Jocelyn Neal - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC

Professor: Jocelyn Neal

Department: Music

College: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MUSC381
• 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:

I had Prof Neal for both 121 & 381. MUSC381 (songwriting) was honestly the best class Ive had at UNC. She was so passionate about us creating material and was patient with us. For 121, she is a tough grader. I had this class but dropped it (simply because I didnt need it anymore). I would recommend taking a smaller class with Prof Neal!

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

SUPER tough grader. TAs graded stuff most of the year, and I thought they were tough, but Prof Neal became the primary grader the last two weeks and my homework and quiz grades dropped 10-15 points. Obviously very passionate about the material, unfortunately its not particularly engaging. Bearable if you're a music major or minor, stay away if not.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

I really enjoyed Prof. Neal's class. Instructions were clear and quizzes were not difficult if you put in the work. Very conceptual class so keep an open mind and it's pretty enjoyable/laid back. Prof. Neal can come off as condescending in class, but go to her office hours because she's very passionate, kind, and accommodating! Gets a bad rap

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I was required to take this course but I can honestly say that if this was the first course I had taken in the music department I would not have continued my musical studies. Professor Neal is extremely intelligent but also extremely condescending. The class material is difficult but only because it is not taught or explained well.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Prof. Neal is easily the worst professor Ive had at UNC. It is like her sole purpose of being a teacher is just to show off how many SAT vocab words she can fit in one sentence. The TAs will literally take off points because you couldnt read prof. Neals mind to see what she was actually asking on the quiz. Dont take this class.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor Neal is a very sweet and caring professor. The curriculum for Music 120, however, is not super interesting. For an intro to music class, there is a lot of homework/quizzes. The TA's grade your work and mine happened to be pretty tough. Be ready to read, work, and participate!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

She's easily the worst professor I've ever had. I'm passing right now, but it hasn't been fun or easy at all. Her grading criteria is specific and harsh--if you're one word off in an answer, she takes off a few points. Very condescending, and makes everything way harder than it needs to be. Class is too conceptual to actually learn anything useful.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MUSIC144
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Tough, tough, tough tests. Passionate teacher, but totally ridiculous tests that are almost impossible to study for. Hardest class I've taken at UNC including Econ 410 and Econ 420.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MUSC144
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Seriously do not take this class! Dr. Neal's lectures are boring, and while she clearly knows what she's talking about, she puts zero enthusiasm into the class. The TAs graded the 6 assignments harshly and slowly. The listening quizzes and final required you to know minor details that she said maybe once in class. I regret taking this class!

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

This class was really just okay. Professor Neal definitely knows what she's talking about, but her tests/quizzes didn't always accurately represent what we had learned in each unit. If you have to take this for your major/minor, it's meh but fine; if you're looking at taking this for a VP, I wouldn't.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: MUSC144
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Neal really is one of the worst professors I have ever had. She expects the respect of her students, but doesn't return the favor. I went in loving country music, but came out hating most of the songs she made us study. Good news, however, is she gave plenty of opportunities for extra credit.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MUSC144
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor Neal does not care about her students. She comes to class everyday with the intention of proving how much more she knows than her students, which makes her very unapproachable & condescending, causing students to feel very "small." She is not accommodating whatsoever & her assignments are time consuming & she takes forever to grade them.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MUSC294
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Neal knows so much about music and is eager to share her knowledge. In a small class (about 20 people), she was a great teacher and very approachable! Definitely more enjoyable if you care about the subject matter. If you do the work, you'll do fine in the class and definitely learn from it. Overall, would recommend.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: MUSC131
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Neal is very skilled at theory, but is completely unapproachable as a person. In class, she calls on students at random, pretends to "forget" their names (which she never learned) and makes faces at incorrect responses, giving the impression that she doesn't actually care about her students, just about showing off her knowledge. Avoid.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MUSC131
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

While she is obviously intelligent, Dr. Neal is intimidating at best and straight-up snarky, rude, and condescending at worst. She thinks her word is absolute, and won't hesitate to completely mow down students who express opinions that might be different from hers. Don't take classes with her if you want to keep your sanity.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

For MUSC 120, Professor Neal stated her goals clearly and was very deliberate in expanding a first-year music student's understanding of what music is. Tough but rewarding ultimately. I feel that this course was interesting and very philosophical. Keep an open mind about it and be ready to challenge your own views of music, listening and sound.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Neal is very intelligent and knowledgable, however, the class was more difficult than it needed to be, especially since it is the required introductory class for the major. The grading, done exclusively by the T.A.'s, was unclear, and many expectations were never specified until after the assignment was graded.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

In all 18 years of my life, I have never met a teacher who is as cancerous and satanic as Prof Neal. She writes notes that will never be tested on her exams, and they look like a blind three-year old's doodles. Every time I attended lecture, I just wanted to hang myself. She is a complete and utter psychopath. DO NOT TAKE HER CLASS IF YOU LOVE LIFE

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Prof Neal is a terrible teacher. Music 120 sounded interesting in the beginning but she made me hate every part of it. I used Wikipedia to study for her tests. Her study guides were practically useless. DO NOT TAKE IF YOU ARE NOT A MUSIC MAJOR. If you are a music major then wait until someone else teaches the class.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: MUSC120
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Neal's class, one that should be an intro to the study of music, could turn off a lot of potential students from the department. Quizzes were marked all or nothing, even on multi-step questions. Assignments were given back slowly and with little to no explanation of points lost. Dr. Neal often addressed student questions with hostility. Avoid.