For me -Dr Najarian-Chemical Engineering Prof.
i think he enjoyed destroying the spirit of undergrads.
i think he enjoyed destroying the spirit of undergrads.
Toughest Professor/Instructor you had in college
- Thread starter psuro
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Prof Roger Gerkin, Advanced Thermodynamics. But a really good guy and good teacher.
I had a P Chem professor who wasn’t hard but was a dick to me. I missed a lot of class due to swimming. He refused to give me a make up exam after I missed class for the natl championship meet. One call from the AD gentled him down....although it made the rest of the semester a bear for me. There were 7 chem majors.. you could not hide
Easy - the Drs. Plotkin. A married couple from Russia who were both Electrical Engineering professors. They were on sabbatical and teaching at PSU for a year.
They would have 4 problems on a test. You either got each problem completely correct or completely wrong - no partial credit. The possible test scores were 0, 25, 50, 75 or 100%. I had each of them once. Dropped one class and barely passed the other.
They would have 4 problems on a test. You either got each problem completely correct or completely wrong - no partial credit. The possible test scores were 0, 25, 50, 75 or 100%. I had each of them once. Dropped one class and barely passed the other.
I took a Reading German course my first quarter, Fall 1974. (I was left with the dregs and, believe it or not, did not sign up for any mathematics classes that quarter.)
I got an F in German, B’s otherwise. I then petitioned the Dean to have the LA language requirement waived, giving as my rationale the fact that I am deaf and it would be “too difficult” for me. He was a fine guy, couldn’t have been nicer. “Sounds reasonable. I’ll ask the instructor. Come back tomorrow.” Next day, sorry, no. “You just didn’t work hard enough. The F stays.” That German instructor taught me a valuable lesson and I never forget a lesson, I make them count.
I got an F in German, B’s otherwise. I then petitioned the Dean to have the LA language requirement waived, giving as my rationale the fact that I am deaf and it would be “too difficult” for me. He was a fine guy, couldn’t have been nicer. “Sounds reasonable. I’ll ask the instructor. Come back tomorrow.” Next day, sorry, no. “You just didn’t work hard enough. The F stays.” That German instructor taught me a valuable lesson and I never forget a lesson, I make them count.
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Toughest ones were the ones who had no business being assigned the role as prof/instructor...1978 Soc 1 instructor sat on the desk smoking a cigarette and drinking Pepsi....
well Jim besides math, I too got an F in German, my freshman year. There were no waivers so I had to retake, which I did as a junior. The thing was, the class was exactly the same my Junior year as it was my freshmen year, we read Der Richter und sein Henker. The one think I remember is, es kommt darauf an, which is idiomatic for, it depends upon.
I am terrible with foreign languages and in Liberal Arts late (60's) you had to take two courses at 4 credits each. "C’est vraiment des conneries!"
I took French 1 and 2, failing each the 1st time and getting Cs the 2nd time. That gave me the equivalent of 16 credits worth of D's. Fortunately I aced enough History and Poli Sci courses to weather the storm but those French classes damn near killed me. 😠
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Have to go with my Mother. Constantly instructing me what to do or not do, while at PSU--It's like she was my proctor. Biggest Ball -Breaker in my life. Regardless, I still love her dearly.
Shabbat Shalom
Shabbat Shalom
Gary L McDowell. American government. Had come out of doj olc under meese and was some of the intellectual firepower behind Constitutional originalism. Large class since a prerequisite in politics sci. After First exam comes into class and Writes on board a0, a-0, b+0, b2, b-5, c+8, c17, c-16, d+7, d5, f3.
Fortunately I had one of the b’s. Ask me anything you want about the federalist papers. Or, for the matter, the anti federalists.
Fortunately I had one of the b’s. Ask me anything you want about the federalist papers. Or, for the matter, the anti federalists.
Durrenmatt, as i recall (the author, not the prof)--who was actually Swiss.
I have a few stories about my language classes in college. I took a test to place out of German in grad school (at tOSU), which was a requirement at the the time. The guy who did my test was puzzled, noting that my grammar was really good as was my translation, excepting for the word "Verbindung", which I translated as bond. It really means compound and is a common work din the sciences, so I couldn't figure out how I'd missed it. The reason was simple. I'd never had scientific German--but had just returned from a semester abroad in Cologne. So we chatted, in German, for a few minutes and he signed off on it.
Then there was the time I re-wrote Monty Python's "Argument Clinic" for our German media class at PSU...
My brother in law went to Georgetown prep and was terrible with languages. Before his Latin final, the teacher says, mr young, looks like you need an 87 to pass this class. He turns in his paper, the teacher looks at it and says, mr young, looks like you scored an 87. Congratulations. Then he pulled him closer and said “and don’t ever take another language course With me again.“ he’s an md now.
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Contemporary American History with Professor Terguson.
my accounting prof. The entire class was failing. Friday before finals he tells the class if you turn in your entire completed workbook you will get a C, at least. This gal sneaked into his office and stole the key-book and called everyone in class. we all spent the entire weekend copying answers and we all got Cs. I am talking 20 kids.
One of the great college scenes below when the professor, john houseman, gives Mr. Hart a dime. When Mr. Hart asks what it is for, Housemen tells him "so that you can call home and tell your mother that you will not be a lawyer." (The Paper Chase)
One of the great college scenes below when the professor, john houseman, gives Mr. Hart a dime. When Mr. Hart asks what it is for, Housemen tells him "so that you can call home and tell your mother that you will not be a lawyer." (The Paper Chase)
My English 15 professor. She outright said "Getting a D in my class is like getting an A or B in another class"
my accounting prof. The entire class was failing. Friday before finals he tells the class if you turn in your entire completed workbook you will get a C, at least. This gal sneaked into his office and stole the key-book and called everyone in class. we all spent the entire weekend copying answers and we all got Cs. I am talking 20 kids.
One of the great college scenes below when the professor, john houseman, gives Mr. Hart a dime. When Mr. Hart asks what it is for, Housemen tells him "so that you can call home and tell your mother that you will not be a lawyer." (The Paper Chase)
Great film.
Dr. Oh - Math 141.
Came into class first day, laid his textbook on the lectern, looked out over the class, and in his heavy accented English said...
"Half of class will drop, other half will fail"
Came into class first day, laid his textbook on the lectern, looked out over the class, and in his heavy accented English said...
"Half of class will drop, other half will fail"
My law school version of that was when the prof asked this girl to explain her answer, and she said something to the effect that it felt right. He replied, that's great, now when you get a job at a firm they can ask you if you can unjam the copiermy accounting prof. The entire class was failing. Friday before finals he tells the class if you turn in your entire completed workbook you will get a C, at least. This gal sneaked into his office and stole the key-book and called everyone in class. we all spent the entire weekend copying answers and we all got Cs. I am talking 20 kids.
One of the great college scenes below when the professor, john houseman, gives Mr. Hart a dime. When Mr. Hart asks what it is for, Housemen tells him "so that you can call home and tell your mother that you will not be a lawyer." (The Paper Chase)
My wife, who likes to dress in a very feminine fashion, great up in the back seat of her parent's car while driving around doing various construction projects. She had to write a construction contract for a class. A prof, a dean in fact, called her into his office accusing her of plagiarism. She schooled him on construction concepts and he gave her an A for the class. I wasn't there but I would like to think it looked like the scene from My Cousin Vinny when she explained that a 62 Buick didn't have slip differential (or whatever it was).
Was that Penn State Allentown , I had a soc Professor Dr Tweed that did that in 82.
My favorite professor at Maryland, Mike Boyle. He was really something. (He was not my dissertation advisor.)
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my accounting prof. The entire class was failing. Friday before finals he tells the class if you turn in your entire completed workbook you will get a C, at least. This gal sneaked into his office and stole the key-book and called everyone in class. we all spent the entire weekend copying answers and we all got Cs. I am talking 20 kids.
One of the great college scenes below when the professor, john houseman, gives Mr. Hart a dime. When Mr. Hart asks what it is for, Housemen tells him "so that you can call home and tell your mother that you will not be a lawyer." (The Paper Chase)
A friend of mine used a version of this when he was teaching a video production class at a technical college in South Carolina. He gave the kid a quarter, and told him to call home and tell his family that he was failing the easiest class in the lowest-rated college in the stupidest state in America.
I was wondering also if he was referring to Dr. Lowe. My best buddy was Chem E. and I was Chem. My buddy flunked it the first time he took the course and retook it when I was in the course. I passed it, but that was a horrible experience. Dr. Lowe complained in class on the very first day that PSU was foolish for not allowing him to use his own written textbook for the course, but we ended up using his textbook instead of the assigned one.
I took an American History class my Freshman year at Monterey Penisula College. I got my AA there and transferred to Penn State for my last 2 years. He was BY FAR the hardest teacher/instructor/prof. I ever had. First day of class he said I expect that you've read chapters 1 and 2 already so your assignment is to read chapters 3 and 4. You will be quizzed on all 4 in the next class. I haven't even bought the book yet. The first exam was hard as shit. I took good notes. Read and studied the book. Still got an F as most of the class did. Most of the questions on the exam weren't cover in his lectures or in the book. When asked he said....I expect you to do outside reading. WTF. I scrapped through with a D. Worst grade I got in college. Probably 2/3 of the class got Ds and Fs. He didn't beleive in the curve. Easiest Prof. was a Finance Prof. at Penn State. He double your highest exam and dropped your worst. Piece of cake.
Dr. Barnes McCormick - various aerospace engineering courses...and may he RIP). The guy was brilliant but I don’t think he realized that not everyone operated at his level. And thus he struggled to “teach.” We used a text book he authored that had many gaps. When a student would question him he would say something like: ‘well, you know what that is...”...well, no we didn’t - that is why we were taking the class!
On the other side of the coin....I had a prof who was really hard and I sought the guidance of a guy, upperclassman, who got good grades. He said "he is easy...everything he writes on the board is on the test. If he doesn't write it on the board, it is not on the test".
I got an A in that class and attended three other classes taught by that guy. When I saw an elective that he was teaching, I immediately signed up.
I don't remember the guys full name. He was a grad assistant and I think his first name was George. Exams started at 7:00pm, had 4 questions, and you had to be done by midnight.
I recall reading the first question and had no clue how to start so I went to the second question, then the third, then the fourth. I told myself that I had to do something so I worked until midnight before turning in what I was sure a failing effort. The exams came back with a B+. His exams were ridiculously hard but his grading (partial credit) was remarkably easy. I don't think I learned anything other than how to endure pain.
I recall reading the first question and had no clue how to start so I went to the second question, then the third, then the fourth. I told myself that I had to do something so I worked until midnight before turning in what I was sure a failing effort. The exams came back with a B+. His exams were ridiculously hard but his grading (partial credit) was remarkably easy. I don't think I learned anything other than how to endure pain.
Dr.Adrians Ozolins was by far my toughest . I had him for base and advanced Economics .....the guy was tough as nails and brilliant.
This was undergraduate. I went to PSU for grad school
Can I say the professor from India who had an accent that nobody could understand?
Karl Moss, Industrial Engineering. He never taught a thing ,then gave difficult tests.
I was just thinking about Moss being a tough SOB. IIRC, he and Prof. Ermer taught the same type of classes and you couldn't dodge one for the other. Ermer was tough too. But Moss may gave been at the top. This was late 60's.
Moss failed like 60% of the class. Surprisingly, I did OK.
Bill Butler, School of International Affairs. The course was international law. Brutal. Unless you spoke Russian, as he had a fondness for Communist-era IL experts at Moscow State (seriously), he had no tolerance for you. He said outright that if you were a Realist, which rejects IL essentially, you were toast in his class. No one in the class got above a C, which in grade school, is an F. Somehow I ended up getting a doctorate after that. But I always say before each semester: "Don't be Bill Butler"
