2.7
Quality4.0
Difficulty44%
Would Retake125
Reviews44%
Would Retake
125
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
23
4
27
3
14
2
18
1
43
What Students Say
“BEWARE: don't take Prof”
ASTR330 - 1.0 rating“No a bad guy, but he definitely needs to reformat the class because the exams and quizzes are heavily weighted”
ASTR400 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
51%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.49 avg changeRatings by Course
330
5.0
(1)ASTRO320
5.0
(1)ASTROBIOLOGY
4.5
(2)ASTR481
4.0
(4)ASTR330
3.3
(12)Difficulty by Course
ASTROBIOLOGY
4.5
ASTR310
4.4
ASTR320
4.3
ASTR481
4.3
ASTR300
4.1
Reviews (125)
His class was based on 2 take home exams(20%), a fina;(30%) monograph/presentation(15%), and all other work/homework/participation points(15%). He always ramble about other detailed things which did not stay within the course. The course was not taught based on the book but by his own knowledge and he did not provide any note nor wrote any good one
This class was SO hard to follow. I've never studied Astronomy before and didn't understand 3/4 of the terminology he used. Professor Alfonso is way too over qualified for a beginners class and he only grades on 6 things ALL SEMESTER. If you want to pass this class, you better do the Hw and never miss an assignment.
This class is graded off very few assignments and when the final comes around I felt totally clueless. I had such a hard time keeping my focus in this class.
I took him for the lab and he was amazing. He's funny, helpful and knows a lot about what he teaches. At times he's a little difficult to understand but he is patient and will explain what you need to know. The lab was incredibly fun and easy. Take it with a friend because you can work together. I recommend him and will be taking him for 330.
He is helpful when it came to the monograph but very unclear about the instructions (he never talked about a works cited then we had to have one). Same with the take home exam said we couldnt use the answers out of the book! He can be helpful only when you ask though :(
He really knows what he is talking about and is very enthusiastic about the subject. If you don't understand something simply ask questions he is patient and will explain it to you so that you really know it. ASK QUESTIONS! His only downfall is sometimes he talks quickly and with an accent so just ask him to slow down or pay close attention.
Professor Afonso is a really darling teacher. He is incredibly knowledgeable of astronomy, but had no structure to his class whatsoever. He did straight lecture, with no explaining or ways to digest what you are trying to learn. It was equivalent to reading the text book cover to cover. Not helpful, but he is intelligent and very cute!
This guy is awesome! tough, but extremely knowledgeable and nice.he seems genuinely happy to explain his area of expertise though a little scattered
this was one of the worst experiences i have had in a class. there are only 5 weeks of class left and we havent got our 1st exam back and are just getting our 2nd exam today.(thak god its a take home) the first 3 days you will learn all about him which takes alot from the class he is unoraganized and talks to fast assuming you know what he knows.
The most interesting man you will ever meet. He knows everything he is talking about better then the book and helps all the students with any and all questions. he gets sidetracked very easily, its interesting as heck, but can take time away from class. Take him, ASK QUESTIONS, he can't help you if he doesn't know there's a problem.
Afonso is new to teaching, so he has yet to structure his class in the most successful way possible. READ the chapters before you go over them in class, and go to class every day.Two exams are take home, the final is open notes. The quizzes are hard but don't count for much of your grade and hw isn't turned in. Overall, very interesting!
Afonso is new to teaching and it really shows. There was a serious lack of organization or schedule. He just throws exams and quizzes at you whenever he feels like it, so it's hard to really be prepared. Two of the exams were take home, which was a plus. He takes FOREVER grading. Class ended 3 weeks ago and he still hasn't submitted final grades.
Professor Afonso is extremely intelligent has a lot of expertise in his area. His astronomy course is somewhat difficult, and he will inform you of this on the first day of class. However, if you read the chapters before every lecture, study continuously, and do well on your monograph, you can get a good grade. I learned a lot in 300 last semester.
Paulo is a new professor so he's a little disorganized. However, he's very patient and will go over a topic you don't understand until you get it. He never gets frustrated with questions. He also keeps office hours if you need help. His class was somewhat difficult, but it's astronomy so do what do you expect?
Brilliant astrophysicist. This dude has tried out to be an astronaut for God's sake. If you don't understand, ask questions, research your monograph. This man is a true scientist and CARES about educating people. If you don't get something from this professor, you're not trying hard enough. A truly brilliant man.
Hardest professor to understand. He doesn't speak English well. The amount of work he expects is that of a person in a masters program in astronomy. His grading is ridiculous and bias. I have taken two classes with him prior to cosmology and this was by far the most ridiculous class I've been in. Astronomy is a great subject, but think twice.
Dont take. He knows his stuff. He is very knowledgeable with the astronomy subject. He is real hard to understand. He has an accent and talks fast so it is hard to follow along. He expects you to know all that he knows about astronomy and grades off of 3 take home tests.Slow grader and unorganized. He is all over when he lectures and rambles.
Professor Afonso is a great, highly knowledgeable scientist with quite impressive scientific background. However this class is anything but easy. If you wanna an easy A, stay away from this class. The highest grade for a take home exam was 79 and average quiz score was 50/100 and no he doesn't curve. He offers up to 15% grade extra credit though.
He is a very intelligent professor. However; he goes through the material EXTREMELY fast! I recommend reading the book and not just rely on notes.
he's super smart in the subject.. just has an accent so is hard to understand and grades tough. but a 60 is C 75 a B etc, just READ the book.
The guy know's his stuff, and that's where the positive ends. DO NOT TAKE THIS COURSE!!! HORRIBLE PROFESSOR!! Nice person, but terrible professor!!
Hard for some to understand (but not bad at all), very helpful. Workload is very minimal, though exams (two take-home, one in-class final) are rather difficult - took around 8 hours to complete the take-home exams. Grades strictly, but logically. Class field trip to NASA Ames research center/SETI Institute, worth time. 10/10 would take again.
He was a pretty cool teacher, but he talked really fast and is unclear sometimes. There were not a lot of points in his class either, just a few quizzes and exams
This class was extremely hard, mostly due to the professor. Lots of material and notes in class seemed irrelevant when it came to the tests. His accent makes him so hard to understand and the take home tests were anything but easy. I couldn't get higher than a C after spending 10+ hrs on it. Would not recommend taking the class.
Fantastic professor. I see a lot of, speaks too fast, and content hard. Sorry folks, listen faster, keep up. This is not a class for the individuals not blessed with desire to actually learn. You need to learn and gain information in this class, or you will fail. Deservedly so.
Very fun professor, has a lot of energy and passion about the subject. Easy class if you have a decent background in astronomy, not for the faint hearted.
Super nice guy but TERRIBLE teacher. I've always been a good student and attended every class and barely got a C. He is hard to understand and acts like you are all science majors. The tests were open book essays that EVERYONE failed or barely got C's on and the quizzes were impossible. Avoid if you can!!!! If you cannot, good luck.
Professor Afonso is very passionate. There was less then 2/3 of the class by the end. Very informative and challenging.
He is very nice and of course knows his stuff but he tends to ramble at lectures and goes off on a related subject but does not finish and we get confused and he goes on... many students are not passing or barley passing..
This teacher is very passionate and informed on his subject however has great difficulty in explaining it to others. Literally one of the hardest classes I have taken and I genuinely enjoy astronomy. My passion for it slowly died through this semester thanks to his confusing lectures and ridiculously hard exams. Do not take this professor.
This professor is extremely unclear with material on quizzes and exams. His lectures are hard to follow and exams are six chapters with no formal study guide. I would not recommend this professor or class to anyone. He's passionate about astronomy but terrible at teaching.
Definitely read the text and ask after class if you don't understand- he'll spend the time to explain things to you since the concepts get really tricky. Notes are kind of hard to organize unless you read the chapters before class, but if you do then it will make more sense. If you put effort in the the Monograph presentations & ask questions, ace.
He's experienced, for sure, but he's the worst teacher I've ever had. He's unclear and teaches EXTREMELY fast and he wastes class time on useless videos. Posts nothing online whatsoever, and is often somewhat rude to students. I rely entirely on the book, and even then, I'm still struggling. For the life of me, I would never take him again.
If you have any interest in astronomy, this is the teacher to take. If you have no interest in astronomy, this is the teacher to take. He will have you interested no matter what. He has a fairly thick Portuguese accent, but it doesn't get in the way of his teaching. He's the only teacher I've seen contact NASA over webcam for his students.
This professor us by no means easy but the guy has a curved grading scale because he knows the material is tough. 60% gets you a C. Willing to work with students. Extra credit is available. Very knowledgeable, will go limited outside scope of specific class. Would take again.
Extremely interesting. Is much easier if you've had a little bit of physics, as in high school. He's enthusiastic and helpful.
A bit scattered during lectures. Must organize his slides and prepare them for each lecture to avoid fumbling. The book and the book test contain some errors. However, overall you will learn astronomy well, lots of work.
READ YOUR BOOK. All assignments are multiple choice and super simple. The tests are challenging and attendance is not mandatory. I went to every class and i enjoyed the lectures. He gets off topic and is not super organized with his classes but he just tries to teach you as much as he can while you are in class. I'd take this class again.
Paulo is an amazing professor! All of these reviews saying he's a bad teacher/tough are highly incorrect. yes astronomy is hard and you have to pay attention and actually earn a grade but that doesn't mean he's a bad professor. he's great with extra credit and dropping low scores. hes also very nice!! offers help during office hours
Afonso is there to help you and answer all your questions but he also assumes you already know what he's talking about all the time when he's explaining things so it's not always clear. I passed but I had to not miss a single lab and had to try really hard because I hadn't taking the lecture part in a few years. The final was crazy hard!
Incredibly smart and passionate, but also scatterbrained and disorganized. Definitely read the textbook in addition to reviewing his lecture notes. Don't be afraid to ask clarifying questions because sometimes he forgets that what he's saying isn't common knowledge.
I think he is a wonderful teacher and tries very hard to communicate the information, I did not know very much about astronomy or physics going into his class and when I asked questions he was clear and detailed in his explanations. I took two of his classes and was pleased with both. Read the text book, do the homework and enjoy his lectures.
He is a highly qualified astronomer but is incapable of conveying his information to others. His lectures are scattered and disorganized and his tests are poorly worded causing confusion. I did get an A in the class but that is due entirely to the several other astronomy class I had taken before this this one.
He was very confusing at times because he would go off track. Wouldn't take him again. He divides the final into four tests and in between the tests is one quiz. You have to figure out when the test is going to be. Doesn't keep you posted with your current grade. Online HW is easy and calls randomly in class for class HW so you can't skip out.
BEWARE: don't take Prof. -This class is ridiculous THIS IS A GE COURSE not PHD course! ARC ADMIN needs observe lectures, examine the textbook, quizzes/exams. >>ARC Catalog describes course study of a general sense, LIKE MOST GE CLASSES- BUT MR. AFONSO doesn't TEACH at the GE level!! result: LOST ALL INTEREST IN SUBJECT :(
His test are very confusingly worded. He words it where two choices are correct in certain circumstance, so you kinda have to guess. They are also very specific. You can't check your grade. Due dates are constantly changed and aren't clear. He isn't clear on what you need to do for certain projects. He'll marks you off for very little things.
ROUGH CLASS. No a bad guy, but he definitely needs to reformat the class because the exams and quizzes are heavily weighted. If you don't test well, or have a hard time memorizing a lot of minutia it will be a challenge to get an A. He can be nice and funny, but speaks fast and doesn't always stay on-topic. The material is dense enough as it is.
respect to Mr. Afonso. He's smart man, but CANNOT teach. He doesn't try to help you understand, he thinks what he's teaching is common knowledge, he just talks very fast and expects you to absorb the material, doesn't like the textbook but that's the best way to understand the material, whole grade is basically based off exams. Avoid him if u can.
He is passionate, energetic and clearly has a a lot of experience. Read the book, come to class and explore the stars, it maybe be a bit hard but it worth every effort.
This class makes you work for it. Its interesting, just a total uphill battle if youre not hard-wired for it. Plus he calls on you in class to present homework questions, so have those ready because he wants a full answer. Hes really nice though.
Brilliant man, poor at teaching. The quizzes and exams are seemingly trick questions because there really could be two correct answers but he wants to see the one that is 'the most right'. Offers extra credit! If you miss a class you miss his hints at questions on tests + homework points. Talks fast& rambles, read chapter before coming to class.
This is one of the most difficult classes I have ever taken. His accent is HEAVY, and the tests are based only on his lectures. He spoke too quickly and was disorganized in his lectures. He knows this topic very well, almost too well. Had to do exceeding amounts of personal research because he kept telling the class the book had incorrect info.
This was one of the most fascinating classes I ever took, from extremophiles in Antarctica or Mars, to artificial life and immortal species. Did no extra credit and just got a B. The course is divided in 3 exams, final is not comprehensive, but just another exam. Lots of book and online HW. You have to work to pass this class, but learned a lot.
You're supposed to read the textbook and answer questions before class but if you don't, it is certainly possible to do them before he starts asking people for answers. His tests cover things both covered in his lectures and in the book, and you have to study in order to get higher than a B on them. The same is true for his quizzes.
If I could give him a -1 I would... If you say any part of an answer wrong in class or cannot answer his follow up questions on the homework he gives a negative point.
Mr. Afonso might be messy during lectures and tiring, also has a heavy accent and talks really fast, which might make his lectures even more confusing, but... He is truly passionate about his subject and knows astronomy well! He is very inspiring to me and made me work for my A such that I still remember class materials. Besides, a really nice man!
Honestly, I wish I could give a good score for this but this class was extremely difficult for me, and Im an A student. Afonso is a passionate person but poor teacher. We spent $120 on a textbook that he continued to say had wrong information, we went over a chapter a day, with no review time whatsoever. WOULD NOT RECOMMEND!
This was a cool class, with a field trip to the Lick Observatory. I am the C kind of student, but had lots of fun learning about bugs that can even survive inside nuclear reactors or how did life originate on Earth. For those of you astronomy buffs I guess this is a must take class. Professor is ok, the guy knows his stuff. Lots of reading though.
Afonso is a good professor, but is very political and shows it when possible. All of his exams are based heavily off of homework questions. Also, you must read the textbook and show up for his lectures or you will not pass. His class is very difficult, but he grades on a decent curve. I would only take his class if you really like Astronomy.
He benefits from having a charming accent & plenty of experience in the field of astronomy. He displays a thorough understanding &, though he won't oblige a student who makes excuses, he will put as much effort into your success as you do. Ask questions when you're confused, not later. STUDY. Be present. Lean on your peers, it's necessary!
Do not take this professor for any reason. He is super rude to students and not easily accessible outside of class. He rushes through material without explaining anything and a lot of the time says the textbook is wrong even though we are required to read it before class.
STUDY EVERYTHING. "study guide" he gives is a vague overview, NOT helpful. Extremely scatterbrained and disorganized in lectures, repeatedly tells students the book is wrong. Very confusing lesson plan and HW expectations. TERRIBLE communicator. Bragged about class average over 10 year career being lower than 60% on tests. Almost everyone dropped.
Hard to get a hold of outside of class, VERY condescending when asked ANY question you will be made to feel like you should know better. He lectures as if he were speaking to a room full of colleagues not a room full of students. I got a 90% on the first exam, class test average 60%. I have a D in this class and in ALL my other classes I have As.
Be warned, you will have to be self-relient in Afonso's classes.
The worst class I have ever taken. He treats his students as if everyone has a PHD in astronomy. His exams are very hard and are graded heavily. He will call you out for oral hw in class and has no problem embarrassing you. He brags about how his class average is at 60% instead of trying to raise it. Lectures are confusing and disorganized.
I don't know where to start. This was my first college semester ever at 29 years old. Him as a professor is laughable. Disorganized, rambles, opinionated, assumes you know what he's talking about, not great at answering questions, hard to reach, uploads hw weeks late with no notice and gives you less than 24 hrs to complete. will never take again
He is disorganized, preoccupied, rambles in his lectures, & isn't very good at clarifying student's questions. We didn't receive our labs back until the semester was nearly over, & he gave us our midterm quizzes the day of the final, & said "good luck studying". This 1 unit lab was the hardest of my 6 classes, and the rest were all 3 units.
I took ASTR 400 with Alfonso. He managed to pivot quickly to online classes, in the middle of the virus crisis. He always gave us at least a week to deliver HW and the quiz was given weeks before the end of the semester and as a take home. Learned a lot, he is quite knowledgeable, answered all my questions out of class - and didn't cancel this lab
Afonso rarely responds to emails. He constantly complains about being busy, but did not grade any assignments during the semester. We did not receive our grades until THREE weeks after grades were supposed to submitted. Please avoid him at all costs and be sure to take Astronomy elsewhere if he is the only option available. Awful experience.
Afonso gave us a week to deliver each assignment, instead of the typical 3 hours in a F2F lab, telling us upfront grades would be delayed due to the virus. Later I got all my labs scanned back. We did Mars imagery, SETI & brown dwarf data analysis, age of the Universe, lots of stellar stuff & assembled a new telescope. A great lab, missing a dome.
Heavy accent and speaks as if we were also professors of astronomy assuming we know what he is talking about book was expensive and a online hw subscription was expensive too very difficult
Disorganized, thin-skinned, and disrespectful to his students time and finances. He's really smart and cool, but his class structure is terrible. Do not take him, he will make even mundane topics difficult simply by being terrible at developing a coherent lesson plan. He won't tell you when any assignment are in advance, which is pretty ridiculous.
I would give this guy a 0 if I could. This is the worst professor I've had in my college experience so far. He acts like a child, totally passive aggressive. He has no consideration for your course load or personal life (COVID changes, etc). Awful online and disorganized. He doesn't know how to use canvas and will notify you of a test the day of.
I took the astronomy lab half online, half in the classroom, when the pandemic started. I had a family member in the hospital with COVID and Prof. Afonso gave me extra time to do my lab. reports. He announced all assignments ahead of time and placed all required materials on Canvas. Very friendly and adapted quickly an hard lab to be fully online.
Professor takes a long time to grade. The whole class got their final report in the last 2 days before grading was due. In total, we had to spend some $ on textbooks for quizzes and homeworkso be weary of that. He doesnt use canvas & attendance isnt mandatory. Hes a cool guy & passionate about Astronomy. Be ready to work your butt off.
Must purchase textbook but warns most labs are incorrect. Doesn't use canvas, email only and takes forever to respond. Gets own labs wrong and is unclear in zoom meetings. The program for the book is confusing as well and doesn't provide enough information to do the exercises.
I took ASTR 400 with Prof. Afonso and despite the lack of well crafted online labs he guided us in all detail, question by question, through the good labs in Cengage Virtual Astronomy, alerting us to all the errors on it. There is no book for this course. Pay attention to his instructions and have fun with the solargraph e.g. -it is a great lab
TERRIBLE. Do not take this class!! I need this lab to transfer to Sac State and still dropped, delaying my transfer! Hands down, worst teacher I've ever had. Lectures are on things you don't need to know for the test. I learned more from reading the online book. Will make you download a program to watch you take your test. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS.
This was an extremely difficult class in person. He is an absolute genius though and has faith in his students. If you feel like your going to fail just work harder! Flash cards are a must, you must want to learn the material. He is so smart though and pushes you in the best way. You go out of class knowing so much more than you could imagine.
Really bad teacher
Worst professor I've ever had! Not asychronous as listed, requires tests at particular times with no exceptions. Unwilling to accommodate DSPS students, inaccessible class, requires additional programing, and refuses to use CANVAS. Records your home workspace through a third party, which is also required to pass. Do NOT recommend for anybody!
I am a DSPS student and was accommodated by Prof. Afonso with extra time and exception schedule for exams due to my odd working hours. We always used Canvas to run quizzes and exams and Mastering Astronomy to do the online HW is much better than any Canvas HW I ever had in other classes. The lectures were great, but the course is both cool and hard
By far the worst professor I have had. I would give him a 0 if that were possible. He is terrible at teaching, he doesn't use canvas so you can't keep up with your grade, and the tests only opened up at 8 pm. That does not work for me because I also work. He just assumes that no one has anything else in their lives. Just horrible. Avoid him!
Got an A in ASTR300. Was not easy. If you want an A, you will have to work for it. Teaches you how to study. Pros: -Uses a good grading scale (Ex: a 75% is still a B, etc) -Offers extra credit -No required zoom meeting attendance -Willing to help in office hour Cons: -Exams are NOT easy -Does not use Canvas -All quizzes/tests start at 8:00PM
3.5. Decent, admirable, smart, doesn't use Canvas, emails have grammar mistakes, responded late to emails at first, gave a lot of leeway so we could get the book in time. Good lectures but he rambles. Course was on Pearson which I like but only knew how to use because I took another astronomy class. Not really asynchronous, proctored tests at 8PM
Really interesting lectures that could be watched at any time throughout the week. Canvas was not used, but paying attention to email was not difficult. He is genuinely interested in his course and explains things quite well. While tests are at a set universal time and are proctored, it is fair of him to do so. He also has a cool accent.
Doesn't use Canvas so you have to purchase the homework on Pearson. Exams are proctored and only occur once at a set time (Tuesday evenings) which is highly inconvenient for students who are not available during that time. Do not recommend at all.
I had to drop this course this semester because I was un-aware that our ASYNCHRONOUS class had to do exams SYNCHRONOUSLY? At night. Red Flag: Does NOT use Canvas. Sends EVERYTHING through email; lectures, information, like everything. Does homework that you have to buy an access code for, "Pearson". This is the first class I have ever dropped
Very condescending and a clear annoyance with students who try to participate and ask questions about the course through email, or zoom. Would not participate in any of his classes for fear that I cannot ask any questions with out receiving sarcasm or demeaning tones.
His class is very hard to navigate because he does not use canvas and sends almost all materials through email. You have to pay for access to the homework, only class I've had to do that for in the Los Rios system. Uses 2 year old lecture videos in which he frequently goes off topic, all quizzes/exams are fully synchronous with a short time window
Terrible professor. He doesn't use canvas which is a big issue and uses proctor which is a big issue. He doesn't help students and is overall very demeaning. Does not listen to his students and is very strict for no reason.
Horrible experience! Lectures are pre-recorded and dreadful to listen to. Has accent and talks very fast (hard to keep up with) and has "don't bother me/I hate my job" vibe. Doesn't use Canvas for ANYTHING, uses Pearson ($90), quizzes are proctored and MUST be taken at a set time, or you're SOL. Prepare to teach yourself. Dropped class 1 month in.
His lectures are pre-recorded, being convenient to attend when you want, as many times as needed. He uses Canvas to run exams and quizzes, and his modules are instead the book chapters and respective video-lectures, super-easy to follow versus "over-hyped" Canvas. Homework is done online using Mastering Astronomy, far better than anything on Canvas
He provides regular online HW instructions & office hours, sets & proctors in real time all quizzes & exams, helping you solve any IT problem arising during exams. Lectures are great and very detailed - may it be the 300-400 years old laws of Kepler or Newton, or the most recent findings in exobiology. He tutors/helps a lot with extra-credit too.
I took Prof. Afonso's 310/400 ASTR class. I like astronomy but unfortunately needed to make the decision to withdraw instead of fail. His 310 class uses past lectures that are slow paced/get off topic. He e-mail's lectures to students and doesn't use canvas. I hours studying for exams and the only thing that helped was some of the required reading.
Took Astrobiology w/ Afonso. Book is 5 years old, his lectures 3 years old - that was fine, since materials for such introductory courses, or books, don't need to change each semester. His lectures were full of info following and expanding the book content. He uses Canvas for quizzes/exams, Master Astronomy for HW. I learned a lot, would take again
Took 3 of his classes. (cosmology, the solar system, and astro-bio). Quizzes/tests can be difficult. You need to know the material. I found most people that didn't like his class just wanted to show up to lecture, then take exams, and get an easy A. You have to want to study astronomy to succeed in his class.
disrespectful Person with bad behavior
I recently had Prof Afonso for one class and a lab. He is not an easy professor, but he is fair. I did better on the tests by skipping the lectures and just reading the chapters. His lab was fun, but most of my lab dropped by middle of the semester. At the end of the day, Prof Afonso loves astronomy. I would take his course again, or even his lab.
Took the online class, pre-recorded years old lectures, online homework with Pearson+, the study guide says to read certain topics but they are not covered on the test, I even checked after a quiz, you have spend LOTS of time and money if you want to pass this class, if you dont have the time then I suggest find another teacher
I don't recommend taking this online course (8-week especially) with this professor unless you love the grind and all-nighters. Understandable readings but topics in every quiz/exam are not covered in the study guide. He does have a warning note on the syllabus that it won't be an easy course, but I wasn't expecting it to be this intense.
Like many students, I work during the day. Thus, exams at 8 pm match my schedule perfectly. I had to attend a memorial service out of town and the prof. rescheduled my exam. Lectures teach a lot. Have the book open at the same time. I used Mastering Chemistry before, and like the problems selection in Mastering Astronomy done by prof. Alfonso.
be prepared to self teach and wait days back for any email you send him. Also be prepared for absolutely zero help when you ask him for support and for passive aggressive comments in response to anything you send him.
Took online ASTR300 this semester w/ Afonso. Learned a lot & could even help my daughter with her school science projects. Afonso helped me a lot in both online & campus office hrs. You have to read a lot & make sure to do many chapters of online homework. He was always responsive to me within 48h. I am taking the ASTR400 lab & telescopes in Spring
You'd need a PhD in Astronomy to pass his exams. He doesn't use required system, online courses have lengthy, disorganized videos with no added value. The book & instructor aren't clear, instead focus on obscure details not discussed; test heavy on that. Studying won't help b/c it's like stepping into someone else's course trying to pass! RUN!
I took ASTR 310 last year, as a dual enrollment student, as I finished high-school. I do not have a PhD and had a B in this very interesting course. The book is quite detailed and his lectures clarify the most important concepts, while at the same time providing extra information. Note - he gives hints about questions coming in exams and quizzes.
To take this class you need a literal PHD or Doctorate just to take this intro to Astronomy. His accent is super hard to understand, he speaks very fast, and he goes on tangents. Even worse he says he will review for a few minutes and spends 30-40 minutes going over stuff from the last class leaving not much time to go over the actual topics.
I took the final exam today & in all learned a lot in this course. I like he reviews the topics from the previous lecture, in the next lecture (it does not take 30-40 minutes), connecting chapters. This is not an easy course, but surely you do not need a PhD to pass it either. It barely has any math. His Covid mask does not help to hear him clearly
The Professor is very disrespectful and not accommodating towards people with disabilities.
I took ASTR 330 with prof. Afonso last year, and I am taking ASTR 310 now. I am a DSPS student and know several other students with disabilities who took courses with this professor. He always, always had a professional behavior towards us. Say you need twice the time in exams, document your needs, you have nothing to worry about taking his classes
He is not a teacher. All coursework is done by reading the textbook, and his lectures are recordings from 2020 of him essentially reading the textbook and adding nothing of value. All quizzes and exams are closed note and ONE TIME ONLY with no makeup. Homework and test questions are poorly-worded and unclear. Do not expect to learn in his class.
I took Prof. Alfonso course last year. His lectures add plenty of info. beyond what the book covers, specially in stellar evolution and astrobiology chapters. Lectures are great & the laws of Newton & Kepler more than 300 years old, the book also being older than 2020. No biggy. HW is done in Mastering Astronomy. I used Mast. Biology before as well
HE MAY BE A GOOD IN-PERSON CLASS BUT DO NOT TAKE IF YOU'RE GOING ONLINE!!!! HE DOESN'T USE CANVAS, HE MAKES YOU TAKE TEST AND EXAMS AT THE SAME TIME AS EVERYONE ELSE (SO MUCH FOR AN ASYNCHRONOUS CLASS.) HE DOESN'T COMMUNICATE BY EMAIL WHEN HE SAYS HE WILL. VERY UNORGANIZED, SAVE YOURSELF FROM THIS ONLINE CLASS!
DO NOT TAKE THIS ONLINE CLASS! AFONSO DOESN'T USE CANVAS, ONLY EMAIL FOR COMMUNICATIONS BUT DOESN'T EMAIL WHEN HE SAYS HE WOULD! HE MAKES EVERYONE TAKE TESTS AND EXAMS AT THE SAME TIME (SO MUCH FOR ASYNCHRONOUS CLASS) BECAUSE ITS BETTER FOR HIM BUT COMPLAINS ABOUT BEING THE ONLY ASTR PROF AND HES OVERWHELMED! HE IS UNORGANIZED AND UNPROFESSIONAL.
I took this course online. The class catalogue informed that exams & quizzes were taken at same time - you need to read the course instructions when enrolling. Nevertheless prof. Alfonso allowed me to take exams at midnight & at 8 am, since I work shifts with assisted living seniors. He uses Canvas for exams & quizzes & structures the course well
Don't take this class if you can't handle heavy lectures, exams, and quizzes.
I took several of prof. Afonso's courses, and clearly solar system astronomy (ASTR 310) is the easiest/less hard one. This course only covers the Sun, instead of all stellar evolution, galaxies, etc. Plus planets are far more intuitive than evidence for the Big Bang in cosmology. A fun course, taught me a lot and is less intensive than other astro
ASTR300 with Professor Afonso is challenging, but manageable with dedication. The lectures are dense, and the grading can be tough. Attending class, reading the textbook, and using Unstuck ai for practice are key to success. Not an easy A, but you'll learn a lot.
Don't take this professors class, ANY of his classes. I have never had a bad experience with any professors on campus but this guy is insane. He wants us to pay over 100$ just to be able to access our homework and assignments and he's insane about quiz taking. He wants to watch us take our online quizzes and download a weird software to be control
I took a couple online courses with prof. Alfonso several years ago when Proctorio was the software college used for remote exams. Now it is Honorlock, basically the same thing, years later. I paid 45$ to do the online homework Mastering Astronomy, much better than anything Canvas. Don't buy the expensive paper hard cover book. The e-text will do.
I took ASTR 400 with Prof. Afonso, no book or Canvas are needed, he provides handouts and lab. equipment. He was always very helpful both in outside oral quizzes or giving feedback and looking at our lab. reports before being delivered so to correct any mistakes.This was the most interesting lab I ever took, by far with 1 of the best ARC professors
He refuses to use canvas. He gives long rambling, confusing, headache inducing lectures and still forgets to mention essential information, then gets upset that you don't know it. Forgets, his students are not PhD's in astronomy, then gets upset. Feedback consists of his unreadable hand righting chaotically scattered all over your paper.
Honestly, the fact that Professor Afonso has less than a 4.0 rating on this site blows my mind. Mr Afonso is probably the best professor I have ever had at the collegiate level. He and I would talk for probably 30 minutes after each class about shared interests, and I got A's and B's in all of the four classes I took with him.
Very intruiging class, though you do need to pay for Mastering Astronomy to do the homework. There were regular quizzes (once every two weeks) with a test replacing a quiz every month or so. I truly believe that Prof. wasn't nearly as hard as these other reviews make him out to be, as long as you put the time to study. Do the recommended problems!
If you aren't interested in astronomy or physics and your major is not anything science, DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. And if you do take this class, pick a religion and begin to pray. This is an intro class and it was brutal. Don't recommend unless you're a astr or phys major.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
51%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.49 avg changeRatings by Course
330
5.0
(1)ASTRO320
5.0
(1)ASTROBIOLOGY
4.5
(2)ASTR481
4.0
(4)ASTR330
3.3
(12)Difficulty by Course
ASTROBIOLOGY
4.5
ASTR310
4.4
ASTR320
4.3
ASTR481
4.3
ASTR300
4.1