Reviews of professor Amy Simon

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
This class was very insightful, and I was able to learn a lot about Holocaust history. While this course does require work, Dr. Simon is very understanding and supportive if you communicate your needs with her. As long as you do the readings and put effort in, you will do well in this course!

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
I love Amy! She's really intelligent, eloquent, and knows a lot about what she's saying. The class was a good balance of lectures and discussion, and the papers made sense and furthered my learning. No exams, they were all take-home and written. Read the books because we discuss them in class and participation is part of the grade!

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Simon was a good prof. After Feb 13th, she was very understanding about the sensitive and traumatic material of the class (Holocaust), and did her best to maintain the integrity of the situation without overwhelming anyone. She was very helpful with our research papers. Her lectures were not particularly insightful or engaging.

Rating: 1.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Dr. Simon's class was one of the worst James Madison classes I have ever taken. One would think that during Covid-19 professors would be more understanding, but not Dr. Simon. I would not recommend this class, or this professor, to anyone. Ever.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Dr. Simon was a very understanding person and clear about expectations. It is important to attend as many classes as possible and do the readings; in most of the classes, we would discuss these assigned readings. She provided useful feedback on writing assignments and created an environment that supported students. I recommend her class for sure.

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
She's not awful, but not great. She clearly has a favorite type of student. Her exams are essays on reading material but not on the lectures, which sucks. She's a harsh grader; her lectures are all over the place. I would take this as a last resort for a mid-class.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
I loved Professor Simon! There is outside reading for the class but it's all very interesting and it's a fair amount. There are also quite a few papers and 2 exams, but I felt very prepared because her lectures are amazing. She's very organized and the PowerPoints had all the info you needed, and they were posted! Also, she's very inspirational. :)

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
I loved history of the holocaust with Dr. Simon! She made the class so interesting and I learned a lot. The grading is very clear, with only a few papers for the entire semester. It's reading heavy, but most history classes are, so this wasn't an issue. Show up to class and pay attention in lecture and you'll do great.

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
I think you have to be a particular type of student to do well in her class. Her tests are all essays not based on slides but based on readings outside of class which isn't my style but works for others. You get graded by 3 assignments all semester and she is a tough grader. The one bad thing I would say is that she doesn't respond to emails often.