3.2
Quality2.9
Difficulty47%
Would Retake105
Reviews47%
Would Retake
105
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
32
4
17
3
23
2
16
1
17
What Students Say
“Sweet man, bad communication”
GRDS285 - 3.0 rating“in other words, don't expect creative freedom or he'll degrade you in front of the entire class”
GRDS205 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
89%
Textbook Required
54%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.70 avg changeRatings by Course
370
5.0
(1)GRDS02
5.0
(1)GRDS307
5.0
(1)GD504
5.0
(1)GRDS370
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
GRAD243
5.0
INTROSECT
4.0
ILLU338
4.0
GRDS355
4.0
GRDS205
3.4
Reviews (105)
No Comments
No Comments
No Comments
There were severe communication issues with this professor. He tends to see art from only one point of view and will alienate a student that does not see things the way he does. He openly separates students into two categories; Winners and Losers.
this guy knows what he is talking about. he will make You think and understand graphic design and concepts of composition. He quickly picks up who has the ability and knowledge about graphic design. If you dont know what you are talking about, better stay quite otherwise he will embbarass you in front of the whole class.Office hours,craft count.
This guy really knows his stuff, and I thought he was pretty funny too. He's an honest professor. If your work sucks, he'll tell you. His grading is fair. I'd take him again any day.
Jorge is a decent portfolio prof; he gives solid advice on improvements, and can help you out of a rut. His biggest problem is that he doesn't teach class as a whole that well; often you have to force him to sit down with you, because he won't remember that he hasn't talked to you in a week. Just don't sit in the far side of the room in his class.
Professor Montero was very nice and friendly. He was also extremely helpful. Although I disagreed with the little amount of computer work we were able to do Jorge would always be open minded and was very lenient on how to go about completing projects. Very nice, educating, and laid back atmosphere.
Rteally good professor! I have had him for two classes already, intro to graphic design and typography I. Ive done really well in both and now have really strong pieces for my portfolio. He has very constructive criticism and is constantly helping you during class and office hours.
Professor Montero is a great teacher; he is extremely helpful when you are confused with your work. He lets you know what to improve and suggest how to improve it. I feel he has help me improve my graphic design skill so much then my pervious design class last quarter and I will recommend that everyone that?s his introduction to graphic design clas
The severe lack of clarity was so overwhelming that the class actually became difficult. His uncertain due dates made it nearly impossible to construct a schedule and his critiques were wretched. Does not do a good job at furthering you as a designer and even worse at expanding his perspective to include modern trends and conventions.
i LOVE montero. his projects are challenging but if you came to college to get easy grades, you're SOL. he's very understanding so if you really have an emergency he wont hold it against you. you will have excellent portfolio work. he allows you to resubmit anything. hilarious. strong accent. likes to teach the class random spanish words. take him!
Montero is a brilliant professor- taking him again for typography! He is an excellent teacher and colloborates with every student for every project- it's not hard do well in the class. His lectures are awesome and he's hilarious and & open minded.
Montero is very honest in feedback and he really pushes you beyond your limit to get good grades. He's really helpful in promoting your work if you're a good student and will inform you about varios opportunities and competitions to grow as a designer. He has very high standards but he's not very clear in communicating what he thinks is good work.
I'm not completely thrilled with how Montero conducts his classes- which are usually used as workdays. He comes around and looks at everyones projects but I feel as though he's always rushing to try to talk to everyone.. I don't feel like I've learned much, and I would not recommend him for typography.
This review is strictly for Humorous Illustration, this class hasn't been taught in 4 years so I can't blame Montero too much for it. He doesn't seem to be too used to the process of illustration, so the amount of work he required was ridiculous and very demanding (5 illus in the first 2 weeks). He's still gotta tweak this new class.
Montero definitely knows his stuff. He moves very quickly in the programs, so if you don't know it, you better do some studying and practicing on your own accord. He is very concept driven and is always looking for innovative and impressive work. Do that and it's an easy A
This review is about Humorous illustration as well. Montero's really helpful with his critiques, they are concise and useful. His class is also pretty cool since he brings in some of his graphic design knowledge and pairs it with illustration. He's also very dedicated to make this class work. :)
The projects were very helpful and different especially for an intro class. I felt that we spent a little too much time on the self portrait. Things got a little rushed at the end but I learned a lot in a small amount of time. Remember to study for the typography quiz. It will be harder than you think.
He's super nice
Took his class as a pre-req for graduate studies through e-learning. His critiques sounded as if english is not his preferred language. He was incomprehensible and the class projects were of extremely low quality and would add nothing to a portfolio.
This professor was impossible. I took him online so maybe he is a better classroom teacher but I tried to communicate with him and he would just put a lot of :( :( Those are not helpful to someone who is ASKING for help. Also, half the time I couldn't understand what he was saying because he sent emails in broken English and vague ultimatums.
I had him for intro, and his class was great! He's such a sweet guy, and the work that comes out of his classes are ALWAYS on top. His students' work always make it into the catalogue and in shows. His class made me change my major to graphic design. The only issue was a slight language barrier, but he always asks if you understand what he's saying
He is a great Professor. He wants to help you as long as you want to be there. Cares a lot about his students, he is super nice and knows a lot about design. He is also a great influence and person to learn from.
Montero was absolutely amazing! I honestly didn't think much of typography before I took his class. He constantly pushed people to be better at design. Montero is very good at incorporating famous graphic designers in his class which was very inspirational! I learned A LOT!
I have taken Montero for 3 classes and I am bummed when I have a quarter without him. SOOO helpful, funny, and honest. I love him!
Professor Montero by far is THE BEST professor that I have had at scad so far. He is extremely knowledgable, helpful and compassionate. Some of the assignments are challenging but he is always available to guide the students. SCAD needs to clone him.!
Awesome professor that will give you lots of specific feedback. Felt like he genuinely wanted me to succeed in his course...which is a nice change! Seems like a funny guy, maybe a bit goofy - maybe absentminded? But super nice.
Best instructor ever. Really funny, helpful, talented and happy all the time.
Jorge Montero is the most amazing human being on this earth. Enough said.
I'm sure Prof Montero is great in class, but online, he doesn't have the ability to communicate with students in discussion or email. Rather than pointing the right direction, he simply redoes your work. His negative criticism often comes off as insulting.
Montero has a fun and rewarding class. We had 3 total projects, all interesting. Playing cards, a poster and a magazine. Two things bothered me about the course though: 1) There is a big communication barrier 2) He gets on the computer and does your work for you, rather than telling you what to do. All in all I learned alot and I'd take him again.
First, don't even rate a professor based off of their online classes. At SCAD some professors will have a couple regular classes and a few online classes. It's horrible for them to balance everything. Montero is great fun and is fantastic at illustration and Photoshop. He has a lot of knowledge. However, he does push you into his way of thinking.
His feedback is extremely biased, unclear and fickle. If you don't align with his ideas, you automatically become a 'loser'. If you think like him - great, but if you don't he'll make you feel awful. Even the positive comments talk about how he does your work- that's not a good thing guys, he should be bringing out your talent, not his.
Professor Montero's class is full of projects that challenge your design skills and set you up for great portfolio pieces. The class is what you make of it. If you are looking to build an interesting & diverse portfolio you will get some great projects from his classes. Challenges students to actually participate in critiques. Not just "i like it"
Professor Montero changed the way I see graphic design. He gives very helpful feedbacks and always push the students beyond their boundaries. Also, he is very funny and is always there for you. Take him, you're not going to regret it!
Prof. Montero was incredibly helpful and encouraging.
Montero can certainly be a man of specific taste, but I found that trying to work to his aesthetic pushed me into trying new things & exploring new territories. He is hilarious, passionate, & cares about students. The syllabus was a bit hard to follow. Overall he has my full respect & I will be taking him for future courses.
Don't skip any classes. He doesn't care if you're sick or what, all he cares is to see you in his class. Apparently he became a much tougher professor this quarter so beware. He is extremely passionate when it comes to teaching and he's really nice. But I do think his way of designing is very old school - not up to beat.
Disclaimer: This is based on an online class. Difficult to communicate with. Language barriers aside, half the time it felt like he didn't even know what assignment was due. Hard to contact and doesn't have an open schedule (sadly a norm for SCAD faculty). Be warned, communication will be 1/2 of the effort put into this class. Industry pro at least
He was awesome to me. As long as you posted your work on time in the middle of the week, he responded and gave you suggestions via notes on your work or sent you back examples of possibilities on your work itself. I really like Montero because he is sincere, gives you second chances, and spends a lot of time providing feedback on everyone's work.
Although he is pretty lecture heavy, he is a very animated person so the lectures are pretty engaging. He is sometimes hard to understand because of his accent, but tries extremely hard to make sure he is understandable unlike other professors that may just assume you can understand them. Gives good in progress critiques.
I can't praise him enough. He is very clear with what he expects and gives detailed feedback in a timely manner. His class has helped improve my work as an artist and designer immensely. I only used the textbook a couple times so I wouldn't exactly say it was a must have. would recommend.
Fantastic Professor, though he changes assignments constantly so It's hard to know what he wants you to achieve. Hilarious and very personable.
Jorge let's you resubmit, and will constantly offer help via email or office hours. Definitely email him for feedback, he'll go the extra mile for you!!
He's not very helpful. He seems to always have an idea of what a student should do in his head rather than letting students come up with their own thing. He spends a lot of his lectures humble-bragging about famous designers he's met and what he thinks of them. He gets guilt trippy and likes to call students out for stupid things.
I have Professor Montero for Design I right now, and he is the only professor I like. He's helpful and hilarious and gives great feedback. The running joke in the class is a side effect of his language barrier: "only blank and white allowed". Making that into a shirt to wear to class! Love him, great professor <3
He consistently forgot to explain what he wanted from a project. He never explained any of the projects before hand so we all had to figure it out on our own based on a handout that was most likely incorrect because he would've changed something after giving it out. Overall most of the class was him making weird noises instead of actually teaching.
Great professor! Very inspiring!
Sweet man, bad communication. My biggest issue was him not being clear on expectations. He would say one thing in class, another on a handout, another on the syllabus, and another in an email at 12am. He uses a lot of long, confusing metaphors. His feedback helped me push my work but sometimes it felt like an order to change, not a suggestion.
Wouldn't take again, nice guy who wants you to succeed but he will tell you what's due for the next class in person, then email you something completely different and the syllabus will say something different than those two. He tells you what is exactly on the quiz and what to study, only except that's not what will be on the quiz...
Amazing person! As a teacher he is hard to understand and very wish washy. Expects a lot out of each of his students!
Great professor in terms of relationships with students and passion for course but bad communication skills. Assignments were straightforward but he would explain them and confuse the class. He was very funny sometimes, but other times, it got too much and it would be out of hand especially while trying to give assignments.
Simply put, he's a great person, but not a great professor. The class was okay, projects fun, but he just was not good at running the class, nor explaining what he wanted. The syllabus meant absolutely nothing. He would give papers, but then explain a different way what he wanted. The class was confusing, and I found myself often frustrated.
I felt like he had a very specific understanding of the subject and he was only open to giving grades to things of his taste. That being said, I feel like his knowledge of Typography was slightly outdated and he often pushed students to do generic work. He also wasn't very punctual with feedback which left you little time or none for improvement.
hes super sweet and funny , just bad with communication so it makes even harder with an online class.
I got say Professor Montero is very professional as a graphic teacher. He teaches many useful softwares for graphic designers in class, and his suggestions for your projects are very inspiring which help you think out of box. Can you image he remember fonts name in Adobe?he supports the most help sessions than other pros, but be ready for quizs
He's a wonderful professor who's really caring and makes sure his students are motivated and want to succeed. Some of his project are a little hard. If you put the effort in, and show that you're actually interested in the project, you'll do great! He's also really funny and fun to have in a live class. I would highly recommend taking his classes!
Professor Montero is not the best professor. He critiques work based off of his own personal interests. If you are online in a hybrid class, he will not treat you with the same level of respect as the in-person students, who also were given more attention. He is also extremely disorganized. I wouldn't take this unless you have no other option.
Very passionate about teaching and making sure that people understand the concepts which is nice. On the other hand, his communication skills are very bad! Too many different class guides and emails and verbal instructions that never say the same things. You have to figure out what he wants for the projects, which can get really frustrating.
he can be a sweet and funny guy but if you dont go to extra help and actually do want he wants he will be kinda harsh with you i had three people in my class change majors because of him hes also not clear on grading criteria its either you get 100% or who knows
Love this professor so much. Did a class over the summer and he was great. His grading is not terrible and he gives great advice back on how to improve. Easy A in the class if you try your best he will see that
His class genuinely made me consider changing my major. If you don't go to extra help sessions or office hours (which I couldn't because of my job), he will grade you poorly and his emails aren't clear or timely at all. He has said some questionable things in class too like he used Hitler as a good example for someone who is unpredictable.
While the projects that we worked on in this class turned out good, I would not take him again. Very unclear about what he wants, he told me to redo my first project 6 times. Focuses too much on the first stage of the design process and forces us to rush the rest of the project.
Not the worst professor, but not the best either. His class was pretty easy and he gives specific feedback on what to fix and how to work on it which is nice. But he is a wild card and you just cannot anticipate how he will grade you.
Professor Montero is my favorite professor so far. I was shocked to see so many harsh grades for him. He is only hard on you if you don't participate or come to class and if you turn in work late. I am taking him again in the fall.
My last classes I took with him he was downright rude. He picks favorites, if you are one he holds you to a high standard for easy level classes. He said my projected sucked and was the worst thing I've made. This was also in front of the whole classes and made me cry. Good luck if you take him because he doesn't even let you stick up for yourself.
He is extremely funny and he is a great teacher. The grades he gives on projects can be tough, but he gives very good feedback. If you don't do well in an assignment, you can resubmit it for a better grade. Montero has an accent and may be difficult to understand. Never had any major issues with his class when taking him. Had him twice in 205 & 201
I had to drop Montero's class after I was personally sent a very rude email because I wasn't able to use a certain type of paper for an assignment. The professor essentially told me that the reason for the email was 'since you can't read my assignments clearly'. I felt so embarrassed that I dropped and considered changing my major.
Hit or miss. He'll say one thing in critique but then the grade won't reflect it. Can get by without the textbook. Weekly short quizzes. Kinda grades based off his own personal taste, so if u disagree with something he says and don't change it, he will most likely take points off. Understanding about sicknesses and will give more time if u need.
The only thing I enjoyed about the class is he's very passionate about what he is teaching and he will go above and beyond with trying to get the concept across to you. Everything else made the class harder: Biased in critique, little student feedback, wants your designs tailored to his tastes, LOTS of outside work. Taken for credit. Never again
The only thing I enjoyed about his class is he tries his best to keep you engaged and have a lively class and he gives help when needed. Extremely tough grader, picks favorites, and grades based off his personal tastes. He will openly tell you to change your design and add "But that's my personal taste". Avoid if you can.
He is always open to help.
He is a nice, caring, and funny person that wants us to succeed. I was frustrated throughout the course because of how unorganized his syllabus and handouts were. He'd sometimes not give helpful feedback and many of the styles he encourages us to use are outdated. I also didn't learn much because a lot of class time was for us to work on projects.
Jorge is so genuine and his lectures are easy to follow. He offers real life experiences and great feedback. Homework for this class is very manageable. Every week you write a paragraph about something in the lecture and create a visual to go along with it, and take an easy quiz. No exams. Easy class if you watch his lectures.
I honestly thought I would really like Jorge but he is very unclear about his expectations, really picky, and hard to please. He dogs on people during critique and its pretty unreasonable for the limited amount of clarity he provides while you're working on projects. His class is just frustrating and could be fine if he was clear with what he wants
I love jorge so much! I've taken his class before but for 285, the projects were kinda eh... He is a bit confusing but just really help him understand cos he is also struggling too lol -- he is great i promise you ! If you show how much you care on what you are doing, he will deffffffff guide you well!
This class felt like a repeat of DIGI130, and I feel as though it was just way too surface level. Only 3 projects, only 1 of which I enjoyed and thought I learned from. He responds quick to emails, but sometimes he would just skip over my questions and send a few short critiques. Not sure the class was worth it
It is a bit difficult to understand his style and expectations as a designer but that is normal. He does give feedback and will even demo it for you outside of class. He is very big on submitting your assignments before class if you are an async student. He is very passionate about design and teaching so that helps get through the class.
Professor Montero is a very nice guy, he cares for his students, is passionate about what he teaches, and is accessible outside of class. He values participation and is always willing to help. If he sees you're doing your best and you're interested in class, he will reflect that in your grade. Just put in the effort, and show him you care!
A kind person and passionate about design. Is disorganized (project documents might be incorrect, lectures can be confusing, etc), making the course hard to follow. Contradicts himself when giving feedback and is hypercritical, with his critiques based on seemingly outdated, narrow and specific design tastes. Not an enjoyable learning experience.
nice dude if you email him personally, but he's clearly older and does not understand the graphic design world has changed massively from corporate design. in other words, don't expect creative freedom or he'll degrade you in front of the entire class. his projects are relatively easy, just pleasing him and his taste is nearly impossible
My experience was a little chaotic. He's a great person and offers a lot of helpful resources and design tip however his directions weren't always straight forward. He often contradicted himself when discussing his expectations for projects. He can come off abrasive at times when giving feedback, but hold your ground and stand by your designs!
LOVE Professor Montero. I took this class online, so there were only a few of us that actually attended class regularly but that gave each of us a lot of one on one time with him for extremely helpful feedback. He can come across as harsh sometimes, but it's usually when someone doesn't follow the instructions at all. Get ready for LOTS of work.
Be prepared for a lot of quizzes and submissions. The class is not inherently hard but there is a lot of material and his slides are mostly pictures of people's work or his work, so take notes. If you are receptive to the feedback and do what he wants you'll be fine.
here after my first project grade. remembered reading negative comments about expectations which are true. my experience was a little chaotic, Hes obviously a good person and offers useful help and info. his rubrics and directions arent at all straight forward. you can expect critique for things that were "maybe" mentioned once in recording
Professor Montero is one of my favorites I have taken at SCAD. He is funny, passionate, kind, and incredibly forgiving. His feedback can be pretty harsh, however I do believe some of that is due to a language barrier (as he himself has stated). Even with rough feedback, he tends to be fairly lenient with his grading. Cannot recommend him enough!
THE most frustrating professor I've ever had. Constantly changes assignments but forgets doing so, then criticizes the changes he suggested. He'll say, “It was just a suggestion, you didn't have to do it,” making the experience VERY confusing and unhelpful. AVOID if you want a clear and professional learning experience.
I wouldn't recommend Montero to anyone serious about improving their design skills. His feedback is inconsistent, and he refuses to take accountability for the suggestions he gives. If you follow his advice and it doesn't work, he'll blame you. Plus, he gets defensive if you remind him of edits he made live in class. Terrible experience.
Honestly such a great professor! I have taken one class with him before and I am taking my second right now and I am so excited for the quarter. Such a nice professor and extremely talented. He helped me improve in my graphic design skills in the first class so I can not imagine now. Whatever bad reviews are on here, don't listen to them.
He is an amazing teacher, will teach you tons of new things. He can be critical, but will always be respectful and be constructive. He will totally help you improve as a designer, and is very funny
Amazing professor who is well versed in the graphic design field. He encourages you to step outside the box and challenge yourself creatively. He also allows resubmission for every assignment after getting submission feedback. He places a strong emphasis on growth and improving your skills. Not too tough of a class, you just have to put in effort!
Taken him for 2 classes and he's SO frustrating. Mocked students who left feedback on course evaluation & refuses to take feedback on teaching. Disorganized blackboard & horrible time management. Understands design but he can't teach and his "bluntness" is just rude. You'll live, but avoid taking at all costs, waste of your money & time.
Very inconsistent with rubrics, lectures, & feedback. He'll degrade you in front of the class & then later tell you it was only cause he wants you to do better. He's incredibly unfunny & annoying. He'll never take accountability, if he forgets something:humans make mistakes, if we forget something:we aren't passionate/we're failing ourselves.
My experience in this class actually led me to switch majors. I was belittled and told that my designs were not good yet I still got 100s on everything, which doesn't add up to how I was being spoken to about my work. He's a very nice man and he is clearly passionate about graphic design but it's definitely not an environment to experiment or grow
He's a really nice person to talk to and his classes are enjoyable. The only thing is the lack of criticisms given to students for their work so we can grow and learn.
His project rubrics, student examples, emails, and what he says in class are all completely different, and not understanding is your fault in his eyes. His feedback during presentations is not constructive, it's just mean and he will bluntly tell you your work is horrible. The project's themselves were mostly fun, he just kills all creativity.
He's actually a very funny and sweet person,LOVES graphic design,but I just think that he is outdated with his style and with examples he gives. Something annoying is that you would go and talk to him for feedback and he would just do part of your project without you asking, and if you tweak later he will complain and say you didn't listen to him..
His lectures were boring and hard to pay attention to, he made a lot of jokes but wasn't funny, and when people tuned out, he often meets this by bugging you with your name. Essentially snapping his fingers in your face to snap you back in. I was really excited to learn about graphic design but I switched out this class because of this approach.
Professor Montero is funny to a point. After a while his jokes and sarcasm get old. His instructions are unclear but that may be due to the fact that his first language is not English. He will degrade you in front of the entire class and then make it a joke and continuously tell you that you should have done something that he told you to do
This teacher is just plain rude and straight up criticizes and degrades you. To begin with, everyone in the class bought a $80 textbook WE DIDNT EVEN USE! Money down the drain. Then he will degrade you and your work w/o any advice about what to actually change. SAVE YOUR TIME AND MONEY DONT GET THIS PROFESSOR. HE WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO DROPOUT.😒
His feedback is very harsh and he can be very rude sometimes. He is a very tough grader. He will only like your work if you do his preferred design style, which is very outdated. If you submit something late, you lose 20 points per day. His classes are frustrating and completely diminished any sense of motivation and creativity I had for design.
Passive Aggressive
Prof Montero was rude and passive agressive to me, and multiple other students this quarter. He would paste private feedback and messages in the public discussion board for everyone to see and degrade everyone's work on zoom calls with no remorse. Instead of helping students, he would redo their work to "make it better" that only fit his opinion.
He's a great designer and gives amazing feedback, but the class totally lacked any kind of structure and it was stressful AF. He also changed his mind all the time about what he likes, and he HATES vector art. He was great to get feedback from and always had good ideas, and I really enjoyed speaking to him, but he was all over the place w/ class.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
89%
Textbook Required
54%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.70 avg changeRatings by Course
370
5.0
(1)GRDS02
5.0
(1)GRDS307
5.0
(1)GD504
5.0
(1)GRDS370
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
GRAD243
5.0
INTROSECT
4.0
ILLU338
4.0
GRDS355
4.0
GRDS205
3.4