April Nowell - University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Professor: April Nowell

Department: Anthropology

College: University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I absolutely adore April, she is by far my favourite professor I've ever had! Her lectures are so interesting and her stories are hilarious and are honestly part of the reason I decided to pursue more archaeology classes. I've taken 2 of her classes so far and I plan to take more if possible. She is very easy to talk to and cares so much!

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I don't know why she's gotten so much slack - perhaps she's changed her ways, but I found her very helpful, insightful, open to ideas and very accessible in terms of needing help outside class. Her classes are engaging, she's very entertaining and flexible. Took 2 of her classes and did well. Just do the work and readings and you'll be fine!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Nowell is a good prof, I really appreciate the experience she brings, and I enjoyed her stories. I got the sense that her research, and writing her books is more a priority than the class, not the most approachable prof I've ever had. I found it difficult to know what would be on exams as most paleo art is all up for personal interpretation.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Was usually late, and sloppy on getting her lectures started. Wished she gave more useful feedback, and better advice. Grades are based on her opinion, so instead of critically learning, get ready to to regurgitate her thoughts. Too bad, could have been an awesome class.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: ANTH441
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

She doesn't like others options. Her method of teaching rotates around her research. This class had the potential to be interesting but maybe with another teacher teaching it. She taught the class as if it was a masters program level.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: ANTH441
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

She just phoned it in. Turned up late several times. She gave generic feedback to all class members regardless of the work you actually did. She didn't seem to pay attention during presentations, her feedback for several people contradicted what they actually did. Likes to talk about herself. I don't feel she was very respectful of students.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

I really enjoyed Anth 341 with April. She was super funny, had loads of great stories about famous anthropologists, and first-hand experience at the sites discussed. I appreciated her sharing her academic opinion. I found the tests to be very easy but the averages tended to be low. A LOT of reading, but I think it paid off?

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: ANTH391
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Overall a great prof.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I found Dr. Nowell's lectures pack with detail and really interesting if you're into paleoarch. She keeps your attention by throwing in a few funny stories about working in the field. Her tests are really tough, as most people are still sitting at the end of the test period, but she's a fair marker. Don't ask for extensions, cause won't get one.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: 392
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

She is really passionate about this topic and had a lot of good insights. Knows her stuff. Tests are not insanely difficult, but they are nit-picky. Essay questions are easy if you showed up to class. Likes to mark based on her own opinions. Nice lady and helpful outside of class time when around. Cancelled about 5 classes to work on personal stuff

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Her class should be called "Nowell and friends" because she's super opinionated. She highlights authors that agree with her viewpoints and trashes those that don't. She's not a great presenter either, perhaps she should just stick to writing uninventive papers.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Interesting class, fun labs. She explains concepts well, but constantly talks about her 'friends' in the field and is always going off topic to tell a story. Exams were quite difficult, and the paper was long; lots of reading also. That said, if you do the work, you will get a good grade with fairly minimal effort.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: ANTH349
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Not even half way through the semester and easily one of the worst professors I've had throughout my time at UVic. Moody, and incoherent at the best of times. Rambles on and on, is so opinionated it is ridiculous. Someone get this woman out of the classroom and writing papers so she can pump her own tires somewhere else.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Not a good class, unless you are, for some reason, really into ancient rock art. Even then, this class is basically memorizing authors and the opinions of papers that align with Nowell's. It's totally useless, extremely boring, and you have to write a 10 page paper about rock art, for Christ's sake.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I would strongly suggest not taking a class with this professor unless you enjoy memorizing useless dates and papers written by her close colleagues. Never write a paper that does not match up with her personal beliefs, or she will make you regret it. Tests would be easier if she taught in class instead of going on useless rants. I give her a C-

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

She's very passionate and enthusiastic about what she teaches so her lectures are very interesting but her exams are unnecessarily hard. Don't take this class if you want to boost your GPA.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

I loved April, thought she was an awesome teacher! Easy to listen to, not that hard, show up to class and you're fine. Everything on the tests are from class and readings, and her lectures were very interesting. Even though it was early in the morning I never missed her class.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

She's fantastic! She's clearly brilliant. Clearly gets excited about class discussion. Tells funny little anecdotes. Class is highly entertaining.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: ANTH441
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

My best advice is AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE!! I should have listened to everyone when they told me this. It's not that you can't get a good grade, it's just that you must agree with her post-processualist thought process to do so. Even if you can back an argument (which other profs think is good) she'll mark you down if it doesnt fit with hers.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: ANTH341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr.Nowell is very passionate and knowledgeable about her area of interest (Paleolithic Arch)but tends to mark essays and tests quite hard, leaving few comments