Current instructor

James Swanke

/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 4.00/5 from 3 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

RMI 650
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
Great professor who is very passionate about sustainability. Easy projects and easy grader but 2 big group projects. Actually wants to talk to you and cares about his students.
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RMI 700
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
While some of the lectures can be a bit of a drag, he is very passionate and knowledgeable about enterprise risk management and has plenty of career experience to drive class discussion forward. Very caring for students understanding of the material and how it can apply to their careers. One cumulative exam and one group project, very easy.
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RMI 650
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
Prof Swanke is so easily impressed. This course is a super basic overview of sustainability, if you've never heard of climate change, it's a good choice for you. He does not have much knowledge of sustainability, and uses very out of date materials. He is an out of date man.
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with James Swanke

RMI 635 examines captive insurance structures, feasibility processes, and financial performance measurement techniques.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2022: 3.77 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=11 letter grades); Spring 2024: 3.94 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=8 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.67 GPA, 88.9% A/AB (n=9 letter grades).

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

Covers the assessment, control, financing, and management of environmental, social, and liability risks.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

James Swanke is criticized for using outdated materials and lacking deep subject knowledge, with one reviewer describing the course as overly basic. This perspective highlights concerns about the currency of the content provided.

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Fall 2025

This course covers the nature of risk, risk management techniques, insurance markets, and decision-making bases.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

James Swanke is passionate and knowledgeable about enterprise risk management, using his career experience to drive discussion. He is caring regarding student understanding and career application, though some lectures may feel slow. He administers one cumulative exam and one group project, which are described as very easy.

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

RMI 765 explores advanced subject areas potentially for the business curriculum.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2023: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=7 letter grades); Fall 2024: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Fall 2025: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades).

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Spring 2026 · limited sample

Recorded teaching history

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Fall 2026RMI 399Reading and Research-risk Management
Fall 2026RMI 635Captive Insurance
Fall 2026RMI 650Sustainability, Environmental and Social Risk Management
Fall 2026RMI 700Principles of Risk Management
Fall 2026RMI 765Contemporary Topics

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

Instructor identity & provenance
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