<p>Has anyone taken Pol Sci 3 with Wittenberg? He's teaching it in the fall of next year. I looked him up on rate my professors, and his reviews were mixed with a 2.8/5 overall. </p>
<p>I was hoping to take PS3 with stoker at a later semester, as people have said she is less reliant on statistics and mathematics and focuses more on the conceptual/descriptive aspects of PS3. Problem is, the Pol Sci department said that PS3 won't be offered in the spring and fall of 2011. And it's up for grabs when it will be offered after that. (It may be only offered in the summer, which I already have plans for). Even then, it's not guaranteed that Stoker or another "easier" teacher will teach it. I don't want to risk not having taken it and delaying my graduation date. </p>
<p>In contrast, Wittenberg focuses much on statistics, game theory, and people have said he throws in a bit of calculus as well. He has a B.A. in Physics from Berkeley, and apparently decided to change route and do graduate studies in poli sci. </p>
<p>I suck at and hate math. (I like science like biology, and descriptive physics, as long as it doesn't use too much math). I didn't take calc in high school- I stopped at precalc. Would my lack of math preparation hurt me in Wittenberg's class? </p>
<p>Also I'm planning to take stats at a local CC anyways for preparation. </p>
<p>Is it worth to take PS3 with wittenberg? Can anyone who has had him relay their experience? </p>
<p>I believe this thread will be of interest to many poli sci majors who haven't taken PS3 yet.</p>
<p><em>Bump</em></p>
<p>Btw, gobears10, I spoke to one of the Political Science advisers and she said no prior knowledge of calculus is necessary - even for Wittenberg’s class - and that a background in Statistics from community college would make the experience much easier. I also asked what the average grade was for Wittenberg’s PS3 class, and she said a “B+” as he curves. Still, I’m pretty nervous myself. Those reviews look awful.</p>
<p>It’s not that bad, and I really don’t understand why people make it out to be a big deal. The problem with the class, and what I’ve noticed when people ask questions is, that they don’t use common sense. Poly Sci majors love to critically think and try to comprehend complexities way too in depth, so it’s hard to let go of those concepts, but this is all about common sense. I’ll give you an example: A>B>C That’s it. STOP THINKING that there’s a possibility that A>C. STOP.</p>
<p>gobears, you voiced my concerns exactly down to a T. I’m also a PoliSci major and thus need to take PS3, but the awful reviews for Wittenburg make me very hesitant to take the class this fall. I too suck at math, have no prior experience to stats or calc (though I’m pretty sure no calc is required, though I’ve heard having stats makes the course much easier), and am a little worried by the fact that he emphasizes more statistical concepts and less descriptive ones than Stoker. </p>
<p>I’m still going to take it this fall, because like you, I don’t want to bank on the hopes that I get an easier professor later on. Also, the undetermined future of PS3 and when it will be offered again also convinced me to take it this fall. Still, if the average with a curve is a B+, and I fall below the average… Everyone says that PS3 is easier than people make it out to be, but those people probably aren’t speaking from the perspective of someone who struggled with even pre-calculus in high school. I’ll try to keep an open mind and get as much extra help from office hours and the SLC if it offers any–that’s all I can do anyway.</p>
<p>Seriously, I understand with budget cuts that you need to downsize, but why cut down on the offerings of PS3–the one course all Poli Sci majors need to take–to once a year?</p>
<p>I actually changed my mind. I’m not taking it in the Fall. I’ll wait till Spring 2013. Pol Sci 3 filled up, and I didn’t want to risk the wait list. </p>
<p>I thought, what’s the point in me taking a stats class in the summer, if i’m not guaranteed a spot in PS3. I can’t remember all that stats in one and half years when it’s offered again.</p>
<p>So i cancelled both the CC and Pol Sci 3.</p>
<p>Oh crap. I didn’t even realize that the all the discussion spots for PS3 had been filled. I knew I should have chosen that over PS5 in my Phase 1…I guess I just assumed PS5 would fill up faster than PS3. Guess I was wrong. Does anyone have any recommendations for what I should do now? Is there any hope that people will drop PS3 before/within the first two weeks of fall semester and that I’ll be enrolled? My Phase II isn’t until August 2 btw.</p>