Lara Braitstein - McGill University, Montreal, QC

Professor: Lara Braitstein

Department: Religious Studies

College: McGill University, Montreal, QC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Entertaining and interesting lectures. Some of the reading/hw feels redundant from class and vice versa but she's all about clarifying and is really good with answering student questions in class. Humble and you can tell she's a HUMAN. Very likeable and well spoken.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

She's all right. Had her as a prof. for Buddhism. She has no powerpoints so basically you listen to her lecture as if it were a story. So, attendance is mandatory if you wanna pass. She seems nice and is enthusiastic about the material.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: REL252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

She doesn't give the clearest lectures, and doesn't post slides - so if you skip even a single class, you're in trouble for the test and essay. Other than that, she 's a fair marker and her lectures aren't too boring, so she's worth taking in a pinch

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: RELG369
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Braitstein is amazing. She made a 10-day intensive course very enjoyable and worth attending. She's an expert in her field and really explains everything perfectly. The course was very eye-opening and definitely makes you want to further explore the topic. She's absolutely hilarious and you'd be missing out if you didn't take a class with her.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: 252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Braitstein is my favorite prof. Her lectures are often hilarious, which is good because the material is super deep and challenging. I hope I get the chance to attend more of her classes.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Funny professor who is good at simplifying and relating Buddhism to her students. Interesting material covered. Buddhism is the better section of this class by far and the test is really easy. Take it!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: REL252
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Awesome prof!! she is so into what she is talking about it is contagious, go to class though because her slideshows aren't that good. Would recommend 100%, one of my favourite profs at mcgill.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: RELG344
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

My favourite professor at McGill. Incredibly clear and absolutely hilarious. Expert in her field, and always very approachable. Take any/every class you can with Lara!

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: RELG453
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Braitstein is one of my favorite profs at McGill and I will probably remember the insights she brought to class far beyond graduation. That being said her class is not always the most linear if that's what you're into and is instead more conceptual

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

The clarity of her lectures is just amazing. She makes concepts that are difficult to understand digestible even for those who have no background knowledge of Buddhism whatsoever.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Totally relaxed hippy, really nice. Tests aren't hard if you study, but Learning Cells are confusing and marked toughly.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Her power point slides are generally uninformative, but the clarity of her oral presentation makes up for it. Her tests and assignments are quite easy, if you take any time to study. She is personable, likable and humorous, both in persona and during lectures, which makes them quite enjoyable. I highly recommended her.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: RELG560
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

A lovely human being. Sarcastic, yes, and she can act nasty but only when you deserve it. Otherwise, heart of gold. Take an upper-level class with her: She's much more engaged than she is at the 200-level. (Like most professors.) Any lack of clarity is not her fault - YOU try explaining "the non-duality of duality and non-duality!"

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• 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:

Sooooooooo funny. Really good sense of humour. Easy test questions. Interesting final essay question. Made a potentially dense/boring topic really interesting. Would for sure take another of her classes!

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

She is okay, but her PPT are really bad. They usually consist of 1 point or 2, on which she expands considerably, and sometimes goes on tangeants. Her grading is a bit awkward, she grades harsher than all her TAs, so hope that the TA grades your exam! Other than that, interesting class! Good for elective or intro.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Good lecturer, makes all lectures interesting. Loves her subject, and really pushes students to get involved at a higher level. Recommended for an intro class.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Good prof, very sincere and answers questions really well. I found her explanations clear and she has a really good sarcastic sense of humour. And I don't know what people are saying about her being ****, I didn't find that at all.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: RELG344
• 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:

Hard marker but gives great feedback on papers and tests. Very clear, interesting (and fun!) lectures.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: RELG344
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

She is a hard marker, but her lectures are really wonderful... except when the topic is the Ten Thousand Lists of Perfection. If her lectures are unclear, it's 'cause the philosophy is about as lucid as granite. She herself is very approachable, open to q&a, loves her subject, and laid down the material in a very straightforward and enjoyable way.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: RELG252
• 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:

She is so nice. But she's a little confusing however she is always ready to help her students so feel free to go see her in her office. Her paper was super hard. That was the only bad part. It was this vague poem that you had to relate to the readings. Challenging to say the least. I suppose I would take her again...