2.8
Quality3.9
Difficulty47%
Would Retake123
Reviews47%
Would Retake
123
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
42
4
10
3
9
2
7
1
55
What Students Say
“Farrett is a nice guy but an awful instructor”
CSC161 - 1.0 rating“I expected more from the head of the department”
CSC161AND162 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
90%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.45 avg changeRatings by Course
CSC116
4.5
(2)CSC262
4.0
(1)CSC161AND162
3.5
(46)161
2.5
(4)CSC161
2.4
(45)Difficulty by Course
CSC162
4.3
CSC262
4.0
CSC161
4.0
162
3.9
CSC161AND162
3.7
Reviews (123)
Very calm and soft spoken guy. The class itself isn't too hard, an intro class to programming only has a few difficult topics that some might struggle with. Never needed extra help from him, but he is always available if it is needed. Very fair grader and he lectures using the book as a guide, while offering his own input. Highly recommended !
Very nice teacher who has a lot of knowledge. He is an easy A as long as you do all of your homework and read your book, if less than A look into mirror for blame. Very fair grader & gives you over one week for each assignment and they are always due Friday at 9pm, which is nice as it is always consistent. He is honest and never tries to trick you.
CSC 161 is a great java programming class, and Dr. Farrett is one of the best teachers i've had. He'll give you the tools and information that you'll need to apply. He'll let you use your brain to build and improve skills in programming. I'm a highest honor student, take him if you want to build skills. Best teachers let students build skills .
Best professor ever! Would gladly take again. He's great if you already have a small background in programming because he will give you many examples about jobs and work in the field that he did.
Dr. Farrett is a great professor. You can tell that he really cares for his students and expects nothing less of them. He knows what he is talking about and encourages students to ask for help when needed. Highly recommended.
can't hear a think past the first row of people, just read from PowerPoint presentations for an hour and called it a day, gave out assignments that sometimes required knowledge of topics that have not been covered in the class yet so look forward a lot reading.
He's a nice guy, brilliant but a little hard to follow when teaching. Lectures are kind of long and boring, and you'll have to read a lot on your own but it's wasn't a terrible class.
Professor Farrett is a top notch lecturer. He ensures through the use of PowerPoints and examples from the textbook that each student understands each topic in its entirety. He applies subject matter taught to real life situations so that the student understands why it is being taught. In doing so, he prepares his students to succeed.
Worst Professor ever never take him again... Cant understand anything except the first second rows..
he's pretty good. bit hard but if you read the book and do the homework you can pass. he's also the head of the department so he has high standards but if you focus on what he teaches you'll pass.
so all he does is give you labs to do and the midterm and final, no quizzes, no interaction with the class, no class assignments. after taking two semesters with him, I am highly unskilled and unprepared in Java, compared to other students. I expected more from the head of the department. he basically just reads you the textbook.
Excellent professor and would take him again. learned a lot about java and software concepts. assignments are good and pay attention to his lecture and tips. he knows his stuff and I was very prepared to take more advanced java courses.
Prof. Farrett is not helping students. If your major is computer science I would not take him. Won't teacher you anything just reads his power points and lab every Thursday due. Not a right professor to learn java.
I learned a lot from this professor. He lectures from slides, works with students, and explains all of java code to you. He was very helpful during labs. one thing to mention is that you will not learn that much if you do not put in a solid effort. If you work hard you will enjoy his course and be prepared later on.
He is the best professor. I would love to take him again. He is so caring and helpful. Amazing lectures, very straightforward, no tricks on tests. He will drop 1 lowest score lab. You will have fun. Lectures are never boring.
Done not take this professor if you are trying to learn and your major is computer science. He would not answer your question clearly and gets mad easily.
Prof. Farrett is a nice guy but an awful instructor. He really doesn't teach anything, he just sits down the entire time and reads powerpoint slides. He never actually teaches you how to program at all, just tells you to read the book and figure out the problems he gives you and thats it. His final was 50% and was nothing like what he "taught" us.
Professor Farrett lectures from slides and uses the board to work interactively with the class. He reviews in detail the code in the book. He not only explains it, but tells you where problems are and whats important. Labs are due every week and there is a midterm, final exam, quiz. After taking his course I was well prepared when I transferred.
He's a good professor. CSC is hard and he does his best to explain you everything but its like he gives you 25% and the rest 75% is up to you. All labs are due every week and mid and final is hard but if u study the book, you will understand most of the stuff. Dont miss his class! just for showing up u get 10% already.
Good proff
best professor for csc161 and 162 classes to take it
Farrett is the worst professor I've ever had for an online course. Most online professors will send out a general email or announcement to the entire class weekly or even monthly but professor Farret can't be bothered. Also, don't bother sending an email unless you want to wait days for a response.
excellent professor and will take him again if I can
I've never had another professor ever be as clueless when it comes to grading than professor Farrett. He treats his grading as if it was a job and not a class and makes students compete against each other for grades. He has no idea what it's like being a student and it's clear when he teaches the class.
Professor Farrett is a very good instructor and knows his stuff. He is tough so if you do not work hard I would choose someone else. He is a tough grader but I endured all of the work and I feel confident that I know how to program
The guy has a ton of industry experience. However you will need to read further and practice on your own to master the topics.
good professor
Goes off topic every class! He has never taught anything in class. He goes over his slides for 1 minute then starts talking about random things from his life the next 20 mins, then goes back to the slides. This goes on and off and then he gets mad when you don't know anything. AVOID!!!!!!
Doesn't teach, expects you to learn everything from the textbook. Spends the 1st 30 mins on attendance then leaves 1 hour into a 3 hour class, then claims he has "no time" to teach topics. Constantly goes on unrelated tangents and talks during exams. Grading seems random and based off how much he likes you. I'm doing well but feel very unprepared.
teacher very good. its not good student does no learning in class. the teacher gives good example of cs and problems for learning and geting jobs
Dr. Farrett is a tough sell. He is, in equal measures, both eccentric and capricious; his is the fire that forges and burns. If youre serious about programming and in for a challenge, take this class; youll emerge a better coder and student. If youre looking for a professor to spoon feed you the curriculum and pass you up to 162, look elsewhere.
Dr Farrett is a great professor because he can always be reached when answers to questions are needed, and provides a clear understanding of the content that is provided to all students. I would recommend Dr Farrett to students who would like some clear explanations and examples of the computer science industry
prof farret is a great and helpful person I have ever seen in my life. If you want to get a good grade just be attentive and study his material every day.
I cannot believe he's giving himself reviews. He needs to seek help for the way his mood swings and freaks out. Guy might be a genius but he has issues and takes it out on the students. I wish you well Professor, I genuinely do.
I never had and I dont think I am ever going to have a more eccentric and unique professor like Dr. Farrett. Hes very clear on his lab assignments and as long as you fulfill the requirements and have a working programming youre good to go. The lab assignment also apply a what you are taught in class which helps a lot.
Do not trust the positive reviews. The professor is giving himself reviews. He won't teach you anything and will yell at you for no reason. He takes his anger out on students even when it's about something unrelated to school. Stay away unless you want to be mentally scarred
When I first take him in 161, I was struggling, but then I start reading the textbook, and type the examples in the book and understand everything. The best way to pass his class is to read the book. He is very caring, and always try his best to help everyone. He help me out so much in, and thanks to him, I improve so much taking him in 162.
Probably one of the worst professors I have had. I already knew java before so I did fine but everyone else struggled. He gets mad for no reason and his grading is very unfair. If he doesn't like you he will give you a hard time, regardless of how well you know the subject. If you want to learn and/or dont want your GPA to drop, please avoid.
How can a professor make you hate java? I am a self taught programmer and when I took this class he made me hate java. I get flashbacks to his awful lectures everytime i code in java.
I was a student taking a class with prof farrett. He is a great professor and is kind and caring and smart. I am a paralegal studies student. The students statement stay away unless you want to be mentally scarred are legal grounds to sue. I going to see if the prof as legal grounds for a law suite and if so he should sue.
Avoid! Took him recently and his tests are really hard, they were never on topics we covered. And he never teaches anything you have to learn on your own
Worst professor at mcc. Nothing that is covered comes on the test
If youre working and have a busy schedule, and you want to go on your own pace.. you should take 162 with him. Labs are due every week but its okay that we can cover in a week. I am going to miss his class. Do participate in class, that matters a lot. Ive learned a lot about the field.
Does not teach anything in class and expects you to know everything already. The book is useless and he will just talk about himself and how great he is. Avoid and get a better professor
I made a huge mistake taking his class. You're better off learning online than listen to his lectures which is just him talking about himself
Just completed a class with this professor. He was great. My advce is mabey to change to another field because you will not be able to go to a 4 yr school or comp sci field because it is very hard
I am proficient in Java. I actually have a part time job where I am a Java developer. The way the professor was teaching was out of the ordinary. He was not teaching anything that was benefiting to the students and would yell at students for not knowing anything. I feel bad for the students who were new to Java and did not get to learn anything
Not recommended for people who are new to computer science
The professor is very funny and helpful. I learned a lot in his class.
Did not learn anything. Had to learn everything online, why are we paying tuition if we can learn better online for free? Oh well, that's the education system
Dude just finished 162 with professor and he is great. professor not teaching intro course so do you have wrong person. he is really good
This was the worst experience ever. Did not learn anything, I will be taking the other professors because a lot of students have told me about how good they are. This professor was just horrible at teaching and did not care for his students. Does not respond to emails or help in any way.
Most probably the worst professor you can take at MCC. Doesn't teaching coding and taking him would be a big mistake. He doesn't even teach well , and one thing is for sure students wouldn't learn anything , if they take him. Has a very strict grading policy, also cares not even 1% about your grade or your effort. My man will basically fail you.
I seriously don't know how he teaches at MCC. People are are paying for their tuition , and this is what they deserve a teacher jokes half the class and wastes time, by not teaching the course. Also he is very unpredictable each day, because you never know when he will frustrated with you work. Also he wants the codes to perfect all the time.
Professor was the best. If you can take his course do it. dont listen to negatives. this instructor knows cs and he is fair. I learned much taking the course and I can code better now. take him you will be glad you did.
The prof is really great. I had a friend that took him last semester and she said he was excelent. Always get back to you and is fair about grading. The prof can be strict with coding but you will learn a lot so make sure you submit all the code labs. If you want to learn how to be good at cs take the course.
AVOID IN ALL COSTS! If you value your education then don't take him. Java is something you need to get a good grasp on before you can go to advanced classes and you will NOT learn anything in his class
I took dr. last semester and it was hard sometimes and he is fair. But he will not let you slide like others profs. If you are looking for a prof that cares and will help you with code and cs then take him. You will learn much. Else choose another prof
By far the worst computer science professor I have ever had. Don't fall for these fake positive reviews. We all know who's writing them. He does not explain anything. You have to learn everything on your own. Expect bad grades depending on his mood. Me and my classmates were supposed to get an A but he said since his mood was off he was giving C's
I remember this one time some student in our class submitted his assignment in a rar file instead of a zip file and he got yelled at and got a 0. If that doesn't tell you how he is idk what will
Professor Farrett isn't the most inspiring teacher and he isn't always clear on what he wanted from the labs so it is going to be difficult to get an 100 on those, his tests were difficult but they do include things you were suppose to do in the labs and some theories discussed during the lectures.
Avoid at all costs! Do not take him if you want to learn anything. His tests never cover class material. He will literally not teach anything or grade anything if he is not in the mood. One time he got mad over something in his personal life and took it out on the students and threatened to fail us. Don't know how he is still allowed to teach.
Just finished csc162 online with this professor over the summer. Best teacher for java hands down. Plenty of material including the online vids that are good lectures. Course not that hard if you have good background and work at the program code.
Does not teach, does not reply to emails and the grading is horrible. I had to teach myself everything in the class. AVOID!
You learn more about his life than learning java. I took his class and had to self teach the entire time. All he does is read powerpoint for 5 minutes, goes off topic, for 15 minutes speaking about his PhD's etc, once every hr. Then assumes the class understands the subject matter. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE. PLACE UR BETS ELSEWHERE.
He spends all the time talking about his past glory days at IBM. Has temper issues. He does not put in the time to do the work. He literary told me I couldn't get a 100 on a program that ran and he couldn't see anything wrong. Just that, he doesn't give a 100. I kid you not. Run, guys run!
Professor is a great teacher and has tons of experience with industry. He know how to prepare you for more adv college and getting a job. He is a fair grader and works with you. I will take him again.
Dr. Faret is good teacher and works with you in class. He cover what you need for tests. Somtimes he is tough grader but you will learn cs and java coding
Great prof and will come back when he teaches more computer courses next semester
Huge attitude issue. Does not teach anything. He talks about random things and then gets mad when the class does not know anything. Threatens to give students an F just because he's in a bad mood. He's the one writing all these fake nice reviews about himself.
good professor. his coding labs are fun and you will learn many tech stuff. you have to do the homework and not that hard
He never goes over the lab even your ask for some problem. No matter how good your homework is, he will only give you 93 points at most. If you have a question to ask him not only he will not be able to answer it but also will give you the wrong answer. I don't even think it's as good as learning on Youtube. If you want to get a higher grade,Run!!
Does not teach you anything and does not even go over reviews or anything. Expects you to know Java without him even teaching. Absolute terrible professor and should not be in the teaching field. He should do something else that he likes because seems like he just wants to sit around and do nothing and try to fail everyone!
If 90% if the students are struggling in his class then that shows something. It's as if he had a rough time in his college days and wants to take it out on his students. Does not deserve the title of "Professor". He does not teach and expects you to know everything and straight up says he will fail you. MCC needs to look into his behavior!
I learn alot from this professor and plan to take the next java course with him. I would reccomend him to students that need to have someone explain how to do programm.
DO NOT believe these good reviews. They are being written by the professor himself. Please avoid taking him, he will not help you with anything and you will have to learn everything on your own.
Take someone else! He is horrible and will not help you at all and seems to not know how to teach. Thinks highly of himself and treats students like his peasants
I got a 93 on my first project. I asked him what I got wrong. He said I GOT NOTHING WRONG. That's when I knew that I had messed up. The rest of the semester was trying to skim through his RAMBLING, INCOHERENT lectures to no avail. Taught myself Java, and JUST BARELY got an A when I "GOT NOTHING WRONG." DO NOT TAKE DR. FARRET
Great instructor for Java. He know his stuff and was a professional for many years. If you want to learn how to program correctly take this professor.
Overall just not a good professor. A large majority of the class will fail, the material is not taught well during lectures. If you have no programming experience, be ready to commit a ton of your time to self-studying by using online resources as well as reading ahead in the textbook. You have 12 labs that are due every week, labs are worth 5%?
Do not listen to the ridiculous overly negative reviews here, Dr. Farret is extremely knowledgeable in all of the topics he covers in class, and has the industry experience to understand what is most important for students to learn. His lectures are informative and enjoyable, and the assignments are practical. Learned a great deal from his class.
Does not teach. Expects you to know everything. Yells at students for literally no reason. Weekly assignments that he grades unfairly and there is no revision for exams
Awful just awful. Ruined my computer science experience. Quite literally tells students he will fail them if they don't do exactly as he says. Not worthy of teaching students.
Very good prof. I learned alot taking his course. He will work with you but you have to do the work. Make sure you do the labs and classroom coding problems.
He doesn't teach anything. But I passed the course and got 'C'. Overall he passed me even though I submitted the tests very late. He passed me even though my java code is not good.
stay away at all costs
Prof Farett is very knowledgeable about computer science and software enginering. His course gives you a good foundation but you will have to work hard. He will prepare you for the exams. You need to do the labs and coding classroom problems so you can get good results. If you do not plan to do this then take another prof.
He only knows how to play guitar and does not know about coding Reads from slides and speaks to himself. EVERYONE in the class gets exact same score & comments for all the assignments (75/100) for all the assignments no matter if you do well or worse lol Choose other professor if you can. This guy is just a joke in CS classes.
Excelent instructor. I took him for CSC161 and CSC162 and did well. There is alot of work for the courses. You have to stay on top of the assigments and code labs.
He is a shameless person and gives everyone the same score for the assignments. You either get 85, 90, or 93. I guess these are his favorite numbers. But come on, you gotta grade student assignments with sincerity. Give fair grades based on students to ability and not by playing with favorite numbers. Farrett is such a shame to college and himself!
very good professor. took him for cs161 and learned alot and plan to take him again next semester for cs162
Took him for CSC162 for the summer. My class is fully online so it does not require any Zoom class and he only arrange a zoom class for 2 exams including the Final. The first exam and Final exam are easy. He gives 1.5 to 2 hrs for the exam, which is more than enough. Good professor with a good sense of humor.
Dr. Farrett is extremely knowledgeable when it comes to programming, listen to his experiences and advice. He is also a fast grader and gives great feedback. Dr. Farrett is also very accessible and responds to any questions in a timely manner. As long as you read the materials, do the labs, and watch the lectures you will do great in his class!
He is tough grader, and no one get 100% in assignments, if you need help, he won't give an explanation and expects so much from you. Don't take him.
Dr. Farrett is an industry professional and veteran. As long as you watch the module vidoes and complete the readings you should have no problem passing his class. He offers industry insight and provides great feedback on assignments.
He's okay, just not beginner-friendly. Ironic since 161 is an intro class for beginners. The only advantage is that as long as you can do the basics, he won't fail you on the mid-term/final. Be prepared to self-teach A LOT.
Dr. Farrett was a decent professor. He would sit there for the first half of the 3 hour class giving a lecture and then for the other half would do a "review/lab" if you pay attention and do a little studying outside of class you will be able to pass. Just participate and you will do fine.
Prof. Farrett's background in the Arts is evident, but I felt it didn't translate well to teaching a coding class. His class primarily consisted of reading book slides and I found a noticeable gap in practical coding knowledge. Some of my questions were either unanswered or deferred, leading me to seek external resources to understand the material.
Doesn't even wanna teach - just reads off of slides - expects you to read them on your own through revel and textbook. Doesn't answer majority of the questions - gives little hands-on demonstration. Has a weird logic about grades - won't give you anything above a 93 - he considers it an 'A'. He has got to understand that it doesn't work that way.
Worse professor. Talks about Guitar all the file. Take professor who talks about Java lmao
As other review says you learn about guitar in this class lol he is funny but useless and sometimes all of sudden he acts weird as if he is lost or confused
He talks 3 hours straight. Boring lecture. Tough exams. Stay away
He threatens you to fail you
I took his online class. His online recorded lectures are useless. he makes you come to campus for midterm and final. Its brutal. If class is online why the hack you make students come in-person. His final exam was complete surprise. It was very hard. Half of the class failed. you don't learn anything
Good prof and knows his stuff. I took him for two classes. he is not a push over so do the labs and any other work and you should be ok
He was okay and it's a typical CS class. The material wasn't difficult, it was just that his explanations would be overly complicated. The main thing that bugged me was that the highest grade he gives is a 93. Even though I passed with an A-, it just made it more difficult to maintain an A by already losing out on 7 points.
He teaches an intro to programming class but assumes all his students know programming terminology without explaining or defining it. I felt lost 90% of his lectures and only could catch up watching youtube videos. Also does not grade higher than 93%.
The highest grade he gives is a 93 whether it be the final, midterm, or homework's. This essentially makes it impossible to get an A and basically bumps your letter grade down because a 100 is turned into a 93. All he does is talk about random stuff, laugh about mistaking people's names, and rant about his weekend for 3 hours.
I see a lot of complaints about his highest grade being a 93, but the truth is just do well and you'll be fine. He isn't a tough grader in the slightest, just do what is asked in a reasonably okay manner and you'll get an A. Dr Farrett really knows his stuff and is glad to help students out; yes he can be eccentric but this makes the class unique.
Very good, very fair, and very fun.
First, my class schedule was at 9:30 a.m., but he always came to class around 9:50ish. Honestly, I don't mind him being late because there were some times that I was late too, and he wasn't even there. Secondly, he just summarises the chapters but he DOES NOT explain how? or Why? he just shows you the examples, and is up to you if you understood.
Do labs and discussions, and you will be fine.
Prof Farrett's class can be a mixed bag. While his lectures can be dry, the material is manageable if you stay engaged and use resources like the textbook and Unstuck AI to supplement your studies.
I took peter in 2018. He was the worst professor I have ever had. So much that I remembered about him today as a married man and had to come and give this review
Dr. Farret was such a funny guy, made long lectures enjoyable. My advice, if you're new to computer science, you won't do very well since he goes at a fast pace and doesn't explain too well to beginners. Basically gave us what was on midterm and final. Homework once a week. He is late often, but that just means I can be too. Gives great rec letters
Had Farrett for an InfoSec Online class which held his lectures, PowerPoint learning material, and discussions posts for assignments with a few labs to do. A E-Book was also provided which supplemented the learning material. This prof. was alright the few times I met him for exams and overall the class was good and learned a lot.
Dr Farrett is a terrible professor if I was you I would avoid him I did not know what I was getting into when i took him
he doesnt clarify any explanation and you will have to read a lot to make sure you understand I would avoid him at all cost.
Good course. Labs are interesting. Just follow the course outline and study the material. There is a midterm and final. He is a fair grader as well as knowledgeable.
HE RATES HIMSELF. Dont believe all the good reviews. He figured rating himself will get him more classes and students to take him. DO NOT. just dont. Worst comp sci prof ever. I got a C all on my own.
teacher doesnt teach so get ready and good luck if you take the class
good prof. do the work and you will be ok. There is alot of concepts and coding
The class was not that difficult. Final was in person, be ready. Labs are every week and they are not difficult. I did enough to pass. I would recommend you to learn material from other sources. The final was also very basic.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
90%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.45 avg changeRatings by Course
CSC116
4.5
(2)CSC262
4.0
(1)CSC161AND162
3.5
(46)161
2.5
(4)CSC161
2.4
(45)Difficulty by Course
CSC162
4.3
CSC262
4.0
CSC161
4.0
162
3.9
CSC161AND162
3.7