Historical instructor

WESLEY SMITH

Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 2.01/5 from 91 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

PHY104 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 3/5
He was ok. The class wasn't too bad. I would take again if I had to.
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PHY103 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 4/5
Wesley is 1 of the best physicists in the world, which I think makes it harder for him to communicate such elementary physics. Your grade is exams and quizzes which are impossible and have nothing to do with what is being taught in lecture and the book and discussions dont relate to the test either. Theres a pretty big curve though, so thats good.
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PHY103 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 3/5
Not a fan of this class at all. But if it's a relatively easy class. I really only study for this class a week before the test.. He gives you a lot of practice tests that are pretty reflective of what the test will be like. I almost never go to lecture. I only go to the discussions and labs and I still got an A. I would go to the HelpDesk for quiz.
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PHY103PHY104 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 4/5
Quite literally the worst professor or teacher I've ever had in my life. Gave exams way harder than in previous years giving us no way to adequately prepare for them. Also horrible lecturer. Barely worth going to class. Overall horrible prof, horrible class.
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PHY103 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 5/5
Professor Smith simply has a teaching style that was not compatible with my personal style of learning. He bulldozes through an ugly powerpoint and does not give opportunities to take adequate notes. He is a dry lecturer that made class extremely difficult to sit through. The same equations were often written multiple different ways, very confusing
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PHY103 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 5/5
I'll make this short and sweet: hardest class I've ever taken, and I've already taken all my other pre-med required classes. It is not the subject itself, it is simply the teaching style. Bluntly, if you truly want to succeed, it will not be from this class, but from outside resources. Try to deck out your notecards, but even then it's grueling.
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with WESLEY SMITH

No teaching recorded in Fall 2026.

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No courses match this selection. Try the full catalog or another term.

Recorded teaching history

Distinct courses recorded per term

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Fall 2018PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2018PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2018PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2018PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2017PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2017PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2017PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2017PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Spring 2017PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2017PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2016PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2016PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Fall 2016PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2016PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2016PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2016PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2015PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2015PHYSICS 199Directed Study
Fall 2015PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Fall 2015PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2015PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2015PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Spring 2015PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2015PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2014PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2014PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2014PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2014PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Spring 2014PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2014PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2013PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2013PHYSICS 206Special Topics in Physics
Fall 2013PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2013PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2013PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2013PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2012PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2012PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2012PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2012PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2012PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2011PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2011PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2011PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2011PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2011PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2010PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2010PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2010PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2010PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2010PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2009PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2009PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2009PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2008PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2008PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2008PHYSICS 199Directed Study
Spring 2008PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2008PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2007PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2007PHYSICS 990Research
Spring 2007PHYSICS 104General Physics
Spring 2007PHYSICS 301Physics Today
Spring 2007PHYSICS 990Research
Fall 2006PHYSICS 103General Physics
Fall 2006PHYSICS 990Research

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

Instructor identity & provenance 
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