2.8
Quality4.4
Difficulty34%
Would Retake121
Reviews34%
Would Retake
121
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
121 total ratings5
19
4
27
3
28
2
10
1
37
What Students Say
“Made me feel awful about my future in Computer Science”
CS454 - 1.0 rating“Easily the worst professor in the dept”
CS231 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
68%
Textbook Required
50%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.83 avg changeRatings by Course
CS554
5.0
(1)COMP231
5.0
(1)THEORY1
5.0
(1)454
4.5
(4)CS231CS454
4.5
(2)Difficulty by Course
454
5.0
6023160
5.0
6045460
5.0
0360231
5.0
CS231CS454
5.0
Reviews (118)
Nice guy, subjects are hard. Gives my degree credibility
bad bad bad
marking is subjective
Lectures are just reading the book, but he is great if you work at his course!
hard as hell
Knows his stuff, but just does nothing but read his notes in class.
what he says is NOT TRUE, so it is NOT high school algebra
goodgoodgood
Hard marker
gave me lot of confidance
Crazy mathematicain
Brilliant, Good sense of Humour but tough as well..all in all perfect teacher.
He clears out the cheaters with his class.
Nice teacher. but he seems to think that Canada = Singapore. it is not in our AG
genious, but evil teacher...no one passes!
life gets meaning out of seeing you fail
Funny like a Steven Siegal film. Your assignment has been rejected!
Hard proff, seems to enjoy failing people: You lack background Knowledge
Intelligent, but grossly incompetent as a teacher.
Excellent prof. with huge knowledge and information about his subject. he should go for Noble Award....
He thinks I am stupid. :(
I passed 60-454 with a C!!
Yahoo!!! Its this, then this, then this, so this. Yes this, no this..... (That is all I recall from his class!!!)
I got a C too.
This teacher is on crack and needs to take sabbatical! Better yet, he needs to go take a high school algebra course. 60-454 is the course from hell.
stay on top from the start is the best advice ever... the prof is intelligent and nice enough as a person but sucks as a teacher...
I changed majors when I heard that he's the only prof for 231 and there are people repeating his courses 7 times over.
This class sets the men apart from the boys. Difficult beyond your wildest thoughts. He is a very nice guy though. If the course book was from a publisher, and not his personal notes, it would provide valuable insight into this high level field of maths.
I don't think that we are that much stupid as he thinks.
Makes 454 a joke. I've seen people who came two hours late to the exam get perfect in the course.
w00t! D-! This is actually good in this course!
I got C- in his course!!! 4 months of suffering plus 2 more months for the project. All that for Honours but it's worth it.
If you think you are done with him after 231 think again. It just gets better. 454 is NP-HARD.
Teaches a tough course, and forces you to be very-formal in your proofs (more so than many math classes even). Nice guy though, and helps those who seek it. If it were not for his class, our CS honours program would be way too easy.
Be afraid of this guy, but give him some respect. His courses are insanely tough, but the ends justify the means. Just be ready to bust your skull to pass this class.
Big challenge. You must be good at math to take his course. Anyway, he is fair to anybody.
Possibly the hardest course on math logic I've ever taken. This guy will push you to your limit, then kick you over the line. He DOES teach the material, however there's so much to absorb that even the best can struggle. Defenitely a class that separates the men from the boys.
he's an amazing prof to say the least. anyone that knows the material well enough to write their own textbook should be given credit. alot of people have trouble with his courses, but thats because either A) they go in thinking they'll get free marks, or B) they're afraid to ask questions.
Not an easy course, but not an impossible course. Gives some of leeway to pass. I find I finally learn something I came to a uni for. Other courses do not demand as much attention. This makes a uni an uni.
Very smart professor!!!!
I got a C- in 231 and a D- in 454 but guess what, I didn't repeat those two courses. Tsin is not a good teacher but he knows a lot. He has serious attitude problems.
I passed with a C, but only because I spent a week studying 10 hour days. I had a 19% on my midterm and knew exam was my last chance to pass. Once I started goin to his office, he was always helpful and took his time in explaining certain concepts. You have to understand, Tsin is the border of HONORS and BACHELORS. If you pass Tsin you are HONORED!
If you study hard and work yourself to death, you can get a good grade, but slip a little and you find yourself at the bottom of a slippery slope.
Although the man is a piece of brocolli, hesa good guy and he DOES intend on everyone to pass. Your mark will always be boosted 10%, and if you did better on final than your entire year, Your grade in the class will be ur final mark. Buy the courseware, because you'll stare at it, watch him explain it, and still not get it. Hard as hell.
Knowledgeable professor. Best professor at U Windsor.
He is a good professor who teaches some tough subjects. His classes are very involved and you need to have good theoretical math skills (proof in particular) to succeed in his class. If you're excellent at theoretical math, you can get a very good grade without studying a lot. Otherwise it's tougher and you have to spend a lot of time practicing.
If all the professors at U of W were like TSIN then U of W would have been rated one of the best Universities in Canada. Definitely the best prof in U of W. He is funny too.
Many people say 231 is too hard but it's not. Actually, I thought 62-190 was harder than this course (of course, up until graph theory). You relearn everything you thought you learned in 62-190 but more formally. He is funny too.
Good course but professor makes it hard for you to even pass it. Needs a new teacher.
Teaches the hardest courses, but really values the learning experience. Also very humorous. Put the effort into his courses to get the full benefit out of them.
He is ok
Dr. Tsin genuinely cares about you understanding the material. He is inhibited by his accent, and has become very cynical about students and their propensity to lie, which is honestly pretty well founded. If you study things he emphasizes, you will pass. He is fair, in my opinion.
The material is pretty boring for the most part considering how we don't really learn any interesting algorithms. The assignments are pretty fun. He only glossed over the more interesting topics (such as Tabu search, GA, and randomization/approx algos) which was disappointing... the class was challenging, but no one really fails anyway. Easy D?
ok but thick accent
Out of all the courses in Computer Science, this is the most frustrating one. Just when you think you understood something, you are proven completely wrong. Unapproachable professor, and I've been waiting for a month for my final grade! Either the teaching method gets changed for future students, or else Computer Science at UW will suffer.
His course was very hard, but inspirational. Poof on correctness and complexity of algorithms might be sometimes hard and extremely hard! But as a computer science student, not software engineering, this is very important and helpful in further research. I didn't do well on this because of some reasons, I'd like to try again.
One of the best professors in the department. Really interesting course. The course is divided into three sections, we spent a handful of time on the first then the second but barely had time for the third section. Expect a curve at the end. Suggestion, do your work by yourself, do not copy assignments, go to labs and pay attention. Oh he's funny.
Things you need to know: -he's quick with a chirp -you have to read his book(it's cheap, written by him and very well written) -he has a thick accent which makes lectures hard to follow, but if you read before hand, following along will be easy -labs are presented very well -assignments get harder but solutions help for exams
Course is incredibly challenging. Most of the skills/techniques are self-taught, if you ask for help he will just tell you that you do not understand the material and to go back and read it again. He gives you 2-3 weeks for assignments for a reason, start early. Exams are hard, for every wrong True/False, you get -3%. Curve saves all in the end.
Tsin's teachings are quite well. He reads through his textbook for the most part which is written by him. It is very well written, if you just go through it thoroughly, you will be fine. The problem is with his marking. As soon as you make one mistake, whether it be logical or semantic. He deducts heavily and sometimes just stops marking.
Just Awful! This person has no feelings towards a student. He told me I can never do anything in my life if I can't do this course. He expects us to master in mathematics before hand. Anything you don't understand is high school Algebra according to him. Made me feel awful about my future in Computer Science. Never take this course.
Doesn't care about your learning experience. Easily the worst professor in the dept. Thinks that because he marks so difficult/bad, his teaching level must be "at Waterloo level"- what a joke. Good profs make sure the class understands a subject. Math is math; but not in this class. Takes a great CS course and ruins it with his teaching method.
Wow, this had to have been the worst prof I've taken. His lectures are just him reading word by word from his textbook with an occasional example if he's in the mood. If you mess up a little part at the start of the question you get an automatic 0 even if the rest is correct. He doesn't take Sabattical cause he says he is the only good prof.
Tsin teaches a difficult subject, but he makes it even harder to learn by his teaching methods. Hes condescending, arrogant, and rude. If you dont understand, its because youre lazy. He reads from the textbook he wrote which I admit isnt horrible. Go to the labs and hell know your name. Aim for a 50 and youll be good. He curves.
His lectures involve him reading his own textbook word for word with the occasional example. Grading is extremely strict with trivial errors like an error on a single line resulting in a zero on that question. This unfair difficulty doesn't make it the "Waterloo course" that he claims it is. Your saving grace is the massive curve.
Best Professor I could ever have.. He really cares about students. I don't why people are saying he is not good teacher.. He is tough but that doesn't mean he is bad, he wants us to work hard and just focus on what we are supposed to do in here in university
A nice person, but on the lecture, he just reading the book in a high speed. But his lab related to the class is one of the best class i never had before. Any thing in the lab will explain clearly. And don't be afraid to ask question during the lab, he will be patient to u
Every lecture you will hear this at least once: - The stack of logic (propositional logic, FOL, set theory) - Windsor level vs. Waterloo level, and how he is bringing the course to "Waterloo level" - If you don't like the course, drop the course and take applied computing Sit in front of a speaker if you want to at least somewhat understand him.
As reference, 1st midterm average: 42%, 2nd: 38% (14 people got 0!) Class requires laser focus and lots of reading. Take easy classes the same semester as you take this to lighten the load. Go to EVERY lab, do EVERY assignment and he'll curve you more. Good luck
Rough around the edges but overall a good prof. His lectures can be hard to follow sometimes but they're pretty thorough and helpful. Definitely make sure you go to class + the labs, he'll remember you if you do and might show mercy on your final mark depending on if you went to the labs or not.
If mathematical rigor was a person, Tsin assassinated him and took his place because he wasn't rigorous enough. 10/10 IGN
Great elective course to lighten the load for the semester, good escape from other uni classes.
His lectures are useless but his labs are where you really learn.
Only reason I passed was because of the curve. I'm in honours computer science. We started with about 200 students, ended with about 60. This was the hardest thing I've ever done.
Awful teacher believes that difficulty preparing you for the future. Combine this with bad teaching and limited understanding of English and you have a bad recipe.
Don't bother trying to ask questions because if you do he will say and I quote "You are a failure and worthless, figure it out yourself, you're a student just learn it". Don't bother going to lectures because he will say "Because you go to this school, you all are rejects and stupid". Do NOT register for his class, don't allow him to teach anymore.
Do yourself a favour and dont take his course
Do yourself a favour, don't take his course
I would say he is a fair professor in his way. But tbh the person is an absolute nightmare. Creates unnecessary rules for everyone. Get ready to fail if you don't have his courseware. Basically just run around him as his dog and don't ask questions
Would be a great prof if he weren't so arrogant. Claims that the difficulty that students have with this course is due to him teaching at a higher level, which is just an excuse. Lectures are just him circling stuff in his text, but labs are helpful. His textbook is good and he is very knowledgeable, it's a shame he's a poor teacher.
Overall he tries to be a good prof, and cares for his students. Gave feedback after both midterms and final on weather you should drop so that you dont fail or if you are still good. However he sucks at teaching labs are bascially where you're going to learn. His courseware is really good and he does end up curving at the end.
If you don't do the questions in the courseware and the assignments, you will fail the course, like it's guaranteed. Attending lectures alone will not help. You won't find any help on youtube either. GO TO LABS, if you take it online make sure ur camera is on during labs and exams. Read the courseware and try the examples after. The curve is huge.
Trust me, everyone who gave a bad score are ridiculous. Guy legit does what he can to help you pass. Once you figure him out its good. ATTEND ALL LABS AND PARTICIPATE!!! Failed both mid terms, but was active in labs and office hrs and rode that curve to a C-. If you want an A, be good in math!! Proof and Logic material GOOD LUCK
Dr. Tsin's class is hard; his tests are hard to finish in time, but he curves like crazy. His lectures are most helpful if you have skimmed/read the chapter in advance. His courseware is excellent and very clear (aside from small errors), and he's incredibly helpful during labs and office hours. Very caring prof, but you need to work hard!!!
Not good
Worst Prof at the school. Can't understand, can't read his hand writing. Goes against his own facility's Dean's advice on not breaking student by-laws. Worst. Professor. Ever.
extremely bad. You don't even know how to do the assignment. There is no similar question from the textbook that you can refer to. Really tough.
Very bad professor and copy proofs from Indian papers I found them on the website.
This is known as the hardest class in the CS program for University of Windsor that made a lot of students change major in order to avoid this class. If you study very hard and do every single questions on textbook then you will have a chance to pass this class after the curve. Do not miss any lab or else you most likely will fail the class.
Despite what you've heard, this course isn't very hard, you just have to put in more work than some of the other courses at UWindsor. Go to labs, try to answer when he asks you, don't be self conscious, he'll explain why you're wrong and after that you'll remember it. He's a caring guy, but has greater expectations than other faculty.
Extremely difficult course. Moves through the content quickly. You will be juggling assignments and midterms constantly. Assignments can take upwards of 30h to complete. Some explanations/information is lecture-only so you should attend. The course is doable if you are prepared to work 5x harder than any of your previous courses. Study!
His courses can demotivate you but if you put some work into his assignments(probably able to score more than 50% in his assignments and double digits in mid terms) you can still pass the course. I did really bad on both the courses but guess what I did not fail any of them. Some students got zero on the mid term but still passed the course.
Amazing prof. However, Peter makes you work for your mark.
I wouldn't ever recommend anyone to take his courses. His handwriting is really bad during the lectures. He doesn't add anything to these lectures and most of all, in order to gain access to his homework and lecture slide, you need to buy a textbook for this. When you attend his lectures all he does is read off the textbook and adds nothing of valu
Good prof, if you attend the lectures and pay attention you will understand the material. You will need to put in the work however and spend good time on the assignments.
You get out of his class exactly what you put into it. If you put in a lot of effort, he will recognize it and do his best to help you understand the material really well. If you try to get by without studying, you're going to fail. I enjoyed having him but if he thinks you asked a bad question he may call you out for it in front of the class.
I took 2310 with Professor Tsin this semester and I can honestly tell you that he is one of the best professors at the university. He immediately tells you what is expected of you, takes time to go through his courseware and teach everything to make you succeed. He also gives amazing inspirational advice to bolster you for the rest of your degree.
Deff is a tough grader but if you go to his labs you're going to be fine
rideeeee the curveee baby
Does not speak English properly, has terrible hand writing, will not negotiate ANY marks (midterm/assignments), does not post anything online, will force you to buy his book.
Peter Tsin is a disgrace to teaching, he values breaking down his students and a "ride-the-curve" mentality, where student's don't actually understand the content. I'm not sure he even fully understands the content he teaches as most of his assignment solutions are covered in mistakes. If you pop his meat in your mouth he gives extra pts. no diddy.
labs worth going to....lecture not so much...u need courseware and u need to study hes as bad as they say.
This professor is overrated; his rating is meant to be 1. Do not bother taking this course. My worst nightmare is that he is the only one teaching Comp 4540. You can NEVER pass this course no matter what. Do you want to know why? He is a tough grader, does not speak English clearly, his handwriting is horrible and no other way to get resources.
Funny prof. He makes jokes and he genuinely cares about providing a good education to students at UShitsor, which is nice. His accent is very hard to understand so lectures are hard to follow but his labs make up for it. Make sure you participate in labs, it'll get you that sweet curve. Don't be scared of exams, they are fair as long as you STUDY.
Very strict course. Lectures are hard to understand. Textbook is a very good resource but you need to know every inch of it
Whoever says the prof is good is an opp, don't listen to those reviews. This professor makes the coursework very unnecessarily difficult. I regret every moment spent studying for this class because the professor isn't worth my time and effort. It's almost impossible for him to communicate ideas clearly in lectures. I hope he retires soon.
If Tsin didn't teach 454 I would cry. He's one of if not the best professor here. His classes are insanely hard. Get comfortable riding the curve.
The hardest class of CS, but not impossible. You need to take this course seriously from day 1 and you NEED to make sure he gets to knows who you are by name. 1st midterm is math based, 2nd and final are "think on your feet" based. The class is HELL for a few months, but (after passing) you can recover from the trauma and move on with your life.
Professor Tsin runs a challenging but rewarding class. Attend labs, engage in discussions, and use resources like the textbook and unstuck study to succeed. With effort, you can thrive in this class.
Cant speak english
The well formed formula, the WFF, is a sub WFF of itself because the WFF contains itself. The WFF is a formula that is well formed!
Some professors are good teachers, some are good researchers and some are both. I see Prof Tsin as an intelligent individual who is probably a good researcher. However he simply can't teach. Known as "final boss of comp sci honors", he is the only one who instructs the core course, COMP4540. Prepare to not understand his accent and read the book.
Took about 20 years ago. Got my Master's not long ago. One thing I can assure everyone is: His 231 teaches you the fundamentals. His 454 forces you to think outside the box. When I was an undergrad, I dreaded these two courses. However, in the workforce, I noticed how much 454 led me to think and not simply follow. Also way ahead in grad school.
Consistently discouraging and unhelpful. Rather than clarifying the proof-based material, he tells struggling students to drop CS, lectures are unclear, notes are hard to read, and communication barriers go unaddressed
Peter Tsin is the WORST teacher to have ever graced my academic career. Not only is he terrible at teaching the material, he also could give 0 craps about whether or not you actually understand it. Will never properly answer your questions, is extremely rude, and grades about as tough as you can. Be prepared ride the curve!
His courses are very hard. He wants to see you succeed, but he wants you to put in some serious effort to earn it. He's pretty negative/mean sometimes (tells you to drop out if you're not doing well, etc.). Lectures are impossible to follow, read the book very closely (it is well written) and put a lot of effort in and you'll do fine.
Hardest prof you'll take in CS. Not a bad person, he has extreme standards. Many peoples study for tests a day or two before, study a week (or two if struggling) before. To do good, get used to good habits and start reading day 1. Lectures are no help. All book's detail matters. Ask him Qs. Participate. Complete 2310 well, you become new person.
Assignments is real hard like mind crashing Get ready to read the whole courseware from page one!
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
68%
Textbook Required
50%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.83 avg changeRatings by Course
CS554
5.0
(1)COMP231
5.0
(1)THEORY1
5.0
(1)454
4.5
(4)CS231CS454
4.5
(2)Difficulty by Course
454
5.0
6023160
5.0
6045460
5.0
0360231
5.0
CS231CS454
5.0