David White - University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Professor: David White

Department: Theology

College: University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Okay so I had him my freshman year. I found his lectures to be extremely boring, but that's just me. It was hard trying to stay awake. Read the book, his exams are based on it since, ya know, he wrote it. He makes some jokes, that's the only highlight. Sometimes I just laughed cause others were laughing (I was half-asleep, as mentioned earlier).

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: RS12
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

I really liked Prof White's teaching style, and I found the material interesting! Some topics were drier than others. The textbook can help w/ contextualizing lectures, but it's not necessary. Go to lecture and write down EVERYTHING; even the minutia is fair game. There's only one paper and 2 tests. Lots of memorization! Pay attn to connections!!!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

To be honest, many students complain about this class and it is not that bad. This class is pretty interesting and if you study and attend lecture, the class is manageable. However, it requires a lot of just memorization so if thats not your thing then maybe take something else. Prof White is hilarious though.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

He never posts the lecture slides online, so be ready to go to class. Lectures are really boring and dry, but the material can be very interesting, depending on your preferences. You must focus on the vocabulary he gives out. Also if you take notes, be sure to write things he doesn't put on the lecture slides, things said in passing; you're tested.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

highly recommend you do not take this class unless youre seriously interested in the subject. professor white is very smart and knowledgeable on the subject, however he talks very quietly and says a lot of info that isnt on the slides. the class is super memorization heavy as well.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: RS12
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

My favorite professor so far! He's a super interesting guy and has a lot of cool stories. His lectures are never boring, but he does NOT post them online so you need to go to class. RS12 itself is super interesting; reading Prof. White's book is not 100% mandatory but it will help you. Love this class!!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

The class has interesting material, but is super specific, so you need to memorize loads of information for the midterm and final.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: D-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

i am in love with this man. very eccentric and really thought provoking and cool lectures. absolute chiller. the only class i went to consistently in fall. multiple choice questions are really hard, so go to every lecture. if you arent into philosophy/religion you might find it boring, but i loved. grade is bc i missed final by accident.. 10/10 tho

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Material seems straightforward and the tests should be based on topics that are heavily covered but it seems that he includes only very small and very specific items on the tests. Even if you attend all the lectures, read and participate in section, you can still get a bad grade. Very scattered and confusing lectures, do not take if looking for GE

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He has a monotone voice so it was easy to fall asleep in his class. KEEP UP WITH THE READING. If you know what is going on you'll have a fine time. Lots to memorize . Your section TA could make or break this class. Makes really funny jokes . Not an easy A class but maybe easy B.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: RELIGST12
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor White is literally so chill. His lectures were very dense but interesting. He also lightened up the mood by telling jokes and interacting with the class. Absolutely loved this course!

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

The coolest and funniest professor I have had so far. He really knows what he is teaching and lectures are almost always entertaining.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• 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:

David White is a super chill professor! I would take his class again, his lectures are very dense and there is a lot of memorization. The most important thing you can do for this class is to study the connections between the religions. Midterm multiple choice can be pretty tough, but the fill in portion is easy if you go over the study guides.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: RELIGST12
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Bad professor - messy, scattered lecturer and there's no structure to his class. The class name sounds interesting but the material is dense, fact/historical based, lengthy, and difficult. Unless you're SUPER into religion, this is a bad choice. Lecture attendance is essential. If you're looking for a fun/interesting GE, do NOT take this class.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

If you are looking for an easy A, I would avoid this class. It was a lot of material, memorization, and connections. The lectures were also pretty boring because his voice is really monotone. The TAs do everything they can to make the class better.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

His lectures are long and cover a lot of religions. You need to pay attention in lecture in order to do well on the final (which is cumulative on the two essays). The readings for the class in the textbook are not necessary to do. He knows what he is talking about and will try to make connections in lecture.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: RS12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor White is one of the best professors I've had at UCSB! He really knows the material he's teaching and drops super funny jokes here and there. Nothing's too confusing and everything is super interesting if you pay attention. Super organized, and usually clarifies things. I love the man, I loved his class!

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: RGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Took this class because of how fun RateMyProfessors made it seem. It was insanely boring. Long, monotonous lectures. Would go past class time. Too much to memorize&learn. Information is confusing. turned out I only needed to read to participate in section. Study connections. Not just the vocab sheet. Study all the images. Bad choice in the end.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: RELIGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

White is a nice guy but that doesn't make up for his bad course RL ST 12. Long, boring lectures where I learned insignificant tidbits of so many religions that I just ended up forgetting all of it. Maybe I would have remembered more if he wasn't bouncing back and forth across the world every lecture. Get ready to memorize! P NP grading advised

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: REGST12
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

I LOVE Professor White. I always looked forward to going to his lectures. There is VERY little writing & reading in the class-- just quite a bit of memorization, esp. to prepare yourself for the (tough, but fair) midterm-- but it all is very interesting and presented in lecture. He's really funny and makes the subject fascinating. Great teacher.