Rukhadze is the man; a gem straight from Georgia (country). He knows a ton about the course material and he really respects his students. His feedback is excellent and although there's a lot of reading, I learned a ton in this class.

I was apprehensive about taking an advanced political science class after only taking the introductory class in high school. Dr. Rukhadze was always available for feedback, quick to respond to email, and a great lecturer. He assigns a lot of reading, but he explains it thoroughly making it much more manageable

It was a little bit of a rocky start to the semester, but he really took into consideration my class' feedback, and the second half was really incredible. He is so knowledgeable and he can go into great depths to elaborate on the readings. Make sure you pay attention to the details and show up to class. I learned a lot and it was really interesting

Professor Rukhadze is arguably the best professor I have had at Pitt. He deeply cares about not only students doing well, but also developing them as professionals in the field. He is extremely knowledgeable and flexible, even going so far as to adjust the course halfway through if needed. I highly recommend taking him!

Unquestionably, the best professor I've ever had at the University of Pittsburgh! He is extremely knowledgeable, very flexible with his time, and deeply caring for students' professional development. His lectures are just amazing, employing various methods: Historical analysis, theoretical approach, political games, etc. I just love this guy!

Dr. Rukhadze is really great professor. I have taken his class of the Politics of Revolutions (PS 1327) and its safe to say that I will never look at revolutions and power politics the same way again. His lectures are very organized and informative. He makes you work for your grade, but its all worth it. I'll definitely take his class again.

Professor Rukhdze is the smartest and hottest professor at Pitt! I really think this guy is just a genius. Its just astounding how much he knows about the subject and in general, about politics and political science. His lectures are extremely interesting and enlightening. He is tough, but its worth it. Yeah, no doubt, I will take his class again.

He is an amazing professor! I have taken Russian politics class with him and really loved it. He really knows his subject. Moreover, he is always ready to help his students and generous with his time. I am taking another course with him in next fall semester. Difnetly would recomment him.

His class was not easy, but I think he is a good professor. I personally really benefited from his class. He provides good feedback and expectations about the course and the assignments were pretty clear. Readings are roughly about 50-60 pages on weekly bases. I wish they were less, but nevertheless, his reading materials are interesting.

If you want to study anything at Pitt, you must take his classes. I think he is one of the best specialists in comparative politics in general and post-Soviet/Russian politics in particular. His lectures are amazing, very informative, and engaging. Further, he is very caring for his students, very generous with his time and always ready to help.

I've transferred from another college to Pitt, so , I've been through a lot of professors. Without exaggeration, he is the best I've ever encountered. If you expect easy A grade, this class is not for you. He makes you work, but he is a true educator. Also, a great person, kind soul, and always available for help. Great on e-mails as well.

The best. Professor. Ever! I thought I would never meet a professor who still cared for his students. He is a breath of fresh air. I hope they will keep him here for long time. Very interesting person too! Love him!

There are so many great things about this professor: His lectures are just mesmerizing. His Political Games and group workshops are very engaging and helpful to absorb reading materials. You don't have to buy any books; he posts readings on the CourseWeb (saves you money). His power points are very helpful. Always ready to help and quick on e-mails

Definitely take this professor while you are still at Pitt. Best ever! His lectures are very informative, orderly, and well structured. He just has wealth of knowledge about his subject. His course is not that hard either, if you follow readings. He is a great dude, very helpful, going out of his way to assist you and give you his time.

If you expect to lay back and snatch an easy A, this class and the professor is not for you. But if you want to learn things, he is the best dude for that. He is a great professor. Very knowledgeable and someone who truly cares for his students and what they learn. Always available for help, great on e-mails, and generous with his time. Take him.

I love this dude! I've learned more from his class than from all other professors combined. Weekly reading scope is about 60 pages a week (so 30 pages for each class). His readings are very interesting. Lectures are perfectly organized and structured. Very importantly, he makes his classes fun with various political games. Participation matters.

If you studied political science at Pitt and haven't taken one of his courses, you did yourself disservice. He is the best of the best! I am taking my third course with him this fall semester.

Dr. Vasili is one of the best professors I have had at Pitt. He's quite knowledgable in the material he teaches and makes the subject matter interesting. I've had him for a class almost every semester and loved each class. Be warn, there are a LOT of readings so take notes on them! Exams are based on the readings while lectures are there to dissect

Prof Rukhadze is super knowledgeable and a very interesting guy. He is definitely a hard grader, but overall he is super nice and pretty funny.

Professor Rukhadze is incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to American foreign policy. As a political science major, it's one of the most enlightening classes I've taken. He's pretty funny at points surprisingly, just do the readings. I read the textbook, took notes on what he provided, and I did fine. You don't need to do all the readings.

COVID-19 messed everything up, but he still managed to keep classes interesting. Was very flexible and understadning as the pandemic turned our lives upside down. Also, extremly knowledgeble guy and just a wonderful person.

I've taken my third course with this professor. He is the best I've ever had. Love his lectures. In-class political games are very helpful and engaging. He has great sense of humor and can be really hilarious all of a sudden.

I took Politics of Leadership class with him and I have to say, I will never look at the politics the same. Very knowledgeble guy, who really cares if his students learn anything. Definetly take him!

His classes are the perfect mixture of lectures, discussions, and political games, all of which are very engaging. He has vast knowledge about Soviet and modern Russian politics. Very generous about his time if you need help with papers or anything related to class. Just great professor!

He is probable one of the brightest poli sci minds out there. I love everything about this guy. Have taken his Politics of Leadership class and it was just awesome! Reading materials were very intersting and his lectures provide wealth of information. He is very helpful in every respect. Will spend hours with you if you need to hammer our a paper.

The class was pretty challenging, but in a good way. He asks for a lot of readings, but those are very interesting readings. Also, excpectations about assignmetns were always clear and you know what to expect. He is a very good professor.

This guy is true professional. When Coronavirus struck and Pitt switched to remote teaching, most of my professors have given up on the semester. But he stuck to his guns and gave amazing lectures via Zoom and just was wonderful. He was great before the Covid too.

His lectures are extremly informative, witty, and the same time analytical, approaching a topic from different persepctives and really helping you see a problem from a whole new perspective, which you haven't notice or thought about it before. In that sense, he really changes your persperctive. Great on e-mails and outside help as well.

So far, I've taken two courses with Dr. Rukhadze (taking my third one this fall) and both of them were very erniching intellectually. Very knowledgeble guy. I don't think I've ever met anyone so educated and with so much knowledge about political science and in general. He is a kind soul too. Helped me a lot during COVID-19.

Prof. Rukhadze's course assignments are well structured and pretty diverse: Its a news brief, multiple choice quiz for the midterm, short research paper, written final exam, and attendace and participation. Hence, you have a fair chance to do well on either or all of these assignments. Readings are about 40-60 pages a week. Good readings though.

This guy is not only a great professor, but also a formidable intellectual powerhouse. He is very interesting guy too. I hope he'll stay at Pitt for long time.

Dr. Rukhadze is probably the most intelligent teacher/ professor Ive ever had. Not only does he explain his lectures with great detail, but hes also super caring for his students and actually wants them to understand and not struggle. Hes great on emails and always willing to give good advice. 10/10 recommend.

I've heard couple of students complaining that prof. Rukhadze was a hard grader. I think he is actually pretty easy grader. All of his exams are based on his assigned readings, so, if you read those articles and chapters, participate in class discussions and he sees that you can think critically, you get your A. I got mine.

I've been taught by lots of dull professors at Pitt. You just can't avoid them. But I think prof. Rukhadze is the only professor here at Pitt who kept me really engaged in every class with his immense knowledge and fresh humor. I really saw a lot of things in new light. He is also very helpful and generous with his time whenever you need help.

Rukhadze rocks! Also extremely knowledgeable on his subject. Just all around cool dude. Taking my second class with him.

Dr. Rukhadze is an incredible teacher who is extremely knowledgeable in his field. You can tell he really cares about his students and their success. The class was a lot of work, and one of the most challenging courses I've taken, but I wouldn't want anyone else to teach me.

I don't yet know what grade I am going to get in this class, but I know that he was the best professor I ever had. He changed my view of politics forever.

I love Rukhadze! This guy is a pure genius. Immensely knowledgeable dude in every respect. I have no idea how he fits everything in his head. I have taken three classes with him so far. Hopefully will do one more before I graduate from Pitt.

I've learned more about politics in Rukhadze's one class than in all other classes combined at Pitt. I wish I've known him before.

This is one of the most open-minded professors I ever met. He really offers you diverse preservatives at things and makes you think how the system works.

I like Rukhadze a lot. He gives you a lot of help during semester, with research paper and everything. He literally walked me through step by step to write my research paper. You can tell he cares whether or not you are learning anything. He is not a hard grader either, unless you fundamentally screw up on an assignment or something.

the best processor I ever had. What else can I say

I took two courses with prof. Rukhadze and I have to say he the most organized professor you can encounter. The course expectations and assignments are clear from the get go, readings and lectures are thorough and really engaging and power points are uploaded weekly. Also, really nice, down to earth dude when you talk to him personally.

Rukhadzes an awesome guy with a great sense of humor. Be prepared for a lot of reading, the quizzes and exams will be based off of them.

Not many assignments, but requires preparation for good grades. Enjoyable class and professor is very knowledgeable on the subject.

It is incredible when I read these reviews with people claiming he leaves no room for participation. In fact, there were more than ample opportunities for discussion. I can't tell you the number of times he would ask a question (about the readings), and NO one would answer. Do your readings, participate, and study. A.K.A be a college student.

I've never met another person (or a professor) so widely educated in general and so knowledgeable of his subject as Vasili. He has perfectly organized lectures, incorporating a good doze of student participation. He is one of the most open-minded individuals I ever encountered. You can tell he truly cares about his students too. Gives lots of help.

This is not a easy gen-ed class but a fantastic PS major class! Prof. Rukhadze is very open-minded and he provides a very good class environment for participation. Three 5-question quizzes, one 40-question midterm, a final 5-page paper with clear guideline and draft review, and a final takehome paper exam. Only studying his slides would be enough.

I think Rukhadze is one of the last professors who still has and actually upholds high academic standards. I loved his every lecture and will miss his classes.

Prof. Rukhadze's Politics of Leadership class was absolutely amazing. In this class alone I've learned more than I've learned during this entire academic year. The dude is extremely knowledgeable. Class readings are very engaging, and lectures are perfectly structured. Vasili himself is very nice person, with great sense of humor and good cheer.

Rukhadze's class was the only class that I was happy to go to this semester. He is the most brilliant and the funniest professor at Pitt. Wonderful individual as well. The class itself was not difficult either.

This was very well-structured class: Three small quizzes, one take-home midterm, small research paper, and in-class exam. And of course, participation. He does lots of in-class political games too, which I enjoyed a lot. Overall, it was perfectly manageable class. Vasili himself is the wealth of information. I just loved his lectures.

I have taken three courses with Rukhadze. What can I say, he is an amazing professor and a great person. He is for sure my favorite one here at Pitt.