Ian F. Putnam - University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Professor: Ian F. Putnam

Department: Mathematics

College: University of Victoria, Victoria, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MATH212
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Makes his own textbook basically for this class, amazing lectures takes lots of questions with through answers in class. only funny math prof i have ever met. makes you work alittle hard for your marks but usually does best 5 of 6 in this hw assignment heavy for grade class. tons of availability out of class best prof ever.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MATH311
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Ian is one of the best professors at UVic. He's a great guy and really respects his students. His blackboard technique and proofs/explanations are clear and thorough. Assignments are challenging, but designed to teach you the material - the exams end up being easy in comparison. Take any class you can with him!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MATH212
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Putnam is an amazing professor! His lectures were interesting, his explanations were clear and his assignments (although veryyy long) were fair and helpful. I would definitely take another course with him!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MATH212
• 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:

Dr. Putnam was really great in office hours, and tried to help as much as possible. His exams were like his homework (moderately difficult), and in class his explanations were sometimes pretty rough. His explanations were sometimes a bit hard to follow, but overall good prof. Would take another class with him.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MATH333C
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Pretty good teacher, easy to listen to and generous with marks

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: 233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

OK - bad bad choice in text. Strang is horrible. He is really good in lectures though. Nice guy, knows his stuff quite well is organized and moves at a good pace. Some people got annoyed at his occasional diversions but they gave some refreshing perspective on things that are hard to see as relevant. Tests are very fair in terms of material compreh

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: 233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

The textbook was horrible, no answers.... I had to take a lot of extra time and notes to read slowly and carefully through the material to understand it. Some sections weren't taught as well.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Ian seems to be a good prof. I find it quite funny when he goes on his hardly audible little rants with himself. As a linear algebra prof, he seems to be better than anyone esle teaching the course, but still not great. It is an introductory course, but not an introductory text. I went in with no linear algebra knowledge and _struggled_.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is not the best linear algebra professor, but he teaches okay. Sometimes it it hard to follow what he is talking about and understand his notes. The textbook written by Gilbert Strang is by far the worst one I've ever used. This class is not for people who don't have any linear algebra background.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I would never take one of Dr. Putnams classes EVER again. He has to have picked the worst textbook in the history of linear algebra.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: 491B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr Putnam is amazing. He was the best professor of my entire 5 year degree and I highly recommend taking anything from him. He can make the most difficult concepts/proofs completely understandable. He's also a really nice guy and very helpful in his office. You never feel like you're a student in his class - instead more like a colleague. Excellent

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Very good prof, his notes are a bit disorganized but he is great in his office hours. He is a very helpful prof and seems to like teaching. Classes are pretty good but he doesn't like it when students talk in class! I would recommend taking a course with him.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

When I approached him for help with homework, he was incredibly helpful. His notes in class seemed kind of vague and hard to follow, but that's probably just how Math 233A is. If you space out for more than 30 seconds in class you will be completely lost. Nice guy.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: 491
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

More of the same I guess. & 491b=dynamical systems. Pretty much everything is clear & he's always helpful during the office hrs.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MATH233
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Great guy. Makes math as fun as it could possibly be. Is is just me or does he remind you of Gary Sinise?

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MATH465
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Putnam is an excellent topology lecturer. His exams are a bit on the difficult side and I would recommend putting in a lot of time and effort if you want to survive with a decent grade.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor Putnam is the rock star of the math department.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MATH233
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Very clear, interesting. Adds in extra applications to make things interesting.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: MATH233A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dont miss a single class or you're screwed. Very helpful at office hours.