Yiannis Moschovakis
Department of Mathematics
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3.3
Overall Rating
Based on 14 Users
Easiness 1.7 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 2.4 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 1.7 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.1 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

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GRADE DISTRIBUTIONS
30.7%
25.6%
20.5%
15.4%
10.2%
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.

ENROLLMENT DISTRIBUTIONS
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Reviews (7)

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 1, 2011

I HATED this professor. He was boring and his tests were hard. It was annoying taking this class with him. AVOID HIM UNLESS YOUR OTHER OPTION IS DR. MESS.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Jan. 13, 2010

Professor Moschovakis is the type of guy you'd want as your grandpa, but not so much as your professor. He is a very smart, nice guy, but makes a lot of mistakes, so be sure to correct him if you can. He is a really funny guy, so the lectures aren't too dry.

Lecuture:
As far as his lectures go, most of the time I was completely lost between his extremly thick greek accent, his terrible handwriting, and the messy proofs he insisted on putting up on the board (that really just confused us all-him included- even more).

Homework/Quiz:
Homework isn't collected or graded; however, every week in discussion there was a 15 minute quiz that basically had some of the exact same problems on it that we did in the homework. So if you know the homework, you'll be fine on the quiz. The only bad thing is that you have 15 minutes to do them, no more. So be sure you know the material well enough to do it fast, even if it's a long computation.

Midterm & Finals:
I got hundereds on virtually all of the quizes, yet I could still only pull of C's on the midterms. They were long, hard, and featured many problems you've never really seen before. But I advise anyone taking his course to ALWAYS DOUBLE CHECK YOUR GRADES. Him and his staff miscounted my midterm grade by 16 points! So when you get your midterms back, always count up the points.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 21, 2009

this class wasn't that hard. there is no homework credit but the quiz questions are pulled directly from the homework and if you know how to do them they are easy points. the midterms and final were a bit difficult but the curve was very generous on all three. although he has an accent, bad handwriting, and puts lots of unnecessary proofs on the board, he is a very funny, good natured old man who is very accessable and genuinely cares about his students. if you put the work in and learn how to do all the homework problems, you should get an A. count on teaching yoursef a lot though, and just getting clarification on one or two issues because his office hours are always crowded. don't be nervous to go though, hes very kind.

Helpful?

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 15, 2009

I'd have to say yes it's true he has a bit of an accent, but after about a week or two you start to understand him. And yes he isn't the most effective professor around, but he honestly cares about the students. I go to office hours about once a week and he does what he can to get us to understand a problem, but he gives a proof every now and then and that just gets annoying. Every week there's a quiz with problems right from the homework(at least for my class) so do them and your fine. Midterms are not terribly difficult and for the most part they are easy enough to do. The second midterm is a bit harder than the first just because he doesn't cover the material as much. The final was just like the two midterms with the same format and types of questions.

In lectures he wasn't boring. He makes a joke every now and then and that's plenty enough to keep most people awake. Overall, I'd HIGHLY recommend him, but I am more or less biased because of the grade he gave me =). All in all, it's not a class you have to worry about TOO much. Just do the work and you're fine.

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 13, 2009

I really enjoyed having Moschovakis as a professor. He definitely doesn't deserve the bad reviews he's gotten- if you're not going to put the work in on the class, don't take him. You can't complain afterward, since he warns you in the first place, on his website, "Do not take this class if you are not willing to put in this work". Hello, people.
That said, if you do put in the work, it's a very rewarding class. I did well in high school math without really caring all that much about it, but Moschovakis is so inspired by math that it really affected my interest in the subject. He does make mistakes in class sometimes, which can be frustrating if it's at the end of a long problem, but it's usually not too hard to figure out, or it's in the book. Reading the book definitely helps- he'll go over a lot of theory in class, but you don't have to know it for the exam; you can still get a b+ or a without being able to do any of the theory.
He is extremely approachable, and very willing to make appointments or offer help (although don't try emailing him a math problem, he won't help you though email) and he constantly updates his math website, so all the information you could possibly need is always available. He offers a review session before each review session and the final, and you should go to them- just sit and write down all the problems he does, because often you can learn some tricks that will be useful on the test. Definitely go to office hours too- knowing all of the homework will help you do well on quizzes (which are the replacement for graded homework).
Be forewarned that on all tests except for the final, you will likely be pressed for time. You'll have enough on some of the easier quizzes, but he always writes midterms too long. Do what he tells you- go through all of the easy problems and then go back for the harder ones.
Overall, a professor I would definitely recommend- he's fair, extremely helpful, and very enthusiastic about his subject!

Helpful?

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Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 9, 2009

I took Math 31B with Moschovakis in the Fall and although the class wasn't easy or anything, I thought he did a good job of teaching the material. It's true that he has an accent but you get used to it after a couple lectures. He basically writes down almost everything he says on the board so if you can't understand what he is saying, you can just read it off the board. Copy down the proofs but down pay attention to them, they don't come up on the exams. I only took Calc AB in high school and a lot of the people in 31B had already taken a lot of the subject matter in high school with Calc BC but the curve wasn't that bad. I got the average score on the first midterm (I was sick for like 3 lectures: really easy to fall behind!!!) but then got an A on his second midterm which pushed my entire midterm grade up to an A. His exams are super long and he gives you very little time. Both midterms were about 8 problems long but they all had at least 2 parts (some had 4) and it is incredibly difficult to do them in the time allotted. Same with his HW quizzes, which consist of 5 questions to do in 15 minutes!! If you don't know what you're doing, you're not gonna have time to figure it out during the quiz. Moschovakis is really approachable and will help you out if you need it. Go to his review sessions even if you don't have questions. Do the homework questions but do the odd numbers so you know you're doing them right. Go to his or your TA's office hours. Overall, I would recommend taking this professor if you are prepared to work for your grade. If not then take someone else.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Nov. 28, 2009

I totally hate Moschovakis. I got a B- and a C on my midterms because his test questions are not like his homework questions. I never understood his teaching because he doesn't write which chapter or which section he is lecturing on. He just starts out of nowhere and I end up not even looking at my lecture notes. He does questions wrong all the time and the class is always groaning when he makes a mistake towards the very end of a problem. I simply think that he is growing too old to teach. He is a really bad professor and i would NOT recommend him for 31B if you have not taken high school Calculus BC because you will not score well on his midterms because he grades it so the median is a B-. This class is hard for me because I did not take Calc BC in highschool and all the students pretty much have so it is easy for them. I'm probably going to get a C in this class even though I was good in math in high school and got a B average for the quizzes. Take someone else.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 1, 2011

I HATED this professor. He was boring and his tests were hard. It was annoying taking this class with him. AVOID HIM UNLESS YOUR OTHER OPTION IS DR. MESS.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Jan. 13, 2010

Professor Moschovakis is the type of guy you'd want as your grandpa, but not so much as your professor. He is a very smart, nice guy, but makes a lot of mistakes, so be sure to correct him if you can. He is a really funny guy, so the lectures aren't too dry.

Lecuture:
As far as his lectures go, most of the time I was completely lost between his extremly thick greek accent, his terrible handwriting, and the messy proofs he insisted on putting up on the board (that really just confused us all-him included- even more).

Homework/Quiz:
Homework isn't collected or graded; however, every week in discussion there was a 15 minute quiz that basically had some of the exact same problems on it that we did in the homework. So if you know the homework, you'll be fine on the quiz. The only bad thing is that you have 15 minutes to do them, no more. So be sure you know the material well enough to do it fast, even if it's a long computation.

Midterm & Finals:
I got hundereds on virtually all of the quizes, yet I could still only pull of C's on the midterms. They were long, hard, and featured many problems you've never really seen before. But I advise anyone taking his course to ALWAYS DOUBLE CHECK YOUR GRADES. Him and his staff miscounted my midterm grade by 16 points! So when you get your midterms back, always count up the points.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 21, 2009

this class wasn't that hard. there is no homework credit but the quiz questions are pulled directly from the homework and if you know how to do them they are easy points. the midterms and final were a bit difficult but the curve was very generous on all three. although he has an accent, bad handwriting, and puts lots of unnecessary proofs on the board, he is a very funny, good natured old man who is very accessable and genuinely cares about his students. if you put the work in and learn how to do all the homework problems, you should get an A. count on teaching yoursef a lot though, and just getting clarification on one or two issues because his office hours are always crowded. don't be nervous to go though, hes very kind.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 15, 2009

I'd have to say yes it's true he has a bit of an accent, but after about a week or two you start to understand him. And yes he isn't the most effective professor around, but he honestly cares about the students. I go to office hours about once a week and he does what he can to get us to understand a problem, but he gives a proof every now and then and that just gets annoying. Every week there's a quiz with problems right from the homework(at least for my class) so do them and your fine. Midterms are not terribly difficult and for the most part they are easy enough to do. The second midterm is a bit harder than the first just because he doesn't cover the material as much. The final was just like the two midterms with the same format and types of questions.

In lectures he wasn't boring. He makes a joke every now and then and that's plenty enough to keep most people awake. Overall, I'd HIGHLY recommend him, but I am more or less biased because of the grade he gave me =). All in all, it's not a class you have to worry about TOO much. Just do the work and you're fine.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 13, 2009

I really enjoyed having Moschovakis as a professor. He definitely doesn't deserve the bad reviews he's gotten- if you're not going to put the work in on the class, don't take him. You can't complain afterward, since he warns you in the first place, on his website, "Do not take this class if you are not willing to put in this work". Hello, people.
That said, if you do put in the work, it's a very rewarding class. I did well in high school math without really caring all that much about it, but Moschovakis is so inspired by math that it really affected my interest in the subject. He does make mistakes in class sometimes, which can be frustrating if it's at the end of a long problem, but it's usually not too hard to figure out, or it's in the book. Reading the book definitely helps- he'll go over a lot of theory in class, but you don't have to know it for the exam; you can still get a b+ or a without being able to do any of the theory.
He is extremely approachable, and very willing to make appointments or offer help (although don't try emailing him a math problem, he won't help you though email) and he constantly updates his math website, so all the information you could possibly need is always available. He offers a review session before each review session and the final, and you should go to them- just sit and write down all the problems he does, because often you can learn some tricks that will be useful on the test. Definitely go to office hours too- knowing all of the homework will help you do well on quizzes (which are the replacement for graded homework).
Be forewarned that on all tests except for the final, you will likely be pressed for time. You'll have enough on some of the easier quizzes, but he always writes midterms too long. Do what he tells you- go through all of the easy problems and then go back for the harder ones.
Overall, a professor I would definitely recommend- he's fair, extremely helpful, and very enthusiastic about his subject!

Helpful?

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

I took Math 31B with Moschovakis in the Fall and although the class wasn't easy or anything, I thought he did a good job of teaching the material. It's true that he has an accent but you get used to it after a couple lectures. He basically writes down almost everything he says on the board so if you can't understand what he is saying, you can just read it off the board. Copy down the proofs but down pay attention to them, they don't come up on the exams. I only took Calc AB in high school and a lot of the people in 31B had already taken a lot of the subject matter in high school with Calc BC but the curve wasn't that bad. I got the average score on the first midterm (I was sick for like 3 lectures: really easy to fall behind!!!) but then got an A on his second midterm which pushed my entire midterm grade up to an A. His exams are super long and he gives you very little time. Both midterms were about 8 problems long but they all had at least 2 parts (some had 4) and it is incredibly difficult to do them in the time allotted. Same with his HW quizzes, which consist of 5 questions to do in 15 minutes!! If you don't know what you're doing, you're not gonna have time to figure it out during the quiz. Moschovakis is really approachable and will help you out if you need it. Go to his review sessions even if you don't have questions. Do the homework questions but do the odd numbers so you know you're doing them right. Go to his or your TA's office hours. Overall, I would recommend taking this professor if you are prepared to work for your grade. If not then take someone else.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Nov. 28, 2009

I totally hate Moschovakis. I got a B- and a C on my midterms because his test questions are not like his homework questions. I never understood his teaching because he doesn't write which chapter or which section he is lecturing on. He just starts out of nowhere and I end up not even looking at my lecture notes. He does questions wrong all the time and the class is always groaning when he makes a mistake towards the very end of a problem. I simply think that he is growing too old to teach. He is a really bad professor and i would NOT recommend him for 31B if you have not taken high school Calculus BC because you will not score well on his midterms because he grades it so the median is a B-. This class is hard for me because I did not take Calc BC in highschool and all the students pretty much have so it is easy for them. I'm probably going to get a C in this class even though I was good in math in high school and got a B average for the quizzes. Take someone else.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 1
3.3
Overall Rating
Based on 14 Users
Easiness 1.7 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 2.4 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 1.7 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.1 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

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There are no relevant tags for this professor yet.

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