Raw average: 4.04/5 from 51
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
HIST123 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 3/5
Don't take this class/professor for fun. He grades only on two midterms and a final, in which essays are the heaviest weight. He does not give essays a score above 94%, and 93% is the grade cut off for an A, so do not take this as an easy A…Read full reviewShow less
Don't take this class/professor for fun. He grades only on two midterms and a final, in which essays are the heaviest weight. He does not give essays a score above 94%, and 93% is the grade cut off for an A, so do not take this as an easy A class, despite it being "easy" insofar as no homework/papers due. He is a poor lecturer with no organization.
He's the definition of average. He has a very cool accent and seems to be a super nice guy who definitely knows his stuff, but lectures can be really boring. I almost never went to class but did the readings and did very well. You can either go to class or do the readings, you don't really have to do both. Exams are essay and pretty easy.
Professor Sommerville is insanely knowledgeable about the subject matter and loves to talk about it. He also loves questions in class and jokes about hard cider for that matter. Not the most organized lecture slides, but he's easy enough to follow. You can totally just read the textbook and never go to class but his lectures are fun.
I'd recommend this class to any freshman or sophomore looking for relatively simple humanities credits. The class seems like a lot of work initially, but I quickly realized the textbook reading is completely unnecessary because you're teste…Read full reviewShow less
I'd recommend this class to any freshman or sophomore looking for relatively simple humanities credits. The class seems like a lot of work initially, but I quickly realized the textbook reading is completely unnecessary because you're tested only on what's on the PowerPoint. You're assigned a lot of reading, but it's completely optional. I wouldn't recommend buying the textbook. The class is very lecture heavy, the class is basically Sommerville talking at you on stage for an hour and fifteen minutes. He gives a ton of information but it's very simple to figure out what you will be tested on because he spends a disproportionate amount of time on those topics. Two exams, 10% MC and 90% essay, graded by the TA, and he is relatively lenient so it isn't hard to do well. You barely even have to know dates or most unimportant names. Final is a 5 day take home final with just 2 essay questions Overall, I liked the material, Sommerville's British accent makes it interesting and he makes a witty joke maybe once a lecture. You should take his class!