Marc Michael Epstein - Vassar College

Professor: Marc Michael Epstein

Department: TBD

College: Vassar College

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: RELI382
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

So fair and generous. Very funny. Wonderfully engaging, interesting, informative lectures. A great key. So kind and really cares about students and being for them. Not to be missed.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Amazing is all I can say. I had him for both Jews, Christians and Muslims and Religion, Art and Politics, and I was fascinated every single day of class. Epstein funny, brilliant and really loves his students. He's happy to hear your story, truly into your learning and improving. I wish I had taken more with him before I left VC!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: RELI255
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Hate to go against the grain, but I thought Epstein's attempts to be "cool" were abrasive and awkward. He preferred anecdotes to lecturing, which meant we never discussed the tons of dense reading assignments. He's clearly a smart guy, but the class lacked structure. Kabbalah's not an exact science, but we could've learned more than this.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• 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:

He's a really cool and funny dude. He does his best to help, and he's rather forgiving when it comes to tests. His lectures are very engaging and interesting. I learned a lot from him!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Epstein really really cares about students, I appreciated that. I think "compassionate" and "involved" are two words that best describe his style. Even when I was slipping he gave me the benefit of the doubt. I was also psyched by how much I learned. And how quickly the time in class passed. Overall one of the best at VC! Highly recommend.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Really balanced and fair in a subject that could be controversial. Epstein is a strong personality BUT he cares about everyone's opinion and manages to get everybody talking to everybody else in class. This has been a tough couple of years at VC but Professor Epstein really made everyone feel respected. He's funny, which helps a lot, actually!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: RELI215
• 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:

Epstein literally taught me how to see. I learned SO much about how to look at religion art and politics how relevant what I learned from looking at art is for my major which is about as far away from art as you can get. Extremely friendly, helpful and very engaged with the material and with helping his students develop their thinking and writing.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: RELI185
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

This was THE BEST Freshman Course I could imagine. Mr. Epstein really paid attention both to our ideas and our writing. There wasn't a single day when I was bored in class, he is just the most fascinating discussion leader and he never talked down to us. I gained skills that will always help me in life: how to look, to observe to describe. Amazing!

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: RELI215
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Very cool! Not Art History, but Religion where the subject and the texts are artworks rather than other kinds of texts. Epstein is a genius at teaching how to read artworks like any other text. Boosted my confidence about my ability to interpret different kinds of material. Very nice in class, but high standards for work. You sweat but its worth it

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

This was a great class. Epstein is funny, engaging, knowledgeable and willing to listen to student input. He kept me wide awake the whole time, even though it was a lectureâ€"you never knew what the guy was going to say next, and it was always brilliant! The material/topic is very cool and really important in our world nowadays!

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

This class is very lecture-ful, which makes it sometimes boring. Epstein is fun though, and he is a very easy grader. Definitely a good class to take for an upperclassman looking for an interesting/not too hard 100 level class (lots of reading, but you don't really have to do it if you pay attention in class).

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

This was an amazing journey! A compassionate, accessible and brilliant teacher who kept me on the edge of my seat. I took this class cause I thought I should know a little about religion. I ended up signing up for the major! Read his rebuttal-- he really is that accessible. You can always contact him directly. I did and i am glad I did!

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: RELI185
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I had Mr. Epstein for Exploring Transfer this summer. He was VERY hard, but also very available to all of us. He said his job was to help us succeed, not to stand against us, and I appreciated that. His class discussions were great and very open to student opinion. This class kicked my butt, but it was also the most intense and amazing experience.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Didn't really like him

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: JWST105
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

fabulous!

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: JWST105
• 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:

awful!

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: RELI215
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Epstein is a REALLY nice guy. He cares a lot about students, but that doesn't mean he's easy. The readings are challenging and he demands a lot of analysis. But I never fell asleep! The way he opens youre eyes to texts and images is inspiring and challenging. Ignore the course topic? take whatever he's offering, you won't regret it.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: RELI150
• 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:

I took his Judaism, Christianity, Islam class. It was strictly a lecture class and he was apologetic about that, but it was great anyway. He's a funny guy, really enlivened the class. I'll definitely be taking more classes with him.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: JWST101
• 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:

Epstein is great. His lectures are always interesting and i have learned a lot from his class. His grading is fair and my writing was improved a lot through his class. No major complaints.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: JWST101
• 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:

Professor Epstein's class is super interesting. He definitely has a lot of wisdom, and his classes will make you think. I would also say that the grades fairly. If you have any questions, he will give a clear (although lengthy) response.