Becky Reichenau - Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

Professor: Becky Reichenau

Department: Computer Science

College: Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Becky is an extremely harsh grader. I recommend working on programs as soon as they are assigned. Make sure to take your programs to get checked by the graders prior to turning programs in. YOUR HIGHEST TEST GRADE IS THE HIGHEST FINAL GRADE YOU CAN GET IN THE CLASS. Tests cover lots of information and it is critical to do well on exams.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: COMP1428
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

She is a poor lecturer, her grading rubric is even worse. The class average for programs is often below 60% because of arbitrary 0's , Exams are extremely hard. Not recommended.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

There's a reason why Becky's class is the last one to fill up. Project grades will fail you. A single wrong letter in a file name and you can get a 0 on a working project. One honest mistake (leave out a slash or comma, etc) can affect your letter grade. Your ability to perform academically is irrelevant. Do not take Becky.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Becky is easily the worst professor in the department. You can turn in code that works perfectly but get a 0 if youre out of her formatting. Heavy deductions are guaranteed if you mess up her style guide in the slightest.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Becky is extremely strict with grading. She trains you to pay attention to detail, in an often painstaking way. A wrong file name will cost you a zero on a project, and blank spaces or bad alignment will result in heavy deductions. Having a good partner is key in this class. Go to her office hours and she will help with the detail she expects.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Worst CS professor in the department. Her grading rubric for her programs is probably the worst part. You get 0s for getting one name in the title wrong, and so many points off for simple formatting issues. A program that runs fine can easily get a 0 because of spacing. Lectures are boring and all over the place.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Reichenau is a poor lecturer and her grading rubric is even worse. You are not graded on your ability to write good code. A program that doesn't compile can earn a 70 according to her rubric, while a perfect program with the wrong title will make a 0. The class average for programs is often below 50% because of arbitrary 0's from similar rules.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Becky is a great teacher! Sometimes the graders can be a little harsh with grading your programs, but she is always willing to look over and make any corrections.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

No organization or method. No online calendar or schedule. If you skip class, your grade is affected quite heavily. There is no textbook, so if you miss a lecture or two, you're almost guaranteed to fail the test for that unit. Your ability to code does NOT reflect how well you will do on projects or tests, ironically.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Insanely specific. Programs relatively light in coding take days because of her ridiculous expectations and formatting. Lectures are a mess. No substance or coordination, no organized notes or powerpoints. She talks (very quietly) about random specifics at random intervals. If this is your first CS course, take someone else. You have been warned.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

She is a really good professor, yes she though but learn a lot and as long as you put attention to the class you should be good. The most important thing is that if you get a bad grade you should definitely go to her office hours.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: D
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

While Becky is extremely strict on criteria for her assignments, especially programs, she is also very clear with what she wants and what she doesn't want. She tells you what you need to improve in when visiting her office.. You just need to know what to expect, and pay every attention to detail. I have to retake, but I'm confident this time.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

She tells you her expectations on day one and she means them. If you show up, pay attention and stay on top of the work load youll be fine. All programs are partner programs so I suggest finding a good one and sticking with them. Shes a tough grader but she clearly states what she expects from her students. Shes not as intimating as she seems!

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Only take this professor if you are okay with being a wreck at the end of the semester. Becky is a straight up evil kenevil. the worst. wants to make us cry then watch us drink our tears. would much rather gargle 20 dils while simultaneously reciting the alphabet backwards in Japanese and walking over glass with only $1 chanclas to protect me.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

If you are NOT a CS major don't take Becky. If you are a CS major I'd recommend taking her and finding another class to pad your GPA. She is a very tough grader but clear about her requirements and obviously knows her stuff. If you can pass her strict criteria then you're good for the next CS classes you need.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Becky is an okay teacher. Her lectures are very hard to sit through. She has VERY specific grading policies and you could have a perfect program but if you do not do it to her EXACT style guide. You could end up failing her class.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: C-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Not graded much on knowing the information, grades mainly depend on how many rules you're able to memorize. You can have a perfectly working program but if you don't have spaces (that the compiler doesn't care about) you'll end up with a 50. Take her if you have to, but if you care more about actually learning, I'd recommend you look elsewhere.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• 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:

Becky gears her class for CS majors and engineers. She's super specific about how she wants things done because seemingly minor mistakes could lead to a company losing millions or even human lives (this is coming from her former students of who are now making $$$). If you're unable to follow simple directions I recommend you do not take her class.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: F
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Don't ever take this class if you have no coding experience, if you are taking more than 2 other courses, or in the summer. Thought a CS minor would help my career. This teacher is the WORST! You spend many hours and headaches to make a program work and get 40/100. This is a 1000 lvl class teaching a foreign language to beginners... YEAH RIGHT!

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: CS1428
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Becky is not as bad as people make her seem. She just wants her assignments done a certain way and wants you to follow directions. If you don't, you get penalized. If you go to her she is willing to help and give you points back if you go about it the right way. Her graders will help you too. I made an A because I followed directions.