Clifford Burgess - Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC

Professor: Clifford Burgess

Department: Linguistics

College: Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: D100
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Cliff is a tough grader but it is evident he really cares about his students. Make sure you pay attention and ask questions! He is very friendly one-on-one so don't be afraid to see him during his office hours.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: LING282
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Cliff is a great professor. He's organized on canvas, records all of his lectures incase you miss one, and is readily accessible for help outside of class. I do think that visiting him in his office hours are extremely beneficial, especially for a writing class.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: LING282W
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

The course is too painful. What cliff does is more or less what we call a destruction of humanity. I went to every single office hr to get help but he seems to see no improvement of you. It is a course to help you improve your writing skills, but Cliff used it to destroy your self-esteem on writing academic papers. Thank you for your help btw!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: LING362
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

if you like public speaking/want to be an esl teacher, you should take LING 362 with him (in fact, he is the only one who teaches LING 362 at sfu). he is definitely a tough grader and you would get your points deducted even for the very tiny things. so, MAKE SURE to follow his instructions, visit his office hours, and put as much effort as you can

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: LING362
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

This is a great class that teaches valuable public speaking, and presentation skills. Professor gives specific feedback, marks harshly. Do something wrong and will be penalized. Sometimes intimidating. His lecture slides are basically his speech ( good/ bad?). But each presentation is 2030% of your grade. DO NOT go over time. PRACTICE A LOT.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: LING100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Don't take this course with this professor if you want to boost your GPA

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: LING100
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Lectures were long but he's super engaging. Quizzes were pretty nasty, but tests were WAY worse, like they really did batter me. Online quizzes were decent but super specific. He does a great job of explaining thing, is very passionate about ling, and goes over quizzes/tests well. Overall decent class, just pls pls pls be prepared for testing.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

I'm a ling major and I took this class in my last semester for an LD credit I needed. Much of Cliff's theories seemed incorrect. I was taught very contradictory things in this class than I had learned in 200, and 300 level classes. Go to class and memorize his opinion and you'll do fine, but expect to learn drastically different things elsewhere.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Cliff is a great prof! His passion for linguistics is clear in his interactive lectures. He is very caring and he makes each class interesting. However, this is not a "gpa booster" class. He is a fair but tough marker - you need a thorough understanding of the material to do well. Would recommend if you're passionate about linguistics.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

so hard....

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• 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:

Engaging, funny and caring. He gives you everything you need to pass, responds to e-mails and will always help you in office hours. He gives you everything you need to get a good grade but you have to work for it

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: LING100
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Took this class as it sounded very interesting. Was excited to learn, but by exam week I was regretting taking this course. Slides were very informative, tests looked like they were from a 400 level course. Don't take this class if you're looking for an elective. If you arent in Linguistics (I am a bus student) then stay away.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: LING100
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Was not looking forward to this class since it was 3 hours but he has made things so interesting right from the beginning! Lectures are super clear and slides are easy to understand. Quizzes are reasonable, tests are a bit tough but nothing out of the ordinary. His review assignments and slides are great. Overall, will do his best to help you pass

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: LING200
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

dont take it. his exam is harder than other teachers who have ever tought ling200

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: LING200
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

dont have to go to class. I learn by myself, the score was even higher than go to lec. study at home is more efficiency. dont have to look at book just the PPT.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: LING362
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He seems tough and unfriendly but if you are willing to stop by his office hours often, you will find him helpful. This course does not require too much of work in general. English is not my first language and I did not study much for the MT, still I got a B-. Now I am able to speak in front of the class. I love it!

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Really recommend this class. Wish I'd taken the grammar class with him too. He records lectures so it's really helpful for review. Also gives midterms back; great for review. Best prof I had this semester. Makes the long lectures less boring too. Also has a lot of office hours for help. Will make sure everything is fair for his students.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: 110
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is really a good professor, but his exams are not easy. You don't need to attend his class every time cause he posted videos on canvas. Try to organize his notes and ask him when you get confused, you can get good marks.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: LING362
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Really good at getting the material across. Just don't take if you're looking for an easy credit. For LING362 he expects a lot out of you.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: LING110
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Really great- he explained everything clearly, was very helpful answering questions, and made some of the more boring material interesting.