Highly recommend this class! The content is super interesting the Prof Hedstrom is very passionate about the subject and an all around nice and cool person. What I found most helpful was that he posted a study guide before the exams that had every single potential vocab word on it. If it wasn't on the list, it wouldn't show up on the exam. Obviously, you have to study all the vocab words and it was a pretty long list but it was reassuring to know that if you memorized all these terms, you'd basically be guaranteed an A. #tCFS25

I took this to fulfill a discipline for the College and while it was interesting to learn about the content, I felt like it was a lot more work than I was expecting. There are easier electives out there. The readings are long but you don't necessarily need to read every single page to get the main ideas. Discussion is required and really depends on your TA. I had Maria and she was really nice- she was willing to read over my papers if I sent it to her one week before the deadline. The midterm and final are both written using a blue book and was kind of difficult because there is a lot of information to memorize to effectively use them for your essays. #tCFS25

Genuinely this has been one of if not the most interesting course I have taken overall at UVA. I took this course to cover the Historical perspectives gen ed, but I ended up really liking it! Professor Hedstrom is very nice, and a very engaging lecturer. The class consists of 2 small papers (2 pages, 5 pages double spaced), weekly reading journals, a midterm, and a final. The readings each week are interesting and you don't have to read all of it, just enough to add some evidence to your short reading journal. My TA, Nicholas Shrum was also great! Overall this course sparked some really interesting conversations between my friends and I in the class. The midterm and final were both very doable, and mainly essay based (with a choice for what prompt to respond to!) Can't recommend this class enough!!

I LOVED this class. I took it because I heard it was easy (it lowkey wasn't even that easy) and then honestly enjoyed the content and lectures. Hedstrom is really funny and teaches in a very engaging way so it's easy to follow and just soak up all the information. My TA Ame Wren was outstanding and she had a strict no electronics rule which made me be attentive and active in discussion. We had to do a weekly journal entry on the readings which forced me to do them, and they turned out to be interesting every time. Overall, really enjoyable class and can definitely get an A but you'll have to put the work in to study the exam content because the exams are hefty with vocab.

This class is soooo interesting. Hedstrom is super passionate about the subjects, and he is also quite funny. The class overall is pretty easy, and discussion sections help A LOT. I had Amy Wren as my TA and she was amazing. Her discussions were so productive, and she was super approachable. Overall, I would 100% recommend this class!

Loved this class, highly recommend. I took this on zoom and it was still such a great experience. I really enjoyed the readings and topics we covered in this class and thought they were genuinely interesting. This was one of the most influential classes that I took at UVA as I still think about some of the topics we discussed in my daily life. The course was not too difficult. It does have weekly discussions and both exams and essays but I thought they were fairly open-ended and allowed me to explore things I found interesting #tCFF23

Prof. Hedstrom is the best professor I have ever had. He is incredibly engaging and entertaining. As someone who comes from no religious background or knowledge, I didn't think I would enjoy this class as much as I did. The beginning of the class is a lot of history and pretty boring but that quickly opens up into some very fascinating topics. I absolutely recommend this course to anyone.

If you have any interest in learning about spirituality and religion I highly recommend taking this class. The professor is clearly passionate about the class and it shows through his deep knowledge of the content. This class is neither just a religion class or just an American Studies class, I would say it's a very solid mix of the both. In terms of midterms and finals, be prepared to do a lot of writing. The midterm was an in class blue book exam of short essays and long essays - I consider myself to be a good writer but I found it hard to cover so much content in so little time. The final exam was take home and open note (still had the 3 hour time limit) which was better than the midterm, but it was still a lottta writing. If you feel confident in your ability to write strong analytical essays in a short period of time you'll be good. Once a week we submit a half a page journal discussing the weekly readings - there's a decent amount of reading but you can def get away without reading it all.

I took this class because I needed a class on Mondays and Wednesdays and ended up really liking it! Professor Hedstrom is such a kind, funny, and understanding man and professor. He included his own personal experiences and anecdotes to lectures which helped me stay engaged. I also had another exam on the same day as our final exam and because of my extremely cramped finals schedule, he let me move it to the day before, which was much appreciated. Your grade consists of 2 papers, with the first one only being worth 5% and the 2nd being worth 20%, a discussion engagement grade worth 25%, a midterm worth 20% and a final worth 30%. I was nervous about both the midterm and final, but they are graded very fairly, even though they seem very daunting. There's a lot of information covered and a ton of reading, but you can really get by with just skimming. Would definitely recommend this class!

Love this class! The material makes you think, and even if history isn't your favorite subject (as was the case for me), Professor Hedstrom's excitement about the material makes you excited as well! If you aren't as experienced in humanities classes (engineering major here), the writing assignments may take a bit, but they are manageable. You can get away with skimming the reading material with discussions. Loved my TA (Ame Wren), she was super sweet! Would overall recommend this class to anyone!