2.6
Quality3.7
Difficulty27%
Would Retake106
Reviews27%
Would Retake
106
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
16
4
16
3
22
2
19
1
33
What Students Say
“Some would say love is a strong feeling, but hate is stronger”
PSYC358 - 1.0 rating“The tests are so hard that it Kurtz my brain”
PSYC358 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
38%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.54 avg changeRatings by Course
PYSC112
5.0
(1)PSYCHOLOGY
5.0
(1)PSYC352
5.0
(1)PSYC497
5.0
(1)COGN300
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PSYC348
5.0
PSYC356
4.3
PSYC358
4.0
PSYC 358
4.0
PSYC359
4.0
Reviews (106)
Prof Kurtz is awesome, so cheery and HAPPPY even at 8:30 in the morning.
most hysterical and amazing professor he makes waking up at 830 enjoyable!
Very peppy man.
cool dood
I want to throw something at him. FAR too peppy for that early in the morning, and drives me out of my mind!!! The course is incredibly boring too.
He is a very ****(happy) professor, always cheery at 8:30, how does he do it? Oh well, lecture is a waste of life, just read the chapters in the book, and go half the time, cause now they give quizzes. Certainly should be more than 1 credit.
So cheery
He was a very weird teacher. It was also a very strange class. He knew what he was talking about but should be teaching a different course. He seemed to care about his students, but it was difficult to understand his rambling at 8:30 monday mornings
He is the worst! He didnt teach us anything, learned it all in the discussion. at 830 he wanted us to be excited about the experiments and it wasnt happening. boring and tedious, do not take this class!
If you work with Kurtz, be prepared to be on top of a lot of different projects at once. Not necessarily bad, but definately have to be on his case to show you how to do things, because he usually expects you to know details without really going into it.
worst prof ive ever had in my life. id rather have a tumor than take his class again
the most annoying thing... he had no control over the class. almost everyone in his lecture talked and he thought that going "shhhhhh" was going to make ppl shut up. nice, smart, but for someone who should understand human behavior... didn't do
Oh my god is he BRUTAL... he takes it way too seriously for a credit class... u do way too much work for a 1 credit class... and his class is sooo boring but u have 2 go bc he gives pop quizzes. very annoying class- but it is easy
I can't say enough that psych lab was a complete joke. Not much has to do with Prof. Kurtz, but the head TAs. Never seek anything from any of the head TAs, as it is a widely knwon fact that they all work for Satan. I mean...
very easy class, more work than you want from a one credit class but still so easy. just do the work and youre set, no tests
one of the best professors in the school, really cool and interesting class, highly recommended
I fell asleep every class, notes are horrible and make no sense, nice guy but painfully boring, tests are pretty hard
Horrible. His notes are complete crap, mostly open ended questions he never answers. His TA was snotty. Tests are tricky. Not worth it.
HORRIBLEEE!!! Notes make NO sense. I fall asleep EVERY class, not even 1/2 class show up, DO NOT know how his TA grade the HW, avg. is like a 2/5 but doesnt seem like he cares.Tests are LONG and HARD. Thought cog's interesting. Totally disappointed
hes really way too happy but it grows on you and he's a great professor. you definitely dont just get the book spit back at you... the lectures are material from the book but then you get to think about that stuff. his tests come from the books and are pretty fair if you try studying a lil. not completely easy but worth it if you wanna learn stuff.
Really nice, always very very happy. His lectures can be a bit confusing, but you can tell he is really interested in cognition. Focus on the text book for tests - I would say 98% of the questions are from the text. Overall, I am satisfied with this class and happy I took it.
his notes are worthless, homework assignments are bs, and listening to him lecture makes u want to pull ur arm off and throw it at him. even though i got an A in the class, it was one of the worst experiences of my life and i do NOT recommend taking a class w/ him.
As said before, his notes are completely useless. Not even worth copying, let alone studying for an exam. Extremely boring. The book is by far my interesting than he is...and that says a lot...
Very enthusiastic; knows his stuff, too. Tests mostly come from the book, though.
Completely confusing and his speeches wander back and forth from clear thoughts to rambling and chaos.
Going to class is completely useless. He tests 98% from the textbook, which is a LOT of reading, and babbles on in class about nothing. If you're good at memorizing HUGE amounts of information, this class is for you. Tests are on around 150-200 textbook pages. Material isn't hard, its just a matter of memorizing it all. TA was cranky & mean ALWAYS
Best professor EVER!!
Wow. I'm speechless this class was my most miserable college experience by far, and I say this as a psych major. Do NOT..I repeat DO NOT Take this class it is crucial to your mental well being.
awful. his notes make absolutely no sense. "getting the world into your mind"="vision" WHAT?! i THOUGHT i was interested in cognition.. completely ruined it for me... i read the text book fully/go to class only do average. awful.
The class is heavily geared towards teaching students how to think analytically and become cognitive researchers. He means well and is nice but the notes are abstract + hard to follow. He often lectures on info not in the book which makes it difficult to review material for exams since you are expected to know the txt +the lecture notes.
ok. you HAVE to get his notes from class or you'll miss dumb questions on the exams. you HAVE to memorize the book, including a thorough knowledge of the experimental examples that are used. if you don't, you won't have anything to write about on his exams, which you have an hr and a half to finish and there are 55 mc and 2 essays on them.
Great teacher. Clearly explains a difficult subject. Essay questions on test. Tests are challenging, but interesting. Grades fairly.
Very knowledgeable, willing to discuss ideas & clarification of his lectures after class. Personable & approachable. Tests are hard, but not impossible. Exam material is mostly textbook-based, only 3 exams given. Many people find him boring & hard, but come on. This isn't high school. Makes cognition interesting. Def take it if you want to learn.
Study for the exams, there's only 2 during the semester, 2 hw assignments & a final. Does a good job explaining concepts, interesting, and makes you think critically. Def knows his stuff. If you work hard, read the text, & get his lectures, you'll get an A. Don't be afraid to ask questions, he'll answer them & won't make you feel like an imbecile.
Ok so here's the deal- this class is hard, but not impossible. I didn't always go to class and did fine. Know the book SUPER well and be prepared for essay questions on the test.Teacher knows his stuff and can be confusing at times, but read the text and you'll get it. Take this class, you'll learn some pretty cool stuff. DO NOT TAKE PERCEPTION.
Very interesting seminar. I learned a lot, but Kurtz is a little disorganized for my taste. Expects graduate level work at all times when we were freshman. However, really knows his stuff and makes you think. Not very available outside of class, and not very good at answering emails&needed to badger to get an answer to questions.Good overall.
Enthusiastic about the material, but his tests (especially the multiple choice) make no sense and are worded extremely awkwardly. I found the textbook and his lectures useless.
This is one of the smartest professors at Binghamton, but he does not convey his intelligence well to students. Lectures are long, boring, and don't delve into the material as much as they could. Reading and understanding the textbook is a must. Very interesting material, but mc on tests are wordy and somewhat irrelevant. Overall, disappointed.
Very confusing at times. Lectures only follow the book part of the time, and the rest of the time are based on concepts that you will never be tested on. Tests questions, especially the multiple choice, are extremely difficult and usually are not straight from the book or lecture.
Tests are straightforward, but hard to study for, and the lectures are insanely boring. You're tested on about 150 pages of terms, concepts, and people at a time, plus a few things from lecture, which makes studying an absolute hell. Luckily he curved the grade at the end (I averaged about a C or C+ realistically and I got a B for my final grade).
Lectures are extremely dull and he takes the entire hour and a half, giving us slides to copy through the next class comes in. Three tests make up almost all of your grade, no attendance or discussion taken. Two homework assignments were given. Moderate curve at the end of class, much needed. Tests were difficult and on so much information each.
2 tests and a cumulative final. take the class. it's a good class, really. You will find that this man is brilliant, which makes going worth it. But realize the course is HARD. Yes, it's hard. Cognition is hard.
Dr. Kurtz is a brilliant man. The problem though is hes too confusing. His notes are 100% unorganized and incomprehensible. There's not enough time to take his exams (50 MC + full essays) and he always lectures past the class period to the point where the next class is coming in. 2 tests. 1 final. 2HW assignments. Avg on exams was ~64. HARD class.
WORST TEACHER EVER! His lectures are unbearably boring, notes are very disorganized, what he says is so confusing in class, and he doesn't use the textbook that much. I attended every single class and took notes but did poorly on the exams. Didn't know his grading policy and does do much to interact with the class! Regret taking this class so much!
Class IS hard but you can do well if you study for the tests (aka outline the txtbook) at least a week in advance. His class notes are extremely confusing; best way around it is to look over/reorganize your notes the day you take them. MANAGE YOUR TIME ON EXAMS (essays: more about vomiting information, less about organization). Final grade curved!
Class is extremely difficult. Must study at least 2 weeks in advance as there is SO much info on the tests. Around 200 vocab words per test. I read the whole text book and went to every class only to get 70s on the tests. He's really boring and confusing, I would not recommend taking.
He's a brilliant researcher but a very difficult teacher. The class is very interesting but he makes the material much more difficult than it needs to be. His tests are extremely long with both MC and short answers. It's almost impossible to complete it on time. On top of that, it appears that he intentionally tries to trick students on his tests.
Kurtz is a good lecturer and makes cognition interesting. You HAVE to read the textbook to pass, and I'd recommend outlining the material. His lecture slides are poor notes, so listen and take your own. Cool guy. Your grade is composed of only two midterms and a final, and some 1-point extra credits. Would recommend for psych majors.
Super interesting material and great professor, I just wish his lecture notes helped you generalize concepts to specific examples like he expects you to do on tests. There really isn't enough materialpractice in the class in order for 90% of people to get over a B on tests. Average is a C-. Expect big curve. Do extra credit. Participation counts.
His tests are very difficult but you will definitely learn a lot about cognition. He's kind of a big dork but he makes the class very interesting.
Dr. Kurtz is a very intelligent, well-read professor. I enjoyed his class and found it engaging. His "slides" are just guides for him as he lectures; I mostly ignored them and took my own notes. Tests are long and require you keep track of your time, but I did well on the exams. Would recommend to someone interested in cognition.
Dr. Kurtz is very clearly intelligent, and knows his material extremely well. His lectures are mostly presented from memory; don't expect to just copy slides. His tests are very difficult, and they require you to not only know the facts, but to understand the underlying systems at play as well.
3 tests, 6 short article summaries, and lots of extra credit opportunities. I came into this class expecting a beating, but the tests really weren't that bad. The content comes entirely from the textbook, so if you read it a few times before the exam you'll get at least a B. You can correct your test afterwards and get points back too.
Extremely boring professor that over complicates simple topics. Stick to the textbook (which is also boring) it'll be more useful
He is literally verbatim from the textbook. Just study the book and you'll do fine. He gives a written on the test. The lightbulbs are annoying but they're mandatory. I always skipped class, I only went if didn't understand something in the book. He gives back the test. Get one from someone who took it previously he copies and pastes questions.
Dr. Kurtz is great. He explains topics so well in lecture and makes sure to involve everyone in the discussion, even in a large lecture hall. He's easy to understand, offers extra credit, and is very approachable. I really thought this class was interesting and not just taken because I had to take it
Kurtz is a very fair professor. His test are hard if you don't read thoroughly, but easy if you do. There's usually a curve and he allows you to make up points on your tests. The lightbulb assignments aren't the most fun, but you need to do them. He is a really nice guy who wants to interact with students, sadly he's stuck in a huge lecture format.
I enjoyed the material and going to lecture, but this class was very difficult. You don't stand a chance if you don't start studying over a week in advance. There's 2 tests and a final. The questions are super specific, but there is test corrections. I thought this class was too hard for what it's worth, but manageable.
WORST PROFESSOR EVER! I love psychology but this professor makes it unbelievably boring. Every class turned out to be the longest class of my life. It went by so slowly and there was nothing I could do about it. I don't blame the subjects though, this professors made it very unpleasant.
I think all I can say is Ughhhhh. The test questions are so confusing and sometimes very vague. I went to every lecture and outlined the textbook yet scored poorly on the exam. I hadn't heard this was a notoriously hard class so I'm surprised and disappointed because I just wanted to enjoy learning about cognition. Wish he posted lecture slides.
The multiple choice questions on the tests are extremely hard and meant to trick you. And they are extremely long, 50 multiple choice questions and a long essay question. Going to class does not help. You are better off never going and just outlining the textbook. The textbook is your best friend.
I've never written a 'Rate My Professor' review before but felt the need to for this class. The structure of the class is awful. 2 tests and a Final which is weighted extremely heavily. The Exam questions are tricky and the essay isn't much easier. I do not recommend taking this class at all, I personally found it to be tougher than Behavioral.
This class is boring. The material can be interesting, & he's not a bad guy, but he doesn't make it interesting. His notes are sparse & require you to listen & type practically everything he says because everything is fair game on the three huge tests he gives, which your whole grade depends on. If you know you can rely on yourself, take it.
The hardest psychology class I've ever taken. Bishop's tests has nothing on Kurtz's. His tests are basically memorization of the most random facts from the book. I hope his final is easier tomorrow. If he curves the class, then maybe I'll have a second opinion about him and write another review. So far, his class is pretty bad overall.
Some would say love is a strong feeling, but hate is stronger. When I say I hate this class with all my heart, I truly deeply mean it. Hardest psych class I've ever taken and not because of the material. BECAUSE OF THE HORRIBLE TEST QUESTIONS. Kurtz must enjoy torturing students, you cannot convince me otherwise.
Professor makes everything more confusing than it has to be. Goes super fast. Lectures are really boring. The test material is super hard. Requires a lot of work. Try not to take this class.
The tests are so hard that it Kurtz my brain. *Drumbeat*
i would have more respect for him if he at least dabs in class
He's just overall very unorganized. Gave us due dates and project outlines in mid November that were 20% and 50% of our grade. He doesn't prepare any guidelines or expectations for anything and leaves everything very broad and vague which makes things even more difficult.
This was a terrible class!! The criteria for assignments is very vague (no rubric of any kind, you either get credit or you don't). The test are also extremely long and difficult and there is not nearly enough time to finish them and feel like you did a good job.
I've seen peoples' notes in this course, and it's very clear why they do poorly or don't learn anything: You have to engage in some sort of original (critical) thought. If you want to pass this class: Come to class, ask/answer questions. Go to office hours and talk. This stuff doesn't osmose. This class DOES expect you to know the research studies.
This class does NOT require you to think critically, it requires verbatim throw up of info. The test questions are about specific findings of studies, not original thought. Curious how the average on multiple choice questions is way lower than the essay average. That means students are being fooled on multiple choice but have a deeper understanding
Really great prof. Very knowledgable and really cares about the field of psych. He's a good man. That being said, this class was very challenging. Material was both abstract and dense. But, if you listen to the lectures, read the textbooks, do the assignments, and go to office hours- you will do well!
When I chose to take this class, based on the reviews, I knew it would be hard but I didn't really have a choice. And honestly? IT WASN'T THAT BAD. I'm far from being a 4.0 student but even I was able to achieve an A. Read the textbook, take decent notes, and I promise you will be ok.
Enjoyed this class a lot. Prof. Kurtz is extremely intelligent and gives people the opportunity to participate and ask questions for discussion. I was intrigued by the material, and unlike a lot of the other reviewers thought this class provided a "desirable difficulty". It made you work, but at least for me I thought the material was worthwhile :)
Most of the bad reviewers were part of a literal Facebook group of people with bad notes or no notes, so take the reviews with a grain of salt. Very difficult class. Have to read. Have to know specific experiments and the names associated w/them. He gives points at the end of semester for participation in class discussions! So ask questions often!
Dont trust those (good) reviewers down here. I read the whole book several times and the questions they ask are not as clear cut as they are. Apparently there is no curve implemented this year. multiple choice he asks are tricky and the assignments are full of baloney. this is fair warning to stay away from this class.
You dont have to go to class. Everything is in the textbook. Test are hard. Lectures and his voice are annoying. If you dont gl to class get the notes from someone. Lightbulbs are easy just dont overthink them.
Do not take cognition with Kurts. He is able to take an inherently interesting and easy to understand topic and make it as boring and confusing as possible. The tests are unreasonably difficult, his lectures are impossible to follow, and even the textbook chapters he assigns are poorly organized and unhelpful. Avoid this professor.
he tends to spend too much time on certain chapters and rushes through others. lightbulbs are pretty useless. his notes are presented in a word document which is annoying. makes things more difficult than they are. the essay portion on the tests makes it pretty much impossible to finish the test
If you want a class where you won't have any clue how you're doing until you get your final grade then I definitely recommend this class. His lecture were pretty useless and on top of that he somehow had the nerve to give long detailed exams with an hour to complete it. He expected so much from his students, but at the same time did nothing to help
Very interesting Professor. He expected so much from his students, but at the same time did nothing to help. I had past exams, the textbook, lecture notes, etc. I still ended up with a terrible grade. On top of that, the whole semester I thought I was doing very well, but one of those classes where you have no clue until the very end. Big shock.
extremely hard grader and doesn't want to help students do well. Seems interested in his topics, but portrays everything very poorly. Based on three tests and lightbulbs won't boost your grade. Would not take this professor.
Excellent class. One of the hardest, and easily the best, class I've taken yet at Bing
Far better than his score here. He expects you to ask questions. If you don't read, you won't do well. If you don't understand something, you'll get it wrong on the test. If you don't try, you won't do well. Apply yourself, engage with material, and ask questions. If you understand the material, the tests aren't difficult.
The material isn't for everyone, but this class really isn't bad. Lectures are somewhat interesting and pretty straight forward. If you're prepared for the exams, you should get good grades. You have to do 6 "lightbulbs"--short summaries that demonstrate critical analysis of journal articles. Tedious but easy! Work hard & you'll do well
The subject of cognition is extremely interesting. I genuinely think that this professor does care about teaching, however, he is just not very good at it. The way he explains things is drawn out and boring, so it's on you to teach yourself the material. The exams are extremely difficult and it is very difficult to do well.
Avoid this class!!! Run!!! This man gives bad grades to well deserving students ! He gives knowledge repair as an experiment on your grades! If you take this course take it with someone else other than him you might learn more and you learn more form the textbook than him the exam is very difficult and dont give you much time to prepare
Grading system is v unfair. 6 "lightbulb" assignments 3 tests: 50 mult. choice, essay Q ( 2 parts). 2 are given during the semester so only 1h25 1 during finals week we got the full 2 hours Not enough time to complete the exam well, v hard exams Points back thru knowledge repair requires too much work + is unfair as you particip. in a study
This is by far one of the worst professors I have ever had at Binghamton. You can attend every lecture and do every single one of his assignments and he will still give you a bad grade. He is not accesible or responsive to questions. He is unclear about grading and if you ask a question about it he pushes it to the side. Avoid at any and all cost.
All these negative reviews are because this class requires you to put the work in. It is an interesting class, tests are pretty straightforward, lightbulbs are easy. The material itself is HARD but if you attend lectures, take notes, read the textbook and ask questions, you will do well (and there is a curve).
The class is difficult but the information is interesting and I actually liked the textbook. He has a unique grading system that could work for or against you. I enjoyed the class a lot more after seeing him in his office hours which were almost always empty; he is a very nice guy . Getting a hold of old tests helps a lot too.
Just don't study everything in the last minute like I did, go to class, read the book, and you will be fine. He's ridiculously intelligent and open minded, but veeery humble about it. His approach to teaching is a breath of fresh air- he seems to put the fluid exchange of ideas above everything else and truly wants to hear what you have to say
Hard to follow lectures that move really slow. In order to take good notes I suggest recording the lectures on your phone. Kurtz is of little to no help. The TA was the only saving grace for my class. When it comes to tests Kurtz has an odd way of wording which was quite annoying and made tests more difficult. Beware of lots of group work.
Kurtz seems nice, but taking his class was a mistake. He never scheduled tests, instead right before midterms/break randomly announced take-home, short answer tests that ended up being 8 pages each. He then ignored students who asked for tests to be scheduled in advance after he himself asked what he could do to. make the class less stressful.
The majority of the content of this class was overcomplicated by lack of planning. Material had to be taken out due to the pace that Kurtz teaches at, and more than half of your grade is based off of group work with a useless excuse for a rubric. He obviously has a passion for the material, but it was just awfully executed.
Such a lazy prof. Couldn't even include the diagrams in his "slides." Has one TA for class of 100+ so 60% of grade is based on group work w ambiguous rubric. You basically have no control over your grade-he'll just give everyone A- or B. Learned almost nothing due to lack of structure. Will randomly drop take-home on ur schedule w two days notice
Interesting professor. During lecture, he tends to overcomplicate the material and is a bit disorganized. Reading the textbook before class was always necessary. I attribute 90% of my success in this class to the textbook. Unstable syllabus. He was accommodating within the online-learning climate by using take-home assignments and tests.
Interesting professor. During lecture, he tends to overcomplicate the material and is a bit disorganized. Reading the textbook before class was always necessary. I attribute 90% of my success in this class to the textbook. Unstable syllabus. He was accommodating in the online-learning climate by using take-home tests and assignments.
Dr. Kurtz is a great lecturer, he really knows how to explain sort of complicated phenomena in a way that people can understand. This semester we were only graded on 7 problem sets (mostly in groups) and 2 exams, attendance only hurts you, doesn't help. If you're right on the border to the next grade, he won't round. Challenging but interesting
He was passionate and cared about the material. Worst class I've taken. No rubrics and no syllabus that said when homework or tests would be assigned. He was a disorganized lecturer and reading the book was the only way to pass. Attendance was mandatory, but it didnt matter if you were listening or not because he overcomplicated the material.
Steer clear of this class and prof if possible. The material was not bad but the way the class was taught was ridiculous. Take home exams and group assignments were assigned two days before they were due. One page useless syllabus, VERY unclear rubric for assignments, grading is right or wrong based on how they interpret the work. Lecture slow.
Cares, but cannot teach.
Finished up my final presentation two days before I had to present (also one of the first to present). Met with him the following day to make sure it was good and make needed tweaks. Basically told me to start over. Now working on a group project and neither of us are completely sure what to include because no rubric was ever given.
No structure and all spoken so if you're a visual note taker you might as well give up. He overcomplicates a lot of ideas and is overly intricate with his wording (it doesn't help). There are no rubrics and the only guarantee is going to his office hours so he can further confuse you. He has expectations for you, but doesn't ever say it out loud.
kurtz is THE worst prof i've had at bing. “doesn't believe in rubrics” or instructions - 3 assignments each worth 20-35% of our grade with no instructions, and if you dare ask about anything he'll condescend to you and spew non-answers. lectures are rambles and impossible to follow. take LITERALLY anything else, course makes me genuinely depressed.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
38%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.54 avg changeRatings by Course
PYSC112
5.0
(1)PSYCHOLOGY
5.0
(1)PSYC352
5.0
(1)PSYC497
5.0
(1)COGN300
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PSYC348
5.0
PSYC356
4.3
PSYC358
4.0
PSYC 358
4.0
PSYC359
4.0