Looking for a gentler semester? Start with courses where students have earned higher grades.
Highest historical GPA first. At least 100 letter grades over the five years through the selected term. Grades reflect past outcomes, not workload or a guaranteed result.
13 courses
Ranked courses have at least 100 recorded letter grades.
Undergraduate seminar involving discussion and preparation of reports on specific topics, with the exact focus indicated by the changing title of each offering.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Karen Strier
Students were expected to be concise with the instructor and know their questions before asking them.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Introductory course in cultural anthropology focusing on comparative cross-cultural analysis of social organization, economics, politics, and culture, with emphasis on U.S. ethnic and racial minorities.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Claire Wendland
The course involved three big projects and open-note tests administered over a couple-day period, with students receiving two attempts on exams.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026A global archaeological survey tracing the origins of pristine civilizations from the development of food production to the emergence of the world's first civilizations in six key regions.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Jason Yaeger
A past student noted there was lots of material and that you basically needed to know it all for the exams, suggesting you pick and choose readings rather than buying the expensive course pack.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2023–Spring 2026Introduces the interdisciplinary field of material culture studies for students interested in careers in museums, galleries, historical societies, historic preservation, and academia.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Ann Smart Martin
Grading standards were inconsistent, with some assignments described as harshly graded while others were not.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Topics in Archaeology covers selected areas, periods, or problems in archaeology.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Jonathan Kenoyer
The course required a lot of reading. Exams were described as hard and fair, with specific difficulty noted in map-based questions.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Ethnobotany course exploring interactions between human cultures and plants, covering topics like traditional resource management, crop domestication, archaeobotany, indigenous knowledge, and phytochemistry.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Eve Emshwiller
The course was rated as extremely difficult, with students reporting that grading was opaque and weekly assignment feedback was never released, leaving them unaware of errors.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2023–Spring 2026Introduction to Latin American culture and society from an interdisciplinary perspective, covering historical developments from pre-Columbian times to the present.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Kathryn Sanchez
Lectures delivered a lot of information quickly, requiring diligent note-taking to succeed on tests. One student noted that multiple-choice questions often targeted small details mentioned only once during class.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2023–Spring 2026Principles of Archaeology introduces methods, historical development, and scientific principles of archaeology, focusing on generating and interpreting information about the human past.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Sarah Clayton
Students reported a light workload of two papers and two exams, with readings that were not super necessary. One student said there was no final.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Introductory survey of African society, culture, polity, and economy from prehistory to contemporary developments, covering nationalism and social change.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · James Delehanty
The workload included a heavy reading load, but exams and a five-page paper were considered manageable if students completed the assigned work.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Principles of Biological Anthropology covering the genetic basis of morphological, physiological, and behavioral variations in human populations and their evolution.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · John Hawks
Weekly quizzes are reasonable and open-note. Students reported earning high grades with low workload by paying attention in lecture and completing readings.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to Culture and Health explores how culture, biology, and power shape human experiences of birth, health, therapy, and death using anthropological tools.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Claire Wendland
Exams were described as very difficult because they referenced specific details from extensive reading assignments. Although the reading load was reduced for one semester, it remained a significant amount of work.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2023–Spring 2026Evolutionary biology course emphasizing how modern scientists study evolution, covering microevolution, macroevolution, systematics, quantitative genetics, and phylogenetic analyses.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · John Hawks
Assessment consisted of ten-point weekly quizzes based on lectures and readings, which one student found manageable enough to earn an A without reading the book.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026World Archaeology introduces the ancient world, tracing human culture from its origins to the start of written history through archaeological research at global sites.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Past student reviews · Sarah Clayton
Students completed assigned readings and watched videos that were required to do well on exams. While some materials were lengthy, others were described as short and manageable.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026