I took this class as a last minute GE because I thought it would be interesting. I found it incredibly boring, but at least it was easy. I had to put the professor on 1.5x speed because he talks so slow and I never did a single reading but still managed to do fine. There are two big papers-- the policy memo and the op-ed, both of which I found incredibly easy and we had plenty of time to do them. We also had a midterm and final. This class was really easy but soooooo boring that I wouldn't recommend it.

This is one of the most organized and interesting classes. The slides are very well explained and the quizzes show exactly what is reviewed during class. If you start the assignments on time and learn how to skim the readings to complete the weekly quizzes on time, this class is a breeze and easy A.

This is a great GE to take! The material we covered was very interesting and actually very applicable to real life. Professor Christensen is a very clear lecturer, and his slides are easy to follow. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an "easy" and interesting GE!

I actually really liked this class a lot. The work material was relevant and engaging to real-life. I began to slack off post midterm thus the A- but the only tricky thing about his exams was the wording. Read the questions carefully

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).

<3 professor christensen <3

I took this class as a GE and seriously CANNOT recommend it enough: it's perfectly structured, incredibly engaging and relevant, will make you feel big-brained without running you into the ground with unnecessary reading and work. I feel like I learned so much in this class. dr. christensen was incredibly clear in all of his lectures, exams are very fair and ask you to apply course concepts in a reasonable manner. the class is well-paced and informative. it's a yes from me!

there are two main writing assignments that are pretty interesting to complete, a policy memo (15%) and an op-ed (15%). lecture and participation are worth 20% during covid-19. final is worth 20% and the midterm is worth 30%.

take this class!! you won't regret it

Disclaimer: I took this class during remote teaching
I would definitely take this class again. Prof. Christensen was super helpful and informative, so was my TA Jason. All lectures are pre-recorded and you have to read required the readings to fully comprehend the lectures. Assigned readings are sometimes challenging but they all stay on relevent topics (with some I read as explorations), which is nice. Hands down PubAff 30 with prof. Christensen was definitely a good GE to take.

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.

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.

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.