Ira Hyman - Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

Professor: Ira Hyman

Department: Psychology

College: Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: COGNITION210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I agree with the previous comments, pay close attention to the examples he gives, because the way he gives examples is the way he presents materials on the test. If you have a hard time writing notes from slides, ask for a notetaker and focus your attention on the examples, then go over your notes with the notetaker's notes when you get home.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: COGNITION210
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman is a great professor! Hilarious yes and don't worry... his slides end up on Canvas once the section he is teaching is over. Listen during lecture and take notes sparingly. Write down the examples he gives along with the concept instead of trying to copy down the slides. This will help tremendously. Enjoy!!!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman is hilarious so you'll definitely laugh during his lectures, but you won't be laughing at how hard his tests are. Each exam is cumulative and the final is worth 40% of your grade. I'm writing this in the middle of the quarter because I don't care how I do in his class overall. I just want the pain to stop.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: PSY311
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

While I admire this man a lot, I do have to say that his grading for the final exam is incredibly subjective. I spent hours on this project, and while I do accept the grade I received, I do think that the grading criteria could be clearer. Future students should encourage Dr. Hyman to post grading rubrics. This is essential.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: PSY303
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Arrogant

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Harder than any 300 level I've taken. The 4 exams are cumulative and the final is 40% of your grade. There aren't any other assignments except a couple small write-ups, worth max 3%. Hardest exams I've had & they were unnecessarily confusing & difficult despite tons of studying. Lecture slides are vague & he goes too fast to take quality notes.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: COGNITION210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman is a good professor, and his lectures are clear and precise although the way he lectures and sets up his powerpoint slides makes it difficult to take notes. He also speaks super fast which can make it more difficult. He graded us solely on exams which makes the class harder as well as a bit intimidating.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I loved coming to this class. The lectures were always engaging and Hyman is hilarious. If you ever have questions he is more than willing to answer them. One of the best professors I've had.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: COGNITION210
• 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:

Mixed feelings on Ira. He genenuinely gives great, entertaining, intelligent lectures. However as much as he is a great lecturer, his exams were the toughest I've encountered and I'm a 3.8 student. Some Q's I feel were purposely confusing/unclear. He gives me the vibe that he would be the type of prof. to not like seeing a lot of the class get an A

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: PSY311
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman is a wonderful person and a great professor, too. He very clearly cares about his students and wants you to succeed. I took Cognition with him, too, but preferred this class. Your entire grade is only based off of four things, though (two lab reports, one MC exam, and an essay take home final). He is tough on grading for writing, though.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• 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:

Dr. Hyman is one of my favorite professors of all time. Not only is he very passionate and knowledgeable in his field, he is also hilarious. I don't think he made it through a single lecture without using an F-Bomb, and I don't mean that to be negative. Grades are based only on tests, so study for them, as they are no joke. Clear grading criteria.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: PSYCH411
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Wants things done his way. Grades tough, but tells you what needs to be fixed and gives opportunities to do so. Non-structured discussion format for the seminar and he easily gets off topic. Doesn't have much availability outside of class. Class was okay.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: Audit/No Grade
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

One of the best professors I've ever had. So funny and sweet. Makes class exciting, you won't be falling asleep! Definitely test heavy, and they're kind of hard. But if you get the concepts they're fine. Would recommend.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Hyman is a great lecturer. Sharp, funny, and interesting. He will keep your attention. However, no matter how hard I studied for the exams, I would never feel confident after leaving an exam. I ended up doing alright in the class, but that always made me uneasy. I do recommend taking a class with though, he's an experience.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Ira was a very interesting teacher! He definitely loves what he does and gives pretty good examples in class most the time. Reading the book and taking good notes are essential. The class consists of 4 cumulative exams and 3 extra credit response papers. The exams are really tough, but if you use his office hours he helps a lot!

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

One of the best teachers, IMO, at Western. He gives extra credit and his tests are honestly not hard if you do the reading, go to lectures, and do the study guide, I'm living proof- first exam got a 90 and last one got a 67 due to not doing the things above. ALL TESTS ARE CUMULATIVE, beware. Just stay on top of your stuff and you'll get an A.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

3 long midterms & 1 long final - all cumulative & multiple choice. Caught a couple of typos on every exam; questions were sometimes confusing. Entertaining lectures but you can hardly understand the powerpoints unless you've attended the lectures and taken good notes. Would've been more helpful if he had posted practice exams.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman is freaking hilarious. Cracks jokes all the time and keeps class interesting. I had issues paying attention because the lectures are really long. Most topics are interesting, but it's hard to pay attention. Highly recommend coming to class, but it isn't required. The tests get really hard if you skip. If he has study guides, do them!

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He is a very good teacher. Tests are accumulative and grudgingly, i admit that it was helpful in actually absorbing the information. Cognition is a difficult topic and you learn a lot of different theories but he made the lectures fun and entertaining. He uses a lot of helpful examples and makes it clear what he expects from you.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: PSY210
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Hyman obviously cares a great deal about his work, research, students, and world around him. He applies cognitive psychology to his lectures which is great to see, as well. All tests are accumulative and pretty hard, though, so beware. I didn't read the textbook at all, but it probably would've helped my grade. DO THE OPTIONAL RESPONSE PAPERS!