<p>I'm going to CalSo this weekend, and I'd love input about this course and this professor. My main questions are: is he an effective teacher? and is his curve harsh or forgiving?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>I haven't taken his class, but just in case you haven't seen this before, this website is very helpful: <a href="http://www.ratemyprofessor.com/%5B/url%5D">http://www.ratemyprofessor.com/</a></p>
<p>Go to the UC Berkeley page and you can find ratings on the professors. I was going to take his class next semester, but it conflicted with my schedule. I opted to take Math 54 rather than the other Math 53 lecture with Givental, since apparently he's terrible. A few of my friends loved Hutchings' class, and said that he was good at explaining, if that helps.</p>
<p>It appears that Professor Hutchings is easier than Professor Givental, since Hutchings has 27% A's in his class while Givental has only 14%. I am going to take Hutching's Math 53 this fall.</p>
<p>Orochi, where'd you get those figures?</p>
<p>Hutchings is really cute!</p>
<p>ratemyprofessor is really useful for finding out student reviews of professors... and pickaprof is really useful for finding out grade histories of professors. I recommend using both as well as talking to other people in general when choosing professors and classes.</p>
<p>Pickaprof is still in the early stages though, so you won't find grade histories for every single professor and for every semester that they taught, but it's enough to get a good idea for the professors that they do have them for.</p>
<p>Take Hutchings because the alternative is Givental.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses guys, I'm glad Hutchings is available. </p>
<p>I got another question, but this time for physics. Prof. Zettl has a course MWF 8-9 AM. I, like most, love my sleep, but i hear that he's an awesome teacher. The other option is Ramesh at a much more sane time. Is Zettl worth it?</p>
<p>yea, i was in the same situation as you. I ultimately chose Zettl because of his great teaching style. Luckily, the days following my physics lecture I don't have class til 1pm, so I can recoup from those early mornings.</p>
<p>just2chewy - Ha, I was wondering the same thing, but I decided on Ramesh due to the easier to work with time slot (my days of 8 a.m. classes ended in high school, thank you very much). Check out ratemyprofessors.com for info on Ramesh/Zettl and practically every other professor at Berkeley.</p>
<p>cal.pickaprof.com</p>
<p>Then go to schedule planner and find the class/professor you're interested in.</p>
<p>hutchings is great among cal math professors. I guarantee it </p>
<p>not hard, interesting, tells jokes in class, and clear</p>
<p>i had both zettl and hutchings this past year. both are great professors; clear, good handwriting, and they loved their subject. tests were surprisingly straightforward compared with other professors. </p>
<p>im not a morning person, but honestly i would take either of them again in a heartbeat even if it means going to an 8am lecture.</p>
<p>side note: zettl likes to avoid using calculus in physics 7a so the only time we were expected to integrate was one question on the final which i think everybody missed anyways. its kind of nice for those of us who aren't that strong in math.</p>
<p>Perhaps someone will be able to answer my question:</p>
<p>Reading these posts, I assume that it would not be a mistake to opt for Zettl (Phys 7A) and Hutchings (Math 53). My alternative is to keep Hutchings (no need to look at Givental, yet) and go for Marrus in Physics H7A. While Marrus sounds like a great prof, I am also hesitant to enroll in H7A because physics is not my strong point. I believe that I was able to answer correctly all of the questions on <a href="http://astro.berkeley.edu/%7Ejcohn/h7a/informal.html%5B/url%5D">http://astro.berkeley.edu/~jcohn/h7a/informal.html</a> (although I am not too sure about number 3, which is one of the more physics-related questions) but at the same time, I do not want to take H7A if it is only going to add more pain than benefits.</p>
<p>So, should I take Physics 7A or H7A? If it matters, I am looking to be an Option III/IV EECS major, so perhaps this choice will be irrelevant...</p>
<p>from what i've heard, physics h7a has a very harsh curve... you're basically taking physics with physics majors. its really not worth it just because its more convenient scheduling. if physics is your weaker subject, perhaps you should take Zettl over Hutchings</p>
<p>being able to do that informal quiz thing doesn't reflect how well you'll do in either class, as exam questions are far more complicated. in fact, you probably wont see anything that straightforward and simple on anything that counts for a grade.</p>