Bruce Brown

School: Cal Poly Pomona
Department: Economics
Location:Pomona, CA
Overall Rating
rated by 20 students
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
Rating Comment
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: NO Midterm, just final.
Cons: A lot of T/F questions on every quizzes and final. These questions are so confusing and very tricky and have big impact on your grade.
Quiz every week
Aplia due every week
His lectures sometimes contain too much information that you don't need on the quizzes and test
His teaching skill = 3 out of 10
I got a B.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: He is a funny and charismatic professor. His teaching style is fast and quick, notes are held at a face pace. His tests are average, using some old midterm questions and straight forward questions.
-The Textbook is an E-Book online, that you receive when you buy the Apila Software 90 bucks tho.
Cons: - I guess 90 dollars for the online software that is used with the class to answer questions and tests every week.
-Homework is rare. Maybe if you count the weekly Aplia Software online test on the chapter material.
He has so much information and help online with old powerpoints, handouts, and exams from his previous years. Plus there is economic tutoring at a variety of hours so no reason to not get the best out of the class.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: Great guy. Interesting stories. Offers extra credit randomly (one day half the class was absent and he gave us points for those who were there)
Cons: Talks extremely fast. Not everything on the test is covered in the lectured. APLIA (online homework) is the only workload for this class. Alot, but doable.
For a general education class, it wasn't too bad. I went to every single lecture and copied down the notes. In the end, when it came to midterms and finals, I never studied for a single one. If I did I for sure would've received a better grade. Grade received: C
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: Online
Quizzes due once a week
Cons: Questions not covered in book
Does not help
The online class is ridiculous. The book does not cover any of the questions on the quizzes and if you ask him a question he just tells you to go into one of his other classes....so basically take 2 classes. He changed his grading system twice and each time the class complained he said that he "never solidified it in the syllabus." The first couple of weeks were confusing because he updated the syllabus every day and if you didn't keep up and missed something he only said that you should have read the syllabus and no lates were accepted. The online quizzes were full of errors and wrong answers and when questioned he never fixed it but rather avoided it by telling me that the computer messed it up which did not help my grade. He seriously could care less about the online class and I have learned almost nothing other than how to google search economics terms. The in class version is supposedly slightly better. Prof. Brown just doesn't care.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: He.is.the.fastest.speaking.professor.i.ever.had. But he's really fun. His lectures are never boring and he jokes around too. But be warned, he speaks soooo fast. You get used to it as class goes on but I'm just saying that as a heads up for some people. I didn't buy a hard copy of the book. I just got the code for the homework. The tests are pretty easy multiple choice. after taking him I actually thought about changing my major to econ, but i still decided against it cuz he was the only econ professor I thought was good. :P
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Pros: Brown is an interesting, humorous guy. He curves test grades very rarely and is willing to help during his office hours.
Cons: The pace of his class is way too fast. His expectations are pretty high considering that we have a life outside of class and we can't spend the majority of our time on the computer trying to complete Aplia assignments & blackboard quizzes before deadlines. Since I took the hybrid class (we only meet 3 times), I feel like this class is a "self-learn" class which makes the subject seem even harder than it really is. There are way too many things to accomplish each week. Do not recommend if you're a full time student who values his/her time that doesn't involve Microeconomics.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 His class is very fair. Midterm, Final, weekly Homework and attendance comprise your grade. His tests are a lot like the Homework questions and even more like his old exams. The midterm and final grades are on a positive curve. I felt his teaching ability was tremendous, he gives (a lot of) great examples. His lecture notes were often better Its no cake walk so taking time on minute details is important to be successful. The final is very comprehensive with questions from the first day of class through the last. Good experience with Dr. Brown. Grade Received: A
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 I think professor Brown is a great instructor for this course, which fulfills a GE area requirement. If you enjoy listening to speed-talk lectures that last 2 hours this class is that. They're not all that boring. He's got many stories to share, but sometimes he repeats them without realizing it. The course is not difficult if you read the book and attend the class. Here's the structure: Midterm 1 - 50 multiple choice (100pts), Midterm 2 - 50 multiple choice (100pts), final - 50 multiple choice (200pts), and online Aplia HW assignments - weekly (100pts). Total 500 points. Aplia assignments are not that difficult because there is always a similar practice assignment for every graded assignment and if you use the book it's even easier... but does take time. Overall, not a bad class to knock out a GE requirement for an easy A or B. Grade Received: A-
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Three letters: OCD. This guy couldn't stop moving his bag. Every 3 minutes, he'll shift his bag or take out items from the bag, and put it back in the bag a few minutes later. It's just interesting to watch him lecture. Anyways, this was the hybrid EC201, online and 3 meet up in class (one on first day, one for the optional midterm, and one for the final). The quizzes were very easy, basically if you get stuck on a question, just google a phrase, since the questions are stock questions made by the book authors. The aplia question sets were a bit troubling however, the first several chapters can be done without reading a single page, but the second half of the chapters will be confusing if you have never read any of the chapters. His midterm is optional, so if you don't go, your final will be weighted as 50% instead of 30%. The midterm/final questions are mostly taken from the book, about 10% he makes up the questions (including 5 questions that are about the video that you had to watch during the first mandatory inclass meeting). The midterm was relatively easy since it covers the first several chapters (very logical questions). The final I bombed since the second half of the chapters were challenging, but I still got a good overall grade (he might be secretly curving the grades). Anyways, take him!
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Professor Brown is a really good professor. He is entertaining and always makes corny jokes that I found really funny. [lol] He is extremely intelligent and knows his stuff. His exams were hard, but then again I didn't really read the book. He offers a lot of extra credit toward the end of the class. The final has 20 questions staight from the first two midterms. I got a C on the first midterm, and a D on the second. I did most the extra credit, did decent on the final, and got a B in the class. I highly reccomend this professor. Grade Received: B
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 This guy is very interesting to watch. He does weird things like put his knee up on the desk, and he always goes off on random digressions. He always has interesting stories to share with the class, and he does a wonderful job of making economics an interesting subject. He is very reasonable it what he requires on the homeworks and exams, and he is very lenient with his grading. He gives chances for extra credit at times, and he boosts points here and there, and over all he is just a great professor. I would highly reccomend taking this class, you wouldnt regret it!
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Professor Brown is a really good teacher. His test are right from the lecture and the book. We had to do our homework online. I didn't really like doing hw online but it ended up helping my grade. we had 3 midterms 50pts each, hw 100pts, final 100pts. He also gave extra credit sometimes when he felt that the class did horrible in on the midterms or hw. His grading is pretty fair. I had his class in the morning so i had to drink coffee to stay awake for two hours straight. It is econ after all. I never went to his office hours but it probably would have help me get a higher grade. I went into the final with a D and ending up with a B in the class because i aced the final. that was because i never really studied until the last midterm and the final. Anyway if you can take professor Brown. He's funny. He sometimes get off track with his stories. He is also willing to answer questions. Grade Received: B
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Cool guy but his exams were so hard! I think when the other posters said hes easy, they meant that he Grades easy. For the midterm the majority of the class pretty much failed. But thanks to his curve, almost everybody got C's. There is 1 midterm, 1 final, and a few homework assignments. His lectures are pretty boring and he goes off track a lot. He writes a LOT on the board so if you write slow, you would be really lost throughout most of his lectures. But one good thing is that he does curve! Just dont take him expecting a cakewalk. Final Grade: C
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 I recommend this guy for your EC 201. You don't even need a book for Bruce Brown. He'll explain everything to you. His tests are very fair. You need to be sure You know the graphs that he explained if you want to A the exams. He's a very nice guy and are willing to help. His tests are multiple choices, and you also need to draw the graphs on the tests. Three exams and a final. I suggest you to go to his class all the time, listen to him, and write everything he wrote on the board. For those people who miss his class, you need to get the notes from somebody. Don't think you can catch up by reading the book. His tests are based on his notes and his explanation, but not the book. [The Unknown]
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Prof. Brown is a great teacher and explains things very well. He will answer your questions very good when you don't understand the topic. There is no homework assignments in his class. The exams are pretty staright forward as long as you do study the handouts and porblem sets and the exams, you will do fine. You don't even need to buy the book becuase its useless. I bought the book and didn't read any chapters from the book for the exams. He does give you hints on for the test, so its good to go to class everyday. Just do his old exams and you will be fine. Good Luck!!!
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 UPDATED INFORMATION: I took professor Brown during Spring 2002. The class consisted of TWO MIDTERMS worth 100 points each and a CUMULATIVE FINAL worth 200 points. It is a close book, close notes exam. Attendance WAS worth 10 points. What I meant by 'was' is that originally he said that attendance was required. Towards the end of the quarter, however, the class was in desperate need of points, so he used the attendance points as 'extra credit.' He also assigned two worksheet assignments, which was also counted as 'extra credit.' He normally does not give out extra credit, but since he did not have a 'good distribution of people passing the course,' he did what he could to give out more points. Bruce Brown does curve. 85% and above is an A. I was ONE lousy points away from a solid A and he would not bump up the grade. I passed the class with an A-. Do not try and cheat in his class. He has different versions of the exams and it will not say on the test itself what version you have. As far as what his teaching method is... I agree on previous comments. He is a spaz. He seems to be a little disorganized. He goes over board with his passion for economics. His tests are derived from both lectures and the textbook. He does this on purpose so that people can't pass just from simply reading the textbook itself. I tried to be as unbiased as possible in my comments. What I wrote above is what I encountered that quarter.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Dr. Brown's class is difficult like all EC 201 classes. Unless you are a wiz at econ, this class will take some effort. His tests are fair... mainly from the notes. But in order to do well, you must read the book. I am a straight 'A' student and this class took a great deal of effort for me. I must say that he teaches rather fast, but if you can write fast and copy notes, then you will do fine. Make sure you study EVERY detail of class notes becuase they will be necessary for the test. If you don't like attending class, then this professor is not for you. He actually has a rule about having too many absences. So, if you are willing to study, read and come to class then you will do fine. There are two midterms and about 3 announced quizzes. Oh one last thing... if you get confused, I highly reccomend going to his office hours becasue he will go over it as much as you need. Don't stress and good luck!
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 This teacher is very uncertain of his answers a lot. I went into his office hours and he confused me even more because he kept saying yeah that's right and then no that's not for the same answer! I studied so much for this dumb class and ended up with a C+! Although he has some bad qualities, he does have a few good. He's really nice and curves really big! His jokes are funny from time to time, but he still puts you to sleep. He has two midterms and one final. No homework at all. Study more from his notes than the dumb book.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 The class consists of 4 quizes (he drops the lowest one), two midterms (usually 40 questions), and one final. The midterms and final are multiple choice and are a little tricky, but he grades on a curve which is helpful. His tests are mainly based on his notes, but don't forget to read the book because it helps to explain it a little more in depth. If you don't take good notes, then it is strongly recommended that you buy the Study Guide because it gives you practice problems that will be on the tests. He cares about his students and his class is not that boring and is pretty easy to understand. If you don't understand the subject matter, he will go over it with you until you do! I highly recommend his class for students that feel Economics will be a hard subject for them. I am a B student, but I got an A in his class.
Overall
Helpfulness
Clarity
Easiness
 Highly recommended! He may be boring because of his lectures, but you learn a lot. Take good notes and read the book. You will get a good grade! There are 4 quizzes but he drops the lowest quizzes. 2 midterms and 1 final. The final is kinda tricky and it is comprehensive.. watch out on that. The good thing in this class is that he curves all his midterms and final. So, if you know that there are students who do bad in class, you will most likely set the curve or score above the average. I thought I will get a B in the class but I got an A!

REFINE YOUR SEARCH

Refine Your Search

Professor Ratings Search
Search by Department Search by Last Name
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ