2.7
Quality4.0
Difficulty43%
Would Retake91
Reviews43%
Would Retake
91
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
24
4
9
3
10
2
14
1
34
What Students Say
“Hood was an amazing example of how not to teach Calculus”
MA161 - 1.0 rating“And she wonders why most of the students got below a 50% on the first exam”
MA166 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
8%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.86 avg changeRatings by Course
MA303
5.0
(1)MA261
4.2
(19)MA27101
4.0
(2)MA266
3.7
(7)MA161
2.9
(17)Difficulty by Course
MA166
4.4
MA161
3.9
MA162
3.6
MA261
3.6
MA266
3.4
Reviews (91)
Dr. Hood is truly one of the best professors I've ever had. She explains difficult mathematical concepts very clearly, and is incredibly helpful during office hours. The structure of her course is fair, and you can tell she values her students' well-being. Dr. Hood has my highest recommendation.
Dr. Hood is probably the best professor I will ever have. Her lectures are very easy to follow and she explains concepts so that we can actually understand them. Very helpful during office hours and doesn't just tell you the answer but rather helps you to find it yourself.
Dr. Hood is a fine lecturer, very clear, and gave pretty fair homework sets. I had the most issue with the final exam. Despite the ENTIRETY of the semester being online (open book, too), the "on-campus" section was REQUIRED to test in person. Ridiculous! Final was also a massive 33% of my grade, so a D kinda tanked all my hard work for the semester
Very unfair, absolutely the worst experience in my student life. Cannot teach.
The class goes at an unreasonably fast pace and when students told her about how we all felt that the class was moving to fast, instead of slowing down she sped up even more. And she wonders why most of the students got below a 50% on the first exam.
She is one of the worst professors at Purdue. This class moves at a pace that it nearly impossible to follow. When the class told her she was going to fast over hard topics she went even faster. She spent one lecture on the hardest topic in Calc 2 and wondered why no one understood it. All previous exams are no where near similar to one another.
Kaitlyn Hood is a professor that moves VERY quickly through content. She does so without pausing for the class to comprehend or understand what she's written. Forget about writing things word for word, she moves so fast that only some main ideas can be written down before she's onto another problem or topic.
Barely goes into any detail about the topics. Examples are too basic, and not good for comprehension.
I don't understand how anyone could learn anything from this professor. She does not explain anything. If she does it's minor. Horrible professor.
Other reviews are correct that Dr. Hood moves extremely quickly through the course content. However, the lecture notes that she gives are organized and if you spend time with them as well as make an effort on the homework, you will eventually be able to understand the material. I felt that exams were fair, you just have to put in the work.
So much material per exam, the overall curve for the classes are generally at least one whole letter grade due to so many people failing. It's possible to do ok in the course, it just takes a tonnnn of work and effort and time time time. This class is notorious for being THE biggest weedout course, and it's true. Hwk/quizzes worth very little too.
Exams are brutal. Lectures are waste of time.
Really hard exams and the lectures do not cover the type of questions on the exams.
Dr. Hood is disorganized, continued to teach new material until 2 days before the final. Cancelled class at the last minute and changed schedule often. Lectures are slow, doesn't properly explain problems, doesn't help learn. She asks for feedback but doesn't listen to it. When students fail her exams avg 3/12, blames students' study techniques. :(
Dr.Hood does not care about her students. She teaches a class to nearly all engineers, yet most people fail exams she blames them for not "working hard", even though most study for a weeks in advance. The reality is the lec, hw, quizzes, and past exams do not prepare you for the exams. Learned more watching youtube videos than I did in her lec.
This is a tough class and Hood was not the most prepared for this semester. Some of these other reviews exaggerate the class, but it is tough. Put this class at the top of your priority when you take it and preferable don't take it when Hood teaches it. If she does teach it again, take 162 instead to get better practice with the concepts.
She only goes over how we got a method of solving, not how to use it in examples. Also, she writes notes very fast to the point where you will miss notes just trying to keep up. No one knows what they are doing and the exams are nothing like the homework, which is also hard.
She doesn't really explain how to apply the concepts taught in the lecture. She also moves very quickly and by the time you catch up on the notes, she's a whole section ahead. The homework seems nothing like the example problems in the lecture, and the test is a whole other demon itself.
Professor Hood lectures very fast and speaks exactly what she writes without explaining the concepts she's meant to be teaching. The lecture problems have almost zero relation to homework or quizzes, and none of the above are remotely similar to the content on exams, which the provided study guides are negatively useful in studying for.
Calc 2 is known to be a difficult class, especially at Purdue, Dr. Hood's lectures aren't helpful, she routinely works through practice problems that aren't helpful, and regularly after asking the class they will be speechless out of confusion. They were only decent close to the exam where students would pick the practice questions.
Prof. Hood is one of the worst math teachers I've ever had. Her lectures are always way too fast, she never waits or asks questions to the audience, and if she does, she waits like 2 seconds for a response and just gives the answer anyway. She does not care if anyone is paying attention either. Half the time the class is loud and she does nothing.
Shouldn't be allowed to teach Calc 2. Moves way too fast, does not care about everyone's learning whatsoever. She is incapable of explaning complex topics, and her examples are not dense enough and do not relate to exams. Switch out or take 162, will save you lots of pain.
This professor should really reevaluate how she is going to teach this course if she ever does ever again. She was essentially a ghost professor. Recycled study guides that were already proven ineffective from the first exam. Horrible at explaining as well and wasn't even at office hours at the designated times at least when I went. AVOID!
She teaches at a very fast pace which causes you to only copy notes and doesn't allow time to understand what you are writing.
She goes really fast and doesn't understand that we don't understand all the math happening in her brain. If you ask her questions after class, she is really nice but there is a reason calc 2 is the most failed math class at Purdue. that curve thoooooo.
Just dont.
Very difficult. Lower averages than historical course averages.
Exams are harder than past exams. Put in so much effort to study for this class, but could not succeed.
I took MA303 in the summer of 2021 so experiences may differ. Her lectures were clear and having her notes was a big bonus, very clearly labeled and intuitive to understand. Her lectures are also available even if you do not have her as an instructor. I think my experience may differ due to COVID and she seems to be better at teaching upper level.
Does not know how to curve exams. She made it so that 40% of the class failed the final.
My final grade was a 65.8 which got curved to a c+. This class was awful. It was extremely difficult to understand what Professor Hood was saying. She moved quickly and spoke softly. Calc 2 is the FYE weed out class. Transfer credit in if you can.
I felt like this class was definitely manageable compared to what others are saying. I only looked off of her lecture notes to study for exams and did pretty well on them all things considered. She does speak pretty quickly, but overall she is very nice and will answer any questions you have. She was not a bad professor by any means.
This professor consistently created exams that were much more difficult than practice exams. The study guide provided was not helpful as it only included a brief overview. Lecture went way too fast and lecture examples were the most basic ones and didn't correlate to homework/exams. However, lecture notes were easy to understand after lecture.
Many failed this course. Professor Hood made exams more difficult than past exams. This class has been the most difficult and has the lowest pass rate I've seen. I'm lucky to have passed this class.
Just don't. Save yourself.
The exams that she writes are very rough, however I feel as though she does a good job at presenting the material in Calc 2. Her lectures provide good example problems and help a lot with homework and studying. I do not feel as though the fast-paced nature of the class is her fault, Calc 2 is just kind of structured like that.
this class was really challenging for me. i thought calc 1 was a breeze but calc 2 was NOT it. dr hood seems nice she just made the tests really hard and didn't have the most helpful lectures. my advice if you are in this class is to study after each lecture so you don't fall behind in material when the content starts to move fast.
You will not pass if you miss one of her lectures. These lectures are extremely fast paced and almost impossible to keep up with when taking notes.
THIS IS NOT CALC 1. She seems nice but the tests are extremely difficult. All you can do is study the best you can and try to get through the class. Study lectures and practice exams were not very helpful. Do HW and quizzes and may the curve be every in your favor!
Material was hard and her teaching it made it harder. She goes through topics very quickly in lecture and does not do a good job explaining concepts. If you have her as a professor be prepared to learn the material through the homework or other ways.
Cares more about moving through material then actually teaching it with students understanding what shes saying.
Lecture Heavy, but easy to follow work. Clear notes and answers all student questions
Calc 2 becomes very abstract with series towards the end, and she does not do a great job with explaining those concepts. If you take her for 166 be ready to seriously study for exams for an A or even a B. Use Spring 2022 exams as guide for how she writes her exams, as she takes heavy influence from past exams when writing hers.
"Dr". Hood was an amazing example of how not to teach Calculus. She loved to teach our class at the speed of light and force the TAs to teach us the concepts she failed to teach. If I could tell every incoming Purdue Student that needs to take Calc. 1 to stay as far away from this lousy, nefarious, and all-around awful professor I would.
Yes, this class can be difficult, but that is not Prof Hood's fault. It's Purdue math, so don't be upset if you don't do great. As for Dr. Hood, she is a good at explaining the concepts, and she answers every question given to her. The poor ratings are probably from people who never did their work.
In general, MA 16100 is a weed-out class, so you're going to have the same difficulty with each professor. Dr Hood does a great job alleviating the fear associated with this class. She answers any questions that are asked and posts the notes online. She does go through lecture quickly, but the speed is easy to adapt to.
Professor Hood is a solid teacher. Sometimes it seems like she just wants to get through the material, but still teaches it well. The lectures are posted online so it isnt required to go, but I would really recommend for you to go in person. No extra credit. The practice exams help tons for the real exam. If you pay attention in class youll pass.
I do not know why shes giving two quizzes every week in person and you'll have to use your own papers.
She is absolutely awful. Anytime someone asks a question, she has no idea how to answer it. Also every single recitation class consists of our ta's not explaining anything, followed by an extremely hard quiz. During lectures she only gives one single example in her notes for everything, so good luck on the exceptions!
Frustrating. The examples she covers in class are nowhere close to the difficulty of the homework and the following quiz in recitation. Most of the TA's are completely useless, and the only reason I survived Calc 1 is because I covered the content in the textbook before going to lecture.
Dr Hood is horrible. I go to her class for only one reason and it's the extra credit she offers on Fridays. I watch ChenFlix instead. She has bad handwriting and does not know how to teach. She is one of those Profs that just does things and expects you to follow instead of teaching and walking you through the little things. Horrible. Matsuki >
During my first semester at Purdue I was in calculus 1 with Dr Hood, where I ended with an A+. My initial opinion was that she was a pretty bad professor whose lectures were maybe kind of useful. But now, in the middle of calculus 2, with her once again as my professor, I have concluded that her lectures go way too fast for the complex material.
Clear and organized. Very helpful in office hours. Exams are hard
Dr. Hood can be helpful when communicating with her one on one. However, most of the time she rushes through a lot of lecture material that should be covered in greater detail. Your exam grades will feel like a complete dice roll but it's the same for everyone else.
Don't even go to her lectures just use Chenflix! It will help out so much better! Quizzes for recitation are all based on homework questions but the exams and midterms are more challenging! Past exam archives will be your go-to for studying for midterms! The only thing I liked about having her as a professor was that she gave out study guides.
Overall, I wouldn't say she is a bad professor. Sometimes she can be a little bit monotone, and sometimes you will have lectures where you are completely lost. To solve this, watch the Chenflix lectures before each class. You don't need to do this the whole semester, but I would recommend doing this once getting to series if you're taking calc 2.
Her lectures aren't very good; she goes really fast and does a poor job of explaining examples. Exams are difficult and weighted heavy. If you're good at math you'll be fine but if you aren't you'll probably want to watch Chenflix for lectures instead of her.
Prof. Hood is very knowledge on the content being presented in lecture, however, her delivery often lacks and thus Chenflix must be supplemented. The content of the course is challenging post exam 2 and I would recommend running lots of past exams to ensure you do well on the exams. Her office hours tend to be extremely helpful.
The exams were nothing like the homework problems (I ended with a 100% homework grade but still didn't pass the class). I would definitely suggest students attend her office hours / watch Chenflix. Honestly though, she isn't the worst professor ever. If she didn't spend so much time on Hotseat, she might have had enough time to cover the topics.
Professor Hood is not a very good lecturer overall, almost all of her lectures include examples that she will begin and not work through entirely. You are better off watching chenflix instead of attending her lectures. She wrote exams that were extremely difficult as well, as two of the four exams had D averages. Be ready to teach yourself.
Dr. Hood is the best calculus teacher I have had so far. She explains things clearly, which made things easy for me to understand. One common complaint was that she talked/moved really fast through the content, but that wasn't really an issue for me. The exams do count for a lot of the grade, but doing past exams generally helped me.
If you are willing to put the time and a lot of effort, the a good grade is not impossible. I recommend SI sessions a lot.
I'm here to gripe about the ridiculous amount of useless homework in the class. Roughly 20 problems 3 times a week is unnecessary, and rarely are even the majority helpful. Often they consist of repeated massive computations that don't teach you the "tricky" things to look out for or require any real thinking. They are also nothing like the exams.
Professor Hood ensures that her classes are rigorous, but there are plenty of resources available for a student to succeed. Dr. Hood always get through her lecture content, which can be overwhelming. However, she is always open to answering questions before, during, and after lectures. I enjoy how Dr. Hood shows different ways to approach problems.
Dr. Hood is an excellent lecturer for MA 261. She is very helpful in office hours and takes time to answer questions during/after lectures. Her lectures are thorough, and the lecture checks for understanding are useful for exam practice questions. Exam/HW system is the same as most Purdue math courses. Highly recommend Dr. Hood for this course.
Dr. Hood is the best instructor for this course.
I was originally assigned to go to Glubokov's lectures but I got a 76 on the exam with his teaching. Then I started going to Dr. Hood's lectures and I understood everything a lot better. Got a 92 on the second exam. She is wonderful and a great teacher.
Dr.Hood is the best lecturer for Calc 3 this semester by far. I had her for Calc 1 and 2 and she has truly improved across semesters.
Quite possibly the worst professor I've had for any of the 3 calculus classes I've done in Purdue. Her ability to take incredibly simple concepts and teach them in the most confusing way possible is simply outstanding. I would leave lectures confused and knowing less than I did before they started. Avoid her at all costs.
Dr. Hood was the best lecturer I've ever had. She always explained concepts well and went into depth with each topic discussed in lecture. She is very thorough in teaching concepts and gets through all of the material. I used to attend Glubokov's lectures, but he would only get through half of the material which left me very confused.
Dr Hood did a great job aligning the lectures, homework, and the exams. It was a lot of work but I felt prepared for the final.
Greatly enjoyed taking her Calculus 3 class. She always made sure to introduce new concepts by reviewing old ones and then extending from there, which made understanding those concepts a lot easier. She also seemed very caring and passionate about the course, which is always a bonus.
I would only go to the lectures for review material before exams, but she answers questions both during and out of class well.
The lectures were clear. Dr. Hood really cares about the students. She is one of the best calc professors at Purdue.
Dr. Hood is a fantastic professor. Lectures, office hours/study sessions before exams are very helpful and you can tell she really cares about her students. Fall 2023 final had numerous issues (questions without correct answers), but she responded well to student concerns and handled the situation as best as she could. Best Calc 3 prof by far.
Dr. Hood was the best calc professor I've had. The fall 2023 final was a hot mess, which was unfortunate because I went from an A+ to a B+. Regardless, Dr. Hoods lectures were amazing, with many opportunities to ask for questions/clarification. I also liked Dr. Hood's dedication to her students by providing more office hours before tests
This class was my second time having Dr. Hood, and I would take every math class with her if I could. Her lectures are very clear, and she provides notes that match them. She also takes time to answer everyone's questions in detail. People's biggest complaint about her is the exams, but it's just like any other Purdue math or engineering course.
Please just use chenflix. Her lectures are messy/unorganized and seem almost rushed. However, the exams she writes are on the easier side. Don't really know how people are giving her fives.
She is a very solid, caring calc professor. She frequently asks for student input and utilizes it. The only issue I had was that she sometimes struggled to explain why a certain theorem works. This made it so understanding why certain things work was tough. That being said, she's a great choice and she'll keep improving as she gains experience.
Professor Hood is not bad by any means, as her lectures are pretty average at best. I understood most of it but was often confused, way more so than in calc 2. The homework were very lengthy, and sometimes had no help if I was completely lost. The midterms were very fair but the final was incredibly scuffed, but that might've not been her fault.
Dr. Hood is an average lecturer, no standout qualities in her teaching. She seems kind enough but there were times the material was not taught in the clearest manner.
Least favorite math teacher ever. Have never been more confused and she could not answer questions during lecture or office hours correctly. Final exam average was 52% and standard deviation was a 38%.
Dr. Hood is a great prof for MA266. Notes are promptly posted to Brightspace, and lectures have plenty of examples and use iclicker practice questions which are helpful for review. Her section had very high averages on both midterms (high 80s). Some practice materials had a few typos but not much of an issue.
Hello freshman, here's what you need to know for Hood's MA161. 1. She is organized. Know what you will be doing in lecture. Check Brightspace page weekly. 2. Watch Chenflix/Organic Chem Tutor before class. Please, for your sake, do this. 3. BoilerExams/Purdue Past Exam Archive to review for tests. 4. Have a good TA, and go to office hours.
Overall quite a good professor. Very approachable in and outside of lecture, takes a lot of questions and answers them in a satisfying way. The exams are difficult, conceptually pretty dense, but this is a Purdue math thing in general.
Overall lectures by her are average, and you don't really have to attend. Class itself is tough and sometimes it can feel like she hasn't taught you enough to do some of the homework/exam problems but honestly MA 161 depends a lot on your recitation TA rather than the lecture professor
Dr. Hood explained topics clearly, and her clicker questions and review were good preparation for exams. Lectures were engaging, and she was very helpful in office hours.
The class itself is hard, but I don't think that has to do with Dr. Hood's abilities. She does a good enough job during lectures, and is a pleasant teacher. Most of MA 161 really depends on your TA's abilities to explain things
I loved the way that she explained the topics in class. She demonstrated how to go about difficult Calculus I problems in a logical, clear manner. She was also very kind to students, and was willing to advocate for those who could not hear due to unrelated noise. Overall, great instructor.
Amazing professor for Honors Calc 3. Lectures are very organized, and she covers everything in a way that makes it understandable.
(For context, I'm a math major) She couldn't really explain the more difficult topics all too well; had to come to her office hours a lot to get those down. But she's very accessible and makes time for her students. Lectures were easy to understand, and were almost always explained intuitively and with some sort of proof. Exam was relatively easy.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
8%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.86 avg changeRatings by Course
MA303
5.0
(1)MA261
4.2
(19)MA27101
4.0
(2)MA266
3.7
(7)MA161
2.9
(17)Difficulty by Course
MA166
4.4
MA161
3.9
MA162
3.6
MA261
3.6
MA266
3.4