I absolutely loved this class. I was never very interested in politics before, but with his fascinating anecdotes and unbiased information, I realized that I actually like learning about government!

Loved him!

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I loved politics before, but I had never had a more fun and interesting teacher! Smiling and always joking, yet unbiased. I wish I could say the 1 million great things about him in this space! THANK YOU DR GURIAN! Good TAs too!

this class was awesome and interesting even to people not interested in gov't!

Dr. Gurian is AMAZING! He made government FUN! He shows great clips from interviews and stuff. He also showed SNL skits! He's quite a character. His tests are VERY fair as long as you go to class and attend breakout you'll be fine!

yes i agree he is a good teacher and he does make it more interesting but I think some parts of the tests are kinda hard and not very fair because you have to write essays and so it can be subjective and even if you wrote a good essay, it might not be good enough. Basically, it seems kinda hard to m

Got me excited about politics, especially interesting during an election year. He gives great lectures, shows interesting clips, SNL, funny debates...tests are a little difficult, but he gives you essay topics before so that you can prepare... attend lecture and breakout and you will be fine!

He is one of the most interesting teachers I have ever had. He really enjoys politics and makes it fun and interesting for his students as well. If you get a chance take his class.

Very engaging, enthusiastic teacher. Made the subject matter very interesting, and explained everything clearly. Enjoyed the class a lot.

He is damn good teacher if you can ignore his liberal agenda.

Good teacher. Very engaging, which can be a problem because you have to hear hackneyed comments from the brainwashed students - a hapless and blatant attempt at scoring participation points. Note: If a student ever starts a comment with "I think" you can be assured they in fact do not.

Prof. Gurian does indeed attempt to make politics interesting and, if he can't do that, at least to explain it thoroughly. He admitted openly in class that much of politics is, in fact, boring, but nevertheless attempts to make it entirely engaging.

If I could marry this man I would. He is such a good teacher and I really like him in general. Although discussion group is a bit boring, I think he is AMAZING.

Excellent professor. The best 1101 professor at this university, by far.

He's good. But a good TA is very important. Vita is awesome. If you in her class stay if you're not try to switch.

Dr. Gurian is an excellent teacher, I loved his class. He tries to make it interesting (even though its such a huge class). The breakout sessions kinda suck, but I still highly recommend taking his class.

If you want to take poli sci I'd reccomend taking it with this guy. The grade is 4 tests which are 2 parts each, the exam, and your breakout(like 10%). The tests are 2 parts:essay and mult. choice. You can find old tests to study from and he gives you the essay topics in advance. I didn't read or take many notes but got an A by studying for tests.

Good lecturer. Your grade depends on your TA. Mine was such a mean grader so it was much more work.

Gurian is probably the best teacher I've had in a while. He really knows his stuff and he has a good sense of humor every once in a while. The lectures can be boring, but if you sit up front, it helps keep you interested. Depending on your TA, your essay could be graded harshly or leniently. If POLS is a must, take Gurian.

Although Dr. G is kind of monotone, if you listen to what he says he is really interesting. Attendance in lectures is not required, but there is NO WAY to get a good grade if you don't go. This class turned out to be a lot harder than I thought, but your grade is basicallly dependent on your TA. I would recommend Dr. Gurrian as a professor, though.

He is SOOO interesting. He really knows his stuff. Books aren't really essential at all, but going to class is a must. All in all, great class, awesome professor.

Very nice guy. Does a very good job of relating the material to the average college student (some could argue he really "dumbs it down" to more of a high school level). Half of the test material is taken from lecture and the other half from the book (a lot of time the two don't correlate too much). So doing both helps. Tests CAN be tricky and vague

Dr. Gurian is good professor. He knows his stuff and is able to convey it in a way that is pretty easy to understand. If you are at all interested in government and politics, you will enjoy lecture. If not, you might be a little bored. Find the old tests, it will help you out a lot on multiple choice section however, the tests change every semester

I have absolutely no interest in Political Science, but this professor somewhat changed that. It was hard for me to take notes from his lectures because i had no interest but buying the notes from Baxter helped me for the test. Like the other comments, your grade is determine which TA you have. Test have multiple choice, short answer, and an essay.

interesting lecturer. tests had mult choice/short answer/essay. in all honesty, the mult choice was tricky. and how well you do on the short answers and essays depend on your TA. mine was tough. i came out with a B-.

possibly one of the most interesting classes ive had here at uga. dr. gurian is incredible at teaching a somewhat boring class and trust me, if you go to class and take notes, you should be able to get at least a b. read the book to suppliment the notes and getting an "A" is a piece of cake

Dr. Gurian is an excellent professor. He explains the material very well and has made me interested in politics and elections. Basically your TA determines your grade. Definitely a great and funny professor.

great speaker with fairly interesting lectures; material not difficult, but tests can be tricky; really depends on TA and breakout session discussions (which are mandatory); only 3 tests given, which can be good and bad... recommended if you have good understanding of poli sci

I really enjoyed his class! He seriously reminded me of Mr. Rogers, but without the train and puppets. Instead it was a discussion of the constitution and election. Grading definitely depends on the TA, so look for a good one!

Nice guy. Interesting to listen to if you like politics. The TA definitely has a significant impact on your grade as some of the multiple choice questions come out of your breakout and the TA grades all short answers as well as the essays. So a bad TA can screw you. But Dr. Gurian is an interesting guy and the class isn't that difficult.

Excellent professor. Had no interest in politics but he made it intersting. Is monotone but what he says is interesting. Learned a lot. Would def recommend him. As stated by others, your grade is really dependent on the TA.

This guy is such a great teacher! He also has a good sense of humor and is willing to help. My TA wasn't that great, but otherwise I really enjoyed his class!

Campaign Politics during an election with Gurian=paradise. I also took his special topics class. It was fantastic. This guy is one of the best. Take anything he teaches, especially Campaign-related classes. He is a brilliant scholar on elections.

Gurian's a good professor. 1st half of the semester was amazing, started to drag towards the end when we talked about the history of campaigns and stuff. Attendance is pretty much mandatory, but if you come to class you'll do fine on the tests. I would recommend his campaign politics class

Dr. Gurian is incredibly nice and, like the rest of the SPIA faculty, very objective in their teachings. Took Campaign Politics in Fall '08, one of the best classes I've taken. Not sure how great it'd be without an election to talk about, but highly recommended nonetheless

Nice, funny, unbiased presentations. You get the essay questions before each test. Your TA will determine your grade on a lot, since they grade the essay. I took a lot of notes. Attending class is VERY important, especially the breakout sessions.

Dr. Gurian is great! If you get a chance, TAKE HIS CLASS. Not a lot of out of class work. Only test is the final, three papers throughout the term though. All the class does is really talk about the election. Its great. He's also very objective, which is always nice. Go to his office hours, he loves just getting to know his students Best prf @ SPIA

Dr. Gurian is great, and really knows his campaign politics. One of the nicest professors in SPIA, completely approachable. Definately recommended.

Dr. Gurian is a really nice guy who tries to make lecture interesting, and usually succeeds. The tests (I thought) were fairly easy, and he gives the essay questions to you before the test. I didn't miss class a lot, but sometimes I missed it and it wasn't too hard to catch back up. Take his section!

Dr. Gurian is a great teacher. He's very nice and always eager to help you. He has a lot of interest in the area and is very enthusiastic about teaching. He knows his stuff. The grades really depend on what TA you get though. But I would definitely recommend Dr. Gurian!

Gurain is a nice guy that made this subject more interesting than it is. i hated polisci, but i can say that i liked his class because i learned soo much. the tests were a bit difficult, but if you attend class and read the book youll be fine. grade really depends on your TA-so good luck. one thing that i hated was there was participation grades...

Dr. Gurian made the subject very interesting. His tests were a little tricky. Be sure to do all of the reading and attend class!

Dr. Gurian was a really good teacher and did a good job of explaining things in class. I didnt read and of the book and still did fine. But it also depends on your TA. His tests are a bit confusig but if you take good notes and come to class, you'll be fine

Gurian's honors class over the 2000 election is incredibly interesting. He's a fair moderator during class discussions, and forces students to think for themselves. Grading is difficult, and because he only uses only letters when grading papers, it can be hard to know where you stand. Overall, it is a great class, taught by a great professor.

If you go to the lectures you don't need to buy the expensive book. He's a phenomenal lecturer, and makes learning about the different branches of government as interesting as it'll get. His tests are straight from his lecture and the break outs. Break out are mandatary. The class is overall pretty easy

He is an absolutely great lecturer. He's very entertaining and straight forward, and his tests aren't hard... IF you study. I would DEFINITELY recommend him to anyone.

Gurian is a great teacher. He makes his lectures interesting and relates everything to today's politics. The multiple choice questions are easy and I often felt over-prepared. However, the T.A.'s look for almost perfect essays and will not hesitate to fail you. Make sure to include MORE than one example for everything you write.

Excellent teacher and speaker, but if you are not someone who can learn by just listening, this isn't the class for you. His lectures are only spoken with minimal technology (we watched election ads on the screen one class and i think that was it). GO TO LECTURE! You will fail if you do not. Breakout really ties in with what you're learning. LOVED!

It's VERY IMPORTANT to attend lecture. Reading the assigned chapters also helps, but I skipped the last few and still got an "A" on the final. Tests are two days long and include an in-class essay, the topics for which you will be given beforehand.

I took Dr. Gurian for campaign politics and it was one of the best classes I ever took at UGA. Extremely interesting day-to-day discussion and the tests and papers are pretty straightforward if you can express an intelligent opinion and go to class.

Dr. Gurian was an amazing lecturer and great at teaching what he does. If I was in a smaller classroom setting, might have done way better because TA is the luck of the draw, and I didn't get so lucky. Take him if you're in a smaller class, and try to avoid sessions with break-outs and way-too-high-expecting-for-a-graduation-requirement-class TA's.

Dr. Gurian is literally the best lecturer I have ever had. If you go to lecture everyday, pay attention, and take good notes, you will make an A in the class. I STRONGLY suggest this professor.

Dr. Gurian is such an awesome professor. He speaks very clearly and explains things in easy terms so we can understand it without having to "figure out what he said." The tests are two part test. Multiple choice and short answer at break out, and long essay at the lecture. The essay topics are given before hand, so it's not bad. Definitely take him

TAKE HIM! Had zero interest in political science before class, he made me love it! Lectures are long, but he makes them interesting. 3 tests, 2 parts (mult choice and 2 essays). Essay questions given beforehand. Not bad if you keep up with readings, study, and go to class.

He is amazing! He made politics so much more intersting that I imagined it could be. The tests were not that hard. If you don't like essays then you won't like that part. But he is one of my favorite professors here at UGA and I'm not even a POLS major!

Excellent professor! Made political science interesting. Important to go to class and take good notes. Test was one long essay, a short answer section, and 25 multiple choice (test was two-days long) The final was 2 essays, but I had plenty of time to finish. Really nice guy. Knows his stuff!

He was very clear in class and made the lecture somewhat interesting. Class was not mandator. Class helped but a lot of the information came from selected readings and the textbook.

Dr. Gurian is a pretty nice guy and an interesting lecturer. Cross your fingers for a decent TA because they can either make or break your grade in this class. Also, take the book quizzes on mypoliscilab because a lot of the test questions came from there.

First off, Dr. Gurian knows his politics. He's a nice guy, and good teacher. I'm an INTL/History major, but lecture was kind of dry sometimes. I guess since most have to take it, he had to make it more "accessible." FYI, this is a TA team controlled class. Its not awful, just a bit annoying (especially breakouts). In the end it was a decent class

Dr. Gurian is amazing I recommend him for anybody! I never studied but always went to class and pulled a B

I LOVED HIM!! I hated anything to do with politics before taking this class, but it was one of my favorites. His tests are extremely straightforward and easy. Go to class and break out, take notes, and study and you'll do just fine. definitely recommend him! (he gives you the essay topics before the test too)

Poli-Sci majors @ UGA, act now! Take his Campaign Politics course. Gurian has a great self-deprecating sense of humor, is affable, and very, very knowledgeable. If you dig presidential campaigns, participate in class, and actually do the read what's required you'll do well.

Loved Dr Gurian. He's an incredibly nice and knowledgeable guy with a sense of humor, and gives great lectures. Class was not too easy and not too hard, just go to class and study and you'll do fine.

Dr. Gurian is such a great professor. His tests are fair. He is very engaging, and his real life examples are hilarious. I considered changing my major to political science, but then I realized that the best part of the class was just Dr. Gurian

I thought Dr. Gurian was a great professor. I found his lectures extremely interesting and I learned so much is this class. The tests are very fair and focus on larger concepts rather than details, which is really nice. The only downside is that some TAs are much harder than others.

He has a wonderfully dry sense of humor that probably goes over the heads of some people. He's very helpful and knows the field very well, and he is a genuinely nice guy.

Really nice guy, interested in seeing students succeed. also not a hard grader

Great professor, so nice. Lots of essays, but fair grader. Love him!

good teacher

You will never see a powerpoint in this class. Overall great professor. Some lectures may seem pointless (by pointless, I mean POINTLESS) Breakout sessions are pointless as well but required. TAs decide the grade. Tests are really straight forward. Gives us essay topics ahead of time. Overall a good professor, I would recommend him!

The tests are really hard. He is a nice guy, but there are never any notes in class. All he does is lecture, and he doesn't give us any idea as to what will be on the tests. There are a lot of essays involved, but they are fairly easy.

Awesome teacher! I would totally recommend him! Don't listen to any of the bad comments. He does other stuff besides lecture too, like show video clips of past debates and mock elections. He's also really nice and the tests were fair, if you go to class and read the book.

Gurian kept the class interesting and understood that this was a mandatory class for most students. Read the textbook, it will help, but it does not seem entirely necessary. The tests were reasonable although not super easy. Going to class is not mandatory but the lectures are very important so I did not skip any classes.

DO NOT listen to any of the comments below that say this class was easy. This is an introductory course and it difficult. Gurian is nice and knowledgeable but this course is way too demanding. Test are ridiculous, ask questions about material that was never discussed. YOU HAVE TO WRITE essays and ta's grade hard. Avoid this professor at all cost.

The class is very easy, you don't have to attend lectures or study very hard. Most of the information is common sense. Put effort into the essays and you're golden.

Tests are difficult. Attendance in lecture is not mandatory, but is in breakouts. There is an extreme amount of reading assignments given, and weekly typed-responses are assigned. For an introductory class, this is a difficult course compared to other POLS 1101 classes. If possible, I would recommend finding a different teacher

Basically, if you read everything assigned for the class you'll be fine. The breakout sessions are where you have to be there. The lectures aren't that bad; some days are more interesting than others but he tries by adding videos and doing clicker participation. Overall he's a really good teacher and go into the class with an open mind.

The class is tough, but you won't find a better pols teacher at UGA than Gurian. He is reasonable with assignments, and if you do them and attend lecture, you will be successful.

Great lecturer! He is smart,clear, and helpful. The class is not super easy though. His tests (2 midterms) are not bad, except the test is 30% essay, 20% short answer from breakout, and 50% m.c (25 Q's). He gives 3 essay topics in advance, 2 will be on test, and you chose 1 to write. Textbook helps!! Breakouts are required-TA Sarah Hunter is good!

LISTEN TO ME: I am a poly sci major, and yes, his tests are tough for an intro class(essay,short answer,and multiple choice)but not impossible (I got high A's on both tests). If you HATE gov't and don't wanna take it, take another teacher. If you want to read the bookstudy and learn, take him! He's a great lecturer,and you WILL actually learn.

Gurian is a great teacher, the lectures are sometimes boring, but for the most part at least fairly interesting. He has a cool little old man ponytail, and if you study you should be fine for his tests. I didn't read and did fine.

Gurian tried to make the lectures very interesting by including various types of teaching styles, including responding to opinion questions using clickers. The Friday breakout sessions are mandatory, but you can skip he regular lectures and get notes from someone else and still do fine. Only two tests, a research essay(super easy), and the final.

Professor Gurian is precious. He is a sweet and approachable man who is very knowledgeable about the material. His tests can be pretty tough, but if you pay attention in class, read the book, and study, you should do fine. I hated learning about American government, but he made the class less boring.

Dr. Gurian is such a sweet person and an exceptional professor! He is very passionate about campaigns, so seeing that makes me excited to learn. Overall, this class was interesting and helped me better understand the current election. He's very objective and an fairly easy grader. I wish he wasn't retiring so I could take more classes with him!

He's a great guy who's super helpful and very knowledgeable. Unfortunately, he's not very good at making class interesting and tends to drone on with his monotone voice, so lecture is incredibly boring. The subject of the class wasn't interesting so that didn't help. He's a great professor stuck with a boring class.