Frank Ruskey - University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Professor: Frank Ruskey

Department: Computer Science

College: University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I glad he retired from teaching now.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

His written midterm is very similar to previous one ,and he makes programming midterm super easy to pass. It's hard to get an A but it's also hard to fail.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: D
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Couldnt care less about teaching. If you want a great recipe to fail a class then take one with Ruskey.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I took this course in 1981 with Ruskey, final exam, one person with an A+++, the next with a C+, the rest below. Frank is not a great lecturer and does not teach down. You need smarts and be willing to study. Frank is accessible if you show you want to learn. But it is obviously still a very tough course and Frank is still not engaging....

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Frank did not want to be teaching CSC 320, and made it clear to his students. Didn't scale a fail average midterm, and told the students they simply had to learn better. He does not care about his students, their future, or if they pass at all. Terrible prof, I will avoid at all costs above anyone for the rest of my degree.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Assignments are a nightmare: He changes them without notice, he asks questions that take an inordinate about of research, and expect to spend at least 20+ hours on the assignment. His lectures are disjointed, mumbled, and inconsistent. He emphasizes proofs but doesn't follow the structure previously seen. Avoid him at all costs!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Be prepared to read a lot before class if you want to pass this course. Do not miss a lecture because he doesn't post any material online. Make sure to try and write out every word he says because his lecture writings are not even half of what he tests on. He doesn't reply to emails. Assignments are insanely hard. Avoid this professor if possible.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

It's a challenging course. The assignments weren't made clear (due to typos or missing questions) until less than a week before they were due. The lectures aren't the most exciting. However, if you ask him for help, and show that you've at least tried to answer the question yourself, he will be more than willing to help you out. Tough, but fair.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Very very hard final,midterm average was 50 percent unclear assignment need someone to ask about it then he can fix the mistakes in the assignment He uses teaching material from other school seems clever but very lazy just avoid

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He is easily the most uncaring, hard, and selfish professor in CSC at UVic. The lectures are dry, but if you pay attention, you'll grasp very basic concepts. His tests are insane. Our average was 45% on the midterm. Half of the class dropped. He just doesn't care, teaching isn't his passion so he wants people to drop. Avoid at all costs, trust me.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Barely explains anything in a proof heavy class. Often just said "You can read this in the textbook". The class average on the midterm was 47% AFTER an adjustment. Does not provide answers for assignments afterwards which makes going back to study them extremely difficult. Avoid at all costs.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Abysmal professor. In a proof-heavy class, his examples consist of showing a single picture from the textbook and declaring to the class that it's very easy to intuit the answer (hint: it isn't). About half the class dropped after the midterm (average mark was 40%). First class I've ever had where the textbook did a FAR better job teaching. Avoid.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

No matter how interested he himself may be in the course material, Frank Ruskey does NOT want to teach, and it shows. Expect tedious lectures full of hand-waved proofs and useless digressions without any slides to fall back on. Enjoy the vague and needlessly difficult assignments too, as the midterm and final are going to eat your mark alive.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He is SO mean! Always read slides from online course. The midterm is really hard and the average is around 50. The assignments are hard. The grade for assignments are unfair, even you get the same answer as you friends, you will get diff marks.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: CSC226
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Frank never upload his lecture notes to connex. Everytime, when I didn't understand some topics, the only method is googleING something. I have to say, all the materials that I learned is not from this class, but from the internet. It is really a shame that I pay tuition fee for this course only for gaining a CRED! The avg of midterm is only 50!

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: CSC326
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Frank Ruskey is one of the best CS profs I've had at UVic so far. He's very interested in the subject matter and it shows. The midterm was hard, but the final was fair. Most bad ratings on here are by people taking 225320required courses with him. Ignore those. If you don't like algorithms, why are you taking CS?

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: CSC425
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

take a look at the textbook and slides before lectures. Going to his lectures without any background in the materials taught is like going to the battlefield unarmed

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: CSC425
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

You have to have really good background in the course you wanna take with him to pass the course. He do not teach for average students.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: CSC326
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Never proves anything properly. His notes aren't structured what so ever, they seem like something he would scribble down if he was going over the topic in his head. Assignment questions are vague. He doesn't seem to interested how well his students perform or investing any energy into a decent lecture.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: CSC320
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

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