Tophat attendance is taken every lecture. She wasn't an engaging lecturer, but the content itself was interesting. She's extremely passionate about comparative politics, which was nice. The exams are essay based, so no multiple choice. We got to use a notes sheet on the final.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Aili Tripp
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
Quality 3/5Difficulty 2/5
Quality 5/5Difficulty 3/5
I loved this class. I'm not usually as interested in international politics, so I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. As a McBurney student, she was very accommodating and easily accessible in office hours.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 3/5Difficulty 2/5
Her overall rating may make her look bad, but she is simply neutral/okay. I found lectures very boring and the textbook readings a drag, but she is decent. Grades are based of multiple choice quizzes and a few bluebook tests. Not hard to do well in, and she clearly is very knowledgeable, but just not an interesting class in my experience.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 2/5Difficulty 4/5
Tripp's lectures are very fast paced which makes it difficult to take notes, which she requires are written by hand. Doesn't slow down or explain complicated concepts. Not a great introductory teacher.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
Professor Tripp is an incredibly knowledgable person, but her lectures were simply just regurgitations of the textbook and very boring. You don't need to show up to learn the course content, but attendance is mandatory. Would recommend if you're someone who wants an easy A while shopping online in lecture, don't take it if you want to learn.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
Professor Tripp is very accessible outside of class and genuinely cares about her students. Even though she can get behind on grading, if you put in the effort you should not worry about getting good grades. She will go out of her way to help you succeed.Rate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Aili Tripp
POLISCI 699
Directed Study
1–4 creditsPOLISCI 699 offers directed study projects for juniors and seniors arranged with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited samplePOLISCI 990
Research and Thesis
1–3 creditsPOLISCI 990 is a research and thesis course conducted under the direction of faculty.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Recorded teaching history
Explore courses taught by this instructor →Browse recorded courses
| Term | Course | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | POLISCI 699 | Directed Study |
| Fall 2026 | POLISCI 990 | Research and Thesis |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
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