By far the best professor I have ever had here at UW. His lectures were inspiring, clear, and concise. Course content was extremely difficult, exam class averages around 50%'s, but Mark, the TA's and the resources are extremely helpful and they truly want you to succeed. You need to attend class for participation (10% of grade, exams are 90%)

Was told to stay clear because of difficult - LOVED Laplante and this class! Learned a TON! Had him at 8 am and was super engaging. Clearly LOVES the topic and cares. He uses his own textbook - it's great. Read before class/listen in lecture/go to discussion/do the preparation for exams. Should be able to get an A to B. Wish he taught more courses!

Laplante is a great lecturer. I had him at 8am and he still managed to keep my attention throughout the lecture. That being said the lecture does not have that much to do with the tests. Also, a lot of the exam questions were nowhere in the preparation material. Nonetheless, if you get the 10 top hat points its pretty easy to get a B or AB.

Easily the best professor at uw madison. His classes are always hard; but they are hard because you genuinely learn lots of important material. If you are smart and hardworking you can make it through the hard workload and you will learn a ton. However, if you are dumb or not hard working you will struggle. It's literally that simple.

You're in college to push yourself and learn. Take Laplante if you that's what you want. It won't come easy but it's hard to fail unless you quit. Best decision I ever made.

Dr. Laplante is the greatest professor, teacher, or instructor I have ever had. There is no question in my mind. Laplante attacks every lecture with unmatched enthusiasm, always brings his best. He will make his courses difficult, which forces you to learn at a level you would have never approached with any other instructor. 100% recommend

Prob the best prof I've ever had. If you are a finance major you 100% must take him for 300. He cares about his students and gives so much relevant info. To be frank, the people giving him a 1/5 review are just extremely soft, dumb, or lazy. He is without debate an excellent teacher for anyone who is even half serious about learning. Also, 0 hw

Taking Finance 300 with Mark was one of the best things I've ever done for myself. The exams were difficult but there is a generous curve at the end, and I learned so much about finance and good life lessons.

Great guy, really cares about his students. Is very knowledgeable and wants students to take a lot o

I took both GB310 and FIN300 with LaPlante. He's an extremely smart professor and expects the same out of the student. Most difficult and borderline stupidly designed exams for his classes but the curve is generous and its all relative to you versus other students. Just out effort everyone else and you'll get above a B. GB310 is FAR easier.

Tests are extremely hard with multiple choice questions that give no credit if you get any part wrong (out of 6 options). LaPlante also has a ego towards business students, and taking this class as someone who wasn't made me feel unwelcomed and that LaPlante didn't want me to succeed. Do yourself a favor, and take Fin 300 with a different prof.

Mark is the best professor I have had at UW! He is passionate about his work- he puts forth great effort to write his own textbooks, make his lectures engaging, and equip his students with a robust understanding of finance. His class is NOT easy, but it incentizes hard work, curiousity, and taking full responsibility for your academic success

If you are a Finance major, this course may be for you. If you're a student who enjoys their sanity, avoid Dr. LaPlante. While the lectures are interesting, they do not correlate to the (extremely difficult) exams unless you quite literally absorb every word. The grade is solely determined by the exams. He also cold calls students and bans laptops.

Unless you are a hardcore finance major, DON'T take Laplante's class. His class is solely graded on 4 extremely difficult & tedious exams. The questions are "choose all that are correct/false" and you must pay attention to EVERY detail that he talks about. He cold calls people in his class and he picks on certain students. Avoid at all costs.

Best professor I have had at UW-Madison. He is a captivating, knowledgeable, and passionate lecturer who values his students and their time. The difficulty of the course is extremely overrated - if you put in the effort (go to lecture, read the textbook, and review his study materials) exams are EXTREMELY doable and fair. Could not reccomend more.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR MAJORS: Take ECON 101 before you take this course. The whole first exam is basically econ 101 review and it really helped me do good in this class. Mark is either love him or hate him, controversial prof. I loved him, u get a double sided sheet of paper for tests. use size 6 font and cram everything on there and you should be set.

Take FIN300 with laplante. Best decision of my life.

Literally the best to ever do it!

xxxxx

Class has been set and left since 2020. Don't think he has thought about it in years. Was a no show for my saturday 9 am "office hours". Dude won't shut up about his wife, it's wild. In all seriousness, Laplante puts 0 effort into this class and clearly looks down on non-Grainger students.

FIN 300 is a difficult class, but Laplante makes it manageable. Fantastic lecturer, and he wrote all of the course material himself (huge improvement over the textbook). Exams are very difficult and worth 100% of the course grade, but success is possible if you follow his advice. Take Laplante, and you will learn more in this class than any other.

The best of the best. Simply the greatest professor at this school. He has a way of explaining incredibly complicated concepts in digestible ways, and he has essentially written the course from scratch rather than a textbook (and his chapters are an ENORMOUS upgrade over the old textbook). Difficulty for this class is also grossly overrated.

Hands down the best teacher at UW-Madison, and it is not close. Every lecturer was extremely captivating, I walked out of the classroom thinking I had learned something. He truly wants the best for his students and creates an environment where the best person wins which is really what the business world is like. He should probably be at Harvard.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD TAKE THIS CLASS WITH SHOVEIN INSTEAD. Your whole grade is based off four horribly long and difficult exams (only points for getting problems correct, no partial credit), and you're expected to memorize 30+ formulas and know when to use which one. And he's very arrogant and brags about himself every class, worst class I've taken!

Professor Laplante is not for the weak. If you want to have a career in finance, you should not be intimidated by this man. He only wants the best for you. If you didn't like this class or Professor Laplante, you should not have anything to do with finance. He is the best professor at UW-Madison and expects a lot.

Course taken in the summer. Fast paced so if you get lost, you're most likely not going to understand the rest of the lecture. His exam questions are "select one or all the answers that apply". So, if you select the wrong answer, you're losing credit on the ones you got right. The grade for this course was based off of 4 exams and that's it.

Mark is the best prof I have had yet. He makes his class a competition, and if you put in work you will succeed. You will leave with an amazing understanding of financial knowledge. His lectures are engaging and he teaches the topic well. You will learn a lot during office hours and he is very caring for his students. If you study you will succeed!

If I knew what I was getting into by having Mark as a prof, I would've dropped the class right away to take it with another professor, please don't take this class with him. I knew I was in for a long ride after reading the tone of his syllabus. He's extremely aggressive and condescending, and the class averages around a 50% on each exam. Good luck

Laplante is no cake walk. If you take FIN300 just to get credit and don't care about it, he probably isn't for you. However, if you want to really learn about the basics and have a good foundation of the concepts, he is your man. It's not easy but it's rewarding. Also, he tells you everything you need to do well so just do it and you'll be fine.

Very passionate about finance and motivates students through success stories in the industry. It is clear that he knows a lot about finance and wants nothing more than for his students to succeed. Shares life lessons in lectures and often makes the class laugh with his jokes. Offers extra credit to students who attend lecture and answer questions.

By far the greatest professor I've had at this university. This man knows how to achieve financial success, and he makes it his priority to teach you how to achieve your financial goals. If you want to do the bare minimum don't take his class, but if you want to learn life skills take his class. Put in the work and you will be rewarded

Mark is a good lecturer. The problem is that he treated this intro class as something much more advanced. I studied a ridiculous amount and did poorly on the exams. The amount of work required to do well in this class is excessive & if you're not a finance major, I'd recommend taking the class by somebody who won't make your semester miserable.

Mark is great! He's funny and relatable and has amazing premade videos. The class is very dense and has a ton of content, though which can be a lot. My advice is STUDY. Don't skim over concepts, a lot of it is application. It can get really difficult, but the content is interesting.

Mark gives a decent lecture but this class will grind you to the bone. He gave us an exam the day before thanksgiving so I barely saw my family leading up to it. If you grind, you will probably be fine but it is so brutal. Unless you're a genius or have taken a finance course beforehand, you will study so much. Treat this like a 7 credit class.

Brutal guy, prepared to take the test the day before Thanksgiving. This guy breathes finance and tests stuff that isn't relevant to what he says in lecture. Refers to the book in class and then hates the book, makes no sense and the assessment preps are useless. take shovein

Mark is a good prof whose class is not nearly as hard as people make it out to be. Just do the assessment prep and attend or watch recorded lectures to do well on the tests. The textbook and discussion section are easy and practically useless. Your test percentile becomes your test score, but since most profs curve anyways, it evens out.

Laplante is one of the best professors I have met in Madison. He explains everything clearly in the class, and he is really a fun guy. The class content is not so hard, but the exams are extremely hard because exams are graded based on your percentile instead of your score. Definitely take it if you want to build a solid foundation in finance.

He is the worst professor I have ever seen. Be careful about the textbook for those who want to take his class. His lecture does not matter for exams. And the content is just at a standard level, compared with an equivalent course in another university. I mean, you should not expect to learn something special or good from his lectures.

Anybody who says Laplante is a bad professor is someone who just wasn't willing to put in the work. This class is a massive commitment, but it's worth it. The lectures are great, the homework he gives out is representative of exam problems and he takes time to explain the 'why' of everything. Just put in the work and you'll do well.

Laplante has very engaging lectures for an online format, and are broken into short videos by topic. Topics are interesting and well covered. He does not allow extensions ever. Tests are very difficult. I got around 75% avg, which was above class avg of ~55%. I've heard around 70% is good enough for an A. BIS assignments are ez points. Do them

I took Laplante online and I loved the lectures. They were interesting and you can tell he puts a lot of effort into them. Wish I could have experienced his in-person classes. His exams are super hard, but he's up front about that and gives you more than enough study materials for the exams. If you're willing to put in the work, you will do well.

Mark is one of the best professors at UW. The content can be difficult but Mark explains everything very clearly and is accessible outside of class. If you spend the time doing the book problems and assessment prep before each exam, you'll be fine (don't cram). Mark really makes you work for your grade but the curve rewards ppl that put in the work

Mark is smart and knowledgeable but this class is wayyyyy harder than it needs to be. It doesn't help that the test grades have a huge emphasis on the final grade and that there was no discussion section which hinders the learning experience, but at least the curve is generous enough.

This class was one of the worst experiences ever. The readings and the lecture videos posted are super easy to understand, but the exams don't match them at all. It also doesn't help that the professor is pretty unapproachable and there are no other assignments really but the exams. It felt like I was missing an intro course for an intro course.

Best professor I have had in college. He really is passionate about his job and cares a lot about his students. He is very accessible and hosts numerous outside of class additional learning opportunities. If you want to work hard and learn a lot he is the teacher for you. If you want to just get the credit and move on I would look elsewhere.

Laplante is the best professor Ive had at UW. Yeah, his tests are super intense, by the end of the semester you will realize that his class will teach you more than any other youve taken. Mark lights a fire underneath you to work harder and really make something out of your life. If you want to be financially free, take FIN 300 with Laplante

I'd only take him if school is your only obligation. Your grade is determined by how much better you do than the entire class. So if you are working while taking classes you will already be at a disadvantage. The negative reviews of him on here are very accurate, even about bragging about himself, it's odd.

It should be absolutely mandatory to take Finance 300 with Laplante. He has phenomenal lectures and was able to keep me very engaged despite it being online. You have to study A LOT for the exams but the test closely parallels the problems in the book and the assessment packets which is very nice.

Laplante is very knowledgeable and you will learn so much in his class. His teaching style is very effective. I do not think his class was as hard as people make it out to be. As long as you do not procrastinate, you will be fine. Your grade is based solely on three exams and it is based on your percentile compared to other students.

The whole class is treated as a "competition against your peers," which, to me, is dumb and doesn't resonate with me at all. I also hate the "interesting articles" he puts in the modules which are a total wet dream for Milton Friedman, including WSJ pieces that try to convince us that income inequality doesn't exist. Also, a horrible online format.

He's good if you gauge him by the amount of bragging about himself he does or by the TA's reviews on here. But if you would like to both learn the material and not be overly stressed out, take a real teacher.

The person below clearly wrote 3 reviews after getting demolished by the second midterm. I'll give you the honest answer - YES, this class is difficult. However, the people who succeed are the ones who understand that this class will teach you more than most classes you'll ever take. If you truly understand the material, you WILL outperform peers.

Worst professor I've had at this school. Preparation for exams is not helpful, and the exams are more difficult than would be fair. Not acommodating and unreasonably high expectations for an introductory core course. Would not take this professor again if I was paid to do so, let alone pay my tuition dollars for his instruction.

Mark Laplante is easily the worst professor I have ever experienced. His recorded lectures are boring and insanely hard to engage with. His exams are extremely difficult and his practice problems do not help to prepare for the exam problems. This is the hardest class I've ever taken, and I have learned nothing. Take Finance 300 elsewhere.

This was easily the worst professor I have ever had. I have learned absolutely nothing in this class, and that's coming from a smart student. This was NOTHING like an introductory class. People say it's hard but worth it, but it's not. It's just hard. I recommend taking this class at a different school if you can just to avoid Laplante altogether.

This was easily the hardest class I had ever taken. Mark puts a lot of work into his lectures and but the whole class was based off responses to questions over the semester and 3 tests. What he taught in his lectures had nothing to do with the test questions and I ended up dropping to save my grade. The curve is huge because tests are super hard

1 of my hardest classes at UW, I easily spent 16-18hrs every week on this class, but it was all worth it. I learned so much in this class, and the videos were very well done. He is extremely strict with deadlines and is very unaccommodating which is a pain in the ass, but otherwise he is very good and a solid choice. I highly recommend him.

Absolute beast of a professor. Tests are hard but the lectures and assessment prep give you all the material and practice needed to succeed. Laplante knows what he is talking about and does so with passion. You're graded against your peers so know you'll have to work hard. With that being said, great class and great to test to see if fin is for you

Mark is a great lecturer and great at relating the content to real life situations so one can see how things are applicable. His lectures are easy to follow and he explains things clearly, but it is important to still read textbook. The class is competitive in the grading, which means you have to work for your grade.

Right off the bat you are told you're in a competition against your peers. Grading is super clear and everything you need to succeed is given to you. It all on you; whether you seize the opportunity and set yourself up for success or waste it. Only gripe is I think he did a poor job transitioning the course online due to COVID.

Sad that he wasnt a very good prof, this class was really hard and it NEEDS a discussion section or more practice. You can tell he loves this class, but his passion doesn't translate into a helpful or youthful course. The tests are hard, and other than 4 response paragraphs, that is all you're graded on. Interesting stuff, it's sad he can't teach.

This is the worst class I have ever taken, period. The grading distribution is the worst I have ever seen- only based off of the 3 major exams and syllabus test. Exam material was extremely difficult and not similar to material gone over in lecture videos/practice problems. Will make you pray on the downfall of your fellow peers. Don't take this.

Class is too hard for the description offered; it needs to either be restructured or called something else. Not impossible to do okay if you have an extremely strong work ethic and lots of time to do practice problems over and over again. Tests are harder than practice problems; lectures are long and convoluted, and questions are tricky.

I was excited going into this class with Mark but was a bit disappointed. It was hard, but not impossible if you have a good work ethic. I was disappointed by his lack of feedback on exams, his recorded (from past semesters) lectures, and his general lack of engagement in the class. Maybe he's better in person, but overall not too impressed.

Not that hard of a class. Got 87 on first exam, 70 on second exam, and 84 on final. Percentiles were 97,96, and 99 respectively. Had a good finance background before class so I'd prep like 1.5 weeks ahead of exam. Laplante explains things really well. Write down slides info from lectures as that's the m/c. Know the intermediates from textbook well

This class is exceptionally hard, but if you put forth the effort and do all the problems, you will be poised for success. Mark is an excellent professor, who wants his students to come to office hours and he will work with you if you have issues. This has been one of my favorite classes, partially because it pushed me so hard. Work hard.

Dont be scared by these bad reviews. Mark is a great professor and it is not hard to succeed in his class. If you follow the plan he lays out for you in the syllabus I guarantee you will get a good grade. All you have to do is be better than your peers. Mark is a must-take to prepare you for courses to come/life in general.

Take any other professor if you can, you will hate it.

Professor Laplante is as tough as you can believe. Although he designs the course and the tests to stress you out and make it hard he is a fantastic teacher and really knows and cares about the material and the students. The class is very intense and very challenging but will give you a strong finance foundation for the rest of your life.

Good luck with the exams. About 95% of the questions on them are nothing related to what was done in the class. You're only graded on the exams, so it's nearly impossible to get a good grade even with the curve. I am stressed out of my mind in this class! Take with someone else or expect to spend every waking minute of you life on FIN300!!!

Everything scary that you've heard about this class is true. Unless you are willing to devote yourself to this class for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - stay away. You do not even want to think about the exams. They are nothing like the practice problems; way more complex and on things that were never taught. I regret taking finance with him.

The lectures are really good, but dont take him if youre not a traditional college student. The exams are the only thing youre graded on and are very difficult . So, if youre working, have dependents, family member in hospital, ect, youre going to be stressed and he couldnt care less. Avoid.

Mark is by far one of the least understood people in teaching. No one understands why we would have to take impossible tests, material not taught BY Mark, on Saturday nights when I chose this university largely due to its outstanding football program. I have never met someone who says they want student success but set students up for stress/failure

His tests are impossible! The only thing that saves you is that the class is very curved but the tests make you want to cry so get ready!

NO NO NO. LaPlante with GB310 was the worst class I've taken so far. VERY hard exams, lectures didn't help you understand the complex material, no grades other than tests and minimal "homework," and exams were proctored during COVID-19. I learned NOTHING. Averages are so low on exams but there is a huge curve which is good. DON'T recommend.

Very passionate professor. Engaging lectures. Exams are hard as hell, so you have to stay on top of readings, lectures, practice problems, etc. Discussions can be helpful depending on how naturally finance comes to you. You definitely have to work for your grade. You walk away with a good foundation and financial skills you will use forever.

Mark is probably the best prof I've had yet. He's also one of the toughest I've had. If you expect an easy A, Mark isn't for you. If you want to learn more about finance, investing, and life in general, then you should take Mark's class

Worst class I have ever taken, tests are unusually hard and there are very few things graded so exams count for all your grade. Listening to his squeaky voice for too long causes migraines as well. A class I wish I never took. If you can find a way to take a class with a different professor do it.

Whatever you've heard is 100% true. He expects the best out of his students and truly wants to prepare them for the real world. For exams you need to read a ton to grasp the conceptual material and hammer every practice problem you can for the quant questions. You will hate your life while taking this but also appreciate how awesome Laplante is

super hard and tests are worth so much of the class

GenBus310 is an online class, and Mark provides lots of materials and opportunities to learn the content. However, his practice exams and review materials were extremely easy compared to how hard the exams were. Also, the exams are proctored online, and after staring at a computer for 2 hours it is almost impossible to not fall asleep.

I started out well in this class and actually semi enjoyed it even though Finance is not my major. However, as the semester went on, I just became extremely burnt out. The class is structured to intentionally be very (and unnecessarily) intense. The content itself is fine, but the tests just destroy, even if you do well on the practice problems.

Laplante is very knowledgeable and cares about students. However youre graded off three exams. The exams are graded on a percentile score basis. Which is a grading style used by no other professors in the business school. Thats because the grading style is not an effective way to measure a students knowledge, it measures your peers knowledge.

Be ready to compete. The course is extremely effort-based and your grade will be based on a percentile against your peers. You will have to earn every point, however, if you put the time in you will be successful and learn a lot. Dr. LaPlante is an excellent lecturer. Do as he says (read his 10+ page syllabus), and you will succeed.

You will learn every basic business principle from this class. It isn't an easy class, but it definitely isn't hard. Set out a week before each exam to learn all the material on the exam and you will at least get an A/B.

Mark is INTENSE; I'm not kidding, he is SUPER intense, so if you are planning to take this class, be prepared. Mark is super down-to-earth outside of class and is willing to help you with any muddy concepts. Do yourself a favor and get going with the practice problems.

Laplante is the man. If you actually want to learn something then take this class. He is strict and his tests are hard, but he makes sure that you see how to apply the material in real life. If you are offended by Laplante then you are in for a wild ride after graduation.

FIN300 was my least favorite class in the b-school. The tests & lectures are very long and you NEED to do the practice problems in the book if you want to do well on tests (graded on competition). About 50% of the ?s were conceptual and 50% math problems. I know many people enjoy Mark, but this was not the class for me. It does take a lot of work!

Mark Laplante is easily one of the best professors in the business school, and his lectures are actually enjoyable. He can be intense, but always has a great story to tell and teaches for your career rather than for an exam. As long as you read the textbook, do the chapter problems, and go to lecture, you should be fine.

MARK LAPLANTE IS AMAZING!! His exams are ridiculously hard and you come out of it feeling like the dumbest person, but he and his lectures are amazing. It is inspiring to see how passionate he is. He is the best professor I have ever had. Hands-down amazing. You are left in awe of him, his wit, sarcasm, and blatant straightforwardness.

Greatest professor I'll ever have by a landslide. Laplante's lectures are legendary - every word he says is said with purpose. That said, I never went to lecture because they're posted online. I would take 2 hours to watch these 75min lectures because I would be rewinding to make sure I got everything. I've never learned so much from one class.

Mark is amazing. This guy is an absolute genius who lives and breathes finance. Not sure I have met anyone more intelligent in their field of expertise. He is a fantastic professor, who looks to inspire. His exams are brutal, so you better do EVERYTHING he tells you to do to prepare. He's worth taking, even with how difficult exams are.

You really have to work to get a good grade in this class. I somehow squeaked out with a B, but that's because I had to do A LOT the week before the tests. Keep up with the lectures and actually do the readings and you should be ok. Also don't forget about the easy points with the groupwork because that'll save you.

Super interesting class. You learn a lot and is very applicable to the real world. However there is only 3 exams and those exams pretty much make up your whole grade. They are super hard though. Requiere a lot of studying and to understand the material completely not just on the surface. Lecture attendance isn't required.

Mark is a solid professor with a ton of valuable knowledge that he shares during lecture. I don't think I have met anyone more knowledgeable in the field of Finance. However, this sometimes causes him to lecture at too fast of a pace. His exams are absolutely brutal, so begin studying on DAY ONE. Read every chapter & do EVERY practice problem.

Worst professor I've ever had!! He expected students to know everything in this class. The midterms contain too much details. I do not think this should be a class for a non-business student to take!

Most inspiring professor I have had. Great stories, and exams are hard but everybody does so poorly all you need is like a 50% on exams to get an A. Lectures are all online, but always go to the lecture on an exam day or before a major holiday for an answer on the test. Discussions are pointless, I skipped every discussion and most lectures.

This man is a real G. Takes balls standing up and recording lectures about finance and accounting for thousands to view, but he does so with ease and in a pleasant manner. I missed a month and a half of school this last semester and he bent over backwards to help me catch up and stay on track for graduation.

Laplante is a great teacher but he definitely makes you work for the grade. Exams are pretty tough, so do all the steps outlined in the syllabus. His lectures are very interesting, especially when he tells personal stories which give lots of valuable life skills.

Laplante is terrific! Genuinely cares, and makes it very possible to succeed. Exams are tough, but the curve is generous. Do all the practice, multiple times, and really understand it all conceptually! And never, ever skip class, especially the lecture before an exam or before Thanksgiving. Laplante is a great professor for a great class.