She's so intelligent. Her lectures are easy to understand and you really learn a lot about different type of gov systems. Tests are fair as long as you try but reading assignments are long.

She's a great lecturer and exams aren't that difficult. I never found the lectures boring. Readings are long. Her major area of study is on the Russian govt.

There is a ton of reading for this class, as well as immense amounts of information to learn. The class was very enjoyable, though. She is a great teacher, and really knows a lot about what she teaches.

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she was an excellent lecturer...i learned so much about world politics...even though the tests are really hard, it is still a great class

Andrews, herself, is a nice professor and a good at lecturer. Notes are posted online ahead of time so you can listen in class. The TAs ripped apart the 2nd midterms (essay format), and the term papers. If you get a good TA, this would be a good course.

She was great. Very clear and interesting to listen to. TA graded tough but the class was still enjoyable.

had her for comparaitve politics, pretty interesting class, midterm was pretty easy if you know the lecture slides VERY WELL and few details from the book, the final wasn't bad, but the TA i had graded pretty hard..class itself was alright

Great professor. Had her for two courses, very helpful. Tests aren't bad if you come to class and do 50% of the reading, never boring!

Prof. Andrews is the best!! She always makes the lectures interesting, and explains things well. Lots of reading, but its not too bad. Great classes!

not a bad class at all.... easy if u go to the classes. she gives slides but they alone arent enough to understand what she says in class

Very easy class. She is very enthusiastic about this subject matter and loves teaching it. Goes through slides a bit fast but usually they only have numbers and data. Tests are easy if you pay attention in class. Essay fun and easy too.

Loved her! She made me want to be a poli sci major. I loved her unbiased approach and informative lectures. Hard class though, but really interesting.

class is well organized and she gives slides. i didn't goto class for the first midterm and got a 75percent from looking at the slides. Curtis is a lame TA who drinks from the same gatorade bottle all the time, go with Andrea Morrison she's the best one.

Andrews is an excellent professor; lectures are clear, unbiased, and coherent, and she gladly answers even the most innane and annoying questions during class, without making students look bad (I swear, some students ask questions just to hear the sound of their own voice). Highly recommended!

Very clear about goals, frequently makes finals take home exams, only need to read the books to use for quotes in papers, very knowedgable about subject, frequently ends lectures early, uses entertaining personal antecdotes, encourages questions, and grades very well.

Dr. Andrews does a good job with her material. She also lets you out early if you ever have a two hour class with her and she assigns reading that you really don't need to do. Sometimes her TA's grade hard, sometimes not so hard, it's very possible to get A's in her courses.

Prof. Andrews is awesome! An interesting class, though there are MOUNDS of reading. The TA's were excellent and Prof. Andrews is most approachable and just a nice, good professor. Her class is worth the work.

Hey, I thought she was hot! Awesome prof, great lecturer, nice person, and straightforward exams. Great slides to go with her lectures. The reading is interesting, too!

Andrews is a great teacher. Very smart and approachable. Beware of the TAs! Daniel Madden is weird and not so helpful. Dimitri Korovilas is very nice and reviews alot plus he's HELLA HOT.

Great Class!

her class is based on lecture ...the book is kind of helpful but i regret purchasing it($70). I only read one chapter on it and the test is mainly covered through the lecture. Her lectures are posted online which makes it really helpful but its only half of the infomation needed, so GO TO CLASS!

Amazing class with unbelievable detail. It takes some work and memorization of all the facts, but as long as you GO to every lecture you are set.

Great class. interesting material too. I got a C+ on the first midterm because i read too much into the book and not the lecture notes. The second midterm I literally missed nothing. I seriously got a 100% and that was mainly cuz i just studied purely her lecture notes. TAs grade paper pretty harshly so talk to them about it first.

She is one of the most caring professors I've come across. I struggled in her class & she helped me a lot during office hours. She truly cares for her students. As a previous reviewer said, Daniel Madden is very weird & yes, Dimitri Korovilas is SOOO hot! Hottest TA I have ever seen, seriously. Oh yeah, and he's super smart & helpful, too :)

Great professor, extremely knowledgable and helpful, pretty straightforward and patient.

Prof. Andrews is a great instructor. She had really clear lectures and is extremely approachable. She did her thesis while the Soviet Union fell, so she has a lot of first had experience. Tests are fair and focus on lectures. Paper is graded pretty harshly, depending on the TA. Final was also easy, make sure to connect different countries together.

She really knows what she's talking about. She tells you what you need to know and makes her expectations very clear. Her powerpoint presentations could be a little more interesting, but other than that she is a great teacher.

she is a great professor. all what i did was memorize the lecture slides, get my TA to majorly help me on the paper, and I pulled of a solid A. loved this class

Very clear and knowledgeable professor. Cool haircut too. TA was also great. Prof Andrews tends to focus on Russian politics more heavily than anything else.

She's a really sweet professor. Lectures are sometimes (or, most of the time) kind of boring. You really don't need the textbook, all her exams are based off of her lectures. 2 midterms, 1 paper, and 1 final.

She's incredibly helpful during office hours and super nice. She's knows the topics inside and out...but the class itself was just plain bad. I'd love to take a seminar with her, but id never take a regular class with her again.

As soon as you hear her speak, you think, GOD, she knows her stuff. she is quite showingly an expert on E. European politics. Lectures were incredible interesting and useful prep for her paper and exams.

Professor Andrews is a phenomenal professor. She is knowledgable and passionate about her classes, and she goes out of her way to assist those who ask for help. She routinely holds extra office hours and will make an appointment with you if you work/have class etc. After taking most of the poly sci professors here at Davis, she ranks at the top.

She was extremely knowledgeable of the subject matter and had good personal stories. Even though the subject matter was interesting, her lectures were very dry. She also packed a lot into each lecture, often using up the whole 2 hours. I did learn a lot though so I'd recommend it to people interested in Russian politics

Her lectures are kind of boring for an 8 AM class. The class is pretty easy though and she really does try to keep people interested and make it bearable but, again, it's an 8 am class. Quizzes pretty much every week and 2 midterms and one paper. Overall it's a pretty easy class and revolves around her PP slides.

Great teacher, good at encouraging discussion and provides good feedback on drafts of papers. Wish I didn't have her class at 8am so I could fully appreciate her teaching....

Amazing professor! She is very knowledgeable and super nice! Lectures are long and boring. However, if you go and pay attention, you pretty much are guaranteed a good grade! She gives you study guides for the midterm and final, which are very helpful! Also, she basically gives you the outline for the paper. Pretty straightforward class!

Really nice and educated professor, it's obvious she's well versed in what she teaches. Lectures the entire 90 minutes so it's a bit boring and the assigned reading is basically required if you want to do well on the quizzes and theres a lot of it. An easy A if you are already pretty familiar with government institutions and do the readings.

Professor Andrews is great. If you attend lecture, do the assigned reading, and go to section you shouldn't have a problem getting a good grade in her class.

Professor Andrews is a great teacher. She is extremely knowledgeable in her field and sets clear and reasonable expectations for her class. Do the reading, listen during lecture, and study the powerpoint slides she sends to you: quizzes, midterms, and final are based off of those. Overall an enjoyable class with a fantastic professor!

By far one of my favorite classes even though the class was by no means easy. Pol 2 was quite difficult for an entry level class, but she is extremely knowledgeable, and they way he presented the information made me want to actually learn than memorize information. Quizzes are specific, so stay on top of reading and PAY ATTENTION IN CLASS

Professor Andrews delivered the material in a clear and concise way, and guided discussions effectively. The class I took was a seminar on democracy in America, and she really is one of the best poli sci teachers at UC Davis! Sometimes she can seem unorganized, but she actually has all of her stuff in order and cares deeply about the material.

She's a sweet professor and is very informative, however lectures are kinda boring sometimes. Two midterms and one paper. The TAs are very helpful in clearing up confusing topics, as discussion is basically just a review section from the lectures.

Amazing professor! Tries to make the class entertaining, and encourages class discussions. I liked the class, even though it could get boring.

Professor Andrews is super nice, extremely well-versed in the subject, and easy to reach. She gives pretty thorough study guides for the exams. Study lectures and textbook readings for midterms. Attend lectures because it's a huge chunk of the exams, sometimes they can be a little boring and she does go on tangents quite often.

Prof. Andrews was a good lecturer and did a great job on presenting the relevant course material. Take notes and actually read the book and you should do fine in the class. Also, make sure to communicate with your TA in order to get a good grade on your term paper.

This class was my first introduction to political science and drew me in to taking a whole major based around it. A very good introduction to global politics and general concepts that will follow you for the rest of your education. Doing the reading helps you get a jump on lectures. She specializes in Russia/Poland and breaks up her lectures well.

My only problem with this class is that it's an introduction to comparative politics but we only got the chance to learn about European countries. I suppose it's understandable because this is Prof. Andrews's area of expertise, but I wish we could have learned about a more diverse amount of countries. She gives helpful study guides!

Lectures are really heavy, she is really passionate on the topics, so it makes it easier to understand what she is teaching. Exams are heavy but she gives really good study guides. Study those, and you will ace the exams. Although she posts lecture slides, to get an A, you need to attend lectures and at least skim through readings for the exams

TA graded a little bit harder than I would have liked but It's college so what can you expect. Reading is mandatory if you want a good grade. A good chunk of EC was offered. 5 (2pg) papers, midterm, final. Do not take the papers lightly; go to office hours for guidance.

I absolutely loved POL 002 with Andrews. She's super knowledgeable about Eastern European politics and she made sure the class had a good mix of information about how government works, major historical events, and interesting stories. You'll learn a lot in this class and you can do well if you take good lecture notes and start early on the paper

Lectures can be interesting, but some is very dry. Kind professor, very knowledgeable. Definitely pay attention during class, and read the textbook. Tests are also a bit difficult imo and very specific.

Although her lectures are very dry, she knows her stuff. She is well informed about Russian Politics but also makes the class easy to manage. Weekly quizzes on the lectures. The quarter was graded on 8 quizzes, draft of your term paper, and your final term paper.

Pretty easy class! Make Sure if you don't attend lectures to read the slides each week in order to pass your weekly quizzes. Also, they only count your best 7 scores! Would take this class again.

Thought the pre-recorded lectures were super interesting and well explained.

the class was graded on section attendance, midterm, and a research paper due at the end of the class. This is definitely the hardest I've worked in a class but the ability to choose your topic made it a bit easier. As long as you stay on top of homework and attend office hours often you should do well. DONT PROCRASTINATE.

Very knowledgeable, really enjoyed her class! She pre-records lectures so you can view them on your own time which was nice. 10 quizzes (but she drops your 3 lowest scores), a term paper, & section participation make up your grade. TA gave helpful feedback to help everyone get high paper scores, so as long as you take notes you'll succeed.

Extremely friendly and accommodating. Let us give her suggestions on how the final exam should be, and gave us the chance to bring sheet of notes to the exam. The class is 95% lectures, which may be a bit overwhelming, but she makes the content interesting enough. She's super knowledgeable as well.

Hands. Down. The best professor I have ever had. A 3x IVY grad If you attend all the lectures and take notes, you dont even have to read the readings and I still got an A. A lot of lazy students who wouldnt attend lectures would complain about her tests but I didnt even have to study for her exams and still aced. This is university level people!

Prof Andrews is one of the best teachers I have had at Davis. I came into class barely knowing who Stalin was but she made the class so entertaining and has so many experiences to share. It is important to go to class because she makes the material digestible and is very intelligent. I mean 3x IVY- I can see why!

While I enjoyed Andrews' POL002 more than this course, both were solid with her. The lectures for this class were a little dense for my taste but I loved when she added in anecdotes. The class itself was graded on a midterm, final, 5 2-page opinion papers, and a weekly in-class discussion. I learned the most from the opinion papers. I do recommend!

Your grade in this class consists of section attendance, 1 midterm, final, & term paper with graded assignments to keep you on track. As long as you read the articles that she gives you and pay attention to the discussion section questions you will be fine on midterm and final. Term paper grade depends on TA. Overall, average professor

This class is manageable. The lectures are LONG and dry but interesting if you pay attention. The TAs were very coordinated and the grading was very clear. Grades were only based off of a few tests and papers but there was a lot of clear help with those in section. If political science is your thing, this will be easy! If not, it might be boring.

Was clearly very knowledgeable and her lectures were interesting if a little long. Grade is entirely dependent on your TA who grades a research paper, midterm, and non-cumulative final. Felt like I learned a lot but if you are very into politics you might see a lot as review.

Super easy class to be honest. I studied 1 hour for the midterm and 2 hours for the final and got 90+ on both. The discussions are graded for participation (showing up). The essay is graded generously as well. Maybe not the easiest POL class but still should be an easy A. (midterm average was 84% and final average was 77%)

I enjoyed lectures a lot. She is engaging and knows everything there possibly is to know about Russia. Five opinion papers (two pages each) and then you get to discuss it in small groups during class. That was such an excellent format - definitely better than one huge research paper. Tests are pretty hard but she is extremely generous and helpful.

Incredible lecturer & clearly very experienced/knowledgeable. Lectures had tons and tons of information. Text wasn't totally necessary bcus lectures had all pertinent info but were helpful for casual studying. 10 page paper, midterm was a draft of it. Weekly quizzes. Class was difficult but highly enjoyable. Great professor.

Easy workload; midterm, final, and term paper are essentially only graded assignments. Lectures are very info-dense and a bit dry, but the topic is interesting. There are assigned readings, but not much of the information there is important or not covered in lecture.

Andrews is one of the best academic instructors I have had throughout my schooling. This content of the course is not very difficult and I would heavily recommend taking it as a GE. Andrews is absolutely amazing and fair. She even gave an 5% curve on the midterm (84% average) unheard of in a non stem class. Lots of lectures but it is fun.

This is an amazing prof! Perfect time to study E. Europe too, spent lots of time off syllabus talking about Ukraine. Had a 10 pg research paper but TA Laurel was awesome and walked us through it each week in section. Only downside of class were poli sci bros who talked the whole time with "important ideas". One of the best PS profs at UCD

Professor Andrews is one of the best professors at Davis. From the way she teaches you can tell that there's a lot more she wanted to share but didn't have time for in an intro class. The paper was time consuming but the topics were interesting to write about so I didn't mind. tests easy as long as you go to lecture

Discussion is mandatory (depending on TA) but lectures are not. Really great professor- it's obvious she knows what she's talking about and she is excited to answer questions. Lectures are info dense but it's all very interesting. Most of the grade is the exams and the final paper. Def download the lecture slides and write on them to save time.

Professor Andrews is the best teacher I have had so far at UC Davis! She is passionate and very knowledgeable about the countries and political systems of Eastern and Central Europe. My favorite thing was that she tied in the lectures with the war in Ukraine and encouraged class discussion.The paper is difficult, but manageable if you start early.

OKAY YALL let me tell you, I love Jo. I have taken 3 different classes of hers and she never fails to impress me. A lot of people say she's inaccessible outside of class which is fair but in my experience, her office hours are your best bet at getting a question answered. She is incredibly caring and loves to talk, so don't be shy! 12/10 professor.

I have taken 2 classes with Prof. Andrews and she's always been excellent. She is incredibly knowledgeable and makes lectures very interesting. I would highly recommend taking any classes with her.

Detailed lectures, responsive to emails and questions, fair tests and term paper. The class material can sometimes get a little stale but pretty solid professor and class overall

great professor! Learned so much from her class and she was very knowledgable on the topics. The slides provide most of the content needed so the textbook wasn't really used.

Very knowledgeable. Gives interesting lectures. Tests can be difficult, but if you study (memorize the dates + people of elections and such!) then doable. Two midterms, a paper, final, and section participation/assignments all are a part of your grade.

Professor Andrews is a great professor! The class itself is pretty doable, as long as you attend lectures.The tests were straight forward as prof gave study guides+material to utilize. As long as you are willing to come to lectures, take notes, and put in the work to remember that information, you will ace this class.

She is literally an expert on what she teaches. She experienced many of the political events she teaches, so you can learn much more from her than from the average teacher. She is excellent during office hours; devote the expected level of effort to her and this class and you should be fine. She did what she could given the TA strike.

Prof. Andrews gives good lectures, although not super engaging so it may be difficult if you generally struggle with lectures. Midterms are fair. Term paper is long but it's the only essay for the entire quarter and the prompts are released fairly early in the quarter.

Wow. She would literally answer our questions for like 25 MINUTES AFTER EACH LECTURE. Often dryer content, like comparing various methods of parliamentary election, but she pulled the interesting stuff out of it and made it worth a listen. Also, the paper topics we could choose from were all interesting. Tests were easy if you prepared. Sweet lady.

Amazing professor, really good lecturer and has so much passion for the subject. I loved this class and hope to take more classes with her!

Very clear and succinct. Her lecture style is a little dry, but I appreciated the lack of froof. Super interesting to hear her personal anecdotes from living in the USSR during its collapse. Was disappointed with her (lack of a) response to the TA strike, seemingly uninterested in accommodating TAs/students impacted, but shes still a good lecturer.

Professor Andrews is very knowledgeable about Russian politics. She shared stories about her time in the USSR during lectures, which I found very interesting. She is really kind, though it is sometimes difficult to reach her outside of class. My TA did not leave much feedback on my work, so she reviewed and regraded my papers and exams.

Absolutely loved her! She's amazing, she's passionate, and her class is not stressful at all. As long as you know her slides and care a little bit about the topic of your papers, you should be good!

Knew what she was talking about, gave solid lectures, clear communication. Posts slides online after lectures, only graded on attendance for discussion sections. Only problem was that the TAs took forever to grade my work but that's not really her fault.

Engaging lectures and clearly knows what she's talking about. Definitely learned a lot in the class. Only issue was TAs took a long time grading work, and scores they gave out were often inconsistent with what was actually taught to us but that's just how it is I guess

A solid lecturer and TAs in particular were great at adapting their discussions to the class. She gives studyguides about a week before the exams and they are exactly everything that you need for the test (no tricks). She answers questions well in class and stays after to answer questions. A great prof, especially if its your first quarter.

Professor Andrews is a great lecturer and has very detailed slides, so if you miss a day, it's not really a big deal. She provides a study guide for all exams, as well as reading guides. There are two midterms, a final, a section grade, and a term paper, although my paper and final were never graded. Be well rehearsed with the slides!

Professor Andrews' lectures are clear, engaging, and comprehensive. The material is interesting, but you have to put in some effort to really grasp it. She's great to talk to in office hours, and she has some really interesting stories if you get a chance to ask her about her research. The course is demanding, but she's fair and helps you with it.

Very approachable, very knowledgeable, and very clear criteria for doing well. You will have to study and learn a lot in this course, but that's the point of taking it, right! Very informative lectures, and exams reflect the content of the course well. Readings are very helpful in accompanying course material.

Great professor. Super knowledgeable about the USSR and Russia. Perusall readings are lengthy, but quite helpful. Written tests are not too bad, but you need to study for ‘em. In class discussions and lectures are engaging and really help with understanding course materials. Feedback on assignments is always detailed. Would recommend!

lots of reading, make sure to attend lectures and pay attention because she only releases limited slides afterward, seems like a sweet lady and a passionate/knowledgeable professor but didn't work well for my specific learning style unfortunately

I highly respect Dr. Andrews after taking this class with her. The stories she has to tell about her time in the USSR are captivating and are always relevant to the topic at hand. I will say, though, that Dr. Andrews does use the FULL time period, so definitely pay attention the whole time if you want to capture the full notes

From corruption to communism, this class was one of my highlights of the quarter. Both she and the TA truly care, and I loved every minute of it. Midterm and final are easy if you follow the study guide, and while the research paper is hard, the abundance of extra credit makes up for it. It was the first professor that I felt cared what I thought

Discussion heavy and super enjoyable. Super understanding and helpful when a group member stopped showing up to work on our presentation. Super caring and encourages interest in the subject matter.

Professor Andrews is an engaging lecturer who makes the material interesting. The course is manageable with some effort. unstuck ai and slide review helped me prepare well for exams.

I loved Prof. Andrews herself, and this spring quarter was her last at Davis, which is a bit sad to here. She is super passionate about comparative politics and its implications. Absolutely hated my TA and he was a very harsh grader but that's not her fault. Midterm/final are very straightforward and easy to study for.

Only graded on midterm, final, term paper, discussion attendance, & assignments related to term paper. Sutdy guide covers material for midterm & final although there's a lot of material to study. Attendance only required for discussion. Slides are slightly redacted but can use AI to fill in the gaps. 7-10 pg term paper. Easy B, A takes more effort.