BC 3013

2 short essays. 1 final project (research proposal + presentation) done in pairs. 1 final exam with definitions of words + explain their significance (questions not given in advance this year). No homework, just weekly readings, which were bulky. Use the weekly study questions as a guide for the final exam.

Weiman is monotone when lecturing, but he's clearly intelligent and genuinely cares about his students. He's very helpful and willing to explain things after class/in OH. By no means a bad guy. He's not arrogant, he's just very direct and no-nonsense - similar to other economics professors. He's good at encouraging class participation. Cracks a couple of jokes sometimes. Grading was stringent; you need to work for an A, and he/the TA WILL read every line of your essays. You cannot BS this class. I finished with an A- and put a good amount of effort in. Like many others, I did not understand his grading at first, but I've come to realize that the primary thing he grades on is accuracy. The answers to his essay prompts are not obvious, so if you think they are, you're doing something wrong. You also want to be careful about making generic statements - there's usually a caveat or exception that he wants you to note. He's spent a billion years studying US economic history, so he knows his stuff.

Readings every week. Usually 2 required and 2-3 recommended, though I will note that some of his "study questions" necessitate you doing the recommended readings, so they aren't really optional at all. It is genuinely so much reading. I imagine most people in the class did not complete it each week. 2 midterms, both take-home essays of 3-4 pages. A 10-page research proposal that you work on with a partner. An in-class final. It won't feel like a lot of work until the end, so keep that in mind if the beginning of your semester is feeling light, and brace yourself.

He's fine. Very dry and he goes very slow (yet somehow you'll still miss some very key info?), but he's not a bad professor. I don't really understand his grading standards, but he's not particularly unfair. You'll cover colonial America up to about the First World War.

Two papers, along with a midterm and final if I'm not mistaken. Final questions were given beforehand, but because of that I think the standards for good answers were high. Nonetheless totally doable. Papers were really interesting if you picked a topic you liked!

Professor Weiman is one of the best professors I've had here. I'm surprised there seem to be so many negative reviews actually, but I'll try to combat some of them! Firstly, he is so knowledgeable and clearly interested in the material he teaches. Although I think some reviewers have touched on some of the material as boring, I tend to think that's because some of the classes he teaches (economic history, etc.) don't really appeal to all audiences but are often taken to fulfill major requirements. I took his US Economic History and enjoyed it, but could get a little lost when we got into more quantitative discussions. On the other hand, there seemed to be many students in the class who were really into those components, so I began to sense that the class held different appeals for different students -- making certain lectures engaging for one and boring for another. (I guess that's the basis of having different academic interests.) In all of these topics Professor Weiman explained the information simply, and was happy to answer questions in a clear and educating manner. He clearly cared about student participation, and wanted everyone to find what it was within the subject that interested them the most. This was also evident in a very open-ended final paper, which allowed students to experiment with new interests and ideas within the field while he was supportive and happy to…

Easy (Light) -- 2/3 hours a week, skim the readings

This man demonstrates intellect However, Professor Weiman was boring to such an extent that all of us lost interest in the class two weeks into the semester. If you find lecture meaningful, then you will dislike this class. Clarity was never an issue (the material is straightforward) but it is so plain of a course that you will likely feel reluctant to engage with the coursework aside for completion's sake. A snoozer! To cut the man slack, I will say that he is passionate -- it is just unfortunate that he cannot translate said passion into his lectures/the design of the course.

Weekly readings, take home midterm, 15-20 min. presentation, 10-12 page research paper, final (really, just a 2nd midterm). Not too bad at all. No HW.

I know that a few of the more recent reviews label Weiman as a bad guy, and I wonder if it could be somewhat tied into the course. I took Econ. History of the US with Weiman, and not only thought that the class was relatively enjoyable, but that Prof. Weiman was a very kind man. As for the class, it was pretty light on work, especially for an econ class. There are 'required' readings every week, but seeing how the midterm is take-home you won't be hurt if you skip some/most of them. My interest level in the lectures varied based upon the topic that was being presented, with some eras/discussions less interesting than others. Only about 1/2 the class showed up for each lecture - which he laments - which is an indicator of how the class tended to feel about the presentations and how unnecessary they are to be successful in the class. The primary concern of the whole class revolves around the final paper and presentation which are tied into each other. The two add up to 55% of your overall grade, and both take place in the last month of the semester. Groups are formed early on based on 3 panic periods in American Economics, and within those groups, students assign themselves to a specific topic. This topic is directly reported on in a 15-20 minute class presentation (powerpoint). From the main topic, you select something a little more specific/researchable, and back it up with pr…