Isaac Sonin - University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC

Professor: Isaac Sonin

Department: Mathematics

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

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin is a very intelligent professor, his biggest flaw would be that he forgets the students are new to Linear Algebra. He has plenty of years of teaching this material so for him it's a cake walk (again, he forgets that). COMPLETE HIS GRADED HWs the points count towards the tests. 3 midterms and 1 final (he allows formula sheets).

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MATH3122
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Sonin is one of the nicest, smartest men you'll ever meet. It's sometimes difficult to follow during lectures, but he is so helpful one-on-one. Lots of people have a hard time in his classes, but he makes it really easy to get an A from his grading method, and he also wants to help you learn so if you are confused just go to his office hours.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: C-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He doesn't really teach, he just kinda writes things on the board and expects you to understand everything. Get ready to go to tutoring because that's the only way you'll understand anything in the class. He didn't take attendance at first but decided to start about half way through the semester.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MATH3122
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin is very helpful but the material and his style of lecturing ultimately led to this review. He gives 2 homework packets before each of his 3 tests and they count as 50 points toward the test. You might be able to find some of the old homework or tests online and they are extremely similar to the ones due.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MATH3122
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Sonin is very willing to help if you take the time to ask. If it weren't for his help, I would not have passed. The lectures can sometimes be confusing or unclear, but one-on-one, he helps you understand the material. His grading method makes it difficult to fail, and he offers a lot of extra credit. Use the book and do the daily home problems!

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin's notes are horrible made and not easy to understand. He teaches fairly decent and the homework assignments arien't too hard and they are valued as 50% of your test. Also 85 is an A, so it is not impossible to leave the class with a decent/good grade.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin teaches only in theory. He shows no examples of how to do problems, and his in-class notes are impossible to follow. His grading saves you. Two "homeworks" per test. Each counts as 25% of the test. Very willing to help you on homework. Tons of partial credit. Slight accent, but very understandable. Show him you're trying A!

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MATH3166
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin writes his notes before class and just projects them on the board. His organization is terrible and he's always drawing on his notes. When you review his notes online after he's posted them, you'll be lost. This class is honestly a joke. I attend only when homework is due or when there's a test. Easy grade, sure, but not inspiring.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: WD
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Run. Run far away! Unless you are a math whiz who can do this stuff by self learning. Run. Run far away. I have not the math gene, but I've made it this far at least and you really won't learn much of anything from the lectures most likely however some people below said they aced the class just by hacking the syllabus. Homeworks are big

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Sonin is a nice person, he will help if you're confused, but his presentation of the material and explanations are lacking. Often will cover an entire chapter in a day, then pick random pieces to present the subsequent two weeks. Class is very abstract, so the ambiguity really hurts but if you show him sincere effort he will give you an A.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: STAT3128
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

if you can avoid taking him please do. I barely passed mainly because of his curve.You will have to work really hard for the grade you want. try to find and use all old test and homeworks. Its hard to understand him talking because he has a strong accent. If you get him good luck.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

If you expect to get an easy A, this class is not for you. Dr. Sonin is very smart and knows what he is doing. The problem is he focuses a lot on abstract ideas instead of practical application. I am poor with math and made an A and I will tell you--GET A TUTOR. With tutoring and high HW grades (HW is half a test grade) you can achieve an A too.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• 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:

This math is very abstract so it made it even harder when he can't explain stuff clearly. If you're registered for this class already, I'd say get out of this professor asap. If you're stuck with him, I HIGHLY SUGGEST tutoring, office hours, and khan academy on youtube. else you suffer.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Never knew the true meaning of confusion until I took this class. He expects you to be able to solve abstract theoretical problems just from one or two incredibly vague and poorly written examples. Nice guy, though.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: STAT3128
• 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:

Fantastic professor, a little nutty, and tough homework, but genuinely seems to care that you understand the underlying concepts. His grading scheme is pretty generous if you stay on top of your homework. Doing his daily problems are very helpful to your grade. Great class, but be ready to work for the grade.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• 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:

Linear Algebra is hard! That why easiness is 3! All in all, he is good teacher if you frequently go to his class!

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Very good professor, teaching the basics and history of math.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• 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:

His in-class presentation of material was substandard to complete his unclear HW questions. The book was next to useless for help in HW. HW is a significant portion of the grade. To his credit, he was always available for homework help. Don't underestimate this subject, the class dropped to a third after the first test.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: STAT3128
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Avoid.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: MATH2164
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Easy professor that just wants people to try. At UNCC, this is about 5% of the entire class. I was hoping to actually learn linear algebra, because of its usefulness, but alas no. Instead of listening to him I watched Strang's lectures at MIT and just went to his office hours. Super easy A, like all classes in Math here.