2.3
Quality3.4
Difficulty25%
Would Retake98
Reviews25%
Would Retake
98
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
9
4
16
3
11
2
29
1
33
What Students Say
“The worst professor I have ever had”
RELS323 - 1.0 rating“Apple was a space case”
RELS203 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
29%
Textbook Required
75%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.64 avg changeRatings by Course
RELS317
5.0
(1)RELSRELS
4.0
(2)RELI203
3.3
(4)RELS327
3.0
(5)BUDD327
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
BUDD327
5.0
RELS327
4.0
RELS317
4.0
RELS353
4.0
RELS323
3.9
Reviews (98)
Interesting and funny prof. WAY TOO MUCH INFO WAY TOO FAST. No way to keep up, and get it all down. Its very very frustrating and he wont post his notes.It feels at times like you have to try and get past him and his style in order to learn.
Pretentious, doesn't use the textbook enough. Refuses to post his notes despite dumping a wealth of information on the class. Exam questions are obscure at times and poorly written. Is often rude to students, and marking is very slow. Recommend strongly against.
Uses a review sheet before exams, as long as you follow it you will do okay on exams.Don't bother reading the text book, as class material is what you are tested on. The more details you can remember the better!
Uses review sheet before exams. Textbook is okay. Exam questions are straight forward.
Interesting and enthusiastic teacher. Doesn't post notes or much online though, so you have to go to class. Took it just as a junior option, but may take more religion classes in the future now! Tests are really demanding for the time (1st test - 30 M/C and 2 short essays in 50 minutes!).
Horrible lectures. Goes through the slides way too fast and doesn't like going back. Slides are not posted on the BB. Tests are decently hard. Sometimes lectures are more of a vocabulary lesson then learning religions. Nice person, but not a good prof. Leaves out a lot of info in lectures that you must read in the book to do well on the exam.
Apple's exams required rote memorization of useless facts and figures rather than actual understanding of the material, his voice was horrifically droning, and he condescended anyone stupid enough to think he could help them with a question. His teaching strategy consisted of nothing more than vomiting out a torrent of information.
you have to memorize all the names and descriptions of religious terms and names in different languages. If you like to memorize or have time to its an easy class
Seriously, dont do it. It is twice the material of any other class Ive ever taken. If you like sifting through mountains of info to figure out what will be relevent and what will not and you LOVE to memorize, then this is the class for you. Otherwise , give it a big miss. Wish I had
Dont do it. As has been said, too much information in a sort of scattered and unclear way. Very hard marker with an emphasis on rote memory. I prefer learning concepts and philosophies over memorizing dates and names. Either way, he's a nice guy who has a vast knowledge of Buddhism but has alot to learn about teaching it.
He doesn't post his notes and they are quite intense. Nice guy but the tests are hard and although a review sheet is given, it's hardly helpful. Learning terminology in another language sums it, up and essays that are marked unfairly make the class frustrating. It's quite discouraging.
70 MC exams are ridiculous, if you have the time to sit and memorize your textbook than go for it, otherwise don't waste your time and money. Lectures are more so vocabulary lessons than anything else and his droning is terribly irritating. DO NOT RECOMMEND.
The 1st few weeks of the course were really interesting, but he got behind in the material. He's a funny, odd guy. Class and tests are ok, the paper sucks. I wish he would be more consistent with posting notes. Don't speak out loud unless you really think it through because he will laugh at you. Study hard.
This prof. takes a subject with the potential to be vastly interesting and reduces it down to uninteresting facts. He depends upon power points and rote memorization without application. He drones on and on every class/ has no interest whether or not we care/ understand what is being taught. He keeps goes through material way to fast to keep up!
Awsome course!Good teacher.. emphasis on what you need to know. Marks our paper fairly.Loved his class :)
Dr. Apple is an ok prof. He's not the best but he tries to make the class fun. He is always cracking jokes and he falls behind in the readings. I thought that he reviewed previous lectures way to much and didn't move forward at a good pace. also his midterms are really easy if you study for them. Some answers are even provided in later questions.
Lectures were boring & material is sporadically presented. Save yourself time & make your own notes from the text. Only managed to cover 2/3 of course. The final exam was a mock-up of previous exam questions in addition to new material. Tons of terms to memorize in different languages, that by the final, run together & cause terrible headaches.
Dr. Apple managed to make a first year religious studies review class interesting which isn't easy. He fell behind but only because he was so interested in the material and would get side-tracked with details. He was careful never to test on the material that he added which was fair.
I found that he was extremely clear on what he expected of you as a student and that is what I look for in a prof. I was confused at the beginning of the semester but reviewing my notes, power points and textbook really helped. He fell behind in the readings but that is ALRIGHT because he makes up for it his lecture. He is also really funny.
Funny guy! I loved his class and I thought he was a really excellent prof. If you're not interested in religion you probably won't enjoy this course. Take the notes, read the text and you'll do fine. Takes lots of memorization and some dedication but very interesting. I would highly recommend. Made up of two midterms, a small paper and a final.
talks to much about stuff not relating to the tests or the concept of the course, has good examples though
not helpful at all, i went and asked him questions i needed to clarify for one of our tests, one was a term and the other was a person and his answer to me (even AFTER i said i read through my notes and could not figure it out) was: read your notes. not helpful at ALL. avoid being in his class if at all possible...
Hes a nice guy, but when it comes to teaching he doesn't meet the ratings hes previously getting on this website. He doesn't answer questions properly when asked for help, doesn't ever refer to the textbook. Readings he gives are very boring
I went into this class thinking it would be relatively easy option, and I still believe it isn't that hard. Dr.Apple isn't clear in his notes and his test questions are confusing. I had to drop this course because it started making no sense to me
Terrible class. Everything is memorization. Could have been a very interesting class and Apple made it very very boring. Final is cumulative which is ridiculous when compared with the amount of words/concepts you need to know. Made over 500 flashcards for this class. It was hell. Because of this class I will NEVER take a religion class again.
Do not reccommend. Likes to call out students and spends way too much time on basic concepts, then turns around and makes his tests impossible. Even with studying there's just too many terms. Avoid.
not that easy to pass actually, but his slides are very useful. you have to spend a lot of time remembering the key points and other important information from the book he recommend to read. tests are mostly multi-questions and short answers, not that easy to get them all correct.
Apple was miserable and monotone. Though the slides were helpful sometimes, they contained far too much information. The tests were very difficult and had little to do with actual concepts but focused heavily on the memorization of terms (most often sanskrit). When I stayed after class for clarification he was very dismissive and rude.
Actually, he is easy to understand, and funny. I would recommend his class.to pass, you need to study and remeber key points which he gives in his long slides, makes me fall asleep sometimes.
Although tough to stay awake during lecture, his tests are fair and you must attend every class. In class, if he repeats a word or concept more than once, it's important. The best way to study I found was to print off the slides then add any info he mentions to the printed off slides.
Professor Apple is very passionate and knowledge about Eastern Religion. He is a fair marker and his tests are that difficult. As long as you take notes in the lecture, study the PowerPoints, and keep up with your textbook readings, you will get an A. Sometimes seems a bit rude of confusing, but that's just his sense of humour.
Dr. Apple was a space case. He never seemed to be on topic and the things he was babbling about you wondered how he got onto such a topic. It;s all term memorization and the final was extremely difficult. I would advise against taking classes with him.
Dr. Apple would ramble on in class on irrelevant things. He has the most monotone voice that lulled you to sleep. Interesting content but was taught without clarity. Do not take this course with him.
I though Apple was organized with notes posted on-line and clear lecktures
Asian religion Indian religion. The syllabus said that India, China, and Japan would all be covered and we didn't touch anything except India. Very disappointed. Not a bad prof altogether as long as you pay attention, he just doesn't move through material they way he says he will.
We never covered all material mentioned in the course outline, very disappointing. I sent him several emails with questions and he never replied to me, I spoke to several peers who had the same problem. The paper was marked fairly. Tests had a lot of term memorization, but I didn't feel like we really learned much about the traditions
Took this course because I was interested in learning about different religion cultures, but he taught the course like a language course. If memorizing ancient languages and nothing about the actual religion is your thing then go for it. He also didn't get through everything he said he would. Only 3 tests, but all MP in defining ancient words.
At first I didn't know if I liked him, but he grew on me. He's extremely knowledgeable in his field and passionate, which I appreciate. His sense of humour is an acquired taste but I enjoyed his lectures. Midterms are very fair and multiple choice. You will do well if you go to class and use the text.
I didn't enjoy his lectures and I tried to skip as many as I could. Sitting at the front of the class was not an option since he was so dynamic. Tests were pretty easy as long as you followed readings and lectures. Presentations were posted in a pretty confusing manner, sometimes cutting out at random things.
Professor Apple was not the best. He would have a weird, unique perspective on all the religions he taught. I stopped coming to class after the 3rd week and learned from his presentations on D2L, and the midterms and final was easy even though it was cumulative. We didn't cover the last 2 topics in the book. The paper was marked pretty toughly.
Easy A if you read the power points that he posts on D2L and write a half decent paper. If you can avoid taking this class with Apple, DO IT.
Dr. Apple managed to give even the driest lectures a bit of levity and find humour in almost everything. He has an interesting and tough to read personality, but it always comes across intelligently and kindly. He didn't expect you to pour your heart and soul into his class, but rewarded you if you put the work in. Overall, great professor.
The worst professor I have ever had. DO NOT take this class.
I really enjoyed this class! I have experience with Buddhism so it was an easy A for me but he is very clear during lectures so it's not hard to pass if you show up, read & pay attention. He is quite funny and really knows his stuff, but a bit rude and unresponsive to student emails/questions. I would take another class with him.
He is inaccessible. He doesn't even bother emailing the class to tell us class is cancelled. His teaching style is confusing, and his lectures are a mess. Avoid him at all costs.
Apple was okay. His slides are a bit messy, but it is really easy to ace tests by reading the textbook. I would say to prioritize textbook readings, since he pulls a lot of exam questions from it, but to still go to lectures. Also, the older textbook version is literally the same (just different pictures & font) and can save you a ton of money!
Has a quirky sense of humour which I enjoyed! slides can be a bit confusing but if you listen to him he gives good explanations for subjects. His tests are really fair in difficulty, if you actaully go to all the lectures, you will do well, but if you do the readings too you will ace the class.
Dr. Apple stepped up his game this semester. He loves his work, he loves teaching, he treats you like an adult, the jokes are smart, kind, compassionate, he absolutely knows his stuff! Recommend to anyone interested in Buddhism
Doesn't reply to emails even though he emphasized that he replies within or after 24 hours numerous times in the first class. Boring. Can't really understand anything from his lectures.
I really enjoyed his classes. He is a bit of an odd character, but I thought it made the class fun. I love his random rants on everything too. He was fair and if you show up for class you will do just fine.
I found Apples slides to be confusing and unorganized. I felt completely lost for a while and nothing was making sense. So I panicked before the first exam. I ended up ignoring the slides and just read all of the assigned readings and did amazing. The exams are very easy + he is a gracious marker. He reminds me of Napoleon Dynamite.
Well I took a class of his last semester and the exams were short answer and essay questions which made it super easy to get a great mark. This time the exam was multiple choice and difficult because it was all based on memorizing terms that all sound the same rather than actually understanding the material. What a disappointment.
His lectures are messy and all over the place. Its more verbiage that is erratic and hard to keep up with than anything else. My notes have no structure because he jumps around a lot. Im frankly quite lost and fear I will fail the class because I cant follow with how he teaches. Just transfer to another class if you can or avoid his as a prof.
He was alright. If you're looking for an easy option he is not the prof you want but if you're genuinely interested in the topic he's pretty good. His slides are very confusing on their own but if you pay really good attention in lectures, he explains the connections. Tests are fair. Pretty funny guy, very knowledgable and passionate.
James Apple is by far the worst professor in the world. He does not respond to emails, he does not care about the students or well being, he is very boring and is not a good teacher. Dr. Apple will not support you to acheieve your goal, went to his office hours to look over an exam and he was extremely rude and unhelpful. His exams are easy tho.
extremely boring and overall a big pos
He makes a religious studies class more of a language class. Notes have very little information on them that is on the exams. Need to read the textbook for it to make any sense.
RELS 203 with James Apple was the worst experience of my whole life. If you have a class with him, drop it. His slides are very confusing and he uploaded nothing to supplement them when we switched to online delivery. He doesn't respond to emails, is rude to students, and was so disorganized we didn't get through two units of the course.
awful. This course should not be difficult, but because he doesn't properly teach it, you will be doing a lot of self teaching. Waste of time, and more importantly a waste of money. Slides are all over the place, as well as the lectures. if you can avoid this class do it.
Dr. Apple is an enthusiastic professor, but his marking criteria is questionable. On the paper, I was expecting an A (given I put more effort into it and usually get A's on my papers in my other classes) but to my disappointment I did not get an A, but anyways he is a harsh marker and his lectures can get quite boring.
Worse than watching paint dry - He rambles a lot and made a very interesting subject uninteresting... The way he taught the class made it more confusing than necessary. I ended up learning the most from google and the textbook. Some of his test questions were on things he said only in class, making it hard to miss any lectures.
Didnt do online classes during Corona, just posted PowerPoint slides as usual which didnt adequately prepare us for the final. I cant tell you one thing I learned during this class, thats how bad and confusing it was. On the plus side, I found that the essay was easy to do well on.
I was excited to take a religion class, but after this, I doubt I'll be doing another one. He made the topics seem so boring. Additionally, when I asked him questions, he would belittle me and make me feel dumb. A lot of what is on exams is from things he says in class, so try not to miss them. On the plus side, the paper was graded pretty fairly.
Dr. Apple is a phenomenal professor. Make sure to buy the textbook, do the readings and watch/attend all of the lectures.
Overall its an easy class. His lectures are very boring and you have to read the textbook. If you are good at memorization then this class is an easy A
This was one of the worst courses Ive ever taken. 30 minute recorded lectures take over an hour to complete as Apple focuses more on using big words (that he cant pronounce) than the content. Reads articles quickly without providing a copy. Somehow made a course on tantra more boring than any other course, and doesnt seem to care about students
Very sketchy guy. More concerns than usual in regards to the nature of Dr. Apple's integrity. MRS. Apple doesn't have PhD footprint--yet claims a PhD? It was made up! I encourage you to look into it yourself. Someone in the faculty MUST investigate Dr. Apple. Something fishy is going on. The course itself is dry, dull... His style is questionable.
he speaks in a monotone voice usually and only once in awhile laughs or seems excited. its pretty sad. james if youre reading this PLEASE for the love of god focus on your mental health. your class would be a pleasure if you were as excited everyday for lectures and carrying that enthusiasm for buddhism everywhere you go. take care man
Jimmy Apple's course was very interesting and informative, earlier parts of the course I took felt a tad bit dry, but during the latter halves he came across as more uplifted, making jokes, laughing, enthusiastic about the lectures, a real joy to participate in. He is clearly a passionate professional in his field. I hope he continues to flourish
Didn’t learn a thing in his class. Very hard marker and focuses more on saying but long 20 letter words then actually telling us what it means. His tests are so stupid and his essays are just as bad. Don’t take him, 1/10 prof.
I didn't mind that this was an online class, but the fact that he doesn't post his recorded lectures until 3 hours after the scheduled class is just god awful. His lectures sounded like he just woke up. There was no enthusiasm at all. I honestly just didn't enjoy this class. Waste of time and money.
This professor is a boring lecturer with poor structure in his teaching. Much of his shared knowledge from his escapades sounds bragging at worst and boring at best. The material is interesting but delivered in a unmotivated and bland manner. Oh, and no communication.
This class was asynchronous online. Prof sounded drunk or high in his videos. You must buy a book he wrote as a text for one class. He consistently contradicted himself in lectures. He had good handouts. Lots of printing! I asked if my topic for the final paper was acceptable; he said yes, then when I handed it in said it wasn't acceptable!?
I never thought I'd cry over a religion class. he makes this lectures extremally boring and talks the whole time, he takes in a monotone voice with no interests in what he is teaching. He's disrespectful to his students and does not answer emails, his tests are extremally hard and hardly cover what he says in the lectures. His notes are unorganized
He should fix; 1. His tests, so that they do not focus so much on Sanskrit terminology 2. His lecture slides, so that they are actually easy to follow and are not jumbled with information 3. His form of teaching, so that he does not mumble and speaks in a clear manner
Felt more like a Sanskrit Language class instead of a class testing your knowledge of esoteric buddhist practices. He provides no clear outline to the course and just starts talking about events out of order and puts a billion sanskrit words on you to memorize. Tests tested your knowledge more about the european buddhist scholars too. typical.
He is not the most approachable man for sure, and I do understand the other reviews. However, his slides are always posted, and the test material is never unexpected. If I had to take another class with him, I would make sure to pay attention to the little details and try to increase my interest in the topics he is teaching.
bit of an odd individual. would get mad if u take photos of his lecture slides. the course has 5 tests total, one for each religion we learned about and no final. honestly a pretty easy class. he gives a study guide and reading for each test. alright class but lectures are boring and sometimes he is just a little odd and hard to approach.
Horrible prof who lacks empathy. He criticizes individuals for asking questions and puts them in an uncomfortable position. His lecture doesn't even relate to the papers and he often branches off what he is supposed to teach.
so heavy on lecture notes, mumbles alot, get ready to read the textbook because you won't understand what he says in class, so boring in general do NOT take him
arrogant proffesor dont know how to teach, do not take him
He chill, odd humour at times, but it's actually funny. The people complaining are all first years asking ridiculous questions that can be found in the course outline, and dudes having a field day with these cats lol. Don't be deterred, taking a class with him. Sauve course structure 5 tests thats it, no formal final, do your readings and show up.
Honestly, can be a weird prof at times and lectures can be all over the place. But there are only 5 tests and no official final. The tests are super easy if you attend lectures, do the readings and pay attention. He also gives a study guide one week before the exam which is super great and helpful.
His lectures are very difficult to follow. He is very knowledgable, but teaches in a way that assumes the students have much more baseline knowledge than we should (for an introductory class). Even when attending lectures, it was very hard to tell what information was for the lecture or a random topic he went on an academic tangent about.
Professor Apple can be a bit odd at times and go off-topic about random things, but there's no questions about his knowledgeability. That being said, a lot of class time was wasted on reiterating things said in the previous class, so we didn't always cover everything in time for the exam. The tests are easy enough if you read the textbook.
The worst professor I have ever had in my past four years of University. Yelling at a student that he's going to "sue [their] a** to the ground" for trying to take a picture of his slideshow is wildly inappropriate and insane. Extremely rude to anyone who asks him questions or for clarification and constantly incoherently mumbles. Dropped the class
Don't take him thinking it's an easy A. Hes rude and won't help students when asking questions, he mumbles and his mic is terrible you can barely understand what he says. His study guides are more useful than actually going to class his lectures and slides are so messy, out of order, not engaging, and hard to follow. Drop it while you can.
Professor Apple is certainly a bit strange. It is hard to watch him talk down to students and make them feel stupid (i.e. forgetting a pencil) but I honestly didn't mind his weird humour. As long as you study the tests are easy and as expected. I wouldn't recommend his class, but if you have to take it you'll be just fine.
Mumbles a lot, very difficult class to follow. will snap at students and call people out on class for very silly things as a point to humiliate them. Would NOT recommend this class at all !!!!!! Warning do not take a picture of any of his white board
Nope, nope, nope! Do not take this class or this prof. At first his rants were funny and entertaining, but it got real old real quick. Not sure why he is living in Canada as he constantly voices how little he thinks of Canada and Canadians...
I honestly don't enjoy giving negative reviews but I found this professor to be unprofessional. He was often rude when answering students questions and at one point mocked a student during lecture. I was truly excited about this class but personally found the lectures difficult to follow and unorganized. I did find the exams to be alright though.
This man is honestly the worst professor I have ever taken during my studies at the University of Calgary. Believe every single one of his bad reviews; they are ALL accurate. He is extremely rude with students, doesn't bother to answer emails, his lectures are disorganized, and his exams are very difficult. Absolutely awful. Avoid avoid avoid.
Would recommend avoiding this prof if necessary, but if you gotta take it, just push through it! This app won't let me say more, but stay strong and good luck!
Class was graded through multiple choice tests basically one for each religion covered. If you do the readings and study getting a good grade is pretty easy, however the prof is boring, gets sidetracked easily and goes on rants about very random things. I would recommend the class because its interesting though I would not take another class w/ him
honestly just a odd dude who talks about everything yet nothing. Assignments are unorganized but tbh not hard at all. I wouldn't doubt his knowledge tbf, and you have to read the textbook as he'll ask random things about it. Tests are straight off the slides tho! And super interesting
honestly class is fairly easy, just read the textbook, and write notes on his lectures and his test questions are super easy to understand if you studied, he always posts the lectures the day of right in the morning, wouldn't doubt his knowledge at all he's just an odd individual, and no final exam thankfully!
Attended all the lectures and read the text book and still was lost on the tests. Maybe religion is just not my thing, but honestly the lectures and the text book talk about different things half the time so you never know what's going to be on the test. Also he really likes to hate on his students and how they can't read/ understand complex ideas
Honestly very good professor. All you have to do is attend class and read the textbook. Class consists of 5 multiple choice tests which, if you do your due diligence and read will be relatively easy. The professor is kind and willing to help those who reach out and ask questions. Very knowledgeable man who knows how to give entertaining lectures.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
29%
Textbook Required
75%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.64 avg changeRatings by Course
RELS317
5.0
(1)RELSRELS
4.0
(2)RELI203
3.3
(4)RELS327
3.0
(5)BUDD327
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
BUDD327
5.0
RELS327
4.0
RELS317
4.0
RELS353
4.0
RELS323
3.9