Energetic lecturer with excellent course notes. The assignments are very hard (start days ahead and work in groups!) but are written to walk you through the material. For the midterm/final, don't bother to memorize any formulas. Study derivations.

Very enthusiastic prof, made the material look easy...which it wasn't. His philosophy is that we learn new material from assignments, then tests were just review. But start the assignments the day they're assigned... The exams were basically just derivations straight from the notes, with slight twists of course.

Very clear and very good notes! Funny too, occasionally.

he's cute, and he's very helpful. when u ask a question he keeps a smile on his face when helping you and he's never in too much a rush to answer your questions. when i emailed him with questions, he'd explain it detail by detail and i'd be like whoa! so he took the time to revisit the question and type up all this stuff. b

Super organized, beautiful boardwork, makes his copies of notes available online, assignments were engaging, and exams straightforward. A+!

Great prof. Takes many concepts down to first principles if necessary, yet class isn't boring, nor does he fail to get through all the required material.

Great teacher and a lot of fun. Always had a smile on his face and enthusiastic to teach. Course material was fairly difficult, but as someone before me has stipulated, he seems to work on a "learn from the assignments" policy - so my advice, stop your whining and do the damn assignments

He is great, when I emailed him with questions, he'd take his time to type up the answers with so much detail as if he was explaining it in person. He always smiles and makes the course interesting. He's also really cute

He brings a lot of enthusiasm to material that could be dull in the wrong hands and makes me want to take more physics courses. Might be sometimes a little unclear if you're having trouble with the material. I'd definitely recommend his lectures for those interested in physics.

He's so cute. Always smiling and so helpful. The early class was worth it just to watch him teaching and smiling at us..

Incredibly awesome prof. Lots of enthusiasm and very clear and concise notes. Midterm was easy but the final was extremely hard. However just go to the classes as he is one of the best profs i've ever had.

Best physics prof I have ever seen(..Im a frost though)..great enthusiastism and nice notes. Assignments might be hard but it is there to help you understand the material(better be stuck on assignment rather than stuck on midterm/final)and he uses funny examples to make an otherwise boring lecture lively

Very good at explaining topics in class, and can quickly re-explain anything that people have trouble with.

One of the best profs I've seen. Smart, knowledgeable, and very helpful. All notes are online plus he had a special tutorial every week where he lectured for an extra hour doing more problems. Assignments are very good and at times are tough but you learn the material. The midterm and exam are exactly the same as assignments.

Amazing prof. Made physics interesting and amusing. Obvious enthusiasm for the subject is a huge plus.

The hardest class I have ever taken in my life! But he is an awesome teacher, he his hilarious also, class was always fun, he is extremely enthusiastic about physics, posts detailed notes online. Don't buy the textbook, it is useless and not relevant to the types of questions presented on tests/assignments. Take Calc 2 before taking this class!

PROF. EPP IS AWESOME. Very knowledgeable in physics and his notes get posted online. His classes are fun, but the course is some hard stuff.

he is sooooooooooooooooo helpful.The best thing is he puts all his lecture notes online...

We miss you! Why did the department stop letting him teach PHYS courses anymore??? He's the simply the best lecturer ever!

HE IS THE BEST PROF EVER!

Epp is a seriously fantastic prof... I looked forward to going to physics every day! Don't skip the lectures, his explanations are fantastic and cover everything that will be tested.

Dr. Epp is one of the most amazing physics profs Uwaterloo has to offer. His lectures are inspiring and engaging. Definately one of the greatest profs Uwaterloo has to offer.

Richar Eppic. By far the best physics professor, ideal for a physics student.

Awesome prof!

He is a nice guy. Great lecture. And helpful outside of class. But his SCI 238 is way too hard for a introductory course.

Awesome!

He's a great prof, very interesting and smooth in his lectures.

Oh yeah!

A very good teacher, but PHY 121 is so tough.

The best professor I have had the pleasure of being taught by. If you don't mind a difficult course, take this lecture immediately, he is amazing.

He is the best teacher hands down. If u have a chance switch into his class u won't regret it :D

The best prof ever! He loves the study of reality so much that it's impossible not to notice! He shines so much when he talks about physics and it sparks your interest even more. Incredible prof. The best prof at Waterloo I have seen in two years up to this moment. Very useful notes and interesting homeworks, make you think more like a physicist.

Solid prof, very clear at explaining concepts and extending them to much more advanced topics. Improve your math background for this class.

Epp is an amazing lecturer, though he teaches you with 'thinking like a physicist' in mind above all else; he's one of those profs whose class is all about you learning the big picture and never about him preparing you for the tests. Listening to him speak reminds me why I study physics, but be warned, you need to put in a lot of self-study time.

He is freaking Eppic, literally

Amazing prof. Would recommend taking any class with him

He's the best physics prof.

Richard Epp is not only a genius, but also hilarious. Lectures will have you laughing, but at the same time, you will also be learning a ton. Although the content is rather difficult, Epp offers a ton of bonus marks on midterms and finals; the average on each of the tests were over 80%. If you're deciding between 111 & 121, choose Epp's class.

really good prof.

Fantastic prof that really loves to teach. Lectures are interesting and fun, and he actually teaches fundamentals instead of just prepping you for an exam. Very nice guy and helpful outside of class as well. His courses can be a lot of work but it's worth it

A distinguished, and well-respected professor. He has a great amount of knowledge about what he's teaching and is very clear, and easy to understand. One of the best professors I've had in my first year!

Best prof I've ever had at UW.

Easy to understand. Lots of examples. Funny. All around great prof.

Really great lecturer, very nice to talk to after class if you have any questions or curiosities. Although I have heard from other students that for certian classes he has hard assignments for certian areas of physics

Excellent prof who really wants his students to learn! Can't recommend him high enough.

Great professor who shows a lot of enthusiasm and interest in the course content. He also cares a lot about his students and will explain everything in great detail. Expect assignments to be a tad math-y and derivation based.

Richard Epp is an awesome professor.

Richard is quite good for giving a lecture. Explain the concepts pretty well. Although plenty of equations, derivations would be written across the board, the lecturer was pretty funny. Sometimes experimental tools were brought. Overall the course was a pretty good experience, although sometimes it would be sleepy in an afternoon lecture LOL.

Epp rocks!!! What an amazing course! He really gave us a whole new perspective to physics, thinking like a physicist. Just love Epp and his course so much.

Epp is a really amazing prof. Passionate and knowledgeable, he teaches you how to think like a physicist. His exams are definitely not easy, but there are a lot of bonus marks which means it is not hard to get a high grade. Definitely recommend for everyone who is interested in physics. Do not hesitate to take a course with him.

I had him for 121 and he was great, his voice is kind soothing so sometimes it's easy to fall asleep.

Awesome professor, he teaches you a whole new way to think about problems. Don't hesitate to take a class with him for sure.

Even though I'm not good at physics, but he is the best physics teacher I've ever had!

The course itself is very tough, but Epp makes most lectures fun and engaging. Also, always be studying for the next exam, those problems are some tricky ones.

Took 121 with him. Epp is a good teacher, but the content can be boring. I don't think there was a way for this course to be less boring, so it is not app's fault. He is a really charismatic and passionate lecturer. There are lots of bonus, and the weekly online assignment doesn't take that long. It was an overall easy class.

Prof Epp is really good at explaining university physics and how students should think about physics. He put emphasis in preparing students for second year physics. His lectures can be dry because it is just working out physics problems but there can be enjoyable moments. There are too much content in the course and that can pose a challenge

Passionate and humourous about the subject. Explains things very clearly. Lecture notes are organized by examples rather than hierarchies of concepts - this takes some getting used to.

Great Professor who knows exactly what he is doing. You need to attend each and every lecture if you want to know whats going on because he covers content from end to end in is classes. His lecture notes are amazing and he is really nice to meet outside of class too. He wants his students to truly think and behave like physicists.

The best physics professor you can ever have in first year. Extremely exciting lectures, although some times you can get lost in his teaching. So just make sure you read his posted lecture notes ahead of time before lectures. Exams are hard, but fair. Many exam questions are actually from his lecture notes, so really study these carefully.

Love Epp

really great guy that is passionate about physics. I had to retake the course (personal life struggles, not because of course content), but the lecture hall often hears students laughing during his lectures. if you're taking phys121 with him, wait for the lecture with the astronaut flailing around in space; that one's always funny.

My favorite professor during my first term at university. Very dedicated to learning and student success. I thoroughly enjoyed his lectures because he would often give interesting live demonstrations of physics in everyday life. Kinda talks quietly though, so be sure to sit at the front of the classroom.

Dr. Epp's class was by far my favourite in 1A and I thoroughly enjoyed every lecture although the material was sometimes difficult. Tests and exam were composed of problems that were similar in concept to those covered in class and difficulty was reasonable but still required a lot of practice.

Awesome and fun guy, made the lectures very interesting with all his "Ah Yes!"s, "Ah!"s and "Aha!"s. Even though this a course that may have needed the textbook, his lecture notes were very useful (though sometimes, they didn't have much English in them and more arrows and stuff).

Dr. Epp was easily my favourite professor in first year and I was lucky enough to have in him 1A and 1B. His lectures were very good, making hard topics seem easy because of very good explanations. Would recommend going to class and taking your own notes because his lecture notes are a little difficult to understand at times without him explaining.

Dr Epp is everything you could hope for in a professor. His love and passion for physics radiates off him. There arent enough words to describe how amazing he is

His pre-recorded lectures were awesome, for online classes during COVID-19.

Was taken in hybrid mode: group tutorials in person/online, but dully online quizzes/lectures/final. Lectures were amazing with Epp, and I feel that people who like physics would love him (only took as a requirement). My only complaints were that his lectures were very slow, and the quizzes were significantly harder than the lectures.

great prof, appreciate the midterm curve

Don't listen to anyone who doesnt prepare properly and do not invest proper amount of time to get prepared for tests and not only. The profs is one of the best in all of Canada, took quite a lot courses from home and my thinking expanded dramatically. His eyes radiate knowledge and wisdom. Go te lecture, take notes, use AI to expand on it. KN

The literal best. His lectures are so interested because you can genuinely tell he cares deeply about the subject, and is extremely passionate. I can't say I have the greatest atendence record, but I didn't miss a single of his classes because they truly are amazing.

Really enthusiastic about the course and about physics in general. Its really encouraging and enjoyable to have someone as bright as him teach the class. Truly made me love physics again and reminded me of why I loved it so much in the first place!! If you get him as a prof, consider yourself lucky!