<p>I agree with you, Kelsey. I'm a Dartmouth 06 who has been involved in most conservative groups on campus (including a stint with the Review.) And I agree with the person who said the Dartmouth conservatives tend to lean more libertarian, rather than socially conservative. I do not consider myself a libertarian, so I was a bit put off by that.</p>
<p>The only problem with Dartmouth politics is that I really do believe many of the professors are biased. SOME OF THEM ARE NOT. I have had excellent, liberal professors who genuinely wanted dialogue. I have also encountered extremely biased graders. And this is all within the same department! And that is unfortunate, whichever side of the political spectrum is doing it.</p>
<p>Thanks for your comments, Athena! That's really too bad about the unfair grading. I've heard horror stories from other colleges about that, but I hadn't heard of it here yet. I guess it's inevitable that some profs are going to let their political views influence their teaching a little too much. I usually check up on the prof on the SA guide (best thing ever!) because at least one disgruntled conservative will usually post something warning you away when the prof is uber-liberal.</p>
<p>Kelsey, do you mind if I ask what your intended major is? Because I agree with you that the course guide is very useful, but there is a problem with them. Usually the reviews will say "Great Prof, Great Lectures" or something. But they don't give much specific information about the format of the course (papers, exams, etc.)
Are you a humanites/soc sci or a math/science person?</p>
<p>Obviously the biased graders tend to certain departments (English, and some history profs.) I am a History major and have had a mostly positive experience, but there are a few exceptions!</p>
<p>I'd love to hear from you. I may not be the definitive source, but I love giving Dartmouth advice :)</p>
<p>Thanks, Athena! I'm definitely a social sciences/humanities person, and I'm not sure what I'll major in yet, but probably History or English. I'm also considering minoring in Spanish or Film. Any advice is absolutely welcome--I'd like to steer clear of as many bad profs as I can. I'm hopefully getting Lagomarsino for one of my classes next term, and I hear he's awesome. Have you had any of his classes?</p>
<p>I highly recommend the history department. Lagomarsino is good, I've had him for two classes. You just have to be very self-motivated. His syllabus leaves a lot to be desired. He assigns an ungodly amount of reading, not all of which is important. But he is hilarious.
My history profs:
Orleck: Great
Wilder: Great
Lago: Very Good</p>
<p>The worst history classes:
49 (with Estabrook)
ANYTHING with Edsforth. He is awful! He left for awhile but I think he is coming back.
He had some theory about Ronald Reagan actually being a liberal. It was insane.</p>
<p>I'd echo what athena (is that you, Amanda?) said, to an extent. I've not been impressed with Wilder, and I did like Estabrook (though I am curious to hear what athena didn't like). </p>
<p>I'd also add to avoid Navarro and Spitzer. I personally like Ericson and Calloway.</p>
<p>Haha yes, this is Amanda. Athena unveiled!</p>
<p>I'm off this term so I'm devoting my time to helping the potential 09s. And working at a law firm. :) PS- I have no life down here! I miss Dartmouth!!!</p>
<p>Is this Kale?</p>
<p>Oh, and what didn't you like about Wilder?</p>
<p>I liked Prof. Estabrook. He was a nice guy, albeit a harsh grader. But that in itself isn't bad. I was just disappointed in the class. I guess I sort of subscribe to the "big man theory" of history, and I felt like we focused in on deviant behavior too much (cross dressing, nature cults), and missed out on some of the real substance of English history during that fascinating time period. No foreign policy, very little about the monarchs who were SO interesting.</p>
<p>I totally disagree on Edsforth, he was the best professor I have ever had!!</p>
<p>I'm glad you had a better experience with him than I did; I can't imagine how it could have been worse.</p>