Historical instructor

FLORENCE HSIA

Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 4.20/5 from 82 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

What students say

Original student reviews · all captured dates

HISTSCI 201
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
Lecture slides clearly outlined what we learned, so it was nice if you missed a class. Seemed very passionate about the subject
Rate My Professors ↗
HISTSCI 201
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
Great professor, and super passionate. This class was fairly interesting, but you do NOT need to do the text book readings or buy the text books. Everything you need to know is either heavily covered in lecture or available as a weekly reading. The class is mildly interesting, and I think with any other professor it would've been incredibly boring.
Rate My Professors ↗
ILS 201
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
Professor Hsia is the best. She teaches clearly and passionately about the class material, which can sometimes be a bit dense. The class is very reading-heavy, but the lectures cover everything you need to know for the exams.
Rate My Professors ↗
HISTSCI 201
Quality 4/5Difficulty 1/5
If you're not really into history, this class isn't for you. While Dr. Hsia clearly cares about what she's teaching, the content from unit to unit can get a little confusing. The slides aren't as thorough as the online quizzes need, so take good notes. If you pay attention and attend lecture, you should be fine.
Rate My Professors ↗
HISTSCI 201
Quality 5/5Difficulty 1/5
Professor Hsia speaks so fluidly and is clearly very knowledgeable about the topics she teaches. Her exams are very straightforward if you attend lecture and remember the important names and places (the textbooks are interesting, but not necessary). She makes the lectures incredibly engaging; you'll definitely learn something new from this class.
Rate My Professors ↗
ILS 201
Quality 5/5Difficulty 3/5
The lectures are amazing. She is very engaging. You can get by in the class if you just go to the lectures, however you really should do the readings.
Rate My Professors ↗

Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with FLORENCE HSIA

Recorded teaching history

Distinct courses recorded per term

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Spring 2026HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2025HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2025HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2025ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2025HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2025HISTSCI 911Seminar-eighteenth Century Science
Spring 2025HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2024HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2024HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2024ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2024HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2024HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Spring 2024HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2023HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2023HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2023ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2023HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2023HISTSCI 911Seminar-eighteenth Century Science
Spring 2023HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2023HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2022HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2022HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2022ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2022HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2022HISTSCI 911Seminar-eighteenth Century Science
Spring 2022HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2021HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2021HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2021ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Fall 2020HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2020HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2020HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2020ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2020HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2020HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Spring 2020HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2019HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2019HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2019ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2019HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2019HISTSCI 911Seminar-eighteenth Century Science
Spring 2019HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2018HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2018HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2018HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2018ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2018HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2017HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Fall 2017HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2017HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Fall 2017HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2017ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2017HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2017HISTSCI 911Seminar-eighteenth Century Science
Fall 2016HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2016ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2016HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2016HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Spring 2016HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2015HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2015HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2015HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2015ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Fall 2014HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2014HISTSCI 699Directed Study
Spring 2014HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Spring 2014HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2013HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Fall 2013HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2013HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Fall 2013HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2013ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2013HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2013HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Spring 2013HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2013ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Fall 2012HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2012HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2011HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2011HISTSCI 921Seminar-special Topics
Fall 2011ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2011HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2010HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2010HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Fall 2010HISTSCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2010ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2010HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2010HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Spring 2010HISTSCI 699Directed Study
Spring 2010ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Fall 2009HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2009HISTSCI 280Honors Seminar: Studies in Science, Technology, Medicine
Fall 2009HISTSCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2009ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I
Spring 2009HISTORY/HISTSCI 323The Scientific Revolution: From Copernicus to Newton
Spring 2009HISTSCI 280Honors Seminar: Studies in Science, Technology, Medicine
Spring 2009HISTSCI 623Studies in Early Modern Science
Fall 2008HISTSCI 201The Origins of Scientific Thought
Fall 2008HISTSCI 903Seminar: Medieval, Renaissance, and 17th Century Science
Fall 2008ILS 201Western Culture: Science, Technology, Philosophy I

Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.

Instructor identity & provenance 
{
  "instructor_uid": "instructor_44ea1b85a062f16a126a5e40",
  "source": "madgrades",
  "source_instructor_id": "264667",
  "identity_basis": "source_id",
  "identity_status": "source_identified",
  "name": "FLORENCE HSIA",
  "email": null,
  "first_observed_at": "2026-09-06 23:14:58.172943+00:00",
  "last_observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
  "ratings": {
    "review_count": 82,
    "quality": 4.2,
    "difficulty": 2.17,
    "quality_count": 82,
    "difficulty_count": 82,
    "profile_id": "rmp:223676",
    "source_url": "https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/professor/223676",
    "match_basis": "exact_name",
    "observed_at": "2026-09-07 16:39:13.835268+00:00",
    "courses": {
      "course_50ed8cf08dc852be98c4ddf2": {
        "review_count": 25,
        "quality": 4.16,
        "difficulty": 2.16,
        "quality_count": 25,
        "difficulty_count": 25
      },
      "course_23fb0af17af59685794f4582": {
        "review_count": 51,
        "quality": 4.18,
        "difficulty": 2.18,
        "quality_count": 51,
        "difficulty_count": 51
      }
    },
    "bayesian_quality": 4.094056035989529,
    "prior_mean": 3.6596857835465957,
    "prior_weight": 20
  },
  "grade_statistics": {
    "gpa": 3.455,
    "graded": 4890,
    "counts": [
      2032,
      1435,
      909,
      277,
      137,
      51,
      49
    ],
    "sections": 113
  },
  "current": false,
  "courses": [],
  "revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "instructor_url": "/instructors/FLORENCE_HSIA--instructor_44ea1b85a062f16a126a5e40"
}