I took this during winter quarter 2021 for a GE. The first 3 lectures or so were over zoom and attendance was tracked. However, then the class switched to asynchronous lectures so obviously attendance didn’t matter anymore.

It’s required to do the readings before every lecture but I stopped doing them because they could get super long and they’re covered in lecture anyway. Even though there’s math mentioned in the readings and lectures, there was never any math in the midterm/final so I just didn’t worry about it. The exams are based on the lecture slides so as long as you know those I think you’ll be fine. I definitely thought the exams were fair.

After every lecture there is a short open book lecture quiz that are basically just taken from the slides, these are really easy and just to pad your grade a little. Discussions are mandatory but I didn’t really find them too helpful

There are 2 papers, one op-Ed and one policy memo worth 30% of your grade . I thought these were graded pretty easily (but that depends on your TA) and there are lots of examples and guidelines provided. There’s also more than enough time to complete them imo. There isn’t a big workload for the class, just go to lecture, do the lecture quizzes, and the papers and exams

Overall I thought the class was interesting and not too hard for a GE at all. The prof was super nice and accommodating throughout the entire quarter too. Sometimes lectures could be a little boring but I do think I learned some valuable things lol. I’d recommend this class!

Professor Christensen is an amazing teacher. His slides are clear and he explains everything incredibly thoroughly. I didn't even need to study for the exams because he made sure we knew everything just by attending lecture. The midterm was super easy and the final was a little bit more complicated but not too difficult. We had to write two papers on topics of our choosing which were short and interesting. He does have a no electronics policy in class which I didn't like at first, but taking notes on paper actually helped me stay focused and learn. Overall, this class is an easy but interesting GE with a great professor!

I took this class for my major and it wasn't what I expected from the title. It ended up being more about game theory and predicting the effects of various policies than wealth, policy, and power, but it was still pretty interesting! My year it was online due to covid, although I'm not sure if it still is.

Prof. Christensen is an amazing lecturer. He is so clear when explaining complicated topics. He structures the class in a way that makes the material accessible and interesting. Although a lot of other people objected to his use of mathematical models to explain policy problems, if you actually think about the math for a second it makes perfect sense. He doesn't shy away from controversial topics either and welcomes discussion during lecture. Exams are pretty simple too if you know the slides well.

This class was pretty interesting. The workload was super light and the exams were also quite straight forward. My only qualms with the class is that Dr. Christensen sometimes incorporated math and it didn't really make sense. This only happened like 3 times though and it is not necessary to do well on the exam. Overall, I'd say I really enjoyed this class and the topics it covered. Dr. Christensen is also very clear in lecture so as long as you take good notes, you'll do fine on the exams.

The class is pretty easy and interesting, just a lot of new concepts that can be challenging at first. He had a lot of math/economic models in the readings and lectures, but they weren't necessary for the exam or papers. He also let us replace our midterm grade with our final grade if it was higher, which was such a blessing. I was usually dead asleep in class because of the weirdly stuffy air of the class, but he was a funny and engaging guy otherwise.

Disclaimer: I took this class online due to COVID-19. In person experience may differ.

Professor Christensen is very helpful, knowledgeable, and passionate about public policy and making the world a better place. This class had very clear lectures that included review slides and key info from the readings (making the readings more or less optional). Discussions were well organized and built on the course concepts with group activities. He always kept us updated on course changes/important dates via email and was very flexible in adjusting the course material for online instruction.

There are two papers (memo and op-ed) and they aren't too bad. The instructions can be a bit vague but he gives you plenty of time to write it and get feedback from your TA. The midterm and final were both very fair and included multiple choice and short answer. He was very helpful by providing review guides and extra office hours.

TLDR: Take this class with him! He is very nice and passionate and cares for his students.

This class was average, I’m taking it for a Public Affairs requirement so it doesn’t matter either way, but I wouldn’t say this class was amazing but it wasn’t horrible. Prof was organized and I appreciated the CCLE layout and generous time to complete weekly quizzes! The midterm and final were unnecessarily complicated and the teaching staff didn’t really provide much info on the structure of exams so we really went into them blind (not knowing how many questions, what type of format, etc.) It was relatively easy to get an A as long as you kept up with lectures and did decently on the writing assignments (a policy memo and an op-ed which are the quintessential public affairs writing assignments).

Professor Christensen is really helpful and also an amazing lecturer. This class is also full of really interesting material, but I think with professor Christensen's background he highlights certain areas and topics that really make the material much more interesting to learn. The readings are a lot but almost all of them are engaging. There's a midterm and a final which are both relatively easy if you learn the material well, and a few writing assignments that I found interesting to research.

Professor Christensen was truly understanding and awesome. He was very easy to understand and his examples really helped break down some of the more complicated concepts that he introduced. He was truly willing to listen to the students and accommodate to our needs. I really liked the way his class was structured. It was very organized and he always posted lectures in a timely manner. Because all the lectures were posted online, it made it easy to do everything at our own pace.