3.4
Quality2.4
Difficulty70%
Would Retake166
Reviews70%
Would Retake
166
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
46
4
42
3
40
2
22
1
16
What Students Say
“Her lectures and discussion are all extra credit”
ECON330 - 3.0 rating“All she does is go on rants about whatever she feels about and says wicked corny things”
ECON104 - 4.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
16%
Textbook Required
83%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.74 avg changeRatings by Course
330
5.0
(1)LABORECON
5.0
(1)ENC101
5.0
(1)ECON330331
5.0
(1)394CI
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
ENC101
5.0
ECON104H
3.5
ECON1
3.0
ECON103
2.8
ECON104
2.6
Reviews (166)
sucks-not fair with grades-takes forever to pass back assignments
easy class, interesting but takes forever to give back assignments
The course material isn't that difficult to grasp, but her teaching is an atrocity. The worst professor I've run into in the economics department.
If you're a socialist, and you believe white males are ruining the economy and you enjoy reading books titled How Capitalism Underdeveloped Black America then this is the teacher for you. Otherwise, run. The manure she spouts is unbearable.
I cannot get over how bad this woman is. I've learned nothing. I can't believe UMass would employ this kind of instructor.
Not a full professor, not even done with her grad work.. but i think she'd put more effort into making the class harder if she got that together. For now as long as she's employed she's ok with it.
If you're grown-up and/or take a grown-up attitude, Val is a fine teacher. Knows her stuff, is easy-going - worst point is she's too easy going. The subject sucks, and no professor could make it interesting, so a lot of the flak should be aimed at Econ.
fun class. real easy. takes a long time to get papers back.
way too many assigments. Last 2 weeks of semester we had a paper due every class. None-the-less we had to do 11 out of 12 possible papers, which took forever to get back.
Not to bad, some homework, but it usually helps your grade and the tests are right from the review questions...not really hard at all!!!
Great Class! Valarie really cares about the students. She is very easy to understand and all course notes are online, lots of opportunity for extra credit. She is a great professor!
Anyway I learned a lot
Easy material, common sense to most. Although, tests are long and very in-depth. Opinionated. Notes posted online. Not the best Econ class.
she likes beans. she will talk about beans. she will make you dream of beans. but its all good. tests are ridicoulously easy if you go to a few classes and do some studying
her class is left wing bs and I love it. I don't get pissed off in many classes becasue of the content, but her's is one in which I do. Take this class, if for no other reason than to learn how to exploit workers when you are a wealthy capitalist owner.
She's a very nice woman, loud though, but overall she's a good teacher with good insights.
awesome
No Comments
easy class. don't have to do all the readings. for the exams, just memorize the outline on ereserves. homeworks come straight from the notes as well. she gives plenty of extra credit in case you screw up.
bad, bad, bad. i couldn't physically sit through an entire class when i went. it is extremely easy, but not interesting at all.
Far too preoccupied with being a mother to be an effective teacher. Poor lecturer. Reads straight from the overheads. Do not take this class if you have a desire to learn, only if you want an easy A.
Voorheis was a pretty good teacher. She has an interest in what she is teaching and she is very approachable. She lectures during class, which does get boring, but how else is she supposed to teach labor economics? Grade: B
horrible horrible teacher. didn't learn anything. went through overheads way to fast. wouldn't put them back when students asked. only half of the class showed up for lecture, and of those that showed nearly half left out of frustration before the end of the class. avoid taking an intro class with this woman.
Fantastic course. She's a great professor, and the material is fantastic, useful, and applicable to life. this course, and her teaching of it, has the ability to motivate you to make a difference.
Its a really easy course...i got an A without much effort...although i love econ...the 3 for clarity is because the test and worksheets dont make sence some times...but that wont conflic with your grade because the TA's love pointin her nonsence to her :-)...take the class....its easy
pretty mediocre teacher, dont have to go to class, all notes are sent to you. tests are not bad if you study
BORING BORING BORING. You basically teach yourself. Read the book.
Easily my favorite class of the semester. She truly loves what she does and loves the subject matter. Extremely helpful and always welcomes after class discussions. She wrote me an excellent recommendation letter as well. Many people did not like her in the course because...well they were either lazy or uninterested. Great class, great professor.
I wrote the review below this and I meant to put econ 105, not 103.
Easy Easy. No need to go to class. she emails out the notes. go to the review before the test. midterm and final. shes really boring. Just teach yourself from the notes and use the review sheet and study before the tests.
Decent lecturer. Excited about the subject. (You may not be; micro isn't known as the accessible, thrilling portion of economics.) Notes posted online and extensive review sheets make passing easy. To excel you will have to do some legwork (extensive reading, etc) but generally not a bad class.
Great professor with a really warm heart. Only 2 Exams, notes posted online. Material is as dry as any economics class but she works really hard to make it interesting. I would recommend the professor, not the class.
The lectures are boring, and the readings are intense (if you choose to do them). The tests can be hard if you don't understand the material well.
I found the lectures pointless toward the class. She talks about current event which is interesting but useless when its comes to trying to learn the material. Read the book and learn the material on your own and there's no reason to go to class unless the discussions interest you.
Val is friendly and usually enthusiastic about class. You might find the lectures boring. If so, just don't go to class. You can still get a B if you read.
AWFUL TEACHER. She makes up tests the night ebfore and they're full of mistakes. Her elctures are boring, useless, and erratic. I'm teraching msyelf the course. Avoid taking her course.
She talks about current events in class which is not on the test. If you want to pass the test you have to read the book and do the worksheets. Useless to go to class.
Pointless to go to lectures... she just spends the entire class talking about current events that have nothing to do with the topic we're supposed to be covering. Goes through overheads too fast. All notes are online... so just read the book and go to discussions. Otherwise you're wasting your time sitting through lectures and learning nothing.
It's obvious that she has no interest in teaching considering the fact that she cancels classes a lot and spends more time talking about current events than she does teaching the actual curiculum. She made our midterm at 2am the night before and told us about it and screwed up the answer key; I don't even wanna know what the final's gonna be like.
She doesn't really do much. She just reads the notes that she posts up on the course website, which make going to class stupid. She goes on rants about current events. She is very disorganized especially with exams. Just read the lecture notes and the text and it'll be fine.
Hated this class. All she does is go on rants about whatever she feels about and says wicked corny things. She takes the overheads off way too quickly. Her tests suck, she always screws them up. If you take econ, don't take it with her!
All around terrible class. Going to class is pointless because she goes on fifteen minute rants about current events that do not pertain to actually learning macro. Notes are usually limited. She cancelled two or three classes. The textbook is all around inacessible and bland. Just avoid the class because you won't develop an understanding.
class is easy, prof. is lazy and doesnt care just rambles on about the current economy all during class. midterm 30 per, final 45 per, wksts/ atd for disc 25 per.
Easy class, pointless lectures. Get notes online and go to discussion. Don't need real world book.
She is not clear and trys to trick you on the test. If you do not have a good TA you are in trouble.
For those complaining, on the midterm if you knew the material you'd do well - those complaining about "her trying to trick us" obviously never took any APs in high school; tests are supposed to be hard. All around a sold, nice, helpful professor; great to talk to during office hours, don't need to go to class and only need the book as a reference.
The exams weren't hard but she scares you a lot. Lectures are important but staying up in them is the hardest thing which consumed all of my energy this semester. The most important thing is your TA. If you have a good TA than an A is guaranteed otherwise all I can do is wish you luck.
8am lecture, went to 5 only. went to discussion. got a B. who seriously goes to 8 am lectures? OH my classmates...half the auditiorium. CRAZY. she's entertaining to go to...I learned something at one of the lectures, but 2 out of 5 were VIDEOS ! omg.
boring, played bloons all the time. real world macro not needed. TAs did all the work. not a good professor at all. she wrote the exam a day before the exam, very poorly written even the TAs hated her.
Ok, so the nature of lectures is that they suck. You and the other 150 people can prob aggree on that. I went every 3 or 4x and did fine. Val posts notes online with corresponding textbook pages, book on reserve, don't need Real World. Turn on the radio and listen to NPR- economists on all the time- may lend some clarity. And talk to your TA!
Very intersting in lecture, and you can actually listen because she posts the notes online. Go to discussions and do worksheets and you will get an A.
This is the greatest class in the history of possible classes. Valerie deserves not only an award for outstanding excellence in the field of economics but a Nobel Prize as well. Thinking about taking this class? I am taking it again, even though I received an A just because I enjoyed it that much. I would recommend this class to anyone
Read the textbook, do the homework, and go to discussions. You'll be fine.
I GREATLY DISLIKE THIS WOMAN. Needs to learn compassion for students. Never follows the syllabus and talks about everything BUT macroecon during lecture. Again, avoid this woman, and avoid any class she teaches. So self-absorbed and her attraction to herself takes away from the material. Lecture is pointless.
This class sucks. She spends half of the class talking about current news- stuff that won't be on the test. She goes too fast- thank god she puts notes online! Her tests are wicked hard. Only buy the book if you're planning on skipping a lot.
I've taken econ103, econ104, and econ330 with Val. She is a really good, down to earth professor. It is a lecture, just like stated, and she knows her stuff. She is very helpful in office hours too.
Boring class not the easiest. She doesn't always teach the material on her syllabus. Rants on the current state of the economy, gives you one side of the story but not the other when she gets into politics (TOO POLITICAL! ITS AN ECON CLASS). I found problems in her lectures about Social Security and the Bush Tax Cuts. Some of her data was wrong.
Pointless going to the lectures, she reads off from the slides directly. Just read over the notes (the book is too confusing, she summed up main pts in her notes), do the worksheets, and keep yourself up to date with the economy. Understand the material and you'll be fine! The TAs are great, just turn to them if you need to clarify anything!!
I've taken 104 and 330 with her and have done extremely well in her classes. Everything she expects you to know from the textbook she'll go over in her slides so no need to actually read the books. Exams are not hard at all as long as you do her study guides which she'll provide a week in advance before the test. Easy A even if you cram.
One of the most useless classes I have ever taken. Books are completely unnecessary, has mandatory attendance for an 8 AM class, terrible TA, gives no reason to care about the material. overall, just plain useless as a professor.
Class isn't bad- 3 exams, 1 easy paper and 5 hws answering questions right out of the notes- If your good at cramming before the tests, all questions come right from the study guides so its easy to get an A-Had the best TA who helped A LOT.
She's nice and can be funny and laid back. I attend probably half of the lectures. They are usually real boring and the concepts are really simple so I just read the slides online since she just reads off of them. She talks a lot about the current economy which gets old fast though.
Makes her notes accessible on SPARK, but pretty much reads off of them in class peppered with rants on the current economy which makes attendance not very useful. If you get a helpful TA, go to them with questions. There are 10 worksheets with info from her slides. Exams were tough and counted too much midterm 30%, final 45%, discussion 25%.
Never had to show up to a class because the lectures include no helpful material and the most drawn out rants about nothing I've heard in awhile. The TAs are pretty helpful. Definitely a good class... until you have to take the final and then you realize how awful the class actually is... all I can say is find another teacher.
Terrible class. She acts like everyone in the class cares. Some people take this class for a Gen. Ed., not a major. awful.
Despite what other people have said this class is not that hard.As long as you are semi intelligent and can grasp concepts and even if you arent interested in econ she does a good job of explaining whats going to be on the test. Since there are only 2 tests heavy memorization/studying is required but thats not out of the ordinary for gen eds
This class is really easy by itself. You don't even have to go to class, just read the slides she posts online. Don't bother with the extra credit since she just ends up forgetting about applying it to your grade.
This professor is among the most frustrating ever. Her notes are completely disjointed, her review sheets are horribly disorganized,and studying for her tests is extremely bothersome. Her class is easy, but she makes you run around a LOT to find any information. I recommend avoiding her.
Val is really nice and very willing to help you out if you need it. She is not a good lecturer at all though. The lectures seriously lack continuity, they are just her stream of consciousness about the material. The notes make no sense until you do the readings, but once you have an understanding of everything it is a pretty cool class, worth it.
She is really nice and tries to be funny but the class is just awful. The notes are online which is nice but the exams are difficult. There is a lot of theory involved. She really cares about econ and assumes everyone else does too. You will definitely need to devote a good amount of time to this class if you want to get an A.
AVOID THIS CLASS
She is funny at times. I would only go to class to laugh. The class is basiclly useless. Just go to duscussion- and you can still get a good grade. Tests are hard but get scaled.
Still uses overhead projector so notes can sometimes be disorganized. BUT she posts all notes online and you can probably get a decent grade in the class without going to class. I wouldn't recommend to any business school students because she hates you. That being said its a kinda easy gen ed if you're desperate.
Class was boring, she just read the notes on the overhead, and the notes were online. Study the notes before the test, and memorize as much as you can. Spit everything you remembered out on the test. I never did the readings, never listened to her lectures, got an A-.
Attendance optional. Lectures were boring b/c she just read off the notes. Don't need to read the books or go to lecture. Just memorize all the notes she posts online and regurgitate everything on the tests.
Attendance is optional but you get EC if you go. It really helps if you are borderline with your grade. Tests are straightforward because all you need to do beforehand is memorize all the notes. No need to get the textbooks! I will take another class with her next year.
Overall a good class. Attendance is not required. Would not recommend taking as a gen ed since it requires a lot of work and reading. Yet if ready to study, she gives all the opportunities to get a good grade. 2 tests, weekly worksheets.
Don't buy the book or go to class, lecture is useless. Print out the notes posted on moodle and go to every discussion and you'll be fine.
I loved Val. She likes to rant in class and can sometimes be confusing at first. But if you read the book and go to discussions/lectures you will honestly be fine. Material not that hard, just the way she presents it makes it seem that way at times. She loves to help you out, so go to office hours/review sessions, she will tell you what is on exam.
Val is definitely passionate about what she teaches and I enjoyed listening to her lectures (which she posted recordings of online, if the technology worked). Weekly homeworks and discussions which you should attend, and the tests were very long but doable. Her office hours are helpful and she is able to better explain the more difficult concepts
Lectures were very, very boring. Not mandatory and you definitely don't need to go. Do the weekly worksheets, read over the online notes, and study for the midterm and final. Exams were a lot easier than I expected.
Had Val twice now, for 330 and 105. Her lectures are typically boring and Powerpoint based but she doesn't make attendance mandatory which is nice because doing the readings and assignments will usually adequately prepare you. Tests are always a lot of writing instead of multiple choice or T&F but grading is usually lenient.
Had Val for 330, 104, and now 105. She is a great professor! Her exams were straightforward as long as you did the assignments and went through her powerpoints. If you were confused with something, she is really nice and clears up any confusion. I am glad I ended my college career with Val's class!
Val is an awesome lady who is very knowledgable but her classes are a bit confusing and hard to take notes in. Got an A in the class by taking her study guides and teaching myself everything basically. Her review sessions are very helpful. Tests are a lot of writing but if you prepare yourself you should do fine.
A very easy class, but I would say that Val teaches the technical aspects, ie the math of economics in the worst and least intuitive way possible. Probably should not get tenure.
The class is easy. Valerie is an interesting character. Although she makes some strange comments and goes off track sometimes because she loves to talk and make jokes, she usually presents the information for exams pretty well
I don't know how you can take these classes and not get an A. The powerpoints are online and attendance is extra credit. Tests are graded leniently. She's super nice and lectures aren't boring. I never did any reading, just went to class half the time and read the notes. Still got an A.
Val is a fantastic and witty lecturer. Her powerpoint slides basically summarize everything that is in the book-in class she goes over them and provides helpful commentary. Attendance is not mandatory but it is helpful to go to class. Val is very approachable. Homework is graded easily. Exams aren't tough if you study the night before. I got an A.
Some students swear by her, I personally thought she was pretty unhelpful. She puts the powerpoints online which is somewhat useful but the tests involve you knowing the math. She's not available for office hours and the lectures are a waste of time. Go to the extra help before the final.
Test was ridicously easy.
I never went to class so I can't really comment on Valerie's teaching, but the tests were pretty easy and graded leniently. Doesn't explain the math too well, but I still got an A with little effort.
Val is so cool! I love her lecture teaching style and she's really chill. Goes on rants sometimes but it's not a problem. Mid-terms are very similar to the study guides she publishes. Didn't read the textbook that much since she puts the powerpoint slides online.
Val isn't a bad professor, just not my favorite. She makes class interesting, but most of the information she says in class is right off of the powerpoint slides or she goes on a random tangent about something. The first exam is ridiculously easy, but the second exam was impossible. TAs grade so they scale them. Mandatory discussions.
This class wasn't that bad. There are 3 exams, 2 through the semester and 1 cumulative final. The second exam was hard, but the TAs were helpful if you don't understand something
Valerie is an excellent teacher, and I highly recommend her classes to anyone. There's a reason she won an award for being a distinguished professor. She covers the topics exhaustively and handles questions very well while keeping the course moving at a good pace. Easy but extremely helpful writing exercises, and no surprises on her tests. A+.
Val is a pretty good teacher, she's kind and laid back. Lectures were ok, boring at times. Very easy class imo, many ppl skipped class almost everyday and still got an A(NOT recommended). No need to buy textbook, answers to problem sets were deducible via google, although the book probably would have helped. Exams are fair, on the easy side.
Val is a good teacher who is knowledgable about the subject, but she sometimes gets carried away with other things during lecture & doesn't go over the important stuff as in depth. You don't really have to go to lecture b/c the slides are online. The exams are based on all of the homework and slides mostly, so if you follow along you should be set.
Val is super nice and the perfect professor for ECON 105. The class is basic (as it should it be) for a gen ed. I went to about 50% of lectures and did minimal to no studying and got an A-. If you need the gen ed or just want an easy class about economics then this is it.
She's super friendly and posts all the lecture slides on moodle so you never actually have to show up
Valerie might annoy some people as she is very opinionated, but if you agree with her or if you just pay attention to the material itself you will learn pretty quickly. Got an A in this class without studying very much. She puts all the slides up online so you don't really need to go to class unless you want to hear it explained in person.
Her lectures and discussion are all extra credit. She is loud, super opinionated and all over the place. Her lectures were only 50 min but they dragged on. Her tests aren't too hard but the material isn't that interesting. Also, you need a 95 to get an A which I think is unnecessary
Val is the bomb! I learned a lot in her class. Tons of reading but if you show up and understand a few core concepts you dont really have to do all of it. 3 quizzes, 2 short papers(1-2 pages), one solo presentation and one group presentation.
Really great lecturer and could actually keep my attention She lays out everything in the slides and it's pretty straightforward. No need to read the books just learn her slides. Exam questions are taken right from the assignments so if you study those you'll ace the exams. Only hard thing is a 95 is an A. Attendance is extra credit (sort of).
This class is the easiest econ course. Didn't buy the books and barely went to class and am still doing well in the class. Val is the coolest and she lets you use cheat sheets for tests and the assignments are pretty much test questions. Attendance is extra credit. Don't get the books. Not boring lectures.
She isn't a bad professor, just not the best. She reads all the information straight off the power point and goes on many tangents. If Economic policy and theory is tricky for you don't take it with her. There are two exams, a final and a few homework assignments so tests are basically your grade. Her lectures become confusing fast.
Lots of reading, but you can get away with not doing most of it. One individual class presentation. Instead of a final exam, there is a group project. Participation is a grade booster. Quizzes are open notes. Overall she is a nice teacher who grades pretty easy.
Val is depth with Econ! I learned a lot in her class. Just go to lectures, read her slide and make notes!
Best Economics professor at umass! Never boring and easy. Skimmed through the books to make cheat sheets that are allowed during quizzes. Fun class
This class really isn't that bad. Econ is super boring but I feel like I actually learn in the lectures and Valerie Voorheis is good at her job and u can tell. If u can, get Everest as ur TA bc their discussions help so much. overall not bad
Val is easily the best economics professor I've had by far. If you have to take macro, TAKE HER CLASS. She is really good at breaking things down to make them easier to understand. Worksheets graded on a P/F scale, two midterms and a final. As long as you show up to class and do the work, it's not hard to pass. She really wants you to do well.
An incompetent, vague and quite frankly, terrible professor who spends the lectures purely reading off her slides, which is the exact same thing in the textbook, while not teaching any of the math needed to be successful on the test. Try to switch out of her class if you can, she's not great.
Valerie isn't a terrible teacher whatsoever, but I found her classes to be pointless. Stopped going halfway through the semester because I learned more in the discussions and didn't have to sit through her rambling about politics. Slides are online, never bought any of the textbooks, and got an A. Gotta put in some effort but easy if you do
I went to almost no lectures and still got an A. The 3 exams have a lot of material, but she posts study guides that cover most topics. There are weekly worksheets that are graded P/F and are lengthy but not hard to do if you use the lecture slides and textbook. I basically just reviewed her posted slides and the worksheets to prep for midterms.
posted lecture recording, slides, assignments and chapter readings in moodle every week. weekly quizzes and worksheets (quizzes were max 5 or 6 questions, some worksheets were long some short and easy). lengthy readings - graded for annotating. 2 midterms (2 parts: MC/SA) and a final exam. not a crazy good class, nothing bad either.
Honestly, Professor Voorheis is all over the place during lectures. I've noticed all her slides are just copied from the textbook and she reads off of them the whole class. She seems super nice and is passionate about the class but she really isn't a great professor. This said, she defineitly structures the class based on what is best for students
Valerie is so sweet. She's clearly very passionate about economics but her lectures lack literally everything. you can easily skip every class and still pass. Everything in the quizzes and tests is in the readings. LOTS of reading, in addition to a quiz and lengthy worksheet every week. Just make sure you set aside a lot of time for reading and hw.
Love Val. is one of the only professors who respond to emails and she even does it in a timely fashion! When I had questions she was ready to zoom with me one on one to answer questions about the course and offer me advice in general. Tests were very fair, homework could be difficult but she is always down to help. one of the best online classes
For ECON104 everything was posted online and accessible with the option of in person lectures. Some of the lectures are boring, but you can tell she cares about the topic. The worksheets and quizzes are straight-forward especially if you attend the discussions. Very reading heavy, but Val gave out a bunch of free book codes which I thought was nice
If you took an Econ class in high school, it should be a breeze. She is very accessible outside of class and cares about students.
Care about students!! enjoyed her lectures
104H is a super tough class, but Voorheis is a great teacher. The material is super dense, but she explains things well, is helpful in office hours, and is really funny. She is super approachable and reasonable if you're struggling. There is a ton of reading assignments and the weekly worksheets are very time-consuming. You'll learn a lot tho
She is very caring and accessible. Weekly readings, worksheets and quizzes are all fairly easy. Same thing with open note exams. Stay on top of your work, go to discussion and try on these assignments to get an A in the course. I found in person lectures unhelpful, but attendance does not count (just make sure to do the readings)
Overall easy class should end up with an A. As long as you are okay with reading lengthy chapters in textbooks the course is very easy. Exams are all online and in a short answer / essay format. You are given 3-4 days to complete the exam so it's not very difficult.
Personally found the class easy. Lectures aren't mandatory and I haven't attended them. Read textbooks and go to the discussion section to learn the concepts for hw worksheets. Tests are home taken and not hard. The professor is understanding and caring about her students
Kind and caring professor, but way too much reading. Weekly Moodle worksheets/quizzes, 3 straightforward take home exams, and discussion attendance. There was a lot of content to learn, but everything was open notes. Your grading depends on your TA so beware. Her lectures had lots of examples and she sometimes went on irrelevant rants.
This class was just ok, Val's lectures weren't super helpful and there is a lot of reading in the textbook. Reading, quiz, and worksheet due each week. The discussions are the most helpful thing so try not to miss those.
Valerie was an amazing professor. I initially took this class just to fill a gen-ed, but she was an amazing instructor who made this my favorite class of the semester - I am going for an engineering major so it's irrelated.
worst power point slides ever seen
Good professor, readings, worksheets, and quizzes each week but do able. She pretty much summarizes the readings in her lectures every week, and lectures are recorded.
Professor Voorheis is a very amazing person. Her class consists of 3 exams, and readings with a worksheet and a mini quiz every week. Not too bad, just a little bit of reading. Lectures are not mandatory. Overall pretty good class, would take again.
Good Professor
This class is easy to teach yourself, but Valerie's lectures are pretty useless. Her slides are filled with random, niche information. I would recommend going to discussions and review sessions to learn the content. Easy class with reasonable expectations, but she rambles rather than focusing on actual important course content. Nice prof though.
her lecture structure was not very organized as she'd go on meaningless tangents and had super wordy slides. always left lectures feeling like I'd learned nothing. my ta was understanding and helped me out in discussion and office hours. tests were a disaster too (being way too long, grading scale being off etc). she does respond to emails tho
if you want a professor who goes off on unrelated tangents in a 50min lecture, she's your virtuoso. lectures do not match content in the textbooks, which cost a fortune. heavy readings every week and unclear ab test material. overall a bad teacher but is accessible outside the class.TAs are super helpful so go to discussions!
This class was interesting and overall easy if you do the readings. There are 6 assignments throughout the semester all based on readings and class lectures. The exams are open notes, make sure your notes are typed out/written out on exam day because you can't use your laptop. If you take good notes, the exams should be a breeze.
She was super helpful during office hours. Although there were heavy readings and worksheets to complete each week, they were manageable. If you do the worksheets and study for the exams, they should be pretty easy. Midterm and final we were allowed a cheat sheet. I would recommend this class, as long as you put in effort you should be good.
Professor Voorheis is very experienced in economics. Grade breakdown: 15% HW, 15% Reading, 15% Mini Quizzes (Online, open all week), 10% Discussion (Participation), then 15% for the Midterm 1, Midterm 2, and Final. Easy to get A, I was able to skim reading and Google when necessary for HW. Tests easy as long as you review information night before.
didn't find the lectures to be helpful for the tests. discussions were more for that, and tests were a little chaotic/thrown together but overall pretty okay!
take her class for 104 and not anyone else
All she does is ramble. There is way to much reading. A weekly assignment which she never goes over anything on it. The TAs grade everything and ofc mine is a hard grader. Tests are alright. Overall tho you have to teach yourself everything and no one does the readings. About 100 pages per week. oh and a mini quiz weekly but you can use chatgpt.
Professor's lectures can be hit-or-miss, but discussions and study tools like unstuck ai make this class manageable. Reasonable workload, good TAs, and tests aren't too tricky if you stay on top of things.
You get a one sided cheat sheet for each midterm and a 2 sided cheat sheet on the final. You must pay for the text books which are online. Attendance to lectures is optional and discussions are mandatory. I liked Voorhies, she had some good one liners and jokes through the semester. Slides are wordy and she moves through them fast.
Professor is a slow lecturer not worth going to class when you can watch them all online. Grades can vary a lot between TA's if you get a bad TA you are screwed. Sophia Normak is a bad TA if you get her drop the class. Study guides for exams are misleading not telling you everything you need to know and the exams try to trick you.
Prof Voorheis is a genuinely entertaining lecturer. She can go off on unrelated tangents, but she is really good at explaining difficult concepts in easy terms. Her slideshows kinda suck so I would recommend going to class and listening to her lecture instead. I have taken two classes with her and she is a very funny, nice, and intelligent person.
Only recitation has taken attendance, I felt like the lectures were not that helpful, homework and recitation was the most helpful
I thought she was great. Open note exams, bonus points for attending lecture, not much to complain about, though her lectures often go over the time allotted and she can go off topic. Easy A
Slides are confusing to read through and readings can be a bit of a word mash. It is also hard to sometimes find supplemental readings, but the course itself is fairly easy. Open note exams, 5-6 homework assignments, & attendance is extra credit. She is friendly and entertaining, but material isnt straightforward and you will have to read extra
She made us show up an hour early to our final exam and didnt print enough copies. Been 20 mins and still only 150/300 kids have exams. Lectures never make sense.
Very easy going class. Get cheat sheets for all the exams. Homework is very easy if you just look at the slides. Study guides for tests were also very straight forward and exactly what was on it for the most part. Nothing to complain about.
If you can take 104 with Val I would recommend doing so. Super caring and really wants her students to do well. Lots of reading each week, but as long as you skim it you should be fine. Straightforward worksheet and multiple choice quiz each weelk, and two straightforward midterms and a final
There are two bad things about this class: the syllabus was only on canvas and can't be downloaded, and that you need a 95+ to get an A. Simple content, exams (2 midterm, final) are high school level, worksheets and quizzes (each once weekly) can be solved by looking at the posted powerpoints, and readings (once weekly) are simple
Didn't go to class or watch the recordings. She allows cheat sheets for exams so I just spent the day before writing every single concept on the paper to use for the exam. ChatGPT'd all the homework. I put minimal effort into this class but it would've been a lot less stressful if I actually went to class. Easy either way. Her slides are incoherent
Didn't process anything from class, so much rambling. Lotssss of reading assigned for hw, the online textbook tracks how much you read as a grade. Taught myself everything/the discussions were tremendously helpful. Homework also kept you up to speed. She's really funny, relatable, and sweet though. Love her as a person just not a professor.
Valerie is a very passionate professor who truly loves what she teaches and cares about her students. She is always there to help when students need it. She is also hilarious and keeps lectures entertaining. For exams, you get a cheat sheet, and assignments are reasonable. If you study and do your homework, this class is a breeze.
Val is very engaging and very nice and she clearly cares about what she teaches. There's a lot of homework but its not that hard and honestly there is a lot of reading but as long as you look at it you'll get an 100 on the reading grade. Midterm had reference sheets.
Valerie is chill as a professor. Personally, I struggled a lot with this subject. Nothing really helped. My TA sucked and she was incredibly unhelpful and never graded assignments but that was besides the point. Midterms are pretty straight forward but I had no idea what was going on. SOOOO much reading and it was still unhelpful.
Val is entertaining, but I did not think she was the best lecturer. Her slides are often confusing and look jumbled, and some of her explanations of the material are confusing. I sat up front with ChatGPT open and just asked it clarifying questions whenever I was confused, and I found that that worked well. Lots of reading but you can skip it.
Lectures were not helpful and kinda all over the place. TA labs were very helpful and thats where you will learn everything. Online perusall readings that you dont have to do, but are annoying. Class was very mid.
Great professor, take this class.
val is super funny and kind. she's really enthusiastic about what she's teaching. exams are super straightforward; you also get to bring notes in with you. discussion sections are mandatory but helpful. there's a lot of reading but just skim it and you'll be okay, the hardest things were the homework worksheets, imo harder content than the tests.
He knows a lot and is really funny. She clearly cares about the class. I did not find her to be the best lecturer as she would consistently misunderstand questions to explain concepts in a not-so-straightforward way. Her slides are pretty messy so be ready for that. Other than that I learned a lot. Go to SI sessions they are great.
Professor Voorheis is a great professor, and the class wasn't bad at all, although I skipped most of the lectures. You're allowed a cheat sheet on the exams (1 sided for the first and second, and double sided for the final). Homework consisted of readings, worksheets, and quizzes, but they're doable. Overall pretty great class and would take again.
Nice teacher but not helpful lectures. Having to get a 95+ for an A is annoying. I showed up to class but you really don't have to at all. Fine to take, but probably are better options for macro
You need a 95% to get an A. Lectures aren't mandatory but discussions every Friday are. Val is a kind person but not a great professor and she's bad with technology/grades. Decent amount of HW every week (long worksheet and reading assignment) and 3 exams (not too hard) throughout the semester.
Lectures are not super helpful. TAs grade assignments and take forever to do so. She's very funny and passionate about Econ, and she allows for a 1-sided cheat sheet for midterms and 2 for the final. There is a bit of work outside of class, but manageable. Textbook readings track your reading time. Discussion attendance is mandatory for most TAs.
Prof. Val made ECON 104 feel very manageable. She was consistently supportive and took time to make sure students understood the material. Her office hours were especially helpful and productive. Overall, she created a learning environment that made the course much easier to navigate.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
16%
Textbook Required
83%
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