ECON 3020

Horrible class. So boring. Tests are incredibly hard, too many ambiguous true/false questions (lost around 30 points out of 100 just on those questions).

A cursory examination of previous reviews will reveal that John James graded his first Intermediate Macro class very harshly. However, when I took this class in Spring 2012, he apparently had a change of heart, because the midterms and final were *much* easier than those from his last attempt at teaching this class (I can make this comparison because he let us see the old exams), and I'm fairly positive that people's grades fared better than the 50% B's and C's that his last class received. To give you a taste of the difference, it's worth noting that even though we learned a bunch of equations throughout the class, the tests never included any meaningful amount of math, and the final was multiple choice, with no math whatsoever. Also there was apparently a curve, because I got A's on both midterms and then a D on the final -- and still my overall grade was an A-. I suspect that the curve is more generous depending on how frequently you attend the discussion section, because I have a friend who mostly skipped it and didn't receive as dramatic of a curve.

The class was difficult, more difficult than it should have been. James is incredibly boring, but knows a ton about economic policy. I learned a lot, and it was worthwhile, but over half the class got Bs and Cs.

It is quite possible that John James is a robot sent to inflict maximum pain on economics students at UVA. No personality, no patience, no fun. His class covers the entire book and the final does too. He openly questioned the intelligence of our class after our first midterm, saying that we must be considerably dumber than the other section and that there would be no curve. He also enjoys saying "vis-a-vis" and "Back on the ranch...", which seems like nitpicking now, but will annoy you to no end when you're sitting in his terrible lecture.

HORRIBLE HORRIBLE HORRIBLE person, horrible teacher and just an all around awful experience. By the end of the class, the only thing running through your mind is whether to punch or kick him in the face.

This is probably the worst class I have taken at UVA. Professor James is really boring and his lectures make no sense. The midterm and final are hard to study for because there are 19 chapters to review. I did above average in all the tests and still got a C, because he felt our class didn't try hard enough and decided not to curve. Avoid at all costs.

James is a nice teacher but his lectures are not at all important for the Exam. He spends the entire time deriving equations that is never tested on the exams. I stopped going to class after our first exam and did equally well on the 2nd midterm and final and got a B overall. The exams aren't hard but because we cover so much its hard to guess what will be covered and it makes them somewhat tricky. Overall read the book and with the curve you should be alright.

Mr. James is absolutely horrible. While the midterms generally focus on the topics he covers in class, the final is totally random (over 150 multiple choice questions!). Good luck in this one - especially since majors HAVE to take this class - it's rough.

John James is probably the worst professor at UVA. His lectures are incredibly boring, he is completely unhelpful, and completely unclear. On top of this, his final is ridiculously hard.

Horrible teacher. Try to take it with another professor.