I think he is a pretty good teacher! He explained everything well, and always was available to answer my questions. His class is somewhat hard, but also fair. I learned a lot about economics.

Easy class if you stay awake, and even if you dont. The book was very easy and helpful, but i still barely used it. He pretty much goes with the book. If you pay some attention it is all just common sense.

good class if u go and participate. tests are a bit hard, though. for a good grade attendance is a must

He is a good teacher, but the tests are hard. Make sure you do the problems because that is what half on one test is and then read the book because the multiple choice is right out of the book, but the questions are worded weird to make it a hard test.

Teaches right out of the book. Tests are hard but he grades on a curve. Attendance not required.

Decent at lecturing. Doesn't seem flexible when you argue points with him. I asked him to make the tests shorter because a lot of people didn't finish in time, he gave me some BS about real life situation won't give you extra time. Still got an A in his class, but i had to work hard for it. Attending every lecture helped.

I took his class my first semester at college, so I wasn't doing much studying.I went to class on most days, though I had a period when I never went.His class is easy to understand but he can be a bit of an ass if you don't participate and play along.I got a B,but so did the other kids I studied with who did much more work than me.He just liked me.

Outstanding Professor Complex and demanding course but at the end you'll be glad you put the effort in, having learned a wealth of worthwhile knowledge.

WHOEVER THINK HE'S CUTE IS OUT OF THEIR MINDS! BUT HE IS A GOOD TEACHER! EXCELLENT AND VERY INFORMATIVE. IF YOU READ AND DO HIS PROBLEM SETS, YOU WILL DEFINITELY PASS. TAKE HIM.

One of the ONLY teachers to get it right in my entire time at CSUS. Actively incorporates headline economic news issues into every lecture and its relevance in econ terms (something normal media always leaves out). Always starts class with a "what happened in the world since last we met?" discussion. Watch out though! Tests harder than homework!!!

Hm, extremely complex course especially just for an intro but this professor was good. I actually understand him. You just gotta do the work and the optional problem sets. if you do the work you're guarantee to pass.

One of the professors I actually liked. the way he teaches is clear. he goes over materials that you will need to know for homework and test. i never really used my text book i just attended class and took notes. doing the homework helps. he provides answers for hw. not a bad course if you do the work.

Have to show up to class, do the homework sets, and engage in conversation, and you will pass no problem. He's hilarious and looks like a cartoon.

I took him a while back. His class is do-able, just show up, read the reading, and do study guide well. The class consisted of an essay/short answer midterm and cumulative final or a final paper and no final, or a non-cuml final and 10 p. paper (I know it sounds weird). I am not an econ major, difficult for a GE, but completely pass-able course.

Fantastic class

He is intimidating at first but is a really great professor to learn from. His tests are tough and reading from the book is unnecessary, skim instead. Take VERY detailed notes in class, a side note he says may be on the test. He can seem a little scary but he has no problems explaining any question in class, homework or otherwise.

One of the best professors at SacState so far. Take his classes if you really want to learn anything. Exams may be on a harder side slightly, but he grades on curve. Highly recommend!

Good professor. Really cares about the success of his students. If you show up, do the readings AHEAD of class, and participate, you'll do fine. He tracks attendance through quizzes and short response papers, so don't miss class too frequently.

Great Professor. Very insightful and knows a lot about MacroEcon. Very tough tests, he will use different definitions then he used in lecture so make sure to study all sides of the material.

This professor was great! His lectures were interesting and he always took time to explain things. He offers extra credit and gives easy little quizzes when attendance is low - so go to class, its worth it! He also curved our midterm by 21 points, so I got a 96%! Great professor

He is a very effective teacher. Gives you detailed lectures and homework packets that are really helpful. The book explains things decently. He grades based on who scores the highest, removing outliers. He drops your lowest test score. Great teacher. If you study and pay attention, you'll get an A.

If you are a full time student and not working you'll benefit from the class.If you're working full time,consider taking the class with someone else teaching it. On top of being beat-up at work, you will find that the lectures are confusing. Also,you will have to peace the readings together and you won't even come close to 20% of what he lectures.

Dowell is a great teacher. Extremely well read and has a passion for teaching. Show up to class and take good notes. He engages with students quite frequently. Tests can be somewhat challenging but not impossible. You'll learn plenty in this class if your interested. Highly recommended

I've found Professor Dowell to be pretty enjoyable and not very difficult at all, but the rest of the class seems to be struggling. I don't see how; his lectures are very clear and straightforward, midterm is take-home, and there's no surprises on the tests. Go to class, pay attention, do the reading, and it should be an easy A.

Professor Dowell assigns a ton of reading for 113 and tests are based on the lectures and reading. So, show up to class, take very good notes, read, read, and read some more. If you can do that, then you can get an A, it just takes some work on your part. The midterm is a take-home, but it is harder then any test I took in class. Good teacher.

Like any other college course, you will need to spend a significant amount of time reading and studying in order to do well. Dowell's lectures are clear and well organized. His expectations are clear. Show up to class, take detailed notes, engage yourself, and you will earn an A! Do not be scared of the negative comments below.

I like it

Great Professor! I started the semester thinking professor Dowell is extremely hard and there's no way i will pass, but i was wrong. He was very helpful and is one of my fave professors now. I feel prepared for 145! SO glad i took him. Just try your hardest, do all the hw assignments, DONT MISS CLASS, and study for tests and you will do fine.

He's quite smart and he's very aware of that. He's challenging but it's worth it since this class is for Econ majors after all and he makes us learn our stuff. His HW does take a lot of time, but it's 6 assignments for the entire semester besides the research project. He tries to scare people away, don't bite. Just don't fall behind in class.

I took him for 112 and 113, there is a lot of information. You must show up to every class for the notes. I go through about 4-5 pages of notes per lecture. The reading helps add details to his lecture but it isn't completely necessary to pass or do well. All tests are short answer- there are three. He knows his stuff. Hard but he teaches well.

Straight forward. Easy A if you just pay attention. Took him at CRC.

He teaches the course like a grad level class. If you're shaky on stats, skip this one. That being said, I learned more failing this class than I did when I aced it the following semester. Tough course that will push you to learn some pretty advanced stuff. If you have the math background for it, I would recommend him over any other instructor.

A tough class, but he's the only professor to take if you really want to learn the history of thought.

This class was scary because the final was 40% of our grade (4 essays in 2 hours, open note, but difficult because there was SO much material we covered). I stayed up every night the week before to study because I really wanted an A. Other than that 60% 3 papers. The syllabus is misleading- rather than 75100 pages/week I would say 100180.

I loved Professor Dowell's class. It's a lot of material, but he invites participation, and it really helps you remember everything if you get involved in the discussion. He does have kind of a dry, sarcastic sense of humor that rubbed some students the wrong way, but I thought he was hilarious. Just come ready to learn and you'll get along fine.

Simply put, this man is a GENIUS. His lectures are very thorough and jam packed with information. There is a substantial amount of important reading in this class that is necessary for the midterms and final. If you're one of those people who don't do the readings, you will get by if you go to every class and write down everything he says.

He definitely knows his stuff and I found the class very interesting and engaging. Dowell is a very tough grader but the tests are take home essays so it could be worse. Go to every class since the tests are on the lectures and the reading (which there is a lot of )

Prof Dowell is intelligent. He is very direct and informative. He will help you if you need it but, expects you to meet him half way. Be there every class is all I have to say. There is a lot of information in his lectures. Problems sets are tough, but they actually help you learn useful things. Just review problems sets when solutions are posted.

He's an econometrist, this is his forte. He lectures from the book so I really suggest you read it ahead of time. First half of the semester is a lot of Stats base, second half is regressions. 10 problem sets (some he collects, some he doesn't), 2 midterms, 1 final. Group study really helped a lot for this class.

If you want to be prepared for 145 then I would suggest taking him because you will learn the material. Only thing I did not like about him is that he does not like to reply to emails. Be ready to read and put in work.

Love Prof. Dowell! One of my favorite Econ professors. He's very smart and knowledgeable. His classes are hard; took him for Econ 113, 100A and 140, and had to work hard in each class, but learned so much from him. If you actually want to learn, I definitely recommend, but if you're just trying to graduate, take someone else.

I've had 100A, 113, 138, & 170. Received A-, B-, B- & B- respectively. Grades in all the courses except 100A were based on exams only. If you don't dedicate time outside of class to his materials you won't pass. Exam study guides do NOT give questions on the test. They cover concepts you should understand to perform well on the exams. Great prof.

He gets a bad rap but honestly hes not that bad. Yeah he gets kind of mad if you ask dumb questions but I would too with some of the stuff people ask. Hes really smart and although his class was hard, I learned a lot from him. No homework, 3 exams and a cumulative final. Tests are based off of lectures and the readings he posts

Good Professor if you know economics, makes you work for a good grade, heavy on reading but I managed to pass econ 112 and 113 without reading a single page.

He is tough but fair. Everyone complaining just wanted an easy "A" without actually working for it. He is lecture-heavy, and you have to do a lot of reading, but if you put forth an effort, you will pass with a decent grade.

Took his course my first semester at Sacramento State. I thoroughly enjoyed his lectures, great personality and insight into the US economic history. Highly recommend taking his course. Wish I took more of his classes.

To keep it simple, if you enjoy data analysis, this class will help you become more competitive when applying for jobs. I recommend Dowell if you want to pursue a career in data analysis/similar field. He's tough, but view his course as "training." Don't take him if you don't know what you're doing, or if you just want to graduate, you won't pass.

overall, i don't think this class was too bad. 1 quiz a week (10 questions).. 2 essays that are 2 pages each. final is 4 questions,mostly about keynes and one question about a person from the first 7 weeks of class.