Alexander Soshnikov - University of California Davis, Davis, CA

Professor: Alexander Soshnikov

Department: Mathematics

College: University of California Davis, Davis, CA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MAT21A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I retook 21A with Soshnikov. I believe he is one of the better math professors at Davis. The curves on his tests were quite big. I got an A on the final with 58%. My TA and workload EOP classes were also very helpful for this class. Would recommend looking into the EOP classes for 21 series.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MAT125B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Soshnikov really cares about his students. His lectures can be a little hard to follow but he is always willing to help. He is very friendly and helpful in office hours so I recommend you go as often as possible. Tests are hard but fair, for they are pretty similar to the HW problems. Attendance is not mandatory but highly recommended.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MAT125B
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

His lectures are insightful and he's more than willing to help you if you ask questions. His office hours are really helpful and I'd suggest going to them. Almost all his test questions are from the textbook, so just do the homework.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: 201B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His teaching itself is very organized but the technical details of it (posting info, etc.) is not. Read about a chapter ahead. Go to office hours.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: 201B
• 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:

Tests were fair; lectures were crystal clear. Homework was 1) always due before (IF) the material was covered 2) 10-20 pages long TYPED. Syllabus was incorrect. TA didn't seem to put a lot of work into the course. I get it, we're all busy grad students, but still. Some are turned off by his dismissive sense of humor, but don't be afraid of him.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: 135A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Alex is a great guy but his teaching style is so unclear. He doesn't give many concrete examples which makes it hard when you go to do your actual homework. Two midterms and a final which are similar to homework problems. I probably would have been better off just skipping lecture to go home and teach myself. His curve is very generous.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MAT21B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Soshikov wasn’t easy-- he made that clear from day one. He typically teaches higher levels of math…webwork hw is on material that he hasn’t finished covering so keep up with material and GO TO OFFICE HOURS! He may appear intimidating whilst lecturing but you’ll see in OH he genuinely cares and tries his best to help you understand the material.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MAT21B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He has an accent and sometimes it's hard to understand him in class. He doesn't seem to care about his students much. His homework is due online every Friday and they are really hard. His tests are definitely a lot harder than the homework. If you're not good at math...well, good luck to you.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: 21B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He's a horrible professor. His webwork homework is extremely difficult. He assigns it to be due friday, but doesnt cover the material until wednesday and friday, forcing you to do it last minute. He is one of the worst professors in the math department.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MAT21B
• 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:

Didn't show up until the third day of instruction. Assigns homework due Friday, but doesn't cover the material until Wednesday and Friday, forcing me to do all of it on Thursday. Too lazy to upload a blank copy of the practice midterm, instead, uploads the answer key, in multiple files. This has to be a joke.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: MAT125B
• 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:

Soshnikov is an awesome teacher. He is extremely funny and is willing to explain things in great detail. During this course, he basically taught straight from the book and would delve a little deeper into the explanations given by the text. His tests are hard but the curves are pretty generous so don't worry about that too much.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MAT21B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I'm not sure why his rating is as low as it. He has an accent, but after about 3 lectures, it was no problem. Otherwise, he explains things well, and emphasizes genuinely understanding the underlying principles, which is very helpful, although not necessarily easy. Also, he has a bit of a sense of humor, which is nice. Overall, highly recommended.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MAT21B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He has some cool sweaters and a cool (but hard to understand) accent. Tests aren't exactly hard but would be a lot more fair if we had more time/less questions. Practice midterm questions do not reflect the actual midterm questions.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: MAT21C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His tests questions are straight from the book which he revealed to us after each exam. He even gave the exact location in the textbook where the questions were. Possibly the highlight of my time with him was his accent in saying "the upperbound" Aside from that, the class is a bore

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MAT21C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

You will not get used to his accent! Very hard to understand. His tests are really hard so study well! However, he seems like a nice guy.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MAT21
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

MAT 21C. Hard to understand through accent, gotta concentrate to get what he is saying. Lectures were kinda boring, lots of proofs and not enough examples. In addition to webwork, has some suggested "theory" problems that give a framework for midterms and final. Very nice guy in office hours, definitely helpful rather than TAs.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MAT21C
• 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:

His lectures are basically proofs from the book. Bases test questions on HW from the book and webwork. MT average was 50%, but has a generous curve.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MATH21C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His lectures were all on proofs and with the all the problems he give you like homework problems, you basically have to teach the material yourself. His exams are tricky, but if you do all of the problems he gives you, then you should get a passing grade. Go to office hours if needed, read the book and use outside resources to help you learn.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: MAT21C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

although, the professor knows what he is talking about he puts emphasis on the wrong kind of stuff. the lecture are pretty much the proofs from the text. The first midterm was extremely hard, but rest of the tests were managable. Huge curves, mean for the first mid term was thirty four %

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: MAT21C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I always hated math but his lack of hope in students made me want to prove him wrong and ace those midterms. GO TO OFFICE HOURS! Sure, he has a thick accent but you'll get used to it. He is very knowledgeable and willing to help students.