Historical instructor

JAMES KLAUSEN

Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 3.81/5 from 21 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

PS209 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 5/5
Didn't like the class. Very boring lectures. Just repeated what I have already read.
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POLISCI209 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
Very down to earth guy. Loved this class, thought provoking. Not necessary to read but might be a good idea. Lectures and discussion are extremely helpful. Tests are the perfect amount of content, easy enough to get an A if you paid attention but not mind-numbing easy.
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POLISCI506 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 3/5
Jimmy is a really cool guy, but his lectures are incredibly confusing and don't follow any real outline. Essays and grades are all based on books, so grading isn't too bad despite the confusion of lectures.
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209 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
Jimmy is awesome and is obviously very smart. His lectures are dry and really not intriguing but if you half pay attention you will be fine. He really cares about his students and what he is teaching. His tests and teaching methods are 100% fair even though it seems intimidating at first. TAs matter a lot for this class.
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POLISCI209 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
This teacher and class are awesome! Klausen comes off as intimidating the first couple lectures, but it is all for show to just weed out the weak. Easy class if you attend lectures and discussion sections. Reading isn't necessary, but recommended.
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POLI209 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
JCK is raw: tattoos, gucci shoes, emo black clothing etc. Nah but his lectures are excellent - he usually just reads the notes he has but also gets some decent discussion in, too. He acts like he's strict but he really cares about his students. Someone in our class took their own life and he held a moment of silence and cried in front of us. Real.
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with JAMES KLAUSEN

No teaching recorded in Fall 2026.

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Recorded teaching history

Distinct courses recorded per term

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Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Spring 2014POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2013POLISCI 699Directed Study
Fall 2013POLISCI 931Seminar-political Theory
Fall 2013POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2013POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2012POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2012POLISCI 699Directed Study
Spring 2012POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Fall 2011POLISCI 699Directed Study
Fall 2011POLISCI 990Research and Thesis
Spring 2011POLISCI 699Directed Study
Fall 2010POLISCI 999Independent Work
Spring 2010POLISCI 699Directed Study
Spring 2010POLISCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2009POLISCI 699Directed Study
Fall 2009POLISCI 931Seminar-political Theory
Spring 2009POLISCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2008POLISCI 699Directed Study
Fall 2008POLISCI 931Seminar-political Theory
Spring 2008POLISCI 682Senior Honors Thesis
Spring 2008POLISCI 999Independent Work
Fall 2007POLISCI 681Senior Honors Thesis
Fall 2007POLISCI 931Seminar-political Theory
Fall 2007POLISCI 999Independent Work

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

Instructor identity & provenance 
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