Stephen Saideman - McGill University, Montreal, QC

Professor: Stephen Saideman

Department: Political Science

College: McGill University, Montreal, QC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

AWESOME teacher. He's funny and passionate about his subject! He knows what he's talking about and he will gladly have a conversation with you. It's a shame he's leaving McGill... Don't hesitate to take one of his classes, wherever he teaches!

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

AWESOME teacher. knows his stuff, makes it interesting and clear for students. funny. Harry Potter, zombies, southpark references included, yet you still learn a lot from his class

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

Hilarious teacher. Really knows how to keep students motivated and interested.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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: N/A

Comment:

This is a great class, Prof Saideman is a great educator. He makes all the concepts he teaches easy to understand, and he usually quite entertaining and educating. His passion transmits to his classes; I especially liked his lecture on Iraq (when he started shouting at GWB). It's sad to see him leave McGill!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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: N/A

Comment:

Yes, Saideman is full of himself, but that doesn't mean he is a bad teacher: he keeps you interested with his entertaining class and is crystal clear when it comes to explaining concepts. Your grade depends on your TA but generally they're not hard graders!

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

Awesome lecturer. He definitely knows his stuff and makes an effort to make the class as entertaining as possible (which he succeeds at admirably). I agree about the TAs, though. Getting a good TA is essential to getting a good mark. Lectures are recorded, but you won't want to miss one anyway.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I took this my first semester at McGill and now I'm in Poli Sci honours, having gone in with the intention of taking one politics class ever. The class is engaging and interesting and applicable.. I had Ora as my TA and that also made all the difference (amazing, but leaving this year). Hope for a good TA, but take this course if any Poli Sci at al

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

As mentioned already, lectures are entertaining and interesting. The challenge of the class lies on the TA you get since they are the ones that decide your grades.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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: N/A

Comment:

Saideman is a great lecturer. Gets his point across in a very clear and funny manner. He definitely knows his stuff. Getting a good TA is crucial to a good mark. The course material was very interesting and I really felt like I learned a lot about the basics in international relations. The trick to acing the final is name drop from the readings.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Excellent teacher, amusing lecturer, interesting readings and essay topics, and material that wasn't too difficult to grasp. Take this course with this prof if you're even remotely interested in political science

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

Amazing teacher. Very funny, keeps students entertained. Explains the concepts clearly. He worked at the Pentagon, and explained that for those who don't know what that means "its like getting taught defense against the dark arts by Professor Snape."

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Good lecturer - manages to keep the attention of a 600 person class, which is not easy. Funny and entertaining, though his joked do get a little old by the end of the semester. Overall he's excellent, and he knows his stuff. Made me want to go to class. The course material itself is OK. Do the readings!

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: POLI211
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is full of himself. TA's are useful but difficult markers. His lectures aren't always useful when answering his midterm question. He does give you the question in advance though - which is fair. He IS entertaining but his lectures lack real substance and material. They are recorded as well, so I feel I don't miss out if I skip one or two classes

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Not a difficult class, but then again very hard to fail one where the final asks you to write an essay on zombies. Material was straight-forward but the Prof really laid into me when I handed a paper late by a day; very unprofessional. Also loves to make George W. Bush jokes; funny to first-year students, but soon his humor wears out its welcome.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

Best prof I had first year. This course was amazing and Saideman was an incredible prof. Definitely take this class! The marking was very fair as well.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

SO full of himself.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

The absolute best prof at McGill. Intelligent, funny, energetic. He's a master of IR, but he manages to avoid being intimidating by playing rock music at the beginning of every class as everyone makes their way into the room. A brilliant professor. Take this course.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

He is an execellent lecturer at the beginning of the semester, gets a little boring by the end. I personnally found that I did not know exactly what he wanted from papers, so I ended up with grades on the papers that were decent rather than good. Aside from that, he was fantastic and have searched for other classes that he teaches.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Saideman was a pretty good professor. Lectures were interesting. Make sure your TA is good! if you think they wont be, switch. Text is important, and i'd say reading is pretty heavy. Good course overall, i'd recommend it.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: POLI244
• 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:

Saideman= incredibly hot/amazing/intelligent/wonderful professor in the ENTIRE world!!!! The textbook is very interesting and his lectures are clear,concise, and fun to go to! No McGill education is complete without taking Poli 244!