3.3
Quality2.4
Difficulty65%
Would Retake104
Reviews65%
Would Retake
104
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
27
4
29
3
20
2
13
1
15
What Students Say
“Zhuk is from the Soviet Union, so he has a really hard accent and is hard to understand”
HIS150 - 3.0 rating“If you study those youll get a good grade”
HIST150 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
35%
Textbook Required
59%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.44 avg changeRatings by Course
486
5.0
(1)HST
5.0
(1)HST150
5.0
(1)HIS487
5.0
(1)HIST100
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
10028
5.0
HIST125
5.0
HISTORY150
4.0
HIST487
2.8
HIST150
2.4
Reviews (104)
this guy is awesome. he's from russia and his personal background is great. he plays music during class towards the end of the semester and you watch a ton of video clips. he always seems to incorporate sex into his teaching and it makes class hilarious.
No Comments
This guy is awesome! He knows what he is talking about and is super fun and interesting. If you read, haha, then you will do well on his tests. He's super fun though... would take another one of his classes anyday.
He's a very nice prof, but can be confusing at times. I didn't really learn much in this class. Heck we only spent 5 minutes on WW1. If you go to his review sessions, you will do fine on the tests because he gives away answers. If you love history and want to learn a lot, get a diff prof.
He had such a thick accent you couldnt understand him and then he was terribly mean to students for asking a question, he would tell them it was stupid and then explain to them why it was a stupid question(when it really wasn't dumb at all)... highly NOT Recomended
As a Ukrainian national, he came to class with a wealth of first hand knowledge of the Soviet regime, and especially the Chernobyl tragedy. Read the books, watch the films, attend the seminars, and you should do very well.
No Comments
Zhuk is the man. Especially when he talks about Led Zeppelin and Nine Inch Nails HAHA! The whole class is based on the test, which he gives you study guides for. You don't even have to go to class. Just study for the test and you will get at least a "B" in the class. I did.
Takes "random" attendance. (about 20 students somewhat alphabetically). Go to class, and get the study guides. He tells you all the answers on the study guides, which questions that for sure won't be on the test, and makes it super easy. All you have to do is memorize the answers. PLUS 11% is passing!!!! YaY... especially if you hate history!! :-D
He sucks.
Awesome prof. Had him for History of the Soviet Union in Spring 06 and for my Thesis the following spring. Just an awesome guy. Makes history very interesting, and told us stories of his life prior to coming to the US. Grades leniently but you still learn a lot. Very helpful and fun to talk to if you go to his office hours.
No Comments
I hated this class! It was supposed to be an overview of Western History, which seemed to become a review of the history of his homeland, and his musical tastes through his teen years.. not at all what the class should be, or what I wanted. The class sucked, period.
Excellent teacher. Class is very easy. Has heavy accent and little hard to understand, but gives notes on screen and gives study guides with answers for tests. He says that the tests arent over them... but the whole test is all the questions on study guides. I recommend getting him. Very easy!!
He is an amazing teacher. I love going in and listening to his stories.
Very easy class! YOU DO NOT NEED YOUR BOOK SO DONT GO BUY ONE! He gives you all of the answers to the study guide which is the whole test! Nice guy but sometimes hard to understand. I recommend taking this class with this professor!
one word--AWESOME!!!
Take his class! It is very easy, you do not need to buy the book and he will give you the study guide which include 100%the exam questions with answers! Take his class if you are lazy.
Easy class!! You get study guides and he gives you all the answers to them and those are pretty much all the questions on the test. We had to write an 8-10 page paper on a book he wrote though and it can be kind of difficult.
VERY VERY easy class,, take it during the summer. he gives you an answered study guide plus you can take those with you on the test (open book test).. if you dont wanna study and get an A, TAKE this class..
Only like 4 tests all semester but they kinda suck.. not like impossible just hard to get an A on..
Nearly everyday we listened to some kind of music. We listened to a lot of Beatles and Pink Floyd! He is obsessed with music. The tests are easy. Questions come straight from the study guides, which he gives you the answers to. Take his class!
Nice guy but very hard to understand. Gives study guides for first 3 tests and answered. Did not buy the book and still passed with solid B. Only issue was with book report, writing a 8-10 page paper over a book was difficult especially with little help from him and only a few guidelines to go by.
Hard to understand, but good teacher
He has a very thick accent. He wasn't helpful.We had to read a 400 pg. book and write a 8-10 bk. report!This shouldn't be a 100 level assignment.The tests were easy in the beginning, but then they got A LOT harder. He stopped using ?s from the study guides and took ?s from his lecture that I didn't understand.I didn't learn one thing in this class!
I thought he was ok..it would have been better if he knew how to use blackboard. i had no idea what my grade was like until the end of the semester. the hardest part was the book report but as long as you didn't wait till the last minute and it was legit you would get a good grade because he graded it as a pass/fail.
Great professor! Loves rock n roll & will tell stories of his days in the Soviet being arrested for AC/DC albums & the such. Just show up to class, take notes & you'll do just fine. Doesn't even grade most assignments, just gives an automatic A. Definately one of the best history professors at Ball State.
Zhuk is a great prof. He's super cheerful and loves sharing his obvious love of history. I got a 98 on the last test and did nothing more than look over the study guide, as he provides the answers to every question the class before the test day. The paper at the end was time consuming but easily manageable. I definitely recommend him!
Don't buy the book! You will never use it, so don't waste your money on it. The tests are really easy; he gives you study guides and the answers to it. The test is just questions off of the study guide. In order to understand him, you need to pay close attention because he can be difficult to comprehend. Not a bad class, but others profs are better
Zhuk was a terrible professor. He has a thick accent and you can barely understand him. He makes you write an 8 page book report over the book that he's written. If you get him I say drop him and get someone else.
Great Teacher !
He was hard to understand but the class was really easy. You don't have to read the book to get an A - he gives you the questions and the answers prior to the exams
The largest complaint I have about Professor Zhuk is that he gives the answers to your study guides on Friday and your tests are Monday. Don't buy the book!
Do not buy the book, you never use it. His accent is really hard to understand sometimes. He gives you answers to all the study guides the class before the test, so you don't need to do them. He won't give you study guides if you miss class without a note from a parent/doctor. He doesn't allow computers in class. The 8-10 pg book report sucks.
Zhuk was an easy professor to have. For me, his accent wasn't a problem, and he was very enthusiastic about what he was teaching. Definitely do not buy the book. He gives you all the answers to the study guides. My only complaint is the book report. He assigns an 8-10 page report on a 500+ page book the very first day of class.
I absolutely loved this guy. He was a good teacher as well as simply a good person. He always showed a lot of excitement which made class enjoyable and I did not mind waking up to go to it. His accent was occasionally difficult to understand but never impossible to deduce. Do not buy the book though. I would definitely recommend taking his class.
As said before, don't buy the book. I got an A- and never even touched the book. Attending class makes the tests easier because some questions won't be on the study guides - but he makes sure to point out exactly what facts will be on the test. His accent is occasionally hard to understand, but the class is still very easy.
He is a very neat professor that I genuinely enjoyed having. He is passionate and the class is easy. Your one and only assignment is an 8 page paper (double spaced) which he judges extremely leniantly (He pretty much gives you an A if you do it). He gives you all of the answers to the upcoming exams and shows some truly interesting material.
Cannot understand him what so ever, told us to buy the book and I haven't touched it once, assigns an 8-10 page paper over a book HE wrote thats over 300 pages you won't want to read. I don't know whats worse hearing him talk about rock n roll for an hour and a half every morning or the fact that he always starts class 10 minutes early. DO NOT TAKE
If you want an easy class to take where you don't have to pay attention it would be this class. The only hard part is the 8-10 page book report but you have all semester to complete it. If you really enjoy history and want to learn a lot DO NOT take this class. You can't understand him and all he talks about is rock and roll and Russia.
Professor Zhuk is from the Ukraine and therefore has a rather thick Ukrainian accent. He's very passionate about history and loves rock n'roll. Even though class was horribly boring, it was really easy. Just make sure to study the study guides and do the book report!
Can't understand. Passionate about his life stories but hard to follow with class content. Thick accent. Makes too many side comments to himself.
Dr. Zhuk was a nice man, but horrible professor. He was very boring and his accent is hard to understand at times. His tests were very hard towards the end of the course even with the study guides. These are your only grades plus report that is completion more or less. Don't buy the book!
It is extremely difficult to understand him because of his thick accent. He passes out study guides every class with exam questions in them. The first two exams consist primarily of study guide questions-about 40 questions of 50. However, the last two exams only have about 25 of the 50 questions from the study guides. I do not recommend.
He is an arrogant man, and a terrible educator. 1.) Lack of cohesion of his material. 2.) Clips from old, grainy videos with little connection to the subject. 3.)Maps that are not in the book nor available to us. 4.) Notes on the overhead; you can copy them or listen to him, but not both. 5.) Do not report on his books; he is a very tedious author.
The guy has a terrible accent. If you can hear him, you can't understand him. He rambles off topic a lot. Doesn't use a textbook. Tries to relate everything to rock n roll. Shows mapsvideos that aren't helpfulavailable. The tests are your whole grade and they're terrible. 10 page paper over a book, automatic A on that.
His class is pretty easy. Just look at study guides for the tests. He's a history buff so he tells you more than you need to know but if you enjoy history then it's lovely. He has an accent but it's not too thick. I think the only reason anyone ever says that they can't understand him is because they don't listen. He's not that difficult to get.
Sit close in the front to have a better comprehension of his lectures, Zhuk has a thick accent. The lecture outlines only helps a little, he explains the details of the outlines but it's rather tough to writetype the outline AND his remarks at the same time. First 2 test are based on study guides, last 2 ... good luck. Don't recommend Zhuk.
You don't need the book. He gives you study guides and the answers to them, and his tests are the exact same as the study guides. He's cool but it's difficult to get an A on his tests. There's 4 tests plus the final exam. They're all 50 questions, multiple choice. You have to write a book report (2000 words) but you have all semester to write it.
Most of the books are in the library. He does have an accent but will write words out if you ask. Answers for quizzes ( i.e. events and dates) are on the board in lectures. Will let you make up quizzes, tests, assignments if you ask asap. If you show up and turn everything in, you'll end up with at least B, no matter how bad you do on the quiztest
One of the nicest people you'll ever meet, but he's stuck in th 90's. He never uses blackboard, and has hard review guide
His accent is not bad. Study guides for the first two tests give answers to all of the test questions, and about half on the 3rd and final. Do the book report, it's practically participation and 15% of your grade. You don't need the textbook, but it helps. If you love rock n roll, take this class. He plays this music almost every class.
Dr. Zhuk really knows what he is talking about and seems super nice. I, however, had a very, very hard time understanding him. If you cannot understand him, I advise you to switch before it is too late. His tests get harder as the semester goes on.
Prof. Zhuk was an amazing teacher! He knew so much about the topic, and his Russian Civ class was the best class I've ever taken. His lectures can be long, and he has a strong accent, but he is funny. Long papers, and don't miss class.
He grew up in the Soviet Union so his background knowledge really adds to the class. I found him very interesting. As long as you go to class and get the study guides you will get an A. His accent isn't that bad, he is easy to understand if you pay attention.
I would definitely recommend Professor Zhuk to anyone who isn't super great at history (like myself) but wants a good grade. . I got an A in the class by purely going to class, copying down the notes, listening to the study guide answers, and then not paying attention the rest of the time. Memorize the study guides, give a quick look over the notes
No homework which is great, but the class is all tests. The only reason I attended his class was because he took attendance randomly... even then I barely did. He was an awful teacher and I learned absolutely nothing. Look up study guide answers on quizlet and memorize them.. the questions are exactly the tests. He's nice, but his lectures are not.
Hard to understand during lectures, skipped class a few times which didn't hurt me that bad. No homework, which is wonderful, but your grade is only based on tests. Print out study guides, bring them to class in review day and he gives you correct answers to all the questions. Study those and you should be fine. Nice guy, just really long lectures
He is very hard to understand during the lectures and flys through review day. Class isn't really necessary, he sends the study guides and all the answers are on quizlet. If you study those youll get a good grade. Grades are only based on four tests though
Dr. Zhuk is from the Soviet Union, so he has a really hard accent and is hard to understand. I never go to class unless its a review day, in which i print off the multiple choice study guide and take it to class where he gives us all the answers. The test is made up from these questions and as long as you study and memorize them you will pass.
Though attendance is not mandatory you will not pass if you do not show up to the lectures. Tests are based entirely off his lectures. He is from the Ukraine but it brings an interesting perspective to the class. you will not have homework but your grade is based off of 4 tests.
He is from Ukraine so he's sometimes hard to understand. You only get graded based on 4 tests, and he gives you study guides w all the answers. YOU DO NOT NEED THE BOOK. Attendance isn't mandatory but he does random attendance checks sometimes. As long as you memorize the study guides you will do fine.
If you are an American, which you most likely are you should really take this class if you want to boarded your knowledge. It is so much more interesting and you learn more than what my experiences has been with American history teachers.
Hard to understand but super helpful with the study guides
I absolutely love Dr. Zhuk. He is an amazing professor. He is extremely knowledgable as he has been and lived all around the world. His tests are very straight forward as they are very similar to the study guides. The class before test day he will go over and give all answers to the study guides. I would love to take another class with him.
He reviews the entirety of the study guides he provides during the class before the test. 4 tests total. Mostly memorization. Extra Credit opportunities. Very kind, lots of worldly knowledge and loves to share his passion for rock music.
Professor Zhuk is easy going and caring. He wants everyone to pass, dont be afraid to reach out to him. Book report is an easy A. Offers extra credit if you ask. Memorize the study guides that he gives you the answers to and they are EXACTLY the tests. Easy A class!
Very lecture heavy class, however when it comes to exams, Dr. Zhuk is great about giving you all of the information you will need. You just need to go to class, especially the one's with review sessions, and you will be fine. He is very straightforward and basically gives the answers on the test when he reviews with his "favorite questions."
One of my favorite professors, living a very interesting life before moving to America. Your grade consists of one book report and 4 tests. All of the tests are on quizlet so studying is relatively easy.
Makes this history course super easy, he counted our attendance randomly and you only have one book report for the whole semester along with the 4 exams, he prepares you for the exam well.
If you like history and LOVE to write 1000+ word essays constantly. This is the class for you. He's a great person to talk to but I have taken medical classes with less work than this
Hes a fair professor. Sometimes he gets distracted by his own thoughts during lecture and youre listening to who knows what at some points. He gives you the answers to the study guides the class before test day and those questions are straight up on the test. Super easy.
This man is very knowledgable and cares so much for his field of study. Expects you to write several papers, but they are easy if you do them without rushing. Very easy with grading- just do what the assignment instructions tell you and you will be fine.
Dr. Zhuk is an okay professor; however, he does give a big paper that is due at the end of the semester and his extra credit is writing another paper. The grade you get in the class is based only on the paper he gives you and his exams. He is a little hard to understand, and he does not give out any homework.
When I say attendance isn't mandatory, he says he takes random attendance but never did for my class. You don't really need the book, as long as you get the study guides you will pass the tests. He does his best to lecture well, but gets lost in his thoughts and stories. He shows quite a few videos in class and there is one book report at end.
Loved this professor SO much! You can tell he really cares about his students and wants them to pass. Has a really interesting backround that adds to the class. Graded on 4 tests and 1 book report but tests are super easy because he gives out study guide and gives the answers to them. Pay attention to his "favorite questions". Those are on the exam
Dr. Zhuk is the worst teacher i have had ever. His lectures are very confusing and all over the place. He makes absolutely ridiculous and just incorrect connections from famour rock and roll songs to the content in the class. Tell me how you can connect a random beatles song to the black plague. The class is very test heavy and one 8 page paper.
Four tests and one 8 page book report over one of his OWN books. The book report is just an excuse to make us buy his boring books. His lectures are terrible and he makes dumb connections from a rock and roll song to something in the lecture. He has also been very disrespectful to the tech people when his VHS tape from 1975 was not working.
He only gives you a few tests but he gives you the answers to the question. There is an 8 page paper due at the end of the semester but don't stress about it he doesn't read them. I think it is pretty much just for participation points.
Don't need the book at all because he goes over book chapter review packets in class. You only need to study the questions he highlights from those packets. Not the most interesting lectures, but easy class as long as you do the book report.
I took this class online and it was bad. I didnt learn anything at all.
Its A.
Overall this class was really easy. I took this class during the summer term, so it might be different if you were to take it during the Fall or spring. He sends you the study guide and answers for the test. You grade is based on weekly discussions and 4 tests.
Overall not bad. Would take attendance on random days so you didn't have to go but you could miss attendance if you didn't go. Lectures are so boring if you are not a history major. Gives you answers for the study guides which are word for word of the exam. Nothing from the book was ever in the exams.
Easiest class of the semester. Would highly recommend taking this class with this professor. The only homework was to respond to discussion boards and never took more than 10 minutes.
You will want to go to lectures especially when he goes over study guides. Dont bother with the textbook, you wont ever use it. The class is okay and he does take attendance at random.
The class can be a little hard to follow if you don't know a lot about history. However, Professor Zhuk tries his best to help you pass. If you show up on review days, you'll do perfect on the test.
I absolutely love Dr. Zhuk as a professor and a person. I'm lucky enough to be taking this class during the invasion of Ukraine which has been invaluable to understanding the current situation. Dr. Zhuk informative and kind person who wants you to succeed. I'll be going out of my way to take any additional classes he teaches when and if I can
I had Professor Zhuk for HIST150 and he was amazing! Such a passionate professor who gives wonderful insight into history. Although this class is required he does not give a cookie cutter history class. The lessons and material are fascinating and he does a wonderful job covering the topics.
take Zhuk's class if you want to pass yet learn absolutely nothing. His lectures are almost painfully hard to follow and he has a super thick accent which makes him harder to understand. weekly discussions worth 2 points each, and 4 exams worth 50 points each. he doesn't require much from the discussions and the entirety of the exams are on quizlet
His class was honestly the first history class that I was actually interested in. He is so passionate about what he teaches, that it makes it easy to pay attention. The only thing is that he's a little bit hard to understand at first, but as long as you actually listen, it isn't detrimental, and it's worth it to take his class.
Like some other people said, his lectures are very hard to understand because his accent is very strong. He gives you all the answers to tests prior to the exam day. Also requires discussion post participation about every week or so. Easy class.
Easy! 4 exams (which he basically gives the answers to during his reviews). Weekly discussion boards that are not very difficult. He has a thick accent so sometimes hard to understand. Doesn't take attendance! Only negative is he is a bit passive aggressive over email.
Pretty easy class, but make sure you take notes
I attended about half of the lectures, during the semester. We occasionally took attendance, but nothing happened when I didn't show up. If you do show up, know that his accent can make it difficult to understand; however, he is nice and will repeat things. The class is easy, most of the class is online, and he gives you most of the answers.
If you're taking West in the World, don't buy the textbook, wasted my money. You only have to go to class on days he gives study guide answers, every other day is just lectures that he sends all of his notes for on canvas. No assignments, just quizzes, all his quizzes are open note and online to take anywhere. They are identical to the study guide.
Dr. Zhuk is very kind, and he is very clearly passionate about history. I would suggest him for HIST150. It is an easy course.
He was a good teacher, and that's saying a lot because History is my least favorite subject. You didn't have to show up for every class. As long as you didn't miss too many Canvas discussions and showed up on test review days, you'll do just fine. He would play a lot of rock music, which I loved. I'd recommend him as a teacher
Dr. Zhuk is a genuine and passionate man. He truly loves what he teaches and tries to make it appealing. I found lecture to be long and boring, but he gives all test answers during class. Weekly discussion assignments, but they are not hard.
Great professor! However, if you struggle understanding accents I would suggests maybe a different professor.
He is a good professor, and you can tell that he loves what he teaches. However, he does have a very heavy accent and that made it really hard for me to understand his lectures. He sends out his notes after class though so that helps and he gives you the answers to the study guides the day before the test so that you can study them.
Grade was only made up of exams and discussion boards. Attendance is mandatory and he takes random attendance. He posts all notes from lectures after class ends and gives study guides as well. Exams heavily mimic the study guides. He really cares about what he teaches and is very passionate. However he does have a thick accent while he lectures.
He did have an accent, but I never thought it was hard to understand him like other people are saying. He's a good professor and a nice guy. The lectures were a bit boring, but I've always found history classes to be boring so it might just be my opinion. He would play rock music before every class, it was funny.
Professor Zhuk is passionate about history and makes the subject engaging. While he has a strong accent, the clear lecture notes and study guides make up for it. unstuck study was a big help for exam prep too.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
35%
Textbook Required
59%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.44 avg changeRatings by Course
486
5.0
(1)HST
5.0
(1)HST150
5.0
(1)HIS487
5.0
(1)HIST100
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
10028
5.0
HIST125
5.0
HISTORY150
4.0
HIST487
2.8
HIST150
2.4