Professor Stepanic is very funny and entertaining, and there were many interesting moments in his class. The first part of the course was more interesting because he'd talk about Salvic folklore and Decadence and such, but the second part was often quite boring, since the lecture would just be about a bunch of different random video games or movies. It was certainly a nice break to be able to go to Dracula, but I wish there had been more flavor towards the end of the year. Also, the in-class questions and textbook questions were uninteresting and not engaging, for the most part.

As someone in the E-School, this class was a really nice break from my more technical classes. When Prof Stepanic teaches, it's almost like listening to an interesting podcast, which makes the time fly a lot faster. The class is structured in a way where if you put in effort, you should get an A. I learned a lot of little things here and there that I hadn't known before and found all the content interesting for the most part, except for the more early history centered content. Prof Stepanic is strict when it comes to using tech during his lectures if you're not taking notes, as he mentions dropping your grade by a letter if you're caught, but I think since the class is so straightforward, easy, and interesting, it's not too much to ask to pay attention for the time being in class. #tCFS24

This class was fun! A little overhyped but wasn't bad at all. Didn't have that much work other than a couple of assignments from TopHat each week and two analyses, which we went over the answers during class. The only negative thing I'd say is that the content was pretty boring up until the last few weeks of the semester. Professor Stepanic was a pretty entertaining lecturer though, so that made it a little bit more interesting. We mainly focused on history for most of the semester, but the class itself was not difficult by any means. I also hated using TopHat. I had so many issues with it throughout lectures and would frequently miss at least one question in almost every class due to connectivity issues or the software itself. That could just be a me problem, but it was really frustrating and bothersome. Other than that, it's a great elective to take. #tCFF23

Easiest class I've taken at UVA and second best, it deserves the hype. Stepanic is chaotic/hilarious, good at responding to emails, lenient with grades and other stuff, and also emphasizes the importance of mental health. There are in-class question you answer through TopHat (he usually tells you the answers), homework questions in the online textbook (v easy questions, just takes like 30-60 mins per chapter), and two analyses, which are basically a list of questions that you answer about a piece of vampire media. Lectures were entertaining (I was never bored) and we learned a lot of cool stuff about the origins of vampires in Slavic folklore and how they turned into what we see on TV today. Take this class!!! #tCFfall22

This class is great! The lectures are weird and interesting, and Professor Stepanic is super funny and a knowledgable person. The only downside is that attendance is mandatory (counted through Top Hat), and there are readings that come with homework questions for credit each week. The class is worth going to though and the homework is not difficult, just feels like a little bit of busy work.

Ok this class deserves a more recent review. This class currently consists of homework reading and questions after every lecture (and yes you have to do them and no they aren't released before class its annoying) and then 2 "analyses". we haven't had the final one yet but the first one was super easy. Whoever said this class should be called history of vampires is correct, starts off with like slavic folklore and all that jazz and only gets into like pop culture vampire in late october, november. Is it easy? Yea, 98% of people in the room are doing other stuff on their laptops including cross word puzzles. Is it interesting? I don't think it's as interesting as the hype says. Like he's kind of a weird dude so that's interesting but sometimes I'm genuinely like what...is happening. One class we went from Count Chocula cereal to lesbian vampire p*rn to the count from sesame street

Of course you have to take Dracula!! Stepanic is really passionate and interesting- and a little strange at times but that made class fun. You have interactive readings due weekly, and a really easy open-book take home midterm and final. It really is the best and easiest class you'll take at UVA and you'll appreciate the mental break.

Stepanic is an incredibly passionate and well-read professor. He knows so much about this subject its insane. He is also incredibly understanding and will open up assignments for you if you miss a deadline. However, the class itself is slightly overrated. It should be "History of Vampires" rather than Dracula, as the subject of Dracula itself is maybe two weeks of the entire course. A lot of the subject matter drags and can be boring very easily.

In short, this is the first J-Term class I ever took because UVA gave students the opportunity to take a J-term course for free. This is by far the EASIEST COLLEGE COURSE I HAVE EVER TAKEN. The irony: I struggle with humanities-related classes and I am a biology major. This is a class that I put at the top of the podium that every student across the board must take before they graduate, regardless of what point in the school year. I would call this class an EASY A+, not an easy A. Your grade is based on a point total. Most of the points you get are from textbook reading after class. Professor Stepanic wrote the textbook himself and the questions are built into it. The class covers roughly 3-4 lectures per day during J-Term. There are participation questions that count towards your point total. There are also several projects that count towards it. Your final grade is your total number of points gained divided by the total points possible. During normal times, this class has field trips. The class has been greatly simplified once it moved online, which made it EVEN EASIER than what it was before COVID. The textbook questions are honestly very straightforward and the projects are very easy. No exams during J-Term. This course is a definite MUST-TAKE.

There's a reason why this is one of the most popular, if not THE most popular, classes at uva. Dracula is really one of a kind, and out of the 4 years I've been here, this one is the best one to me, hands down. Lectures were engaging and interesting with lots of great stories from the professor, the professor himself is a such a cool dude and is very caring, and even the textbook was enjoyable to read with lots of different outside sources. Workload-wise, jterm dracula is a little different than the semester or even summer session ones since we only have two weeks to cram in all of the content. Having said that, I 100% recommend doing it over jterm since the only work you have to do for the class are top hat questions during lecture, homework assignments that come straight from the book, and 3 small, very easy projects. The only reason why I gave such a high reading score is because we covered multiple chapters a day, which translated to about 2 hours of homework a night for me. Aside from that, having no essays or exams were definitely a big plus for me. We do have a "final" though that's just one big game of the class roleplaying as vampires haha. Overall, if there was one word I could use to describe this class, it would be pure, unadulterated FUN. Professor Stepanic is an absolute legend for making the class what it is, you won't regret taking it!