Russell A Poldrack
Department of Psychology
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3.3
Overall Rating
Based on 14 Users
Easiness 2.5 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.7 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 2.5 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.2 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

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GRADE DISTRIBUTIONS
31.7%
26.4%
21.1%
15.9%
10.6%
5.3%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

24.2%
20.2%
16.2%
12.1%
8.1%
4.0%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

ENROLLMENT DISTRIBUTIONS
Clear marks

Sorry, no enrollment data is available.

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Reviews (8)

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
April 2, 2009

Best Professor I have ever had. He's difficult, but what good professor isn't right? I never ever ever missed one of his classes even though they were podcast because I enjoyed him so much. I wish he taught more of my classes. Let me rephrase, I wish he taught all of Professor Cheng's classes.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 26, 2009

Very interesting class. Topics were organized well and readings from class website were a nice addition to the text. Study the lecture slides and you'll do well on the tests. The only thing that bugged me about this class was that it was all the way down in the botany building.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 9, 2009

I am currently enrolled in his class.
His lectures are OK. He is almost clear about what he teaches in the class. but he talks so fast that if English is your second language, you would be in trouble understanding the lecture. so you have to record them. (there is podcast available for the class as well) your English should be really good if you wanna take his class, since he asks you to write long essay questions for the exams. and then even if you have written the right answer, he won't give you a fair point, a clear answer has less answer than a long but unclear answer! so write as much as you can on the exam! another problem with the class is that, there is no curve. so if you messed up in one exam, you better drop the class!
good luck!

Helpful?

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 27, 2006

Aye, I enjoyed this class immensely. He definitely knows the material, you'll be able to ask him any sort of question on the topic. As a pre-cog sci major (I think you have to declare in order to the take the class), I was excited with what we were learning. The two midterms and finals aren't all that hard, but you need to know how to study for them. I unfortunately thought the first midterm was going to be a different way, so I studied for more MC questions than actual short answer questions. Even though I got higher than the mean on both midterms, and I got a 100% on the final, I still got a B+ in the class thanks to little if no curve.

The hardest thing about this class is the fact that you only have 100 points in the entire class - 30/30/40 point break down for his tests. So, one point off a test is one % off your grade. The reading is often times a crapshoot - sometimes it's easy, sometimes its hard and complicated (since it's a compilation of essays).

Anyways, best teacher to have Psych 85 with, for sure.

Helpful?

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 17, 2006

Extremely interesting class/ material. Poldrack really knows his stuff (he wont be one of those professors who have absolutely no idea what they are talking about). His lectures can get a little dry at times, but I really enjoyed the class.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Feb. 8, 2006

I got the only C I have ever had in my life in this class. While it was largely my fault, (I'm a non-science major and I relied too heavily on lecture notes and not enough on the readings) the professor was also a factor. His lectures are not interesting and the material he presents is irrelevant to the exams... meanwhile, the text is dense and painful to read. Good luck with Poldrack.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
July 25, 2004

Poldrack does NOT know how to teach, and has a very condescending attitude toward the students. He expects you to come in with outside knowledge about computer systems, and teaches the class like it's upper division. He ALWAYS talks in an elevated way that makes it seem like he's showing off, and I could hardly ever understand him. My advice: Don't take his classes!!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
July 13, 2004

Overwhelming amount of information, but most was very interesting. Class is out of 100 points which is scary, because every point is essentially a percent. However, he tests you mostly on what you need to know. The tests seem long (a couple of 'long' essays, a couple of 'short', a couple of 'really short' and some multiple choice) but the tests (one midterm and one final) do not take too long to do. You also have 2 take home quizzes which were OK. I got an A in the class, which I'm ecstatic about, but I had to put in a lot of studying to get it.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
April 2, 2009

Best Professor I have ever had. He's difficult, but what good professor isn't right? I never ever ever missed one of his classes even though they were podcast because I enjoyed him so much. I wish he taught more of my classes. Let me rephrase, I wish he taught all of Professor Cheng's classes.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 26, 2009

Very interesting class. Topics were organized well and readings from class website were a nice addition to the text. Study the lecture slides and you'll do well on the tests. The only thing that bugged me about this class was that it was all the way down in the botany building.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 9, 2009

I am currently enrolled in his class.
His lectures are OK. He is almost clear about what he teaches in the class. but he talks so fast that if English is your second language, you would be in trouble understanding the lecture. so you have to record them. (there is podcast available for the class as well) your English should be really good if you wanna take his class, since he asks you to write long essay questions for the exams. and then even if you have written the right answer, he won't give you a fair point, a clear answer has less answer than a long but unclear answer! so write as much as you can on the exam! another problem with the class is that, there is no curve. so if you messed up in one exam, you better drop the class!
good luck!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 27, 2006

Aye, I enjoyed this class immensely. He definitely knows the material, you'll be able to ask him any sort of question on the topic. As a pre-cog sci major (I think you have to declare in order to the take the class), I was excited with what we were learning. The two midterms and finals aren't all that hard, but you need to know how to study for them. I unfortunately thought the first midterm was going to be a different way, so I studied for more MC questions than actual short answer questions. Even though I got higher than the mean on both midterms, and I got a 100% on the final, I still got a B+ in the class thanks to little if no curve.

The hardest thing about this class is the fact that you only have 100 points in the entire class - 30/30/40 point break down for his tests. So, one point off a test is one % off your grade. The reading is often times a crapshoot - sometimes it's easy, sometimes its hard and complicated (since it's a compilation of essays).

Anyways, best teacher to have Psych 85 with, for sure.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 17, 2006

Extremely interesting class/ material. Poldrack really knows his stuff (he wont be one of those professors who have absolutely no idea what they are talking about). His lectures can get a little dry at times, but I really enjoyed the class.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Feb. 8, 2006

I got the only C I have ever had in my life in this class. While it was largely my fault, (I'm a non-science major and I relied too heavily on lecture notes and not enough on the readings) the professor was also a factor. His lectures are not interesting and the material he presents is irrelevant to the exams... meanwhile, the text is dense and painful to read. Good luck with Poldrack.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
July 25, 2004

Poldrack does NOT know how to teach, and has a very condescending attitude toward the students. He expects you to come in with outside knowledge about computer systems, and teaches the class like it's upper division. He ALWAYS talks in an elevated way that makes it seem like he's showing off, and I could hardly ever understand him. My advice: Don't take his classes!!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
July 13, 2004

Overwhelming amount of information, but most was very interesting. Class is out of 100 points which is scary, because every point is essentially a percent. However, he tests you mostly on what you need to know. The tests seem long (a couple of 'long' essays, a couple of 'short', a couple of 'really short' and some multiple choice) but the tests (one midterm and one final) do not take too long to do. You also have 2 take home quizzes which were OK. I got an A in the class, which I'm ecstatic about, but I had to put in a lot of studying to get it.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 1
3.3
Overall Rating
Based on 14 Users
Easiness 2.5 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.7 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 2.5 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.2 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

There are no relevant tags for this professor yet.

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