AREC280 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Lars Olson AREC280 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 11/20/2025	The negative reviews for Dr. Olson are way over blown and are given, in my opinion, by people who are not prepared for the level of work expected. If you do not have a background in any research or STEM, I can see how it would be a hard class, but if you do, its not terrible. The workload is a little strenuous, but if you allocate your time wisely, you should have no problem getting things done. Although his lectures can be a little dry, Lars does a really good job teaching R and makes you feel confident in tidyverse modules and basic modeling (do not expect anything above that). Additionally, he is very knowledgeable and will answer all of your questions in depth. You have flexibility in picking your topics for the main research projects, so if you pick something you are passionate about, the projects can be very fascinating. Overall, if you have background in STEM, absolutely take Lars' class and disregard the more negative reviews.
Lars Olson AREC280 Expecting an A- Anonymous 04/28/2025	I took this class in Fall 2023. I would recommend trying your best during the first week to switch into a different Carillon community where the reviews are better. The class mainly focuses on learning a programming language called R through a platform called DataCamp. Personally, I found the online instructor difficult to understand. The course is structured around two major assignments: a fact sheet and a final paper. The amount of work required for both is overwhelming, especially considering that the grading feels arbitrary. On the final day, you are expected to combine your final paper with your group’s work, since your paper is supposed to be tailored to a group project. I spent three weeks on my paper — it was my first time working on something this large, where I had to make complex connections between climate data and the effects on different countries. What frustrated me the most was knowing that no matter how hard I worked, my grade would ultimately be based on a subjective opinion. That said, it is definitely possible to get through the class with at least a B+/A-. Still, I highly recommend trying to switch to another Carillon community during the first week if you can.
Lars Olson AREC280 Anonymous 12/16/2023	He is a really good professor. Not only did I learn a lot of useful knowledge about the R language, but I also learned to be rigorous about scientific research.
Lars Olson AREC280 Expecting an A- cdavis73 04/13/2023	Just to let you Carillon people know, AREC280 used to be part of the UH LLP, and was listed as HNUH258A; if you're reading these reviews, AREC280 is identical to HNUH258A, so all the reviews are directly related to the class you will be taking. And just to make it brief, do NOT take this course if you can help it, it's awful and the teacher is awful.

Lars Olson
AREC280

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
11/20/2025

The negative reviews for Dr. Olson are way over blown and are given, in my opinion, by people who are not prepared for the level of work expected. If you do not have a background in any research or STEM, I can see how it would be a hard class, but if you do, its not terrible. The workload is a little strenuous, but if you allocate your time wisely, you should have no problem getting things done. Although his lectures can be a little dry, Lars does a really good job teaching R and makes you feel confident in tidyverse modules and basic modeling (do not expect anything above that). Additionally, he is very knowledgeable and will answer all of your questions in depth. You have flexibility in picking your topics for the main research projects, so if you pick something you are passionate about, the projects can be very fascinating. Overall, if you have background in STEM, absolutely take Lars' class and disregard the more negative reviews.

Lars Olson
AREC280

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
04/28/2025

I took this class in Fall 2023. I would recommend trying your best during the first week to switch into a different Carillon community where the reviews are better. The class mainly focuses on learning a programming language called R through a platform called DataCamp. Personally, I found the online instructor difficult to understand. The course is structured around two major assignments: a fact sheet and a final paper. The amount of work required for both is overwhelming, especially considering that the grading feels arbitrary. On the final day, you are expected to combine your final paper with your group’s work, since your paper is supposed to be tailored to a group project. I spent three weeks on my paper — it was my first time working on something this large, where I had to make complex connections between climate data and the effects on different countries. What frustrated me the most was knowing that no matter how hard I worked, my grade would ultimately be based on a subjective opinion. That said, it is definitely possible to get through the class with at least a B+/A-. Still, I highly recommend trying to switch to another Carillon community during the first week if you can.

Lars Olson
AREC280

Anonymous
12/16/2023

He is a really good professor. Not only did I learn a lot of useful knowledge about the R language, but I also learned to be rigorous about scientific research.

Lars Olson
AREC280

Expecting an A-
cdavis73
04/13/2023

Just to let you Carillon people know, AREC280 used to be part of the UH LLP, and was listed as HNUH258A; if you're reading these reviews, AREC280 is identical to HNUH258A, so all the reviews are directly related to the class you will be taking. And just to make it brief, do NOT take this course if you can help it, it's awful and the teacher is awful.

Reviews for AREC280