Simon Stow - College of William and Mary,Williamsburg, VA

Professor: Simon Stow

Department: Political Science

College: College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I loved having class with Professor Stow! He does assign a fair amount of reading, but he explains everything really well in class. There is a midterm and a final exam- and he's super accessible in office hours if you have any questions.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Stow is really quite unique. He gives interesting lectures and cares to learn about each student when visiting office hours. Go to his office hours when writing papers and read as much as you can of the assigned works to help for the final. He does care that you're participating, whether it's in class or through email and office visits.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Sometimes his hilarious rants made the subject matter confusing, and lectures got theoretical so understanding what was up in his head was hard. However, at the end of the day he REALLY wants you to succeed. I took this course as an underclassman and did well because of him. Office hours are great! And he is a genuinely kind guy, has a cute dog!!!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• 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:

Simon Stow is my favorite. He is brilliant, creative, and hilarious. I have shed tears from laughing so hard in the past. His RRP class has reasonable readings you can absolutely skim and he explains v. well in class participation, and a paper and final. Tests on quotes. GO to his OFFICE HOURS and he will give you everything you need to succeed!!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I loved RRP with Professor Stow so much. He has been my favorite professor at WM so far, and his class is well worth taking. He is absolutely hilarious, and his dry sense of humor never failed to make me laugh. GO TO OFFICE HOURS. He is beyond helpful and will guide you on how to make your paper better. ALSO DID I MENTION HIS ACCENT. It's awesome.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He's one of the best. Every one loves him and talks to him a lot. Personally I went to many of his office hours and he's extremely helpful. Truly intelligent and inspirational. Fun lectures but could be a bit tedious. Tough grader. Famous for testing quotes from assigned readings and associated authors so make sure you read throughout the semester!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: GOV305
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Greatest professor I have ever had during my time at William and Mary! He's so funny and nice, you can't help but like him! Best professor EVER!

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Professor Stow is good, but his style is not for everyone--it wasn't for me. He's an entertainer, but his tangents are frequent and frequently derailing. The readings are engaging, but lectures became thematically repetitive. Clear expectations. I enjoyed aspects of the class, but it was far from a highlight of my W&M experience.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Race, Rhetoric, and Poetry is hands down the best class I've taken at W&M. Stow is hilarious and incredibly insightful. The class material is fascinating and he presents the information in an entertaining way so you cant help but pay attention. 10/10. Take this class

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Simon Stow belongs in the college professors Hall of Fame. Pretty much every class we couldn't breathe because we were laughing so hard at his lectures. The man's a legend, former stand-up comic, and one of W&M's greatest assets. His enthusiasm for the content is contagious and you'll be thinking about his lessons long after you've left.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He's quite good. Seriously, sign up for one of his classes as quickly as possible.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

one sentence review. Where has this man been all my life???

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: 392
• 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:

He was okay.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: GOVT304
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I wish Simon would come back to W&M, he's a gem and a truly great asset to the school. So much respect for this man. It's an incredibly hard and challenging class, but so worth it in the end. Don't take his classes if you're trying to get an easy A.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392AFST306
• 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:

Remarkably well-versed in a variety of subjects. Integrates diverse material into lectures. I did not do all readings, but found that going to his lectures was the key! Extremely helpful/straightforward during Office Hours regarding the paper. (Grade is participation, paper, final). Made class extremely interesting and entertaining-very funny.Take!

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Race, Rhetoric, and Poetry is the best class I've taken at W&M hands down. Every class he integrated different stories, clips from the news, movies, or songs to his lectures to make the more dense theory make sense. His sense of humor is fantastic and definitely adds to the class. Helpful with the paper. Participation is important. Fair grader

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: GOVT303
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Stow is the best. He'll make you laugh every single class if you take sarcasm well. He is incredibly well educated on his topic. Hilarious guy. He is obsessed with good writing, so make sure you go to the WC for his papers. Do all the readings well in advance. He's mad hard but excellent teacher. If you're a gov major, take him.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: GOVT306
• 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:

This class requires that you show up, and probably that you do the readings. Stow makes it easy to do because his class is filled with engaging, intelligent analysis from start to finish. Not to mention that he is hilarious. His class is very enjoyable and the grading is fair and straight-forward. He grades on stuff that's actually been taught.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: GOV305
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His Contemp Political Theory class was awesome. He is so blunt, if you enjoy sarcasm and humor with lots of references to pop culture this is the guy! He takes things like songs by Dylan and makes actual lessons that make sense out of them. My favorite professor so far at W&M. He is not easy, you have to read, but its worth it!

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: GOVT392
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Extremely sarcastic and funny. Often goes off on entertaining tangents, but you end up learning a ton without even realizing it. Class isn't that much work--just one paper and a final--but he's very particular in his grading. You have to put in the effort, but it's worth it and you can definitely come out of the class without tanking your GPA.