Alan Dow - University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC

Professor: Alan Dow

Department: Mathematics

College: University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Clear, easy to follow lectures, with enough homework to really make course content stick and extremely fair tests. Dr. Dow is very kind and is always willing to clarify issues, and will even often push back homework deadlines on request.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Differential equations is not an easy class, but he will do everything to help you pass. Responds extremely quick to emails, he will even work out problems for you over email. He has test reviews that he goes over before tests that are basically the same. A lot of people did poorly on a test so he just gave everyone 5 extra points. Take Prof Dow!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

In class, his lectures are hard to follow because he goes at a pretty good pace and doesn't take a break. However, if you have any questions, he will address them well. He is one of the fastest email responders I've know as a professor. He helps out the class on tests with a boost or curve every now and then. TEST REVIEWS ARE IMPORTANT, USE THEM!!!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MATH1100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Dow is your typical lecture then test type of guy. Go to class and learn the material, then go home and do your online homework. Very simple class. Attendance is counted after every class as students are asked to turn in a hand in to prove your presence. The main portion of the class is online, so make sure you're keeping up with your assignments.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MAT1100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Good algebra prof, 3 Test and a Final. H/w is all online Hawkes Learning Extra cred for attendance

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: MATH1100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

For College Algebra he is a good teaching if you are semi-good at math. Others here have felt he teaches fast but I have been pretty bored in his class but I watch the preclass videos and do assignments before class. He drops lowest grades and gives a lot of homework to pad your grade. Attendance counts as extra credit.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MAT1100
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Very nice, he is very lenient on turning in late work. We use Hawkes, and whenever you get something overdue, just email the reason to him, and as long as he sees that you work hard, he will extend to due date for you. Very caring, always open for questions. He responds to all emails, and his homework and tests are easy. Overall, great teacher!

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He doesn't do the best job of explaining concepts, or explaining steps of a problem, but he's willing to help you if you need it. If you're putting in the work, and he can see that, then he's going to be slightly more lenient on the grading. At the end of the day, it was obvious to me that he Dow cared about his students, and that goes a long way

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MATH1100
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

His grading system is very forgiving. He will drop your two lowest quiz and homework grades. The hand-in at the end of class is how he counts attendance, but if you do it to the best of your ability he gives extra credit for it. I dislike how fast he goes through everything. He skips steps when explaining problems too.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MAT1100
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Professor Dow is a good professor who was very helpful when I took his College Algebra class.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: MAT1100
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Make sure you take time outside of class to understand the concepts that you are learning in class. Professor Dow is caring and loves math, but can be confusing because he skips steps and goes fast. Also, at the end of each class there is an "in-class quiz" which is completion if you tried. The quizzes will help your final grade by 1-5 points.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Best math teacher I have ever had. Amazing at explaining concepts, amazing at teaching. Easy tests if you take advantage of the test review. Honestly would take him over John Taylor.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

It is hard to understand where he is when he is going over lectures in class. However, where he really shines is responding to his e-mail for any questions about homework or questions from the class. Really wants each student to learn and succeed.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: ALGE1101
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

He was a kind man, but I did not like him as a professor. He was very lecture heavy and skipped many steps when trying to explain things. Lots of online homework due at random times on random days. He did not teacher all the sections. For the entire course I had to try and figure out what to do. If you are not a math person, I would not recommend.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

DiffEq is a reasonably hard course, so it's not an "easy-A" with him, but he is VERY helpful. Responds to emails in like 5-10 minutes, and he's very easy to find in his office.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Great teacher, provides accurate examples which are questions on the test. Easy tests. Take notes, and you will pass with a great grade!

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MATH1100
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Awesome professor! He's really sweet and helpful. If you come every day, you should be able to pass with a high grade. He gives 10 extra credit points if you come every day. If you have any questions, email him, and he will reply asap. You don't need to buy the textbook unless you want extra help for yourself. Overall great class and professor.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Not so much that the material is hard than it is that the professor makes the questions harder than they need to be. You can tell he loves math as it shows in the difficulty of hw and tests. He does make up for this though with lax grading and curved grades. He grades knowing how to do a problem more than getting the right answer. Doable, not easy.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: MATH2171
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Can get kinda bored in class, but take notes and right everything down, will not understand right away but take the time to sit down and figure the material out its not that bad. He made 2 out of 3 tests we took too long and most people didn't finish, but he curved the tests. Final grades got curved as well, 60-mid70 was a C, mid70-mid80 was a B.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: MATH1100
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Mr. Dow's class was super easy! Come to class and you get extra credit points added to your final grade. He responds to your emails super quickly and is really helpful. All homework is online. I would definitely try and take this class!