This course is great for students who aren't really into proof and calculus based math but still need or want to take a math course. Prof Holt is so, so nice and cares about his students. He is also funny and teaches really well. Just paying attention in class is enough, but the textbook is also a great resource. The tests are fair and the homework is optional (but you should still do it for free points because it's only half graded on accuracy). I enjoyed this class and I enjoyed prof Holt!

Going into the semester, I really wasn't expecting to enjoy this class. I hadn't taken a math class since high school, and I had heard horror stories about the department at UVA. Yet Professor Holt managed to make this my favorite course of the semester.

Because the class is focused on applications, there aren't really any proofs, and the majority of lectures are spent working through examples, which is really helpful. Homework assignments are *juuusssttt* long enough to concretize the material in your head, without being excessive. Tests are incredibly fair, Holt is exceptionally generous with partial credit, and grades will usually be posted to Collab within 48 hours. Also, Holt has a "quasi-dutch-knockout" where if you do better on the final exam questions that correspond to the material from your worst midterm, he'll replace the bad grade with the corresponding better section of the final. Also, there is an open-note, open-internet R (programming) exam that basically gives you free points to cushion any exam mistakes.

As a whole, this was a very fun, fair class, with a very nice professor. I highly recommend it.

Highly recommended class for non-math majors such as Stat, Econ, and CS for those who need linear algebra. This class was great for me because there were no proofs. The only kind of "proof" that we are expected is the True/False Questions on the exam where you have to explain your reasoning such as proving by counter example, but not a full mathematical proof. Overall, if you are not a math major who needs linear algebra in your area of study, take it with Holt. Fairly easy as he steps through multiple examples in each topic and kind of questions you will encounter in a midterm or final exam. He wrote the textbook but I found it difficult to read. But if you go to class, he literally summarizes the important points and you won't need to read it over. The textbook is only for the homework or if you miss class and need to catch up. There is also a R programming part, but it is open notes (including example R files) and open book so its just free points for grabs. Homework is not graded so you don't have to be stressed to turn it in every time. Just practice these problems a couple nights before the exam and you'll be fine. Holt is also a great professor who explains things very clearly and he is very fair when it comes to exams.

Holt is a great professor. He's the most organized math professor I've ever had. His notes are really easy to understand, and he works you through an example for everything so you're not just bombarded with theorems. Because it's an applied class, those examples help and are expected to be useful for those of us who are not math majors but still have to know the material. His grading is based on a few midterms and a final. The homeworks are not graded, which I really enjoyed. But the homeworks are great practice for the exams, so you should do them. Holt is also just a really nice, personable guy!