Thomas Sherrer
Department of Political Science
AD
4.4
Overall Rating
Based on 15 Users
Easiness 3.9 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 4.1 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 3.7 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 4.1 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

  • Uses Slides
  • Engaging Lectures
  • Would Take Again
GRADE DISTRIBUTIONS
26.1%
21.7%
17.4%
13.0%
8.7%
4.3%
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.

24.6%
20.5%
16.4%
12.3%
8.2%
4.1%
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.

30.2%
25.1%
20.1%
15.1%
10.1%
5.0%
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.

30.4%
25.4%
20.3%
15.2%
10.1%
5.1%
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.

36.9%
30.8%
24.6%
18.5%
12.3%
6.2%
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.

AD

Reviews (12)

1 of 2
1 of 2
Add your review...
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A+
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Dec. 19, 2021

This is by far the most engaging, interesting, and pertinent political science class I've taken at UCLA. "Professor" Sherrer is exceptionally talented and gives engaging and clear lectures (it's amazing to have a professor that actually speaks like a normal human being and not a robot programmed to spew out overcomplicated academic jargon, as do 90% of the tenured faculty here).

The readings for this class are fairly light and the vast majority of them were actually very interesting. I think there may have been only two or three that were boring (the majority were Washington Post or NYT articles, excerpts from a very recent/engaging book, and super cool voter psychology studies). None of the readings felt like filler or irrelevant to the course (again, credit to Sherrer for planning the class so well).

Grading is fair and is based on a midterm (30% of grade, was super easy), a short writing assignment (20%), an infographic (10%), and a final (40% of grade, very fair but marginally harder than the midterm).

Sherrer is very organized and uses very clear slides. He also recorded lecture and did not require attendance.

I highly, highly recommend this class and Prof. Sherrer in general. I wish UCLA's political science department offered more classes related to this topic.

Helpful?

4 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: N/A
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
March 21, 2021

30% midterm
40% final
15% essay 1
15% essay 2

Sherrer is pretty good he moved around assignments to be accommodating.
Covid-19 so tests were open book
however, he is a super slow grader(3+weeks) and graded stuff after p/np deadline so some people were concerned.
Did not give a ton of feedback on essays
overall he's a good professor to have

Helpful?

3 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: B
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Jan. 14, 2022

TAKE THIS CLASS, I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH BEST TEACHER IN UCLA, THIS CALSS WAS SO GOOD I CAME BACK TO MAKE A REVIEW, I HAVE NEVER DONE THIS.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B+
Nov. 9, 2023

While I definitely enjoyed taking this class, and I believe Professor Sherrer is an amazing teacher, it is not a class anyone should take if they are looking for an easy upper div Poli Sci course. Don't get me wrong, the content was interesting, and Sherrer is a guy that's difficult not to like, however, the exams are anything but easy and depending on your TA, grading can be all over the board. One of my friends, who is a professional writing minor, received a C+ on one of her papers, with little to no explanation. While it isn't Sherrer's fault, the TAs completely determine whether or not your are successful in the course. Further, Sherrer supplements the lack of a discussion section with a large sum of weekly readings, which also show up on exams. All in all, this is a great class if you have ample time to commit to the workload and kiss up to your TA, but it definitely isn't a skate in the park. I took this class in the spring and most people I know received an A-s and Bs, with only a few actually getting an A. I also heavily suggest buying the course reader!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2022
Grade: B
Nov. 8, 2023

While Professor Sherrer is an overall great professor, be prepared for a large sum of commitment and reading in this class. He argues that due to the lack of a discussion section, course material is supplementally taught through assigned readings and articles. Your overall grade is made up of an essay, midterm, and final exam, which is honestly somewhat difficult. All in all, the class is great if you're someone super interested in the content of the way the media shapes elections, however don't take this class if you're looking for an easy poli sci upper div or don't have the time to fully commit to the course.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2023
Grade: A-
April 4, 2023

I took this class in the Winter of 2023, and would not take him again. He seemed nice at the beginning/middle but that changed. This class is made up of 3 homework assignments, midterm, and final (both online w/ 40 minutes each). First, the averages on the homework were good, and everyone did fairly well through the course. Second, the midterm was nice where the average was a 90%. Lastly, once everyone got to the final, the entire class average went down.
In my honest opinion, Prof. Sherrer seemed peeved at the fact that students did well on the midterm, without showing up to in person classes. He then made the final more difficult and then made the class average go from a 90% on the midterm to a B- on the final. Talking to classmates, I heard that many had a solid A to A+ grade, and many dropped to a B+; some even B-, or C+. By the way, these students are not slackers. So overall, my takeaway from this class is stay consistent with notes, for midterm/final review cumulatively even when he tells you to predominately "study week 6-10" (he snuck in content from week 4), and lastly try to go to every single class as he does also get peeved with low in-person attendance. He likes to sneak in specific info into his multiple choice questions so they aren't like broad questions at times; he references graphs.
In a nice way of putting it, is that he takes himself too seriously and felt like this exam was mean't to lower grades. From a classmates experience, I don't know how someone can go from a 98% to a B- or C+. He did not curve the exam or even try to help student's that were consistent. Talking with previous students, I found out that this isn't the first time he has gotten angry at people for not showing up to class since the zoom is intended for colds/emergencies. I think people not showing up in person (even though he had the zoom option) made him peeved; sometimes even shading students on the zoom call. So my best advise is go in person. I went in person just to minimize damage for the final but that didn't help...only like 15-20 students showed up at most. Just take good notes and put effort in.

BUT don't give him the benefit of the doubt that he will be nice, take feedback on why some of his questions are bad, or curve the grades.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2022
Grade: A-
July 22, 2022

I enjoyed taking this course with Professor Sherrer. He always seemed passionate about discussing the topics of each of our lectures. I recommend going to office hours early in the course and continuously asking for guidance during the course to make sure you are staying on track. Exams are exactly based on the lectures and readings provided. My only issue with this class was asking for office hours to go over an assignment and being marked down even further down on the assignment. Try to stay on the professor's good side, because he will not hesitate to mark points down on student assignments.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
March 28, 2022

This class was great and very interesting. Thomas Sherrer is a great lecturer and has really well prepared slides. He knew a lot about this subject and made his lectures interesting and did tell some pretty solid jokes. Overall, he was great but he is pretty slow on returning grades (it's just him and a couple of graders for the whole class so I don't blame him). Overall, there were four assignments total which comprised your grade. The two projects were pretty easy to do fine on and graded very kindly. The Party Platform assignment was definitely a little difficult because it had to include a lot of information, but still be short (200 words a section x 4 sections). The infographic was basically a free 10% on your final grade. The midterm and final weren't too difficult but there were some pretty specific questions on there which made them harder than they should have been. Overall, I recommend this for an upper div poli sci.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A+
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Jan. 5, 2022

One of the best POL SCI classes I've taken at UCLA so far. The main thing for me was that the content was engaging and I learned a lot of interesting things in this course. My only qualm was that this class was too early in the morning... ha!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Dec. 22, 2021

Sherrer is one of those professors where their passion for the topic shines through their lectures.

Class is comprised of readings usually about 30 pages a week, and readings are due before class. They are a good primer for what the professor is going to be talking about that day. The readings are actually interesting and are helpful in understanding the course, so don't skip them.

The grade is comprised of a midterm, written assignment, infographic assignment, and the final. As long as you pay attention in class, take good notes, and do the readings accordingly you should have no problem getting A's on the tests. As for the written assignment, this is a time when you should meet with Sherrer during his office hours, in order to get the best grade possible.

Sherrer always tried to make his slides engaging, whether it be through memorable campaign ads or Taylor Swift quotes. This is a professor who cares about the material he teaches, and overall this is a wonderful class to take if you are a poli sci major.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A+
Dec. 19, 2021

This is by far the most engaging, interesting, and pertinent political science class I've taken at UCLA. "Professor" Sherrer is exceptionally talented and gives engaging and clear lectures (it's amazing to have a professor that actually speaks like a normal human being and not a robot programmed to spew out overcomplicated academic jargon, as do 90% of the tenured faculty here).

The readings for this class are fairly light and the vast majority of them were actually very interesting. I think there may have been only two or three that were boring (the majority were Washington Post or NYT articles, excerpts from a very recent/engaging book, and super cool voter psychology studies). None of the readings felt like filler or irrelevant to the course (again, credit to Sherrer for planning the class so well).

Grading is fair and is based on a midterm (30% of grade, was super easy), a short writing assignment (20%), an infographic (10%), and a final (40% of grade, very fair but marginally harder than the midterm).

Sherrer is very organized and uses very clear slides. He also recorded lecture and did not require attendance.

I highly, highly recommend this class and Prof. Sherrer in general. I wish UCLA's political science department offered more classes related to this topic.

Helpful?

4 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: N/A
March 21, 2021

30% midterm
40% final
15% essay 1
15% essay 2

Sherrer is pretty good he moved around assignments to be accommodating.
Covid-19 so tests were open book
however, he is a super slow grader(3+weeks) and graded stuff after p/np deadline so some people were concerned.
Did not give a ton of feedback on essays
overall he's a good professor to have

Helpful?

3 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: B
Jan. 14, 2022

TAKE THIS CLASS, I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH BEST TEACHER IN UCLA, THIS CALSS WAS SO GOOD I CAME BACK TO MAKE A REVIEW, I HAVE NEVER DONE THIS.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B+
Nov. 9, 2023

While I definitely enjoyed taking this class, and I believe Professor Sherrer is an amazing teacher, it is not a class anyone should take if they are looking for an easy upper div Poli Sci course. Don't get me wrong, the content was interesting, and Sherrer is a guy that's difficult not to like, however, the exams are anything but easy and depending on your TA, grading can be all over the board. One of my friends, who is a professional writing minor, received a C+ on one of her papers, with little to no explanation. While it isn't Sherrer's fault, the TAs completely determine whether or not your are successful in the course. Further, Sherrer supplements the lack of a discussion section with a large sum of weekly readings, which also show up on exams. All in all, this is a great class if you have ample time to commit to the workload and kiss up to your TA, but it definitely isn't a skate in the park. I took this class in the spring and most people I know received an A-s and Bs, with only a few actually getting an A. I also heavily suggest buying the course reader!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2022
Grade: B
Nov. 8, 2023

While Professor Sherrer is an overall great professor, be prepared for a large sum of commitment and reading in this class. He argues that due to the lack of a discussion section, course material is supplementally taught through assigned readings and articles. Your overall grade is made up of an essay, midterm, and final exam, which is honestly somewhat difficult. All in all, the class is great if you're someone super interested in the content of the way the media shapes elections, however don't take this class if you're looking for an easy poli sci upper div or don't have the time to fully commit to the course.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2023
Grade: A-
April 4, 2023

I took this class in the Winter of 2023, and would not take him again. He seemed nice at the beginning/middle but that changed. This class is made up of 3 homework assignments, midterm, and final (both online w/ 40 minutes each). First, the averages on the homework were good, and everyone did fairly well through the course. Second, the midterm was nice where the average was a 90%. Lastly, once everyone got to the final, the entire class average went down.
In my honest opinion, Prof. Sherrer seemed peeved at the fact that students did well on the midterm, without showing up to in person classes. He then made the final more difficult and then made the class average go from a 90% on the midterm to a B- on the final. Talking to classmates, I heard that many had a solid A to A+ grade, and many dropped to a B+; some even B-, or C+. By the way, these students are not slackers. So overall, my takeaway from this class is stay consistent with notes, for midterm/final review cumulatively even when he tells you to predominately "study week 6-10" (he snuck in content from week 4), and lastly try to go to every single class as he does also get peeved with low in-person attendance. He likes to sneak in specific info into his multiple choice questions so they aren't like broad questions at times; he references graphs.
In a nice way of putting it, is that he takes himself too seriously and felt like this exam was mean't to lower grades. From a classmates experience, I don't know how someone can go from a 98% to a B- or C+. He did not curve the exam or even try to help student's that were consistent. Talking with previous students, I found out that this isn't the first time he has gotten angry at people for not showing up to class since the zoom is intended for colds/emergencies. I think people not showing up in person (even though he had the zoom option) made him peeved; sometimes even shading students on the zoom call. So my best advise is go in person. I went in person just to minimize damage for the final but that didn't help...only like 15-20 students showed up at most. Just take good notes and put effort in.

BUT don't give him the benefit of the doubt that he will be nice, take feedback on why some of his questions are bad, or curve the grades.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2022
Grade: A-
July 22, 2022

I enjoyed taking this course with Professor Sherrer. He always seemed passionate about discussing the topics of each of our lectures. I recommend going to office hours early in the course and continuously asking for guidance during the course to make sure you are staying on track. Exams are exactly based on the lectures and readings provided. My only issue with this class was asking for office hours to go over an assignment and being marked down even further down on the assignment. Try to stay on the professor's good side, because he will not hesitate to mark points down on student assignments.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A
March 28, 2022

This class was great and very interesting. Thomas Sherrer is a great lecturer and has really well prepared slides. He knew a lot about this subject and made his lectures interesting and did tell some pretty solid jokes. Overall, he was great but he is pretty slow on returning grades (it's just him and a couple of graders for the whole class so I don't blame him). Overall, there were four assignments total which comprised your grade. The two projects were pretty easy to do fine on and graded very kindly. The Party Platform assignment was definitely a little difficult because it had to include a lot of information, but still be short (200 words a section x 4 sections). The infographic was basically a free 10% on your final grade. The midterm and final weren't too difficult but there were some pretty specific questions on there which made them harder than they should have been. Overall, I recommend this for an upper div poli sci.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A+
Jan. 5, 2022

One of the best POL SCI classes I've taken at UCLA so far. The main thing for me was that the content was engaging and I learned a lot of interesting things in this course. My only qualm was that this class was too early in the morning... ha!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Fall 2021
Grade: A
Dec. 22, 2021

Sherrer is one of those professors where their passion for the topic shines through their lectures.

Class is comprised of readings usually about 30 pages a week, and readings are due before class. They are a good primer for what the professor is going to be talking about that day. The readings are actually interesting and are helpful in understanding the course, so don't skip them.

The grade is comprised of a midterm, written assignment, infographic assignment, and the final. As long as you pay attention in class, take good notes, and do the readings accordingly you should have no problem getting A's on the tests. As for the written assignment, this is a time when you should meet with Sherrer during his office hours, in order to get the best grade possible.

Sherrer always tried to make his slides engaging, whether it be through memorable campaign ads or Taylor Swift quotes. This is a professor who cares about the material he teaches, and overall this is a wonderful class to take if you are a poli sci major.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 2
4.4
Overall Rating
Based on 15 Users
Easiness 3.9 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 4.1 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 3.7 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 4.1 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

  • Uses Slides
    (12)
  • Engaging Lectures
    (10)
  • Would Take Again
    (10)
ADS

Adblock Detected

Bruinwalk is an entirely Daily Bruin-run service brought to you for free. We hate annoying ads just as much as you do, but they help keep our lights on. We promise to keep our ads as relevant for you as possible, so please consider disabling your ad-blocking software while using this site.

Thank you for supporting us!