Michael Anderson - George Mason University

Professor: Michael Anderson

Department: Psychology

College: George Mason University

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: PSYC325
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Great professor with some interesting stories. It is a hard class though, so studying and showing up for lectures is strongly advised.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I'll give the guy some slack. It was apparently his first time teaching an introductory course with a huge class of 270. He seemed to be well knowledgeable in his field, however his teaching was inconsistent. First test covered only 3 chaps but was tough; the other tests covered 5-7 chaps. Final was cumulative and he dropped the lowest test grade.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

To be fair, he was handling over 300 students (most of which didnt care). However, i did feel he could've handled the tests a little better. The first exam was tough but at least it only covered the first 3 chapters. The next 2 exams covered more and more chapters at a time! Oh and the final is cumulative of course.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

In my opinion, the only difficult part is the amount of content there is with each chapter. He isn't specific about what will be on the exam so I felt like I just had to know EVERYTHING. I found I did best when I read the chapters before every lecture--only problem is each chapter is a novel. Extra credit assignment are life savers, though.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

long boring lectures,lots of note; make sure to understand content and not memorize study guides are vague; fill them out with your notes & they'll help. 2 & 3 exam are A LOT of chapters so don't procrastinate. practice test online will help. do extra credit papers + lab cuz 10% boost to grade average. final exam are Q's from prev exams

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

The class is harder that should be expected for an intro class, but it isn't impossible. The online quizzes that come with the access code are very important because he uses some of those questions on the exam!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor Anderson is a smart professor. However, the classes are long and he talks in a quite quiet voice. You will do well in the class if you memorize his powerpoint, read the textbook, and doing the activities that he assigns. However, the grading is a bit harsh since tests were 93% of our grade.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Horrible structure and consistency for a 100 class, He couldn't cover all of the chapters in time so for the third exam (a week before finals week )we had to learn and cover 7 chapters!!!! Seven chapters for an exam with a bunch of materials fitted in a 50 multiple choice question exam is ridiculous.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Long, big lectures that are boring material and boringly taught. He's a nice guy but he gets distracted to easily. Take another teacher if you can.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: PSYC100
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

It is hard being in a 300 person lecture, but he makes it feel like a small classroom. Because he can sometimes get sidetracked it is important to skim the textbook which is not that bad, but if you love a witty professor with great stories and a passion for psyc, Michael Anderson is the guy for you!

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: PSYC405
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

We only covered half the material because he spent 95% of his classes telling personal stories. He takes attendance at the beginning and at the middle of the class. He said that his exams only focus on the pp presentations, but then he would ask questions from the book. He lacked clarity, organization, and constantly made offensive comments.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: PSY405
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He is a really bad professor and he tells stories all the time. The only thing he talks about is if alcoholism is a sin or a disease. The title of the course is Mystery, Madness, and Murder and it's not about that at all. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS!!!!! After an hour or so into the class people are either on their phones or sleeping.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: PSYC405
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

If you like stories and having a professor who gets side tracked all the time, here's a great professor for you! Otherwise, he does not follow the syllabus consistently and also does not update it either. He does not use blackboard. It is a challenge to contact him through email.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: PSYC405
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dislikes differing opinions from his own. He does offer extra credit. Gets derailed with personal life stories (which rarely have any connection to the topic at hand)so when he finally gets to his slides we have to rush.He reviews them too quickly for anyone to type or take notes. Exams are difficult.Returns them in grade order (embarrassing).

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: PSYC372
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Taught the course as if we were all majors in neuropsych. Jumped around the syllabus, went quickly through material, and did not respond to emails. Lacking in technology knowledge. Very hard; most of my classmates dropped or received C's or lower. He also made a questionable comment that offended a few students, myself included.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: PSYC466
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

I took 466 with him. The class was by far my favorite at mason. Class was incredibly interactive and a lot of fun. I HIGHLY recommend taking him. You will never use the book so don't buy it, and lets just say I am a B+ student and with little to no effort, I received a 99.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: PSYCH372
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He is a nice man. The material is really dense and his exams can be tricky. I have had many psych professors and classes and this is my hardest class yet. He tries to help the class understand, the material moves fast. You need the textbook. His study guides for tests are not super helpful. It is what it is.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: PSYC372
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

My experience with Dr. Anderson was great as he was always helpful by answering my questions and helping out with research papers and was always open to giving extra credit. I walked out of all his classes with at least a B if not higher as I really enjoyed his classes. They were fun and funny and interesting.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: PSYC301
• 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:

His tests are hard and the review sheets don't really help. He never stays on topic and will spend half of class wasting time and the other half playing catch up. He uses PowerPoint for all lectures and will not email or give them to you even if you beg, so write fast! He NEVER responds to email even though he provides 3 email addresses.

Rating # 20

Overview:

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

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

Comment:

Tough class, good teacher