She's super nice! She is very welcoming when attending her office hours. I took my accommodated exams with her a few times and was very open to any questions I had. Super easy to clarify my confusion.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Erika Marin-Spiotta
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
Dr. Marin-Spiotta is a great lecturer. Her lessons go by quick and she's thorough in everything she teaches. The discussions are pretty good too, I had a great TA this semester. However, I struggle to understand the point of the writing assignments we had to do this semester, as they didn't prepare us for the actual material at all.Rate My Professors ↗
This is one of the "easier" science courses to take however thats the biggest lie ever. We had 4 exams including one 2 days after we came back from Spring Break. The professor is boring, nobody attends lecture and are either on their phones. Not to mention the amount of work assigned in discussion, its never that serious its a class about rocks lolRate My Professors ↗
Tests were based off lectures (recorded/no attendence) but still omg this class is so bad. So much busy work, weekly writing assignments, worksheets, and quizzes. My TA has not come to half of the discussion sections and literally knows nothing. everyone is in a constant state of confusion and communication is lacking between prof TA and students.Rate My Professors ↗
Spiotta is fantastic. I enjoyed lecture and always learned something new. Supportive of students and their question. There is a final paper due at the end, but the criteria and ability to choose your topic makes it enjoyable. Great feedback from Professor & TA on assignment and essay submissions. Would recommend anyone with interest take the class.Rate My Professors ↗
Dr. Marin-Spiotta is very enthusiastic about the field she studies. She is willing to answer all questions related to biogeography/ecology. This course involves a lot of reading (including social science and natural science), which is challenging, but the grading is not strict. Highly recommended for social science student as a elective.Rate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Erika Marin-Spiotta
Research
1–12 creditsAGROECOL 990 is a research course for independent thesis or degree project work.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Introduction to how the Earth system works and what makes Earth livable.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Erika Marin-Spiotta is well-spoken and enthusiastic about Geomorphology, making her lectures interesting and clear. Reviewers note she teaches the second half of the course and is generally effective at explaining concepts.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Senior Honors Thesis
2–3 creditsGEOG 681 is a mentored study course for seniors completing honors theses in geography.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Directed Study
1–3 creditsGEOG 699 is a directed study course allowing students to conduct independent research or study arranged with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sampleResearch and Thesis
1–9 creditsGEOG 990 is an individual mentored study course for completing theses, arranged with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Independent Work
1–3 creditsGEOG 999 is an independent study course allowing students to arrange specific work with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sampleRecorded teaching history
Explore courses taught by this instructor →Browse recorded courses
| Term | Course | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | AGROECOL 990 | Research |
| Fall 2026 | ENVIRST/GEOG 120 | Introduction to the Earth System |
| Fall 2026 | GEOG 681 | Senior Honors Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | GEOG 699 | Directed Study |
| Fall 2026 | GEOG 990 | Research and Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | GEOG 999 | Independent Work |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
{
"instructor_uid": "instructor_86c8808efa2d8c327622ce99",
"source": "enrollment",
"source_instructor_id": "marinspiotta",
"identity_basis": "netid",
"identity_status": "source_identified",
"name": "Erika Marin-Spiotta",
"email": "MARINSPIOTTA@WISC.EDU",
"first_observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"last_observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"ratings": {
"review_count": 29,
"quality": 3.72,
"difficulty": 2.52,
"quality_count": 29,
"difficulty_count": 29,
"profile_id": "rmp:1382050",
"source_url": "https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/professor/1382050",
"match_basis": "exact_name",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 16:39:34.665627+00:00",
"courses": {
"course_b1a495c1918109de244bb953": {
"review_count": 5,
"quality": 4.6,
"difficulty": 2.4,
"quality_count": 5,
"difficulty_count": 5
},
"course_b850d5b4746311f8d8c00fa2": {
"review_count": 8,
"quality": 4.25,
"difficulty": 2.25,
"quality_count": 8,
"difficulty_count": 8
}
},
"bayesian_quality": 3.695381952467998,
"prior_mean": 3.6596857835465957,
"prior_weight": 20
},
"current": true,
"courses": [
{
"course_uid": "course_38c6cf8054703ea185e02d9d",
"course_id": "GEOG 699",
"title": "DIRECTED STUDY",
"credits_min": 1,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": 3.826
},
{
"course_uid": "course_47e272971fe85c6121bf6112",
"course_id": "AGROECOL 990",
"title": "RESEARCH",
"credits_min": 1,
"credits_max": 12,
"gpa": null
},
{
"course_uid": "course_590f53e642fa9433232a332f",
"course_id": "GEOG 999",
"title": "INDEPENDENT WORK",
"credits_min": 1,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": 4
},
{
"course_uid": "course_a3711445a11ea9b101636ef3",
"course_id": "GEOG 990",
"title": "RESEARCH AND THESIS",
"credits_min": 1,
"credits_max": 9,
"gpa": null
},
{
"course_uid": "course_b850d5b4746311f8d8c00fa2",
"course_id": "ENVIRST/GEOG 120",
"title": "INTRODUCTION TO THE EARTH SYSTEM",
"credits_min": 3,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": 3.005
},
{
"course_uid": "course_e3914d01dd5bad2cb6c8b0ad",
"course_id": "GEOG 681",
"title": "SENIOR HONORS THESIS",
"credits_min": 2,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": null
}
],
"revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
"instructor_url": "/instructors/ERIKA_MARIN-SPIOTTA"
}