STAY AWAY
Won't let you use BR. If you ask questions in class, she'll give you a slight attitude & say " I just spent the entire class discussing that i am not repeating it". Explains pretty well at fast pace except has accent that u have to get use to. Doesn't give enough time to finish tests SO HURRY! No BOOK necessary. You take notes the entire class.
Professor Ziolowska is an extremely nice lady who is willing to go out of her way to help her students. I was demoralized after taking the mid-term and receiving a poor grade. She reached out to me outside of the class and helped clarify things in her office hours. Very helpful and nice lady. I'd take her again if it wasn't my last ECO requirement.
DO NOT TAKE. Though she has a thick accent, her English is easy to understand. She herself knows what she is doing, has a PhD, but SHE FAILS TO RELAY INFORMATION TO THE CLASS IN A CLEAR AND UNDERSTANDABLE MANNER. Raises her voice to students when they do not understand instead of offering to clarify the concepts. I got a C in the class. DO NOT TAKE
Everything said previously about this professor is true. She is extremely hard to understand most of the time and I was terrified of failing this class. If you can take another professor for ECON 315, I'd recommend it. Even though she can seem cruel at times, she does care about her students, she wants them to succeed. She just doesn't make it easy
This class was very challenging, but I was able to learn a lot.I would take this teachers courses again, but I would try to avoid taking her on a Friday if possible.There is a lot of information to process in a short period of time. If you try you will do good, and gain a good amount of knowledge, which is the most important thing in education.
She's a very intense woman. She has a strong accent, but it doesn't get in the way of her teaching. She is a good professor, but only if you are willing to come to class, pay attention, and take copious notes. She tells you exactly what to expect on midterm and final. Recommend if you are a good student.
She's a very smart woman and a good professor. Not the easiest but she gives out extra credit. Learned a lot from her.
Do not take her. She takes vey few notes on the board and then tells you to write things down but says the thing really fast. I asked her for help and she just told me to talk to her after class, I wanted to sit down and discuss things. Unless your really crazy about Macro this is not the class for you it is so hard and boring. Over all worst class
This was a very difficult class, but put in the effort, and you will receive an A. ECO 105 was not fairly difficult. I did use the book when I did not understand her because of her thick Polish accent. She can be humorous at times. Will pick on random students to talk at times. She is definitely a challenging teacher, but I learned so so much!
Prof. Ziolkowska is a great teacher. She is tough, but a fair grader. The exams are hard but she is giving a lot of extra points. Anyway, If she sees you work you will easily get an A.
Avoid this class. She has the worst communication abilities of any professor I have ever had.
AWFUL. Avoid her. I am an AB student and she was the worst professor I have ever had. The homework makes no sense and does not pertain to anything taught in class. She doesn't take many questions and singles out 1 or 2 students from the class for all participation. I also cannot understand a word she says either because she' foreign. AVOID.
She is a really good teacher by the time she handed out the study guide for the midterm I could do it without my notes. She seems pretty nice but sometimes she will stare people down if the leave or come in late. If you come to class on time everyday, do the homework and take notes you will be fine. Also we never used the text book don't buy it.
Worst teacher I have ever taken in my life. Can not understand a thing she says. Her lectures make no sense and she is horrible at math. I can't stand going to the class.
Take the NOTES, do the HOMEWORK, and listen carefully. You will be fine. If you want a easy A, DO NOT take. ( It is college, guys) Study guides are helpful.
I have never hated a class/prof more than this one! I learned more on Youtube from a high school AP teacher than her. You can't understand what she says &writes in THE smallest handwriting! If you have no choice but to have her as your prof, WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEOS! Study groups are necessary to pass this class! You will need the support to survive!
Everyone complains but shes really not that difficult Just work hard and do the homework diligently and when the midterm and final comes around youll be able to see what you did right and wrong on the homework and go from there I got a B but it definitely isn't impossible to get an A and if you do all the homework well you should be fine.
Terrible experience being her class, I dreaded going every time. Her accent is somewhat difficult to understand, although her grammar is horrible. Assigns homework every week. No quizzes or tests except Mid-Term and Final. Asking her for help is difficult, she usually never understood what I was asking so I gave up on that. I DO NOT RECCOMEND HER.
I hope to never have her as an instructor again.
I spent more time trying to understand what this professor was saying than understanding macroeconomics. She grades harshly even on homework and I basically learned more from Khan Academy and other resources. Not to mention she calls you out for going to the bathroom. It would have been nice to know beforehand that her style of teaching is European
All of the comments are true BUT, If you're a business student and are required to (or want to) take higher level economics class, she's a great teacher to take. This was one of the most challenging classes for me but I also learned so much more than usual. (use:study guides,hw,EC opportunities, office hours). This class made later classes easier!!
This professor is incredibly difficult to understand. The course is challenging to begin with and her accent definitely doesn't help. I did not learn anything in this class and was often extremely lost. The only upsides are that she is an easy grader and gives a lot of extra credit on the homework and exams. I would not recommend overall.
This is professor challenged us to think critically about economic activity by treating the class like a conversation! Participate a lot and read the chapter before the lecture and it will be a breeze. She truly cares for her students and if you want to walk away knowing how the economy works, you'll want to take professor Ziolkowska! She's awesome
If you are Polish let her know it'll take you a far way in this class. midterm 40% final 40% HW and attendance 20% Do the homework in groups to make it easier split the work it'll take you forever to do on your own. she will never let you go early. Exams are the study-guides and Hw's but still impossible. If possible take a different professor.
Great teacher! Makes you work hard for the grade but really cares about your success. I took all my Econ classes with her and highly recommend.
Really wanted to love this class but she really makes it impossible to understand. Reads way too fast & pretty much sounds like a robot. Don't bother taking her unless u know Econ like the back of your hand. She won't be helpful & is extremely rude when you try to ask questions. You really have to be her pet to pass. Easy grader on HW .Overall 5/10
I took Econ in HS and did just fine in it. Took her class at DePaul, and I never have had a class that I struggled in so much as this. Her lectures were very long-winded and would jump all over the place. At times, the homework would not have much correlation to the notes. Would NOT take ever again!!!
Great professor, always willing to help. Gives homework which covers quizzes and test. If you go to class and do all her homework you will do great at the end.
It was a super small class of maybe 10 people or so. She was awesome. It was not the easiest subject to grasp when youre not very comfortable with ECO in general. Most of our class stayed an hour after each class and she would help us with homework and additional questions. I didnt do well on the midterm and so-so on the final and still got an A
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
89%
Textbook Required
63%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.14 avg changeRatings by Course
ECON101
5.0
(1)ECOXXXX
5.0
(1)ECO217
5.0
(1)ECO202Z
4.0
(1)MACRO
4.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
ECON101
5.0
ECON555
5.0
ECONS315
5.0
ECO202Z
5.0
ECON315
4.7