Mike Zastre - University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Professor: Mike Zastre

Department: Computer Science

College: University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: CSC110
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Mike is a good lecturer but his slides should be sufficient for the class. Mike only marked one of six assignments when I had him and he gave great feedback on what you could do better even.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Just want to say, he likes to imply things by giving sort of examples but I don't usually make sense of those as he paces through slides. Hope you do!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Have done two courses with him until now(in second year right now). Easy to get through if you follow what he says exactly and pay attention in class,

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: CSC115
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I'll admit I skipped far more classes than I should have, but one thing I need to mention is how well put together his lecture slides are. I was able to catch up on the material very easily just by reading his in-depth lecture slides, posted online. The labs were terrible but that wasn't his fault. Homework assignments were tough but very fair.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: CSC230
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I like this prof. I take SENG265 and CSC230 with Zastre, and the overall experiences are great. Although his assignments are pretty hard, you will learn a lot. The tests are not hard and very fair. One tip: start his assignments right after the assignments are posted, then you will have enough time to seek help from classmates or Zastre.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: CSC115
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Mike Zastre is a tough no-nonsense prof who excels at explaining how code works visually at a low level. His lectures are well-paced and clear, his assignments are well-thought out and his exams are fair. I didn't feel like the class was particularly hard, just that it was well taught and covered all the material in good depth. Recommend!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

The multiple choice on the tests are rough but manageable. Zastre is a great prof from a learning perspective; after this course I feel like I have a solid foundation in C and Python. Assignments are no joke, but start early and they're doable and are where I did most of my learning. Go to lectures, write his past exams, and you'll be fine.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• 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:

It takes 2 days just to understand what the assignments are asking, his multiple choice questions are nothing short of vicious, and his notes require a great deal of deciphering outside of class. You'll do twice as much work, but you'll grow as a person, and never learn more. If you're serious about your future, choose Mike Zastre

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: CSC360
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

The professor is on a crusade to root out cheaters. Likely someone in his past life got ahead of him in school by taking shortcuts. Mike invests much of his time to make assignments confusing so it would be difficult to find online resources. Other professors resent him since he does not share solutions with future course professors.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: CSC115
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

lectures are boring, tests are fair

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: CSC110
• 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:

Zastre is a really smart guy and knows what he is talking about. Assignments are fair and require a bit of extra work to receive 100%. Midterms are fair as long as you study. Textbook questions and his past final exams are a good way to study, as he takes questions directly from those.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: SENG401
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Great Professor. He is funny, friendly and very helpful at office hours. He put so much effort writing feedback for each student's final paper (5000 words). Midterms were not bad as long as long as you understand the concepts.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: CSC115
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Do you like writing code or seeing how to implement new concepts?! If so, don't take Zastre. He's what most would call a "diZastre". For those who are new to coding and learn best by seeing profs write code I highly recommend taking someone else as you will sit through boring lectures listening to him read off of a powerpoint.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: CSC110
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

hard homework but easy test

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: CSC360
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

His lectures are pretty decent

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: CSC110
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Lectures were almost word for word taken from the textbook, so I ended up not going to any and just studying from the book. Assignments are difficult but not impossible, however don't expect more than an 8/10 unless you are a chapter ahead of schedule. Midterms and final had a mix of easy and difficult questions.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Mike Zastre is my favourite prof at UVic. He really knows what he is talking about and is completely open to questions during lecture and office hours. Do take advantages of his office hours, he can be really helpful. Midterm and final were quite easy if you enjoy programming. I had fun writing the final. Just pay attention to the MP's questions.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I learned a plethora of practical concepts from Zastre in a way that was enjoyable and digestible. His slides are minimal but concise and his commentary was clear and simple. His marking scheme isn't very fair for assignments, ie. he forces you to do extra work to get above 80%, however the assignments are manageable and pretty interesting.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: CSC110
• 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:

The assignments require 30 more mins to get the extra points. Just skim through the textbook ahead of the lectures and try to incorporate new techniques into your program. If you cant grasp the concept, go to his office hours or ask TAs for help. They will be more than happy to help

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: SENG265
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

zastre is in a word spiteful. its obvious that he hates giving the kind of student he doesn't like a good grade. i managed to do ok but a lot of the stuff i was doing to jump through the hoops didn't help my learning of the subject material. the subject material is quite easy but the assignments take forever