<p>I'm currently a freshman at berkeley, and i'm thinking about majoring in history.
For next semester, I signed up for 2 history classes (euro history and one upper division history class)..
Is this too hard to handle? i wonder if i'm gonna die trying to finish all the readings...</p>
<p>Well one of my majors is history, and you get to the point where you do "selective reading." it's impossible to handle read everything, so you just don't read the textbook and go to lectures for example. You pick what you read, and you'll be fine.</p>
<p>It really isn't that bad, in fact my history classes are the only enjoyable ones.</p>
<p>and I really shouldn't tell you this, but for one of my history classes I did absolutely NO readings but went to all the lectures and pulled an A- in the course, and that, so far, has been the lowest grade I've gotten in a history class.</p>
<p>If you do do "selective" reading, given you write your essays well, as well as study your lecture notes for the midterm/final, you will probably do quite well in the course.</p>
<p>ahhhhhh two hour discussions....killer</p>
<p>well upper div classes have no discussions, which could be bad or good depending on your essays</p>
<p>euro history (i'm imagining you're talking about history 5) was a good class. i liked it and i'm an engineering major.</p>
<p>History 5 with Anderson has been my fave course at Berkeley in my entire 2 years here. Honestly, it's the best class I've taken here.</p>
<p>History professors are really exceptional. I've taken classes in the English, math, Economics, and a science department, and well history professors have been the best, along with the English professor. It's because liberal arts professors actually care about teaching.</p>
<p>False truth alert</p>
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well upper div classes have no discussions, which could be bad or good depending on your essays
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</p>
<p>SOME don't. MANY do. (History is one of my majors.)</p>
<p>My friend is taking an upper div taught by godly Anderson and Anderson herself LEADS the discussions. </p>
<p>
[quote]
History professors are really exceptional. I've taken classes in the English, math, Economics, and a science department, and well history professors have been the best, along with the English professor. It's because liberal arts professors actually care about teaching.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I second this comment. Not only will many history professors give you free books when you visit their office hours, provide the class with the exact format of the tests, let you come up with your own essay questions, invite you to their mansions, but they'll also take you for lunch! for free!</p>
<p>Well, perhaps they are- lets not characterize the couple profs in each of the other departments as the norm, though. It's certainly true that the history department students are more satisfied with the hist deparment/profs compared to other soc sci department according to a big survey (on hist department website). And I mean, there are so many profs in history (and English and econ and math, but aren't there many more in those non-math ones mentioned that they must vary a lot?)</p>
<p>I don't know Drab, but i'll say this much. As an Economics major, Econ has probably some of the worst professors at Berkeley.</p>
<p>You might be right, but I would be hesitant to say something like that, something including hundreds of other profs I have little idea about. Aren't there over 1,000 professors here?</p>
<p>Professor Laqueur is going to teach history 5 next sem..how is he? i heard that this class emphasizes on writing...ahh</p>
<p>i'm taking history 5 and history 100 (history of broadway i believe..) next semester.
can anyone suggest some really good history courses?</p>
<p>In all honesty, ALL history courses emphasize writing. </p>
<p>Professor Laqueur is one of the strongest researchers and teachers in the department. (And this is in an department which has a big repuation for engaging undergrads.) He's a nice guy. He focuses on history of sexuality. Be aware of his extreme left wing politics. </p>
<p>other popular/good history profs are::</p>
<p>Barrows, Taylor, Henkin, Spiro, Nylan, Einhorn, Litwack, Hesse, Adamthwaite, Dandelet, Fass, Klein, Healy, McLennan, etc.</p>
<p>i came out of history 5 thinking that i didn't have to write so much. i mean it was basically 2 papers and like a page response most weeks (which wasn't too bad). i thought the reading was a bigger deal. of course it could be different with laqueur as i had anderson</p>
<p>Einhorn is one of the best. She's a really enthusiastic lecturer and she let's us off for religious holidays, which makes me happy even though I'm atheist. :)</p>