Ira Wagman - Carleton University, Ottawa, ON

Professor: Ira Wagman

Department: Communication

College: Carleton University, Ottawa, ON

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003A
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Despite attending every single lecture and studying for all the quizzes, I was completely lost the entire semester. His lecture style is very disorganized. They're just two hours of him rambling and giving the same example in multiple different ways. He seems like a nice enough person but as a prof he was condescending. No real prep for the exam.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He repeats himself and hes a little condescending but overall I thought he had good lectures with content I enjoyed. I didnt read any of the textbook and did fine on the quizzes! Only concern is his lack of exam review considering how much its worth.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: COMM2003A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He is a nice and friendly prof, don't get me wrong. But his class is very demanding in terms of readings and if you do not study or go to class, you won't perform well. I am not a fan of the quizzes but be sure to study thoroughly for them.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Wagman's class was difficult- the professor is a friendly person, but he repeats examples before getting to the point. He was condescending in his lectures and refused to actually help students. He spent the last class justifying his lecture style rather than reviewing the lecture. He believes a second year course is beneath him and behaves like it

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

This class was the only reason why I stayed in communications. His slides had little information on them so you could just focus on what he was saying. Quizzes were easy if you did the readings and listened in class. I would totally take his class again. Only prof I have liked! Those who say his class is boring/hard obviously did not go to class.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He didn't prepare us for the final exam. I have ADHD and this was the hardest class to focus in because he presents in a very bland lecture style. If CoMS isn't your major, don't take a class of his. If CoMS is your major, well... good luck Charlie.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Seems like a nice guy but a really terrible lecturer. Repeats himself over and over again. His quizzes are very confusing and he expects you to know every single theorist/theory he's mentioned no matter how much they don't matter. He is also condescending when lecturing . Avoid his classes if you can, or just teach yourself the material.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

only take this class if you HAVE to. his lectures are all over the place, half of the class never knows what he is talking about and he is very confusing. all of his quizzes are difficult and it feels as though he is trying to trick you. 5 multiple choice quizzes in the span of the semester but the exam are all short answers and essay questions.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Great professor. I really like how enthusiastic, engaging, and knowledgeable he is about the course content. Some concepts are on the harder side but he breaks everything down so it's easy to understand. He's very approachable after class and during office hours!

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Very dry boring lectures that are hard to pay attention to. Very little work though.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: COMS3311
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Really enjoyable class. It's obvious that Ira is very passionate about what he teaches. The content of the course was interesting! Highly recommend doing the readings (on CUlearn), as they were important for the two tests&final exam . He rarely used slides and mainly lectured the whole time. If you do the readings and go to class, you'll be fine!

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: COMS3311
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Wagman is my favourite prof in university. He is so knowledgeable in so many fields and just delivers the best lectures. Ive had him twice so far and have already learned so much - not only media and communications related, but also about history, film, and what it means to live and be human. Attend his lectures and youll do well.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: COMS3311
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Tough prof but reasonable. Had him in 1st year and would have rated him as low as possible, however as I grew up and learned to respect professors I realized that while Dr. Wagman does have higher expectations than most other profs he is a decent lecturer. Just finishing my third class with Dr. Wagman and would look forward to taking another.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Nice guy, energetic lectures; although, the class I was in was very repetitive due to other intro classes I'd taken before. Also sat on some pretty obvious topics for a little too long. Anyway, he does give you lots of information and you learn plenty. Exams Q's however, are very specific. Multiple choice and "trick"/snarkily-formatted. Beware..

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Chill prof, but you'll be frustrated even if you know your stuff when you get to his exam questions/format. They are very interpretive and often trick questions making you take a mere "educated guess", even if you know the answer. Weighs your knowledge on identification of precise scholars' names and their quotes. Study heedfully for the exam.....

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: COMS3400
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Great prof in terms of teaching the material. Lecture slides are not detailed and some lectures don't have any. Two books are required for this course and are mandatory in order to pass. The course consisted of three papers 12-16 pages. The questions are very confusing, highly recommend going to his office hours to get clarification. Heavy Readings

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Great Prof, but you MUST do all the readings and attend all of the lectures. Take advantage of the PASS workshops, especially around the quizzes and exam times. Lecture slides are terrible/consist of only quotes. Very approachable and is truly trying to better your understanding of the material. DONT take the quizzes lightly! Be ready to work.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I found Iras lectures a bit hard to follow at times. I was confused about how stuff was connecting to the readings until I started studying for the final. Tip: make good notes for the quizzes because it makes it easier to study for the final.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Although Wagman is a pretty good lecturer, he is not great in office hours. Interacted with three times and each encounter me feel dumb for asking clarifying questions on assignments. Although a theory course, it's the small stuff on assignments/quizzes that will deduct points. Many people get a low grade/drop. Take advantage of PASS if you can.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: COMS2003
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Must attend lectures to pass because not much is provided in powerpoint slides. In-classes quizzes are fairly easy if you reviewed the previous lectures. 2 written assignments which I personally found quite difficult to write on and tough grading on both.