2.3
Quality4.1
Difficulty24%
Would Retake118
Reviews24%
Would Retake
118
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
15
4
15
3
12
2
24
1
52
What Students Say
“She makes bad jokes and quickly runs through material”
MTH114 - 2.0 rating“Got a B on my second quiz because I forgot a theta symbol”
MTH114 - 4.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
38%
Textbook Required
6%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
C+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.08 avg changeRatings by Course
MTH094
5.0
(1)MTH117
5.0
(1)MTH114
3.4
(8)MTH102
3.3
(3)MTH103
2.1
(105)Difficulty by Course
MTH103
4.2
MTH114
4.1
MTH117
4.0
MTH094
3.0
MTH102
3.0
Reviews (118)
She is a good teacher, but she doesnt hand out A's. She makes you work for it, and she is always there to help you. and its crazy she learns everyone's names within the first 2 weeks.
She's a good teacher, but she grades down on the tiniest things. Got a B on my second quiz because I forgot a theta symbol.
best teacher every. im sad not to have her next year
It's not her in general that makes this class hell it's the whole program. The class and it's set up is awful.
Class was very hard for me but Ms. Griffin is the nicest and funniest prof I've had yet. Cares about her students greatly. Attendance isn't mandatory but I never minded going to her lecture and it paid off in the end.
This class is one you have to work for if math is not your strongest suit. Lectures are only 50 minutes so it is hard for her to cover material as much as you would like. Be sure to get help outside of class if necessary. She is very nice and super funny as well.
My experience with Ms. Griffin wasn't very pleasant. I'm a very hardworking, attentive student who admittedly struggles with math so Trig was tough from the start. I didn't learn very much in class. She makes bad jokes and quickly runs through material... I spent a lot of time with my TA in the MLC. She also grades very harshly.
If you get 1 question on a test or exam wrong you fail. 1 question can be worth up to 24 points out of 100, unless you are some sort of Math expert. Shes also the only trig teacher so you are screwed. Honestly, math courses at MSU suck. If you want to do STEM have fun teaching yourself. Office hours are a WASTE OF TIME, use khan academy.
I love her!! Best math professor at MSU hands down. She's very helpful and super funny. 5/5 recommend for freshman. Its an easy 4 class, but you HAVE to go to class or else you'll miss well needed information. Now, as far as the TA's, everyone had a different one, but if they aren't helpful, she sure will be. And she's very easy to talk to.
My favorite person at MSU. Sharon Griffin is a blessing to this world. I suck at math, and not only is she the best math teacher I've ever had, but she's also the sweetest and most fun. Most math professors struggle with "dumbing it down" for us kids who suck at math. Griffin is fantastic at that, and she doesn't make you feel stupid for it.
She answered your questions but only if they were during class, her office hours, or whenever she's on campus. She doesn't grade your assignments but tells the Undergraduate Learning Assistants/Graduate Teaching Assistants how to grade them. She assigns a project every semester which isn't relevant unless you plan on going into politics.
Ms. Griffin is hilarious! She can be vague in explaining new concepts at times, but shes a solid choice to go with.
The absolute worst when it comes to understanding issues students might have. Not accommodating at all, even considering the pandemic and troubles with online learning. No care at all for students
I am not sure if it was because the course was online, but she hated interacting with her students. She did not like to help anyone and just wanted to keep doing lectures and be done. My grade was only good because I taught myself everything and spent hours studying She also is not forgiving in emergencies with a doctors note no matter how bad.
This was an online math class. She sped through the lectures like we were on a time crunch. She wouldn't give any help and left all of that up to the ULA's. The tests were 7 pages long, with only 50 minutes to complete the test, so I left part of my test blank most of the time.
Professor Griffin is super nice and caring. She is available outside of class and genuinely cares about her students. Her lectures can go kinda fast, but as long as you print out the lecture notes and follow along it isnt too bad. Make sure you study lecture notes before exams because theyre kinda hard. As long as you go to her youll do great.
Fast lectures, cant make up tests, quizzes, or recitations. Lectures arent mandatory recitation is. ULAs more helpful than teacher. Exams make up a good portion of your grade and are like 7 pages long barely enough time to finish. I was not even a full % from a 4.0 and didnt even consider rounding my grade.
She doesn't require attendance except on recitation days with your ULA's. I never went to class but 100% recommend watching the recorded ones or else you will struggle a lot. There is a ton of homework that takes forever. She does care about her students and provides extra practice videos which were helpful.
Mrs Griffin is nice person at heart and means well, but if you miss one class you are screwed. and don't look at down at your notes for more than 30 seconds or you wont understand what she did because of how fast she moves, i understand she has 2000 students but holy smokes lady give your students a chance to succeed.
I am good at math. I was not good in this class. She goes by so fast it's almost impossible to keep up. The amount of times I cried while taking this course is astronomical. I am thankful math is not something I need for my major, just MSU attendance. This is basic algebra and I am actually dying. Also, Webwork, the homework, sucks.
Tests and Exams are so much more difficult than the practice problems given.
she is horrible. Goes way too fast and doesnt teach anything important.
Hardest class ever!! You dont even get a chance to pass. If you get sick you are done. Miss anything you are done. Don't know how kids pass this class. Worst teacher and class structure I have ever been on. Also web work is terrible, no test feedback for wrong answers and to make things worse she has literally no office hours.
This class was terrible. I treated this class like a 9 to 5 and it never paid off. The assessments are not even comparable to the class notes/unit reviews, it's so much harder. There is no extra credit either so you are screwed. Webwork is terrible and a waste of time. I cry over this class daily. I would not take this class ever again.
The most difficult class I have ever encountered. Entered being a straight A student and left extremely discouraged, barely passing. There is no amount of work you can put into this course to be confident and get a good grade consistently. With this being a course that is required, the level of difficulty is astronomical.
Thought she was a good teacher, who provided a lot of resources to succeed. My tips for quizzes/exams: go to class, study your notes, do the WW, read the textbook, watch her videos, and do every single problem you see come up. Difficult course, but not impossible. You can teach yourself with the resources she provides. She does go very fast though.
Hardest class I've ever taken. I got straight A's in high school, passed AP statistics, and even took a college math preparation class, and nothing could have prepared me for this. Didn't start off too bad, but got a lot worse and I found it hard to prepare for tests and get help.
As another review said, you seriously get screwed over in this class so easy. Get sick, you're done. Miss some homework, you're done. It is literally impossible to consistently do good throughout the course and the tests were much different than the notes, homework, and even the reviews
This class is awful Get ready to be on the cusp of failure. Not only that but everyone struggles straight A students, AP students. This class is terribly taught and not worth the time or money to put in to it. with a 50% fail rate better off taking it at LCC
I learned more from YouTube than her 50 minute lectures. Not worth the time or money. You can study 20 hours a week and fail and just not know what to do. MSU math Department should be shunned and frowned upon for their poor teaching practices and poorly preparing kids for life.
If you pass haha I will be shocked. Not worth the time or money spent. I will be retaking this class somewhere else. Please stop using web work its not worth it!!
Terrible professor. I'm usually a straight A student and now I probably won't pass this class. Her exams are extremely hard, so much homework, and her lectures aren't helpful at all. Won't respond to emails, won't help students. Seems like she wants us to fail. Avoid taking her at all costs. Worst professor ever.
The tests and quizzes are harder than the material learned and the professor is not very accommodating. This year we had 2 quiz grades dropped as well as a test, this may sound like enough I am not sure I personally know anyone that is happy with their grade in this class. Professor Griffin is nice during lectures but does not meet people halfway.
Worst class I have ever taken. I entered this course with math being not only my strongest subject but also my favorite, unfortunately, I will be leaving the course with a hatred for it that I never thought was possible. The exams and quizzes are much harder than any of the material presented in the lectures. Props to you if you actually pass.
Had her fall 2021 online. I thought her lecture videos were okay because my math teacher in high school taught like Griffin, but I dont feel like I can ask the questions I need to, being online. This was definitely a class for students that can take initiative to study on their own and often.
Not much to say you can put in all the work in the world into this class and fail.
Not much to say just read the ratings. Homework and lectures don't prepare you for the exams. its just a struggle to learn and do anything well in this class.
The math department at MSU is honestly messed up. This is the only class I would study for, had a tutor, went to every lecture, did the notes and all the homework and still couldn't manage to get better than a D in this class which that was even hard for me to get. I learned more from my RA teaching me in the study room at 2 am than I did in class
worst teacher ever
Literally awful, prayers to the ones who will take her class. She made me wanna rip my hair out. The actual worse.
The form of application used on homework is the complete opposite of the tests, and because of this I was always reteaching myself how to do the material just to complete some questions that didnt help me prepare for exams.
You will be teaching yourself this course by yourself seven days a week. VERY test heavy. Four exams with one drop (fall 2021) that are all worth 66.7% of your grade. Webwork is useless.
I absolutely love Ms. Griffin. I think many students anticipate her classes to be easy and they are if you attend class. She is very accessible to students, helpful, and really cares about her students. She is a teacher who pays attention to her students and knows who cares about her class and who doesn't! Reach out to her and connect!
Well How About the fact that the class average was a 2.0 for the course in the fall. More people have failed this class under her than any other Math 103 prof at MSU. Don't waste your Brain Cells in her class. Especially don't waste the time and money doing Math at MSU. Go to LCC so much better!!
Very very bad class, the professor did not teach well, as she went too fast, and did not care for students trying. The webwork is worth a really small amount of the grade, and the quizzes and exams are worth the rest, and they are not even related to the content being taught, Don't waste your time. Go or not go to the lectures, you will still fail.
She seemed nice but I went to every lecture and still failed the exams. The class was unnecessarily hard, it's been my worst class at MSU so far. I thought chemistry and calculus were much easier to pass.
This class was the only class I got a 3.5 in during my freshman year. This class progressively gets more difficult throughout the semester, despite being about topics I already learned in high school. There is a learning center available, and I regret not taking advantage of it. For me, the amount of time given on the exams were not enough.
Awful lectures, sped through with no care for students and for what? I have to pay for this? I don't even bother taking notes anymore, just show up to the lecture for the attendance credit. My ULA (Chen) is worse, confuses the entire class with her reviews before the exam. When we ask questions we are told "it just is." Should be online only.
She talks to fast in lecture she doesn't go over a lot of the stuff you see on exams and quizzes you have to buy a subscription to web work and the homework you are assigned there are nothing like what you see on quizzes and exams. Overall just pick a new professor for math 103
She literally moves so fast you wont learn anything by going to lecture
I love her
She goes through lessons pretty fast in order to get everything done in the 50 minute lectures. The class wouldn't be terrible if the exams and quizzes were worded similarly to the lesson notes and homework.
Professor Griffin is definitely my hardest professor. You would think that college algebra would be easy, right? This is a very hard class, even though I go to every lecture, I complete all of my homework, and spend nearly 2.5 hours in the math learning center every night. She is nice, but not very understanding. Her exams are very difficult.
She goes quickly through the lecture. You need to pay attention because like all other math courses you will need to be able to apply the information you learned to other problems. She makes some jokes in class that keep you engaged. If you have trouble with pacing they offer 103A and 103B for a reason.
she goes too fast and will not allow makeups for tests/quizzes even if you are sick.
Goes way too fast and will not slow down or answer any questions during lecture. Homework load is absurd considering this is entry level algebra. No make ups and no retakes. She will not do a single thing to help you pass her class... in fact she will make it easy to fail. Tests are difficult and her video reviews don't help in the slightest.
Ruthless- she will rip you apart. Be prepared to work hard.
she talks so fast its almost impossible to keep up with lectures while filling out notes
Her class was much more difficult than the other math 103 sections
Professor Griffin is a sweetheart - nevermind all the freshmen reviewing her. As a junior, she is amazing. She talks fast because the courseload is heavy - she stays after class to help and discusses everything in detail as needed. She offers a ton of office hours to help if you need it, too. Reach out if you need help!
Attendance is mandatory and she will go out of her way to make sure it is taken again if too many people leave the room. A large portion of your grade relies on the 4 Exams (granted you drop one). She allows crib sheets during exams for examples, definitions, etc. Personality wise, she's a nice lady, but you have to be on top of your work.
The class is very fast-paced, but she offers office hours for multiple days every week. Listen... you need to go get help outside of class, that's the only way you will pass this class. Overall, she is a very nice lady.
Dropped this class about midway through the semester as it was horrible. This professor speeds through lectures and will on the regular ignore students raising their hands. The homework she assigned was completely different than other classes of 103 and much more difficult. I had an easier time in my asynchronous 103 than here.
lecture heavy and test heavy
She was just mean
Nice lady but with class she goes through problems very fast and doesn't quite explain them well. Class is test heavy. Tricky test problems worth a lot of points for short amount of questions. If u r an incoming freshman, I would honestly take Susan Allen's class.I had to go to her lecture just to better understand the work. She's much better.
Her lectures are very fast-paced. A lot of homework on Webwork and weekly quizzes. Great person, she's just a tough teacher.
Not a bad teacher, just teaching a hard class. Homework multiple times a week, with quizzes and exams every Friday. Extremely fast passed class making it very hard to understand the topics enough to pass the quizzes.
Don't take this class unless you hate yourself It's so hard and the professor makes it even worse. She is a horrible teacher in lectures she goes way too fast it's almost impossible to keep up with her. There is way too much homework for one student to keep up on. This class is so time-consuming there is also a quiz every Friday.
Good luck! Hardest class at MSU
For the love of God be weary of taking this class. I came in as a confident freshman and left as a broken man. While Mrs. Griffin is nice and caring as a person, the math curriculum along with her lectures is bound to fail you.
This class gives no credit other than homework, quizzes, and very heavily weights exams. There is no credit given for attendance or participation. Professor moves incredibly quickly and does not stop for questions. Does lecture notes byd and her hand blocks the projector camera. No time to copy notes. Very challenging if not a math person.
Taking this class Fall of 2023 there was an issue with resources available to help all the students who were struggling. Just look up this teacher's average grades the past few years on msugrades, the average never went above a 3.0. At this point, this is a curriculum issue, grading. Im sure she is a good woman at heart just not meant to teach.
I am not good at math to begin with, however even my friends who were good at math struggled in this course. Ms.Griffin is so kind and funny but her course is difficult, again math is not my strongest category. Be sure to review class notes, and pay attention to the reviews given by TA before quizzes and you should be fine.
Very nice, funny professor but she is not a very good instructor. Her lectures are frustrating and confusing. I found myself learning better when i taught it to myself.
Math 103 should not be this challenging. I passed this class by 3 points. The professor was nice and willing to help but her quizzes and exams were never like the homework or the reviews. Honestly, save yourself the money and choose a different professor, other classes seemed to have a better success rate...
although she seems like a very genuine person, it is very hard to understand this class if you are not a math person. she moves extremely fast, and you take notes the entire class period. there is a quiz almost every week, and they are tough. when taking notes, there is no explanation, you are just expected to know how to do the problems.
Ms. Griffin was a very straight forward gal. She made it clear that her job was to simply teach. There is a quiz every week in recitation, so don't miss it. There is a lot of partial credit offered on exams and quizzes so write down everything you can for more points. It is homework heavy but if you get it all done it helps boost your grade.
MTH 103 has quizzes or tests every week during recitation. Griffin is kind but it's a huge lecture with like 100 people so don't think about asking questions until your recitation. She loves what she does but goes through extremely quick, and rarely goes back if you missed anything. Good luck but it's college algebra so it's not too hard.
Griffin is a very nice lady, she definitely cares for her students and is willing to accomodate, but she is not a great teacher. I really struggle with math and I'm worried about failing, although I frequently go to lectures and office hours. Her exams and quizzes are really difficult and sometimes not what the review material is like.
This class gets a bad rap because it's taken mostly by freshman who are new to college classes. Don't get me wrong, it's fast paced, so in order to succeed you need to put in the work. Go to office hours weekly. Go to the math learning center! Ask questions in recitation. The ULA's are there to help! Mrs. Griffin wants to see her students succeed..
Never again.
Griffin is very nice, but as someone who excelled in math before college, this class was unreasonably hard, especially in terms of quizzes. We go over topics very fast and she often skips review problems that would have made homework and quizzes so much easier. Most people don't even show up because the online resources teach much better.
This lady is the goat. I never even had her as a professor, but she was the one who created all of the online notes for my class. She went through the lessons really well in the videos. My teacher often went too fast with the notes in class, so it was nice having her online lessons to help me understand much easier.
Professor Griffin is a very kind and funny professor and I really enjoyed her personality. However, I feel as though maybe it's the combination of her talking fast + her teaching a very fast paced course that made me struggle. Quizzes are nearly every week, and they don't look at all like the webwork/notes. Grading policy is very good though.
Dr. Griffin gets a lot of unnecessary slander because she teaches mostly freshmen. Dr. Griffin's teaching style is very clear and makes sense if you go to class. Attendance is mandatory if you want to pass, but I got away with missing a few and was fine. All tests are in person, paper pencil, during recitation. Easy to reach outside of class.
The class material is incredibly difficult, especially for an entry-level class, though that isn't Professor Griffin's fault. She talks SUPER fast, and doesn't go back to repeat problems, so your attention better be focused.
Doesn't teach or explain. She simply just tells and writes it down. This class was absolutely horrible
She's very sweet but also knows what she's doing, she'll do pop up attendances if she sees a lack of students in her lectures, and likes to interact with us. I would take her classes again for sure. The main issue I have with her is that she goes fast, which sometimes isn't her fault, and her d2l can be hard to navigate through.
Not good. Goes WAY too fast and does not explain concepts thoroughly. I along with other students just watched the videos on D2L and basically learned the material ourselves. Very thankful my TA was helpful and knew what he was doing and actually explained the concepts to us. Just bad. Terrible. Would not recommend this professor to ANYONE.
JUST DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND TAKE MATH 103A&B. Professor Griffen was okay, but she didn't really teach, just gave us skeleton notes. I'm begging you to just take a&b. All the teachers are like this.
If you can't deal with a fast paced environment, go for 103A&B
If you want to pass don't take this class. Doesn't explain anything, goes over 5+ lessons in 50 mins. Quiz every Friday.
The course is hard(multiple homework assignments due weekly, quiz/exam at almost every recitation, lots of notes). Although it can be challenging, Ms. Griffin is so sweet and helpful if you take advantage of her as a resource. I went to her office hours every week, and she always made sure I understood the concepts.
yes I did poorly but she was a professor that I couldn't learn from. I had my friends in high math classes help me and they said the way she thought was backwards. I would highly recommend you pick a different professor
Mth 103 is a hard class for anyone, Professor Griffin does the best she can. She cares about how you are doing and cares about the class. She wants you to pass and gives you the best tips in the short amount of time that is given for lectures. My TA is terrible tho.
I missed one class at the beginning of the semester and never was able to get back on track because she covered entire units in each lecture. She speeds through it like she's got places to be. There were several occasions where she straight-up invented new math terms. She uploads videos explaining each lesson on D2L, but they're absolutely useless.
Do yourself a favor and take MTH103 A and B. I know more people who failed this class than I do who passed, including myself. Second round taking it, and it is hardly easier. Quizzes every Friday, four exams, tough grading criteria, and SO MUCH HW! Unless you pick up math like a second nature I DO NOT recommend.
Did not attend one single lecture and still managed a 3.5. The videos are really helpful, as well as the recitation activities, reviews and worksheets. Not a complicated class if you have taken algebra 2 or precalc/calc in high school. Dropped one of the quizzes (every week during recitation). easy to talk to outside of class and my TA was perfect
God forbid you miss one class you are behind for the whole semester. She is a nice woman but is not very good at teaching. She just writes down everything barely explains it at least enough for others to understand. You better hope you get a good TA because that is your only chance of understanding this class.
Attend her office hours!!! Ms. Griffin is there to help you and is willing to help you learn if you put in the effort. I hate math but Ms. Griffin helped me find the confidence in myself to do well and learn. For a hard course she is a very kind and understanding teacher. She will push her students, but she does care about how you do.
Very kind teacher. Her videos are very helpful. Don't be afraid to attend her office hours to get extra help if you are struggling or just have questions!
I took her MTH 103 lecture/recitation and I failed. I retook it this semester with a different professor and got a 4.0. I missed a quiz because I was sick. I went to spectrum and got a note. I sent it to her and her response was that I needed to be hospitalized in order to retake the quiz. Doesn't teach, just has you READ about MATH.
I thought Dr. Griffin was a great instructor for a beginning math course. She has good lectures and is very involved during class. Although attendance isn't require, all the quiz and exam information are from lecture, so I would advise you to go if you want to pass.
Griffin herself is a good and nice person, but teaching MTH 103 is hard because there is so much content to shove into one semester. avoid taking 103 with all you possibly can, and if you must take it, just know it will be your hardest course even if you were decently proficient in math in highschool.
You WILL feel like you're drowning. She moves too fast to understand a thing. You're better off skipping lectures and teaching yourself, honestly.
Ms. Griffin's a nice lady, she is engaging in the lectures. But she talks very fast and seems to rush through things. Some units are easier than others but attending the lecture is a massive help to understanding the content.
Very clear explanations during lectures and videos. Very strict with syllabus.
The class of MTH 103 itself is bad, not necessarily the professor, but regardless she did fly through the lessons VERY quickly, according to MSU-grades there was a 25% fail/drop-out rate last semester, i got through the course with a 2.5, although barely. Unless your already very comfortable with Algebra, you will likely struggle.
Talks too fast during lectures and has NO REVIEW during any of the lectures. Even when an exam is coming up, she will be teaching new information you need to know that wont even be on the upcoming quiz/exam. Be ready for a quiz or exam every week. Wouldn't recommend.
Please for your sake avoid at all costs.
RUN from this professor. She rushes through everything in class and in her videos, but at least you can pause those. She solves problems without explaining the steps or giving students time to try them. Recitations were basically just quizzes and tests.
Although it is a fast paced course, Ms. Griffan does a great job throughly explaining material and her videos on D2L and extremely helpful. Go to your lectures and put in the work outside of class and you'll be fine (coming from someone not good at math).
Griffin is nice and approachable, but she moves quickly through lectures. She speaks fast and only leaves notes on the screen for 15 seconds. The course includes WebWork hw and quizzes every recitation. Unlike other professors, she rarely holds math exam reviews, so I usually attend Allen's review sessions. I would definitely recommend Allen.
She is very nice and super outgoing. A very fast-paced class but if you come in with prior knowledge you should be totally fine.
Won't talk to you about grades, tells you not to email her over many things, talks really fast and you can't understand her, is basically the only one who teaches this class at available times and is so bad I had to take her class twice.
Prof. Griffin is very quick in lectures and follows the syllabus strictly. After reviewing the videos, webwork, and practice problems on D2L, my grades improved. I would highly recommend doing all the possible "learn it" and "practice it" objectives in D2L. She does teach new material right before an exam when the new material isn't on the exam :/
I would do everything to get out of this course. To her credit she does give you a lot of resources, but her lectures are extremely fast paced, and it's difficult to comprehend the material she gives you. The bigger issue is the structure of the course as recitation is basically just a place to take exams and test tests.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
38%
Textbook Required
6%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
C+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.08 avg changeRatings by Course
MTH094
5.0
(1)MTH117
5.0
(1)MTH114
3.4
(8)MTH102
3.3
(3)MTH103
2.1
(105)Difficulty by Course
MTH103
4.2
MTH114
4.1
MTH117
4.0
MTH094
3.0
MTH102
3.0