2.5
Quality3.5
Difficulty26%
Would Retake88
Reviews26%
Would Retake
88
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
88 total ratings5
11
4
14
3
16
2
15
1
32
What Students Say
“If you can please avoid this teacher”
PHI1120 - 1.0 rating“I'm a senior and this is the first time I RATE a professor, HE IS BAD”
PHI1120 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
69%
Textbook Required
25%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.09 avg changeRatings by Course
PHI5280
5.0
(1)PHI1200
4.0
(1)PHI5250
4.0
(3)PHI1010
3.0
(4)1120
2.6
(8)Difficulty by Course
1020
5.0
23002
5.0
PHI2320
5.0
PHIL1120
4.3
PHI1200
4.0
Reviews (87)
He is not really that good he does not help out to much to make you understand the subject. he has great knowledge of the material though.his hand writing sucks and therefor refuses to give some lecture notes. quizes are online 15 min for all 10 of them. I never got a 100 on any of them due to not knowing what he was talking about half the time.
I email him and get no responses for days. His handwriting is awful but if you pay attention to what hes saying, you know what hes trying to write. He has online quizzes weekly and the wording throws you way off. I've never got a 100% on any of them and I have attended all the classes and taken all his notes. Word to the wise. Not very friendly.
Online Weekly Quizes are easy (80% or above on all of them). He was helpful with the paper and helped me edit my rough draft before it was due. Sometimes his quizes were more then what was written on the board. Just pay attention to the lecture and take notes of what he talks about.
THE GOOD: His lectures are clear and easy to follow, and the weekly quizzes are easy. THE BAD: He grades the papers hard (60% of your grade, so be careful), he is standoffish and impersonal and won't learn anything about you, and claims to be unbiased but the lectures are VERY biased. OVERALL: I wish I would have taken a different class/prof
1. The professor does not provide ANYTHING. Just lectures. 2. He doesn't grade papers(60% of grade). The TA's do, and he gives them harsh guidelines to go off of. Grading is completely ARBITRARY 3.He assigns weekly quizzes which have bad wording(including Q's on HIS opinion). 4. Over 85% of our grade was done in the last 5-6 weeks of the class.
At first this class wasn't so bad. The weekly online quizzes are pretty easy. For me personally, I had a hard time remembering.BUT the worst part was the essays which count for MOST of your grade, &he grades them very harsh. Almost like at a graduate level. The final exam was strictly writing.One plus,his lectures were interesting & easy to follow.
He's nice. Lectures are clear and weekly quizzes are easy. I personally did none of the reading and I'm still getting an A. Papers are difficult because he gives a wide range of topics to choose from and requires page numbers from the reading that are hard to find within the massive textbook
He is extremely intelligent and made the subject matter interesting, even when otherwise could have been mundane. The exams were tough, and I didn't do well, but I learned a lot from my errors. This isn't a class for those relying on common sense. Yes the TA's grade, fairly, in my opinion. It is an extremely large lecture, that's typical.
I loved this class and I loved this professor. I don't know why people are giving him such bad ratings. I got an A in this class, and I got an A or maybe an A- on the essays. For those who said he is a hard essay grader they probably just wrote bad essays. This will always be my favorite class taken at WSU.
He is a great teacher don't get me wrong but he doesn't give things to prepare you for exams like now for me it's finals time and he has yet to tell us what we should be studying or at least given an idea of what we should expect to see on the exam
The worst professor ever and hired the worst TA's ever. TA's except so much on the papers they assign but they won't tell what they are looking for. Very confusing course. Mostly for engineering students. Didn't learn anything bc he didn't expand other majors. TA are strict markers. Strict cellphone usage...caught and lose 1% of your final grade.
Anybody who is saying this class is "really hard" probably did not do any of the readings or attend the lecture. The class is NOT THAT HARD. Yeah, the TA's did all of the work, but they were BOTH approachable and SO helpful! I passed the class with an A because I actually READ and WENT to class. It's a philosophy class...it's not a blow off class.
This class was very interesting, and there is a lot of reading involved. however, the TA's and the professor are pretty helpful if you are having trouble with the material. there are 5 homework assignments which are easy, 2 papers, and 2 exams (30 mult choice). this class isn't difficult if you pay attention, do the reading, and go to class
Attending discussion and lecture counts as 15% of your grade, which makes up for the impossibly hard homework. The hw is another 15% of your grade. The remaining 70% is the Midterm, final and 2 (technically 3) essays. The essays are graded harshly but you can ask for feedback which is very helpful. All in all, very difficult class. THE TA MATTERS
Tests: Midterm and Final, go over study guide provided by TA will be an easy A. Reading Quizzes: Almost every single lecture, just read! (usually based on thesis) Papers: Just LISTEN to directions, and THOROUGHLY execute EXACTLY what they ask for. GO OVER IT WITH YOUR TA. TA: Graeme Cave is very approachable, instructing, and helpful.
one of the worst professor. no matter how good is you paper but they will find way to not give you full grade. TA's are taught too . theire assignment is confusing too.
Horrible teacher. Even if hes the only teacher offered please dont take him biggest regret of your life.
Terrible terrible terrible!!!!! Very hard grader. You only have two essays, but he'll find a way to nitpick and criticize the paper without leaving helpful comments. I hated coming to this class, but I love the subject. I wish I would've taken this class with another teacher. You need to read the assigned readings before every class.
Basically you read small articles for homework everyday and discussed them the next class. The class is pretty easy ify ou just read the homework and answer the clicker questions. Midterm and Final are both easy A's if you follow the TA's study guide. Follow the TA's rubric for the papers and you will get a good grade. Overall, intersting class.
Dr. Fanselow's lectures were informative, and he is a very engaging and entertaining speaker. The homework is hit or miss, as it is only out of 3 points. If you miss the mark, you're SOL. Regardless, I found his class to be very thought provoking, and Dr. Fanselow himself is very articulate and compassionate.
Be punctual and attentive or you will fail miserably
Professor Fanselow is a very good professor! His lectures are interesting and engaging. The are only 2 exams and 2 papers. He gives a couple homework assignment but they don't take long at all. I would highly recommend him! His class gets you thinking and it's easy.
He is really clear in his lectures and they aren't boring like many other professors who teach in lecture halls. He's knowledgeable, I would recommend!
Worst professor I have ever had stay away please.
If you take this guy for an online class you WILL be lost, he is very unclear in what it is that he wants from you and his hw assignments are definitely hit or miss, just make sure to ask plenty of questions if you do take him!
Dr. Fanselow is great at engaging the class in discussions. He's funny & quirky. DONT SKIP CLASS - you earn participation points & there's semi-pop quizzes. Do the readings, TAKE GOOD NOTES IN CLASS & utilize his office hrs. He is a TOUGH grader on the papers he assigns - DO NOT wait until the last minute - he makes you EARN the grade on papers!
The T.A's do not give good feedback. Also the T.A's do not explain things well and expect you to know what to do.
If you go to class , take notes, and study you should be able to easily get at least a B. Anyone who got anything lower didn't try.
Very tough grader and didn't respond to my emails in his online class. He is very unclear with what he expects from you in the 2 papers he assigns, which are worth 20% of your grade each. The weekly assignments are not too difficult, but they are quite time consuming. I definitely would not recommend this professor.
5 homework assignments each worth 3 points(15% of grade). 2 papers(15% total) that a TA gives feedback on, and you mesh them into your term paper(20%). Midterm(15%) and final(20%) were fairly easy if you study the theses from the readings and pay attention in lecture. Last 15% of grade is from participation and clicker questions form the readings.
At the beginning of each class he gives you a reading clicker quiz. Even if you don't do the readings you can usually figure out what the answer is. Just pay attention in class and take good notes. Exam questions are basically taken right from the PowerPoint slides. The class wasn't what I expected but he makes it interesting and enjoyable.
Dr. Faneslow is a great professor. His lectures are very interesting and he gives lots of opportunities for the class to participate. The tests are fair and the homework is fair as well. Just reading the powerpoints will not get you by in his class. GO TO LECTURE AND TAKE NOTES OF ALL THE CLICKER QUESTIONS. Overall, I really enjoyed his class
Gives no feedback on assignments and makes a gen ed class way harder than it needs to be. Assigns weekly busy work (quiz and either assignment or blog- 2 posts). Must read! As a senior with a 3.8 GPA, this gen ed has required more work than any other I have taken, and I have no idea how I have a B, as I do all of the readings and homework.
This class was not what I expected out of a philosophy class. Sure Dr. Fanselow addresses different sides of each topic, but he doesn't really make students think deeply. These issues are so common today, that it doesn't require much thought to think morally about them. Way harder than a gen ed should be, especially for the course content.
I got a C in this class. That is HARD to do. Professor Fanselow is probably the most clear and precise professor I have ever had, and as a silent student I have never laughed so much in a class. The material seems dry but he knows it so well that he has made it truly entertaining to learn. I had trouble getting to class, but it's mandatory for an A
Exactly what you'd expect and hope for from an online class. Quick to answer questions and emails, quality recorded lectures with visual aids and decent mic quality, and very clear grading/assignment requirements. Seems like a cool guy, but I've never seen him in person. Would recommend.
He assigns lengthy readings for each class but goes over them in class. He's not boring to listen though. BUT he gives semi pop quizzes where he'll give the answers but even then he's a tough grader. He is unclear about what he expects from your essays, and will tear it apart. He also does not respond to emails.
homework assignments are hard and are graded by your TA, so hit or miss. Must buy I-clicker for participation and that makes you go to class, starts each lecture with reading quiz. you can buy the earlier addition of the book and youre only missing one of the readings, but you can always get it from someone else. midterm and finals are easy.
Although the class material and context is relatively easy. The professor is a very tough grader. His grading criteria and expectations for the term papers is vague. I am very disappointed with this class. It was much harder than necessary. If you can please avoid this teacher.
I'm a senior and this is the first time I RATE a professor, HE IS BAD. he is a hard grader, the tolerance is ZERO. I wish if I didn't take this class with him.
Great Professor - interesting lectures. Class is not that hard, you basically have to write one 750 word paper and do 5 easy HW assignments. A lot of people said he is a harsh grader but he doesn't grade any of his classes. So that all depends on your TA. There is, however, a bit of reading, you can get away without reading all of it. RECOMMEND.
Honestly, one of the most unnecessarily difficult classes. This class is much more difficult than necessary. For the two papers at then end of the semester there are barely any guidelines on how to do well yet, they are graded so harshly. Keep in mind that the two papers at the very end of the course are worth about 35 % of your grade. Choosewisely
Professor Fanselows class was not easy. He assigned 3 point homework assignments and if you get one thing wrong youre down to a 66% on the assignment. He only has a midterm and final test and two papers at the end of the semester that go together. He has a reading assigned for each class and you must attended a majority of lectures.
Do not take this professor. He made the class a lot more difficult than needed. He's extremely vague about his expectations for the essays. He also assigns semi pop quizzes, and even with the word for word answer, he'll find something wrong. Extremely slow grader and doesn't reply to emails.
I am astounded by how hard this class was, DO NOT TAKE. Way too much work and the grading criteria is non-existent.
One of his TA's is a really tough grader, he expect you to be a philosopher while you are going for a major that has nothing to do with philosophy. I would NEVER recommend this professor and if you do ask before registering for discussion sessions for the name of the TA.
Terrible professor! Class is unnecessarily hard for a lower level class. "Dr." Fanselow fails to respond to emails and when he does, the information he gives you is vague. DO NOT TAKE.
Let's get one thing out the way: you have to put in work for this class! It honestly felt like a 3000 level course. The professor is knowledgable in his lectures but he does not play! He is a tough grader. Be prepared to put in work. It is possible to get an A or do well by reading all of the articles, coming to class, and going to office hours.
This was a bit more work than a usual entry level class. Weekly readings, lectures, blog post and quiz, plus three term papers. It wasn't hard to understand but the workload was heavy & syllabus isn't super clear. I think he could go easier on the grades ESPECIALLY his TA's who are really pretentious and grade harder. Overall just 'fine' though
Dr. Fanselow is a great lecturer. However the TAs do the grading in this class which is frustrating because the directions of the papers are EXTREMELY VAGUE and they grade very harshly! We shouldn't be graded as harshly on papers that are given such vague directions. Also it is VERY annoying when the TAs ignore your emails in this class.
The professor himself is a little strange cause he seems nice n all but never responds to emails ever. Doesnt seems to care about the class in all honesty. His ta's r horrible, Tough graders. The instructions r vague for papers. Told me in a hw my thesis is correct n when the thesis was made into paper,told me thesis is wrong.
Worst professor at WSU. DO NOT TAKE HIM, you'll regret it.
Don't take him.
AVOID this guy at all cost! His grading is clearly way too strict and unfair. If you're trying to get an A, it is very unlikely, especially if you have other classes! 3 assignments account for over half your grade and when they're graded you wont get any feedback whatsoever for future improvements, probably because he doesnt have reasoning imo
If you can avoid, avoid, like.... this is not worth it. You won't get a good grade in this class; he is not clear about papers, exams, and homework. I don't usually write this, but this class supposed to help some students out to boost their grades. Instead, it will drop your GPA, or you won't even pass, probably.
Unfortunately, the reviews with in class lecture made it look like this professor is bad. I am going to be honest but this is the funnest teacher I have ever had, considering this is online. I love the teachers analogy in lectures. He is one of the best teachers out there I have had in a minute. Please ask him questions he will answer any terms
I swear this guy does not even read our papers and just assigns them whatever he wants. If you do not write exactly how he thinks something should be written you will be marked off. He does not have a rubric, but then when he grades our papers it feels like we missed every box. He provides us a paragraph description of the 2 assignments50% grade
do NOT take this professor even if he is the last option available. It was a 1120 course but it felt like a 5000 course class. There are 2-3 quizzes every single week but the quizzes are only 1-3 questions so if you get one wrong you already get a 50% and your grade drops like crazy. Also the TA was horrible and an extremely tough grader
Ryan Fanselow is not a very good professor. God forbid you make any conservative viewpoint in a discussion. Does not give any feedback whatsoever on assignments. Find someone better, WSU will drop this clown soon enough
I took Fanselow's online asynchronous class. He's a decent enough lecturer, and his lectures go along with the readings. Weekly quizzes really weren't hard, but had few questions and no room for error. Grading criteria for papers was pretty unclear and the grading was way too harsh for a 1000 level class.
This professor should be taking Professional ethics instead of teaching itfurthermore, way too much emphasis on the thesis and premises; eventually becomes a thorn in the side.
This professor should be taking Professional ethics instead of teaching itfurthermore, way too much emphasis on the thesis and premises and eventually becomes a thorn in the side.
Mrs. Fanselow is really not a great teacher, he(she) cant say more than 6 syllables without going UM!, and its really annoying. Also, he(she) gives 0 feedback on anything. Avoid this professor like you would the plague.
Some of these reviews didnt apply to this class as the TAs did not grade our assignments. I felt he was very accommodating for us if something were to come up for our daily assignments, he gave so many opportunities to learn the material in varying ways, everything contributed to our understanding and success in the papers and exams. Great prof!
I did well in this class ONLY because I put blood, sweat, and tears into every assignment ever given. WHICH I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO DO FOR AN INTRO LEVEL CLASS. This class was more work than my philosophy 4000 level classes. The professor doesn't care about you and the TA is such a pretentious grader it makes me sick that he even has a job.
Ryan Fanselow is a worst professor in the world. He will try to fail you even if you work really hard. His TAs always grades assignment and there is no way you can get 100% on assignment. This 1100 level class taught like 5000 level class. He should be fired along with his TAs. Please do not take this class or else ruined your gpa.
This teacher at first seems good and he is very sweet talker. But when he grades he does not care at all. I even went as far as sending him my term paper that met all the requirements and asked him to give feedback a week prior to submission. He said my paper was good and gave me barely any feedback. THEN I GOT A B-. he does this a lot.
Tough Grader I don't recommend him at all!!!
Dr. Fanselow is a good teacher. He is really caring and is willing to help students throughout the semester. However, his TA is horrendous at grading. An absolute nightmare. Pretentious. If you have issues with his grading, reach out to Fanselow. He will correct your grade if you show competence in the assignment.
Dr. Fanselow is a Great Guy, not! Have the worst TA (IRONSIDE). All the lectures are prerecorded, and the teacher's assistant does all the grading. So, if you are expecting a professional ethics class, you will be disappointed. If students want a quality education, we must write a letter to the Dean's office demanding better professors.
Tough grader, takes so many points off for one thing (either this or he just gives bad feedback). Does not give clear criteria for how the papers should be written. 3 assignments, 2 of them were due in finals week, so you really don't know where you're at in the class until after the semester is over. Lectures were repetitive and not interesting.
Lots of busy work that was very repetitive. Most weeks we had a reading and 2-4 quizzes about the reading and the lectures. The lectures were not interesting. He does make it easy to understand what work is due when, he sets up a module "what to do during week #...". not sure if I would take a class by him again.
No rubric for papers, doesn't give feedback on HW, ALOT of long readings, teaches the class from a philosophical viewpoint and the class doesn't really have any professional workforce ethics. I thought the class would be more applied toward a real-world job. Readings and assignments are abstract and not realistically related to real life.
First 90% semester very easy to keep an A, every week is 4 10 min videos with questions at end and one hw assignment. Reading the textbook is confusing but if you get the general idea your okay. End of the semester has two major essays where you grade will drop. The guidelines are very vague and the TAs grade so they mark down for anything.
I had an a in this class until I submitted my final 2 essays where I was given 1 sentence of feedback (no rubric of course, i met all the requirements for the assignment) and failed the class. And this is not a professional ethics class, no ethics were discussed whatsoever, and was completely irrelevant to anything. What a joke
No rubrics for any assignment, the grade you receive is completely based on how the ta was feeling that day. Busy work all semester and you learn nothing. Sad joke of a class
Recaps last lesson for 40 minutes while the entire class already knows what we did literally the day before. Same jokes, same inflection, same redundancy.
His lectures are very redundant, and its difficult to keep awake. There is an essay due towards the end of the semester, and a final and a midterm which weren't to difficult, but the essay had no rubric nor an example essay, which made writing the essay quite difficult.
DO NOT BUY THE BOOK!!! He give you all of the pdfs for the readings you need. Also, you probably don't even need to read the papers to pass the class (I did not lol). You will need at least one for your term paper but that is it. He uses TAs to grade everything tho so that is annoying.
He is very thurough in his lectures which helps you understand the readings perfectly. The majority of your grade is going to be concentrated in one or two papers which will require a lot of effort to get an A on however he covers topics thouroughly so they are not terrible. Overall I've found his classes very interesting and definitly reccomend!
I took his in-person class, and he is an excellent professor. The course isn't hard, but the grading scale makes earning an A tough. Two essays are 50% of the grade, so doing poorly on one makes an A unlikely. Focus on the study guide for tests. His lectures are very informative, so take notes. He's funny, approachable, and quick to reply to emails
Don't take him....... At the very beginning, you will have an 'A'. But, there will be two essays and final exam which makes most to get really bad grades. There are no sample or rubrics which makes hard for us to understand what he is expecting. Also, no matter how good you write the essays, you still not gonna get the point you really deserve.
he be too much and grading is annoying and he's you can receive a A philosophy
Honestly, I am suprised that this professor is rated poorly. It might be because I took the in-person version of the course and not online. The lectures were great and very thorough. I do understand the point of it was difficult to understand what is needed to the final 2 papers. The peer review does tell you what is needed for it.
This was the worse ethics class I've taken. Quizzes are 2 questions based on lectures videos which majority of time are no help. They hold a lot of weight on your grade, same thing with the homework he grades very harshly. In the end, you have 2 papers graded by your TA. Their feedback is no help. Goodluck if you take it with him!
Took this class in fall '24. We had 3 essays based on readings of our choice. There was no rubric or example essay provided so you had to mainly guess what to do. The exams were easy. Attendance was counted based on reading assignments submitted right before he starts the lecture, so prioritize those.
He was mid. I wouldn't not take him again I just didn't enjoy the topic. The online class is 3-8 videos (lecture), 1-3 readings, 1-4 quizzes/week + 4 housework assignments + 2 papers. I never contacted him but the TA is nice and helpful. Definitely a philosophy, you have to think and interpret a lot. Get the textbook! Things are due thurs at 5pm :/
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
69%
Textbook Required
25%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.09 avg changeRatings by Course
PHI5280
5.0
(1)PHI1200
4.0
(1)PHI5250
4.0
(3)PHI1010
3.0
(4)1120
2.6
(8)Difficulty by Course
1020
5.0
23002
5.0
PHI2320
5.0
PHIL1120
4.3
PHI1200
4.0