This class has a lot of interesting topics and material -- however the TAs can really make or break how you do on your exams (I had a tough, unreasonable grader). Selling Taking Sides for $30. **********

Professor Suman has interesting material, but he really isn't concerned about the grades. The exams are not very hard if you master the notes, but he gives so few As. Also, I spent 10 hours writing the 10-page cheating sheet that we are allowed to bring for each exam. If you want to get an A, be VERY prepared or VERY smart.

You can't miss lectures with this class and you really have to do the readings. He doesn't use power points or allow electronics so it's all handwritten notes from lecture. The midterm and final are both short answer and essay questions. The tests are split 50% between lecture questions and readings. Make sure when you take notes to go word for word what he says because if you paraphrase you will get points off. As my T.A. put it, "Your answer and example were right but you didn't use the key word of submissive." Yeah, its annoying. However if you pay attention in lecture and take advantage that he lets your bring notes into the test you can get a B. Selling the textbooks for this class! email me at ************* or text me at **********

So I loved this class even though it's definitely a hard GE. His tests are really tough, all short answer and essay questions, and you have to memorize the exact lists and wording he uses. Cannot at all skip class, must write down p much everything he says. If you wanna get an A, you have to do well on the midterm and final because they grade reallllllly harshly on the papers. Subject matter is hella interesting though, if you like social sciences

Not into his style of humor, and tough grader! TAs were terrible when I took his class in Fall 2016. No multiple choice tests, all short answer and essays.

Study. I am selling two of the books. Losing the News by Jones ($13) and Taking Sides 13th edition ($20) txt me if your interested **********

This isn't an easy A but it's not as difficult as expected. You MUST go to every lecture and write down everything he says, but after that all you have to do is memorize. I have a pretty bad memory, but I put in the time to remember everything he said in lecture and the exam ended up being pretty easy. Flashcards are your best friend. Also, don't half ass the essay the day its due like I did because that is what made me get a B+ when I had A's on the midterm and final.

This class had the most workload and I just slept for 3 hours before my final. Suman is a decent lecturer in the sense that he spoon feeds you information but he also gives a lot of examples so it can be hard to know what to retain and what to omit. The material itself is not tough but what makes the class so painful is the amount of information that you are tested on. You have one midterm and a final and one essay which is independent to the material that is covered in the course . He has online readings, textbook readings and class lectures and all three are unconnected to each other. The way to get by in the lectures is to write down information about whatever topics he writes on the board. He also gives 20 pages of open notes in the class which is all related to online material and class readings so my tip would be start writing your notes way before the test. I found the discussions to be mostly pointless because they revolved around the readings and you just need to know the crux of what the author is discussing. The grading on his tests is definitely tough.

Overall, I really loved class, especially because I am very interested in Comm and the material in general. If Comm doesn't interest you then I think you would strongly dislike this class. Suman is an awesome professor. He is very strict about electronic devices, no phones or laptops out or he will totally call you out. He doesn't use slides so it's important that you listen to every word he says, write everything down. The workload outside of class if pretty heavy because there is a lot of reading. READ THOROUGHLY. There are online readings as well as 2 books and some articles from another book. You are allowed to have notes for both the midterm and final. 10 pages back and front. These notes can be on everything but lecture so all of the outside readings. Write down as much as you can because the questions on both the midterm and the final are very specific. There is a curve on everything so an 80% is an A for example. I got a B+ on the midterm but did not do as well on the paper and final. On this note, do not choose Mario Ornelas as your TA. She is excellent in discussion and fosters great conversation but she is a HARSH HARSH grader and will rip you work apart way more than the other TAs. I definitely could have gotten an A- if she wasn't my TA. This GE requires tons and tons of effort. You need to know every term, every list, everything. If you're lazy this is not the GE for you. I would recommend this course though because the information is so interesting. Freshmen, don't be scared! I survived and I loved it

Professor Suman is extremely direct about his expectations in the class. This is not a GE course that you can put little effort into. It is essential to do the readings THOROUGHLY, and participate in discussion. I would highly recommended studying terms early for the midterm and the final because you must know exact definitions in order to get full credit.

Aside from these warnings, the class is extremely interesting. The content is intriguing, and Professor Suman will answer any questions or repeat things during lecture with no problem. It is possible to receive an A in this course, and had I invested more time into the assigned readings, I would have attained it.