She is a very sweet professor. She is able to give very clear explanations to all the concepts. Her midterm problems are reasonable and not hard, so you can achieve this class easily. You don't need to buy a text book though the professor said it's mandatory. No i clicker, very few homework. Highly recommend this professor!

She was such a sweet professor and took the time to make sure her students understood the material. Quizzes are easy (one question taken from the homework) and both midterm and final were very straightforward.

What I loved most about her is that she is really fair. You get what you work for. Show up to every lecture (even if they are repetitive sometimes and confusing), go to the labs and sections, do your hw, etc. It's all about habit and hard work. This class is about (mostly) practice and understanding. Each day things become less hard, you fill a gap

Although lectures could be a bit boring, she was an outstanding professor. Had very good explanations and examples for EVERYTHING we covered in the class. I recommend reading the book & attending lectures because it helps clarify things a bit more. Make sure to attend all sections in order to get easy points. Overall, she's a great professor.

She's very nice and sweet. This is my second time taking this course and she has made the material a lot easier than before. She provides practice problems as well which will help you on the midterm.

She explains things clearly and she gives us a lot of examples to understand the materials. You have to go to every lecture and take plenty of notes because she will not post slides online. Every week we have a quiz based on last week's homework but she will not give us answers to homework until we take the quiz. She replies email very soon.

Dr. Swenson was understanding and kind. CLAS was a life saver.

Professor Swenson is a very sweet and helpful professor. Definitely go to lectures, although sometimes she moves very quickly so be ready for that. She offers a lot of extra office hours/review sessions so i HIGHLY recommend going to them if the homework is hard for you. Do lots of practice problems and make use of TA office hours and you'll be ok.

Professor Swenson is the best math lecturer I've had at UCSB, if not the best lecturer overall. She presents the material in a way that makes it easy to understand and is very approachable. Her lectures also always start with a little review of the previous lecture, which really helps students learn.

Swenson is very passionate about teaching (PSTAT 5A). She's always available during office hours and responds to questions via email really fast. If you do the weekly homework and go to section, this class will be a breeze!

YOU DON'T NEED A TEXTBOOK. Just do the homework, those are what the quizzes are based on. As long as you study and do the homework, the class is pretty easy. Go to lecture and I recommend using CLAS. Overall, I'd recommend her for PSTAT 5A, and if you can pick between 5A and 5LS, choose 5A for an easier grade

She is the BEST! she gives quiz every week (questions on quiz are from homework), which is a great thing to push you to learn. Tests are not hard or tricky, as long as you understand the material you are good. She gives lots of examples, and is super detailed about each solution. SUPER NICE!!!!

Julie is a real sweetheart. If you make an effort to go to her office hours then she is so so helpful. Definitely go check your hw answers at office hours, section quizzes are easy if you did homework right and the tests are really straight forward. i did poorly on the first midterm because i didnt study a lot. good onthe second midterm and final.

Prof Swenson was amazing for stats. Super clear lectures with tons of examples and her test questions were always at the same level of difficulty as her lecture examples. The quizzes are easy as long as you get the hw checked during office hours. Super nice lady and great teacher, highly recommend

Literally the nicest professor Ive ever had, she genuinely cares about the students and is extremely accessible

Took stats in high school so this was easier for me. I understood the material, but studied too minimally :( It was not difficult, but do the homework and attend lecture/section. Also, the textbook isn't needed for homework, but maybe purchase if you need extra help. Computer programming is taught, but there are only a couple questions on the test

I hate any form of math, but Swenson was amazing! She's the sweetest, most understand professor. Super straightforward tests, she teaches you exactly what you need to know. In order to succeed though you have to put in the work. Doing the homework (its always rly short) and going to office hours is a MUST if you want to do well.

She is so nice

Great professor and nice person! Best professor in UCSB ever

This professor is so great, and quizzes are easy from homework. Midterms are easy, and final is a little hard but its okay.

Prof. Swenson is one of the best professors on campus. She gives helpful examples and clearly defines topics in lecture. The tests were very fair and the problems were direct and similar to what we had in lecture and in homework. She clearly cares about her students and is very accessible after class and in office hours.

I've never considered myself a math person, but Professor Swenson made me more confident in my abilities! She really does want her students to pass the class, but you have to put in the effort. I didn't use the textbook at all; I redid the homework and lecture practice problems to study. I also went to her office hours weekly, which really helped!

Professor Swenson is nice and really cares about her students. The textbook it expensive but it helps you SO much. The midterms are not too bad (multiple choice) if you do a bunch of practice problems and exercises in the book but the final was BRUTAL (free response). Just study really hard from the start and you should be okay. iclicker is used

Dr. Swenson is the BEST!! Lectures are super clear and she moves through them at a good pace. Definitely buy the book, it will get you an A in the class. I was able to cram like two nights before each midterm and got an A on both. Tests can be tricky, but they're fair. Definitely do the homework since it's identical to exams. Easy A!!

Can't say enough good things on Swenson. She actively participates with the class and makes sure we're all on her pace. She explains all concepts very thoroughly but you have to attend her lectures, and there's no reason not too. She wants to see you succeed and if you have any questions at all, she welcomes them. Simply an amazing professor.

Cutest prof ever! Syllabus is clear that the grade based on 10%participation; 10%quizes; 20%midterm1; 20%midterm2; 40%final. Iclicker is mandatory, go to lecture and do practice questions before exams and you will be fine.

Mrs. Swenson was one of my favorite teachers. Each lecture was clear and at a good pace. She gave us all of the materials and tips for how to do good in the class.

She is a very good lecturer and is good at explaining the concepts. Even if you aren't good at math, don't worry! For Pstat 5A, there are labs that uses Python. There are weekly quizzes based on the exact homework problems so make sure to do them all. Make sure to read the textbook, you will understand the lecture ahead of time.

Her lectures were clear and I attended office hours every week to ensure I did the homework correctly because her weekly quizzes are exactly like the homework. Did CLAS which helped me review the topics. The textbook is highly recommend to have a better understanding. Her exams have some tricky questions, but besides that great class!

I absolutely love Professor Swenson. She is such a clear lecturer and all assignments are very clear. Definitely use the textbook, it will help you with all of the homework. Going to office hours is also super helpful. As long as you show up to lecture, pay attention, and get help if you need it it's an easy A! 10/10 recommend

Dr. Swenson's lectures are the best! She somehow makes doing Statistics at 8 am okay. I have never had a math/stats professor that has been so good at instructing. She makes sure to break down each question and actually tells you WHY mathematical functions work as opposed to simply giving you the formula to compute.

She's a really nice person, and depending on your math ability it can be an easy A. I went to her office hours, and I didn't need to do much studying outside the class. Attending lectures is a must though.

Professor Swenson is a fantastic teacher who is both very caring and helpful! She has two midterms and a final (that was optional for us because of the pandemic) plus section quizzes which were modeled on the homework. She explains concepts very well with lots of examples. Her office hours were also really good, even if they were sometimes packed.

Professor Swenson is a kind, enthusiastic lecturer! She covers a lot of material, but she tries to engage with you even though her classes are typically at 8AM (PSA if you are not a morning student)! She is one of the few professors worth taking an 8am for though!

Such a sweet lady! Great lecturer, explains concepts super well. Had to learn some coding, but not bad at all. Weekly hw (not turned in) & quizzes based on hw (textbook needed for that but not for actual learning). Midterm/final/quizzes basically exactly like in class examples. She made stats interesting and easy! *took during online spring '20*

I'm sure she's great in person, but her online lectures were pretty mediocre. Not too difficult though, just spend time memorizing all the symbols. She loves to say "for the purposes of this class..." so if you're taking the class for any reason other than you have to, spend some time learning things outside the scope of the class.

I took this online during the summer for session A and it was not bad at all. The first two units are a little confusing, but if you go to her office hours she helps a lot!!! If you do the homework, worksheets, and go to her office hours for help, you will be okay! The midterm/final were proctored online through zoom though.

Professor Swenson is excited to help you in office hours. The class structure is organized. The textbook is SO SO helpful. I just read it and sometimes don't watch the lecture videos. Python is very minimal in tests. DO THE HOMEWORK, you'll thank me later. PSTAT department is brutal, so don't expect accommodations unless you're a DSP student.

I LOVE professor Swenson! She is incredibly enthusiastic and genuinely wants to be helpful. I go to her office hours every week and watch her lectures and do fine. Biggest piece of advice is to do the optional homework.... trust. Super kind professor and she works really hard!

Professor Swenson is super nice and cares about her students. The class is really organized and there are multiple weekly mini assignments so make sure to always be on top of those. She does not expect anymore than what she assigns as hw so the midterms arent hard at all if you practiced the hw well. Grading is super fair.

Great professor, really enthusiastic. The class itself is relatively easy if you're at all familiar with math. If you make sure to watch lectures and understand which equations to use for different word problems, and you should be fine. I didn't use the textbook at all, and got through based on only the homework, quizzes, and practice problems.

Swenson is the most clear lecturer Ive ever had. Dont rely on a curve I was .23 away from an A and the curve didnt help me at all. Im not a math person but probably could have pulled off the A if I had studied harder for the final. Best math teacher Ive ever had. Labs are about coding. Shes very accesible to students who need help.

Prof Swenson did an amazing job adjusting for online learning. Lecture questions (5%), lecture journal (5%), section (5%) and course (5%) participation, quizzes (10%), midterm 1+2 (20% each) and final (30%) made up grading. Python labs were the worst but it isn't focused on the exams. Keep on top of work and you'll do fine!

2-3 relatively short lectures, (asynchronous for covid times) discussion section, lab section, homework worksheet, study group zoom for participation and a quiz each week. 2 midterms and a final, all straightforward multiple choice. Lots of opportunities to get help if needed but the lectures make things pretty clear.

I loved professor Swenson. Even though async lectures you can tell she is very sweet, and her lectures give you everything you need to know for the exams as long as you do the homework and practice problems. the quizzes are easy and replicate a homework problem from the week. The material is not too hard to understand.

taken in F20 Class was not that difficult if you are good at math. She wants her students to succeed. Easy to talk to and go over problems in office hours. Met with me personally before a test when a ta was terrible. Lectures were straight forward and easy to follow

Love her so much. If you have any questions go to her office hours and she is so kind and helpful, literally is like a mom. Not a lot of people go to her office hours so she's the perfect professor to build a relationship with.

She's amazing. Lectures are super clear and make the material very understandable even if you're not a math person. Also super sweet and helpful in office hours if you need. There was a textbook but I didn't get it and had no problems. She gives you everything you need to know. Definitely take!

Very nice and patient professor. Will teach you step by step in office hour. Hope pstat department can hire more professors like her instead of hiring so many mean and unqualified professors.

Dr. Swenson is amazing! I absolutely adore her. She's always ready to explain confusing concepts and is very respectful and sweet. The course is set up for your success but you do have to work for it and take advantage of the resources she gives you!

If you have a chance to take a class with Swenson, do it. She is the nicest professor I've had so far in the PSTAT dept, great to talk to outside of class, and makes her lectures clear and concise. The midterm/final definitely have trick questions, so details are important.

I dreaded taking stats for my major but Dr. Swenson made the material so much less daunting. She makes really clear lectures and explains things in their simplest form, so I never had to worry about confusion. Definitely memorize the formulas and do the "optional" homework! All the TAs are amazing as well and helped clarify any questions I had :)

I only took this class to see if I liked stats and I can say I definitely do! It was almost entirely online with the exception of midterm 2. The class consisted of weekly quizzes, easy python labs, and optional hw. It's fairly easy if you put work into it (max 4 hours a week if you take notes on the videos and do the hw).

Lectures all online with easy quizzes in them due by Wednesday with optional in person lecture on Thursdays. 15% HW 10% lecture quizzes 5% section 30% midterm 40% final. Swenson is so so nice and very clear in lectures. The exams are very detailed and require a lot of memorization for an A. Basic understanding will get you an easy B. Generous curve

Lectures are dense w/ crucial material but are clear, interesting, and not too long. Prof. Swenson is v sweet if you talk to her at OH/lecture. She genuinely wants her students to understand concepts and is eager to help. The final was harder than anticipated but manageable. It's been a week after the final, and I passed the SAS 9.4 Exam today ;)

One of the best, if not, THE best instructor the PSTAT department has to offer. Actually wants you to learn and puts passion behind her lectures. She is also very sweet when asked for help. Lots of memorizing, but just redo the homework and review lectures and you will do fine. If the department hired more people like her, they'd be unstoppable.

the material itself was difficult at times but she is very helpful if you go to office hours

Swenson is a great professor! You can definitely tell that she really cares about her students and wants you to understand everything. Lab wasn't too bad, and there are weekly quizzes that are very easy if you did the homework. Although, her final was a bit harder than the midterms/quizzes. Overall though, I highly recommend her!

Prof Swenson is such a sweetheart! You can tell how much she cares, and does a really good job at explaining tricky concepts. She does try to trick you a lot on midterms with question wording, so be prepared for that. Our class was half online half in person and it seems like a lot of work at first but it wasn't too bad once I got in the groove.

Great great professor! Ik Stats is a really intimidating subject for a lot of people but she makes it really manageable and easy to understand. Lecture videos are great and go over tons of examples. One of the first classes I've taken at UCSB where I felt prepared for the exams from just lectures alone. Sections were really helpful as well.

HW is not that bad. The exams are quite difficult and test you on how well you know the syntax and structure behind SAS. Is kinda dumb that you could know how to code decently but the exams only test you on very not pickey questions.

the best professor in the department in my opinion. Every time I take a class w/ Swenson lectures are clear, concise, & exactly what we need for the exams; with that said, the difficulty spike between the midterm & final is really big, and the multiple choice questions test for EXTREMELY nitpicky/tiny syntax details, some of which feel unnecessary.

Online lectures and they're only about 1 hr long each week. Didn't have to spend much time on this class which was nice. Exams were pretty difficult though so make sure to watch every lecture and memorize everything.

Professor Swenson has a very organized class, homework is based purely on lecture material that you watch online. You have one class a week where you can basically just ask for help. My only issue is her exams are insanely hard, you must memorize exact wording from lecture materials. I ended up doing poorly on the both the midterm and final.

Professor Swenson is a sweetheart, caring for her students success. Half the class is asynchronous, so it's nice to go at my own pace and then review the lectures once in person. The only difficulty was 80% was graded on exams, and 20% on participation/attendance. No HW credit, but you are expected to do HW to maintain a good grade.

Professor Swenson is really nice. Really passionate about the contents, and would answer a lot of questions you have through easier examples. Though the lectures do need to take some time to adapt to and finish them, but you can do the lectures with your own pace (since part of them are online). A caring professor that can lead you into statistics.

Professor Swenson is genuinely one of the kindest people ever. Math isn't my forte and I was really intimidated coming in but she broke down concepts so well and provided so many examples for everything which really helped me. Love her!!! (also the python aspect of this class isn't super serious so don't worry)

There was 1 prerecorded lecture and 1 in person lecture per week. The prerecorded lecture was laid out very well so it was easy to take notes and follow along, in person lecture was a review of the recorded one. She curved the final grade. I highly recommend because I'm already recognizing irl concepts that I learned from this class.

Swenson is a sweet person, and explained course content in a thorough and clear manner. While lectures are online asynchronously, I recommend going to her office hours, hosted during class time for help with homework questions. Beware of the detailed midterm and final worth 70% of your grade (I could only get a C+ with a generous curve).

The class is entirely online except for the midterm and final, which are worth 30 and 40% of grade respectively. If you have questions, go to office hours; she is super helpful and really wants to make sure you get the hw correct and understand material. Tests are tough, but if you review lectures a ton, you will do well.

Professor Swenson is really sweet and extraordinarily clear. There were concrete expectations. There was definitely a lot of work to be put into the class with the flipped classroom technique and two sections per week, but if you keep up with it all there's no reason you won't do well.

She is such a sweet lady! Unfortunately statistics was such an easy subject for me in high school, but the hybrid mode just doesn't work for me (or seemingly lots of people in this class). With C or lower averages on every midterm for the class, it seems like the review she does on Thursdays (in person days) just doesn't get the job done.

great lecturer, extremely helpful online videos, quizzes are basically the same as homework so easy points. The two midterms are easy, the final was a bit hard

Lectures are online, section is learning basic Python and doing worksheets based off the (optional) homework. The material itself was moderate in difficulty. Math required for the class is just simple Algebra and factorials, and a good calculator. Midterms/quizzes were very similar to the homework. If you ACTUALLY do the homework, youll be fine.

Great professor who has classes structured to be efficient and self-taught with many chances for support and help. Overall, I would take it again.

Swenson is super caring and is very accessible if you have questions. If you can, attend office hours for more personalized teaching. The class gets a bit tricky later on with a lot of methods/formulas to memorize but an A is very achievable with good effort.

SO sweet, can tell she genuinely cares about the success of her students. Go to her office hours! Even if you don't have a question, learning from other people's questions helped me do really well in this course.

Prof Swenson is a very thorough and detailed in her explanations of the course material, and if you show up to all the in-person lectures, the homework will be really easy. Tests are a bit harder, make sure you're finishing those lecture videos all the way through. Some MC questions are tricky. And be prepared to write the code onto paper.

Took over summer and was very fair and did a curve. Make sure to watch all lecture videos and study the homework/lecture exercise code and you'll be fine.

she is awesome. i took stats in high school and hated it, but after this class i genuinely want to switch my major to stats & data science. love that lady

she's super kind and i really enjoyed the class. tests are heavy but nothing that you haven't done in class already. very straight forward

Lecture videos are clear and well-explained. I went to office hour for five times to listen to her explanation on homework. It was totally worth it. She has the ability to explain every concept clearly. Mid-terms are multiple choice. The lab questions are a bit confusing. The Final exam is harder but if you really study, you will get an easy A+.

Professor Swenson is such a clear teacher and she is super nice! The class has two lectures with one being online. She will post videos that you can watch at your own time. There are two midterms that are multiple choice and a final exam that is free response. If you do the homework and you pay attention in class the course should be pretty easy.

There is one online lecture, but it is actually three self-paced videos each week. Each video has questions, and you get credit by answering just one correctly. She really tries to make the class easier for everyone and grades generously. I like professors like this. I recommend TA Monte's section—very responsible and attentive.