Juan Cole - University of Michigan

Professor: Juan Cole

Department: TBD

College: University of Michigan

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: HIS241
• 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:

What everyone is saying is accurate. Tons of reading and he tends to go off topic. However, professor Cole is so incredibly knowledgeable, so if you are truly interested in this topic, the readings will not (usually) be a drag and it becomes fun to listen to his tangents. So if the topic sounds interested to you, I can 100% recommend this class.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Meanders in his lecturing a bit too much, but the knowledge is there. Learned a surprisingly high amount in his class, even though the lecture quality drastically goes from amazing to unnecessary. Sometimes he also overdoes the humor and sometimes it feels a little inappropriate/misguided, but at least he's always willing to listen 1 on 1

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: HIS241
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Cole is one of the most knowledgeable people out there on the Middle East, but his lectures can get confusing bc he goes off on tangents and then skips by slides quickly. There's TONS of reading (150pgs a week) and reading notes are collected in section. The class is super interesting, but be prepared to study on your own to keep up with lecture.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: HIS241
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Juan was the worst, and he made his bias clear on everything. The class only had two graded assignments, and you need to make sure you cater to his agenda when taking these tests.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: HIS241
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Juan Cole, is a great professor and lecture; he's renowned by his work in the feild of Near Eastern Studies and he'll sure make you aware of it. Additionally, professor, Cole makes teh class engaging and intriguing, Indefinitely recommend taking the course if you have an interest in contemporary Middle Eastern politics; however, a lot of reading

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Juan Cole knows a ton about the Middle East and his exams were pretty easy, but I thought his lectures were really boring and dry. Class isn't mandatory and you can do well just by doing the reading and going to discussion

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Juan knows a ton on his field, probably more than anybody else around. However, he sometimes can go on tangents in lecture and is rushed to finish the material at the end of the class. Take a class with Juan Cole because he is a legend at Michigan.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Cole is an expert on the Middle East, and I would highly recommend taking the class. While it's certainly difficult, the amount you can learn from attending his lectures and doing the readings is incredible. Admittedly, he assigns way more reading than anyone can actually do, and study guides make the exams much easier to prepare for.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: HIS241
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

If you're willing to put in the work, this class is great. Cole is brilliant and truly knows his stuff on the Middle East. There is A LOT of reading, but if you actually want to know about the topic, its worth doing. You can get away with not attending lecture but only if you do the reading. Exams weren't too difficult if you paid attention.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Switch out. Cole seemed cool, then i realized how bad of a lecturer he is. No hype in 241.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I wish someone had warned me about this terrible professor before I took his class. Anyone who is thinking of signing up for his class- don't! Worst prof. I've ever had, bar none.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Cole was a pleasure to have as my professor. Extremely knowledgeable in the field of US-Middle East relations. At times he could be dry but he still gets all points across. Unrealistic amount of readings assigned so be prepared. Absolutely must go to class. The format of the exams change by year and can be slightly challenging.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

The man is an expert in what he teaches. You will learn more in this class than all your others combined if you do the readings and attend lecture, unfortunately you need not learn at all for a good grade in the class. 2 finals and section makes up the entire grade and study guides are presented in advance. Would be a great class with more structue

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Juan Cole is probably one of the most amazing instructors I've ever had! Take his class! It's hard work but definitely worth it!

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Experienced not just in academia but also practical application of history and Arabic in the 'real world.' Opinion is evident in lectures, he is up front about his slant on history, honest and transparent. Very interesting reading materials. Grading expectations were eh. but that was the fault of the GSIs

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MENAS793
• 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:

He's a legend and an inspiration. I highly recommend his class.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Took this class last year, and seeing it on the course guide now reminded me of how much I truly got out of it. So I still don't agree with everything he taught, but I think it was good for me to really question certain beliefs Ive always heldâ€" and I guess that's what education is about, right? Replacing our beliefs with..you know, facts. good prof

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Cole is an expert in every sense of the word. He has field experience in most of the countries he lectures on, and provides lots of interesting asides on the course content. Readings are mandatory, but interesting. Test questions are given ahead of time, and you pick which ones you want to answer. Overall highly recommend Professor Cole!

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: HIST241
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Cole is a complete genius. He is very liberal, but he knows his stuff and is very insightful. The lectures are interesting and worthwhile. There is a ton of reading , which is unrealistic to do, but if you go to lecture and study a lot you'll be fine.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: HIST341
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Cole IS very knowledgeable about the ME. But he's hopelessly myopic on some of his analyses, many of which he disingenuously presents as objective fact. Sometimes he's insightful, but this is irrevocably tainted by his borderline paranoid conspiracy theories (see his blog). Be careful! Know what to take seriously, and what to throw out as crap.