This course is extremely heavy on memorization. You need to know very specific information about many different processes in the brain, as well as specific steps and results of studies that support these processes. There are three exams and weekly iclicker quizzes (each quiz is 5 questions, your lowest 5 are dropped). I found it difficult but not impossible to do well on the iclicker quizzes. The exams were killer. I would go into them after studying for many hours, feeling prepared, and still do poorly. That said, I found the topics super interesting and professor Long is very knowledgable and good at lecturing. I feel like I got a lot out of the class, it's just hard to get a good grade. Not an easy A by any means.

One of the worst psychology classes I have taken at UVA. This class should not be a 2000 level class. There is so much previous knowledge you need for the class. I highly recommend PSYC 1010 or a neuroscience class before taking this class. Professor Long does not care about feedback from her students and makes the exams extremely difficult. Her exams changed each time. On the first exam, there was an essay . On the second exam, there was no essay and 8 short answer questions. On the last exam, we were allowed to choose the short answer questions we could answer. The variability of these exams made it extremely difficult to predict what is on the exams. Professor Long goes through information too quickly in class and simply spits out facts rather than explaining the concepts. I am genuinely interested in the material but the way Professor Long presents the material makes me not want to pursue continuing studies in a neuroscience class. Be warned I would rather take PSYC 2200.

This class is very information intensive. It moves at a relatively quick pace and is mostly memorization. The content is interesting but there is just a lot of it. There are a lot of specific studies to memorize as opposed to just pure vocabulary and concepts. The textbook can help in understanding topics that you missed in class but the chapters are very long and the reading is not needed to pass the tests. Professor Long is very knowledgeable but dumps a lot of information on you quickly every class which a lot of times does not allow you to process the information. Overall, I would only take this class if you have an interest in neuroscience.

This course is extremely misleading. It says it is a 2160 class, yet the difficulty is much higher. Professor Long goes at a fast pace through the lectures and you are struggling to type everything she is saying every class. I took this class thinking it would be a psych class, as it was under psych 2160, but it more bio and neuro material and it's very dense. The textbook is even denser and difficult to read and most people don't do it. Long is extremely knowledgeable about the topic, as she talks about her studies in the class, but she doesn't seem to understand that this is supposed to be an easier class than how she is speeding through the material. The tests are not cumulative, which is nice, but they include tiny details that she flies through during lecture and there is lots of writing about studies and there are so many of them. If you like a notes-dense, memorization-heavy, studies-filled class, take this, otherwise don't bother.

I wouldn't take this if you don't have to. Rating it as a 2000 level course is kind of misleading as its a pretty difficult course. Prof. Long is clearly knowledgeable about the topics and is always willing to provide good answers to questions even in a good lecture, but she flies through the material during the lectures. You almost feel like she presupposes a good amount of knowledge about the material and that the lecture is more of just a recap. You don't need to do the textbook readings to do well which is nice because the chapters are like 60 pages long. The weekly quizzes are generally easy, but we had a few quizzes where she counted questions that only 25% of the class got right which was frustrating. If you're into biology definitely take it, but it is definitely more bio than psych.

The course subject for this class is very interesting, but Professor Long is an inexperienced professor and it shows. The class is almost fully made up of studies and theories about cognitive neuroscience, and it moves very quickly. Even the smallest detail could be on the exam, which is made up of extensive writing. The course topics are very disorganized. The iClicker quizzes are not difficult and you can get bonus points through those, so that's a plus. I do enjoy the topics we learn in this class, but I just think the class itself is not characteristic of a typical psych intro class in its difficulty and speed.

I really enjoyed this class. Professor Long is knowledgable on the topics that she teaches and a very clear lecturer. There are weekly quizzes but only five of the highest grades count and the rest are extra credit. There are 3 exams and none of them are cumulative and they're all pretty straight-forward. As long as you come to class you can get a good grade. The textbook reading, though . it helps solidify understanding, isn't necessary for a good grade. This class is definitely one of the easier ones to satisfy the neuroscience requirement for cognitive science and it's super interesting.