Richard Born - Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY

Professor: Richard Born

Department: Political Science

College: Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Born is not known as "B minus Born" for nothing- he is a very tough grader. I am not a big political science but I consider myself to be a good student- with that said, his lectures were some of the most dry and boring talks I've ever experienced. He is helpful in office hours but he is hard to communicate with.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Born knows so much about U.S. election history it's incredible. Although his voice can drone on through class, if you can pay attention he has a lot of information to give. Unfortunately the papers we did had nothing to do with material learned in class. You could probably skip every class as long as you kept up with the readings and pass

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: POLI207
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Born was not as bad as I thought. I actually became a lot more interested in the material as the class went along, which motivated me to work harder at learning the mathy parts. Office hours were awkward, and his lectures can drone on and on. His paper comments are helpful. Overall, I think you really come out having really learned something.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Born is a sweet, old man with a wonderful sense of humor. He is socially awkward, however, and this shows when he's trying to help students, which usually isn't helpful at all. I only used the books thrice; you could probably get by borrowing from a classmate. He's also a super tough paper grader.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I actually really like Born. He's hilarious and knows so damn much about American Politics and Elections. He can get boring and all he does is lecture (also very awkward in office hours), but if you do the readings and really listen to him you can learn a tremendous amount.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Richard can get kind of monotonous at times, but he tells a lot of jokes so if you're paying attention, you'll catch them and they'll break the monotony. There's a lot of reading, but there isn't much discussion about them in class. That being said, you need the readings for essays, so you should do them. He's super smart.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: 10553
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

The most boring professor and teacher I have ever had. You also don't have to read the readings to do well in his class. He doesn't even discuss them.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

This man speaks for an hour and fifteen minutes without stopping to breathe. He also loves to throw random facts that don't necessarily pertain to the topic at hand. He grades relatively tough, although I managed to get A's and A-'s on my papers, so he doesn't ONLY give out B-'s. He's definitely in expert in the field.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Born knows just about everything about American Politics. His lectures however, are pretty dry and often left me bored, despite a strong interest in the subject. He was quite funny at times, although a lot of people seemed to miss his humor. The assignments were few and far between, and reading was plentiful. Overall tough + boring.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: POLI207
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

This class was TRAUMATICALLY boring. Like, classes were painful and bad for the soul. The material was dry and rarely were students asked to be active thinkers. Stay away, for your own sake.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: POLI341
• 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:

One of the kindest/most dedicated professors at Vassar. Written feedback on papers is phenomenal. Don't take a class with him if you're not going to do the reading. Grades tougher than most of the Vassar poli sci department (which isn't saying much), but an A is certainly attainable if you write well and put in the work.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Very intriguing teacher who demonstrates an interest in the field and adds a tint of humor while teaching his course. He's very approachable and is willing to sit down with you to discuss politics.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• 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:

I adore Professor Born. He made me want to be a polisci major. He probably knows everything about congress and even when he goes on tangents they are fascinating. He's a fair grader for sure, despite his nickname. Can't wait to take more classes with him.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: POLI240
• 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:

Professor Born is amazing. He is extremely funny and knows everything about his subject. I know that his nickname is B- Born but I've never gotten below a B+ in his classes. Just do the reading and you'll find the exams really easy. The reading may look intimidating but it's actually really fun, so don't be discouraged.

Rating # 15

Overview:

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

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

Comment:

A great asset to Vassar. He can answer the most obscure questions about American politics. You will be bored if you don't come to class prepared. He's not really animated. You'll get out of the class what you put into it. Doesn't give out A's except to exceptional writers.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: POLI207
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

NEVER AGAIN. Unless you like election stats hardcore, don't take this class. And when I mean stats, I mean multivariabled equations as well. At first, this class may seem interesting, but then your grades in his class will reflect what you truly feel about him.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: POLI100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

His classes are interesting and you learn a lot. His assignments on the other hand are a total mess... SOO HARD! and the problem is the only grade you will get is maximmum a B. so for those who want to do grad AVOID. Readings suck and are extremely long.

Rating # 18

Overview:

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

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

Comment:

They dont call him B- Born for no reason. He also dosnt really like South Carolina.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He does have a cult, and they're great to love him, but he really does belong with his stats. Unraveling lectures wherein the only thing accomplished was to cover Prof. Born in as much chalk as humanly possible, rambling tangents, unhelpful office hours, enigmatic assignments, off-topic readings, and a tendency not to socialize all serve to underscore the point that he did in fact go to MIT.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: POLI140
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

A very bad teacher, in my opinion. His class was dull and rambling, his readings just barely related to the class. I rarely understood the points he was trying to make. He took an engaging subject and made it confusing, infuriating, and boring.