Reviews of professor Scott MacDonald

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 5.0/5
I'm sure Professor MacDonald's class is much, much better in person, but the class was a nightmare online. Sitting through hours of watching him write on blank white paper, then going to do homework that generally had nothing to do with what he showed. Hardest class I've taken in my college career. Never felt like I got better at physics.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Overall, this class is very easy compared to other PHY121 classes. 1 HW assignment a week and 1 discussion board (free points). Exams were very similar to the homework and pretty fair. I highly recommend this class.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
An absolutely amazing professor who is willing to work with students and delivers material really well. Tests are based off homework assignments so no worries about curveballs. Always really upfront and transparent about things like curves for tests and the testing material. The material is really hard, but this prof teaches it really well. 10/10.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Pleasant professor, felt I would not be able to get an A in university physics but MacDonald was very helpful in getting me to succeed

Rating: 1.0/5, difficulty: 5.0/5
HW is Calculus heavy and too difficult; the problems are level 3 on a scale of 1-3 from the textbook. The lectures dont align with the assignments. Tests are with lockdown browser and on camera; he even reviews the video for suspicious activity. The labs are fine. I ignored the bad reviews and paid the price!

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Exams are not curved so make sure to study the hw very carefully as the exams are based on the hw problems.

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Im sure that if I had taken Dr MacDonalds class in person, this would be a different story, but obviously during covid I didnt have the option. His class is set up like an iCourse, so it is difficult to stay on top of lectures, as they are long and dull. He doesn't curve exams, and exams are most of your grade. ADVICE: meet with him at office hours

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
If you get the chance to take Dr. MacDonald's class, you absolutely should. His lecture style and personality are fantastic, and he makes physics very understandable and approachable. Furthermore, his assignments and tests are very fair. Fantastic professor!

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
You have a total of 10 homeworks for the semester each 6 problems. The 3 tests are based off of these homeworks completely. Study the homework to the decimal to do well on tests. I also had him for PHY121 (in-person) and he's amazing either way! Really understands what he's talking about. Incredibly funny as well!

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Professor Macdonald is an alright professor. His lectures are long and boring and the problems done in lecture are no where near as different difficult compared to the hw which is hard. Hes not really involved in the online course either. Exams are fair game as they are the based on the hw problems. You need to put in the work outside of class.