Reviews of professor J. Samuel Valenzuela

Rating: 1.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
you will get an A in this class but at the cost of listening to a boring old man talks about history and proceed to argue with you in class and then rant about history.

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Very strange man... but he's nice and the class is easy. Almost no reading in comparison to other seminars. I am convinced that this is the easiest Usem possible. 2-3 2-page "papers" (basically just a summary) which you work on in groups; 2-3 oral presentations in groups. There is a midterm and a final, but they're easy essays Everybody gets an A

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
I really enjoyed this course. Valenzuela is ridiculously knowledgeable about international issues and much of the class is him talking about his views on them. Your final grade depends very heavily on the short midterm and final papers. Writing and presentation skills are definitely helpful to have.

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
The work required is basically groups taking turns presenting world topics followed by the prof lecturing and some discussion. If you take minimal notes during presentations then zone out for the rest you can get an A. Presentations are 2 double spaced pages and take less then an hour. Grading system is Good, Fine, Needs Improvement.

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 1.0/5
Very knowledgeable professor but dry lectures. Easy USEM with group projects based on The New York Times as the reading material. Interesting topics in class. 1 midterm and 1 final which are 2 pages each.