i feel sorry for desposato. he is really nice, he is a good teacher and his jokes arent all that bad. he just happens to be interested in a subject that everyone else hates but has to take. he explains everything really well. if you go to all of the lectures, you will do well.

was only for honors class so he wasnt really in a normal teaching role but he is a nice guy, accessible, and knows what hes talking about. good guy to go to to bounce ideas off of & to help you think thru things. rating of "hard" only pertains to class (Poli Honors) & has nothing to do with him

The material isn't terribly hard, and the time-consuming assignments (three of them) help to ensure that you learn everything. He's actually a great professor -- though lecture slides may not always be completely straightforward if you're looking at them while not in lecture, if you pay attention in class it helps a lot.

Desposato is an extremely helpful professor. He tries his best to engage the class in lecture, and he's quite entertaining. He's very willing to set up appointments if you can't make office hours. READING IS CRUCIAL!!!

I will agree to some extent with the comments about his clarity. But for what he is teaching (stats to a bunch of people not interested in stats), I believe he does a decent job. As has been previously said though, also talk with your TA (good advice for any course)

Great Prof! Desposato is very clear with his points in lecture and as to what he is expecting you to know for tests. Papers are to the point and his TAs dont grade harshly. Always accessible outside of class, and a great UCSD PoliSci resource generally.

This class was badly organized - the TA's were unhelpful and difficult to reach, and if you wanted to figure out what you did wrong on homework you had to track down all of them. Desposato is pretty good, but don't take him if you're not a math major - I really struggled. Definitely difficult, hard grading. Go to lecture.

Scott is an okay professor, who I think is hot. His lectures and section are similar, but the section is where you get all the needed info for your homework. The homework was not that difficult, but I had an AWESOME TA that aided me. The class really depends on your TA, MAKE SURE TO double CHECK your homework scores and talk to TAs IMMEDIATELY.

The class in itself is not difficult. The homework is fairly simple, but VERY time consuming. It is harshly graded & if you turn in your homework late, you get docked MORE than 50% of your hw score, so beware. In order to make grading "fair" the TA's each have their own section for grading. Cantu is a really helpful TA & the final wasn't too bad...

Great class and great prof. I took the class over the summer in 09' but even taking that into account the class is great and Desposato is very accessible. His slides sometimes need explaining and sometimes he goes through material too fast but he is always open to questions and stops to clarify when needed.

The class was very interesting and informative. His class is definitely not as hard as people make him sound. In fact, it was very easy as long as you don't procrastinate. There are various HW assignments and a Final. Complete the HW and you get an A. Lectures were somewhat boring but provided skills every student studying polisci should have!

Very nice and down to earth guy. If you go to him with interest he will be glad to assist you in whatever you need. The class is complicated, but can be interesting. Easy grader if you analyze thoroughly and show you understand. I recommend this professor and class.

While I didn't have a huge interest in this topic originally, Desposato made it my favorite class ever. His lectures are interesting and certainly not monotonous, I laughed in lecture on a daily basis. He really wants you to succeed, but you have to be willing to push yourself. Welcome to college, boys and girls.

The professor is really witty, funny and informative. I thought I would hate the class, especially after reading some comments from here, but I ended up loving it. He's really down to help his students and wants the best for them as long as they're willing to try their best.

It's a college class, and he's a college professor. It's time to work. He knows his stuff, so just keep up with the homework, and ask him for help whenever. If you pay attention to his lectures (as well as the subtle humor) it will be a rewarding experience. /raises eyebrow

I really liked this class. It was more about self-learning and discussion that "learning". It's really helpful to come in with some poli and/or econ knowledge but not necessary. His voice may be a bit bland but he's really funny and interesting and so I never found myself sleeping in the class. We also watched a lot of films and discussed them.

You must work for an A. 4 HW assingments and a final exam. Section participation is a must. The HW are lengthy and expect a minimum of 10-15 hours of dedication per HW. Lots of questions must be addressed during TA office hours. Clark was my TA and she is a gem. Tough class, but I learned a lot. Desposato is an asset to students and UCSD.

His voice is kinda dry but he really tries to hold your attention in lecture. He works hard to get everyone to do well and he really cares. Accessible outside class. I definitely want to take another class with him. He gave a bunch of extra credit through the class and moved due dates back. Do not wait to do homework, start early-ish.

Desposato is a fine choice for clearing your POLI30 requirement. The class has very little math. Basically you just interpret statistics. If you have trouble with the math or data analysis, ask the prof or the TAs, or just google it. Thats what I did, and I got an A+. Its really not that hard of a class.

Desposato's a pretty good professor. Attendance matters somewhat because he might give an in class check in randomly. Homework projects aren't too difficult and are given plenty of time to complete. Extra credit has been offered for each homework project so far. Pay attention during lecture because it's more important than just reading his slides.

I was terrified of this class because I have a phobia of numbers but Professor Desposato made the material less intimidating, helped greatly by his sense of humor. Never thought I would be laughing so much in a math(?)/statistics class. Also the course itself is not very difficult if you ask for help and attend lecture/discussion. Overall great guy

Thought the class would be more difficult, but he made it somewhat easy because he cares about his students grades. Also has a sense of humor that makes the lectures better.

Professor Desposato is a great professor who cares about the success of his students. He wants to see everyone succeed and goes out of his way to help with that. Being a stats class, I was nervous at first as I'm not great at math but Desposato simplified a lot of it and offered endless amounts of help through himself, TAs and online. Recommended.

Desposato was a real gem to learn with. His lectures were a perfect reflection of the homework and exams, overall class was super clear to follow. He truly cares about his students and wants them all to succeed. Taking POLI 30 with him even pushed me to switch my concentration to data analytics. Absolutely 10/10 recommend, he is truly inspiring.

Class component is what tests (midterm as I recall, and a final) are about, TA component is what the assignments are about (5 of them). Going to class is sooo helpful. He's a cool guy.

Cool guy. Wish he taught us Stata instead of expecting us to learn through a book.

I was really worried about taking POLI30 because the school made it seem super difficult, but Professor Desposato made it my favorite class so far. His lectures were super helpful and he explained super difficult concepts really well. I've taken other statistics classes and none of them outlined the material as clear as he did. Take his class!

Professor Desposato was very interesting. He made the material super easy to understand. Him and his TA's were very helpful. This class ended up being a lot easier than I thought, with just 2 midterms and a final. Definitely recommend.

Don't be fooled, this is essentially a stats class. Homework makes up a large portion of your grade. 4 Homework projects, about 20-30 questions each. Final is just based on the Homework and lecture slides. He also gives a (kind of useless) study guide for the final. Had to use iclickers for participation points. He's a genius, but class is rough.

Really great professor. His class is super straight forward and easy to follow. His lectures are well organizes and his exams are very simple. Just study his lecture slides and you'll be able to pass.

I was very intimidated by this summer class but he did a GREAT job at walking through the subjects and applying them to real-world scenarios like his previous work. He listens to the students' worries & has clear lectures posted both synchronously and asynchronously. In synchronous classes, he talks WITH you & not AT you. - 4 HW's & 1 Final -

He asks a lot of opinion based questions, and he'll learn your name if you talk to him enough. AMAZING professor, I loved his class and his teaching style. Exams consist of open ended questions, which have a few term identification questions, and one essay on a topic that he'll inform you of beforehand. It's an easy class if you study just a bit!

Class is Podcasted. Two midterms, one final all have short definition questions and an essay (final has 2 essays). Don't really need to do the readings, just take good notes. His lectures are monotone but the class wasn't hard if you study before exams. He provides study guides and sometimes extra credit if you attend class.

one of the least work-heavy ps classes imo. no midterm/essays, just 4 easy (&boring) hws+a very easy final. if u have any stats background the class will be super easy (just brushes on the basic intro topics), but if not just study up the lecture slides. prof is pretty monotone but funny and clearly cares abt his students. 0 surprises on the final.

I may hate math, but Desposato made it fun. He's fun to talk to, lectures were enjoyable and engaging, and made the content easy to digest. The class itself is super easy IF you put genuine, honest effort into it and not cheat. My main gripe is that the study guide and readings were functionally useless. 10/10 would get a beer with him later on.

Chill af & cares. Held his own section for waitlisted students. Makes himself accessible. Class is just stats, poli sci, and minimal coding. HW is easy to get through, stay on top of it. Final is 50%, with stats experience it's an easy A. Lectures are v condensed for time but TAs elaborate super well. Put effort in, ATTEND SECTIONS and you're fine.

Honestly, this class was hard for me. I am not good at math, but you don't have to be if you go to lecture and study hard for the final. I was dreading this class, but lecture was actually very enjoyable.

He seems really kind & has a good sense of humor, but can be minorly disorganized at times. I also had no idea what was going on in terms of grading, because he constantly adjusts weighting as we go (which was kinda nice).

He was honestly my fav professor of my quarter and I'm a human bio major lol. I took his class for a GE so I would recommend if you are interested in politics. He's funny and adjusts the weighting so it benefits the students. I literally studied the day before each exam so if you actually put in the effort you'll do great!

He's one of the best professors I've ever taken. He is very clear on what you should know, and the TAs are absolutely wonderful. I've gone to many office hours for help on the HW, and they are incredibly helpful in ensuring you feel supported and receive an A. Final was representative of lectures, and was fairly easy. Study early & you'll be fine!

Grade is determined by 2 midterms and the final. He is funny during lecture and easily approachable in person or through office hours. TA's and section are helpful but they do grade hard on essays and want you to show that you deeply understand the readings. For the most part though you can skim the readings and do well.

Class overall wasn't too bad. The exams require you to actually know the material well though. TAs were either helpful or really unhelpful, and were generally tough graders on exam essays. Go to lecture and review the slides/podcasts for the final. He adjusted grade weight really weirdly at the end of the quarter but it brought grades up a LOT.

Love this guy's sense of humor. POLI 30D depends a lot on your TA, but overall this class was a breeze. Lectures move pretty quickly and cover a lot of content. Professor Desposato uses many real and relevant examples to illustrate concepts.

Good prof. Bit confusing when lecturing but slides are reflective of what he puts on the final/hw. Class is graded by 4 very tedious HWs + final worth 50% of the grade. Be prepared to teach yourself everything, because I did. Final is representative of lectures + two readings never discussed. Use hw/lectures to study! I'm bad at math, but did well.

Lectures are easy to follow and are representative of the exams. Two midterms and one final, all exams with a writing portion. Just understand the basics of every reading so you can reference them on exams, and study his slides well before midterms/finals. It's an easy class if you put the work in/review a little everyday