Reviews for SOCY230

Information Review
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A
Anonymous
03/24/2024
Probably one of the most genuine professors I have had. Really cares about his students and is super responsive to any communication, including feedback about the class. He makes long lectures interesting, and somehow I have learned a ton of information without feeling like I have. The exams are not too horrible, and the essay portions are take-home so you have plenty of time to do it. Very accommodating, and genuinely just a nice person. Would recommend him for any and everything you can take him for.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A
cm222
01/15/2024
very very nice guy, lectures could get somewhat boring at times but he responds well to feedback and put more effort into making them more entertaining halfway through the semester. content was interesting and he explained things pretty well, but was always wiling to answer questions and easy to get in contact with. exams were lengthy but other than that relatively simple and he tries his best to prepare you for them by doing review guys and review classes. also very kind and accommodating.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
01/13/2024
He is such a good professor. Truly cares about his students and tries to make the class fun and interesting. Not only that, but he makes the class extremely manageable. There are two midterms and a final, but you can bring a full page (front and back) cheat sheet to all of them. Also if you do well on the first two, you don't need to take the final. Participation does matter, but if you don't feel comfortable talking in front of everyone there are alternate options which are easy. The only other grades are daily quizzes that go over the topic of that day and review guides.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A
ftchatch
12/24/2023
the class content was a lot of common sense that is brought to light through discussion. make sure to participate in class even though it is lecture style because there are participation points (you can get out of speaking out loud through participating in the discussions in canvas). just read the textbook or go over the slides again (which on average took me 30 min or less), do the work assigned and you can even get out of taking the final and still get an A
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/22/2023
good professor who genuinely wants you to succeed and apply course material to your own life. he often adds fun activities in class and gives plenty of opportunities to participate in class without making it seem daunting. because i did well on the exams, i didnt have to take the final which was able to empty my plate a little at the end of the semester. he also provides extra credit assignments, making the class overall easy as well as interesting. some short answer questions on exams but he tells you the questions beforehand and is very lenient with grading.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/15/2023
literally he makes the class so easy. Only three exams (2 midterms and a final) and he lets you bring a cheat sheet for all of them. He also requires that you only do 2 out of the 3 exams, so if you do well enough on the midterms, you can just not take the final, which is cumulative (and was also on 8 am on a Saturday for us). He has "check in" assignments every lecture but they're super easy and only a few questions. Other than that, the only other grades were participation points and the reviews guides before each exam, which were also not that bad and more graded on completion and effort than right answers. He's also just a super nice and accommodating guy in general.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/02/2023
I loved Long Doan's class. He wants you to succeed. He learns names of so many students somehow in a huge lecture hall. If you do good on the first two exams, you don't have to take the final, and, if you don't do well on them and do great on the final, that grade counts for your whole exam section grade. They are very specific but if you study, you will do really well. He tries to make class fun and is so nice. There are daily check-in assignments with a code that don't count for much, and occasional exam reviews where you get feedback. He also does content Q & A's before every exam which really help. There are participation grades so if you don't talk in class or do the threads he posts, just email socy230@umd.edu each day after lecture with your thoughts/real-life examples to show engagement. Take this class, take Long Doan.
Long Doan
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
11/28/2023
Great professor who makes the course structure easy to follow and easy to succeed in. He wants you to learn and his lectures are worth going to. He has 0 interest in making your life harder than it needs to be and wants everyone to succeed. One of the kindest and best teachers I've had at UMD. He learned the names of almost everyone in a 120-student classroom and had actual discussions. Take him for anything you can.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A
Anonymous
10/31/2023
Literally he helped me realize what I want to do with my life. SOCY230 was so much fun and so interesting. Plus, as a student with multiple disabilities, I found the class really disability friendly as he was flexible about attendance, gave us little breaks, and kept lectures on track and super interesting (in my opinion at least). Also, reach out to him if you are a socy student! It's because of him that I'm working at a research lab as a sophomore. Overall, he's a really great guy and great professor. Highly recommend.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/16/2023
Professor Lucas was great! There are notecard activities, both individually and with a partner, that are used for in-class participation. Even if you have to miss class, you can make up a certain number of in-class participation days by just watching the recorded lecture and writing 350 words about two of the topic and how they connect to your life. His lectures were engaging and he told a lot of stories which were funny and interesting. The final was not cumulative and was just like the 3 previous exams we had throughout the semester (about 50 multiple-choice questions). He drops the lowest exam score and even gave opportunities to replace test scores with keeping a journal every day of the semester or completing a final paper. This was a great option if test-taking is not your strong suit. There were also 4 "Paper Assignments" that were 70 points each and were not too hard to complete as long as you connected the material well.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/08/2023
Interesting lectures and he's really straightforward. Going to class matters (he grades attendance but plenty of make-up opportunities but they're more work). Papers and tests are pretty easy.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/19/2022
Great professor, highly recommend taking his class. As long as you take notes and read the required material this is an easy A class. The book is very interested and I actually looked forward to do the readings.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/12/2022
Good professor, all his classes are lectures. He added participation points where you have to be in class for them. Definitely need to show up, you can only miss 2 classes without losing points. 4 exams, 1 drops. Each exam, including the final, is not cummulative. (final includes one of the 4 exams).l Easy class, just show up and listen. 4 papers, not too difficult. He is very sweet and great at answering emails and questions.
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/01/2022
Great professor, not a hard class
Simone Durham
SOCY230

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/06/2022
Good professor, down to earth. Assignments are manageable and open to go at your own pace. Took the three-week summer course, but the workload made it so I could complete course work on time and enjoy my summer.
Simone Durham
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
08/06/2022
Prof. Durham is a super cool professor! She understands what it's like to be a student so she is willing to work with you if you have any trouble during the course. She is supportive and gives great feedback. I am signed up to take two more classes with her because of the awesome experience I had! Do yourself a favor and take a class with her! Even if you aren't a sociology major it is so worth it!
Justin Maietta
SOCY230

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/23/2021
Professor Maietta was a really great instructor. However, this class is a LOT of work. I believe the expectations he has from his students are way too high, especially for a 200-level course. If you’re looking for an easy elective to just get by, this class is not for you. If you’re a sociology major that is interested to explore social psychology, add this class to your schedule. Just be prepared for the intense work-load (literature reviews, research papers, etc.)
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting an A
emilynetter
05/08/2014
Great class and great teacher! The book he recently made the class use is amazingggg and I've recommended it to anyone and everyone. I'm sure some people may on occasion find the class boring only because it's usually a straight through lecture and powerpoint class, but sometimes we did activities that were really fun, and he also tells interesting and funny stories that relate to the topic we're learning about (well, mostly haha) to the point where yeah you're learning but you're also getting to know the teacher in a fun way. Every Thursday there was a very simple 3 question quiz, based on that week's reading; if you do the reading you'll get 100%. If you didn't do the reading, you pretty much won't (the questions are tricky enough to make it that way but simple enough so if you did do the reading, you're golden). Reading the book and showing up to class are important, and the papers he assigns are very short so as soon as you get the assignment sheet, do it that day as best you can then send it to him to see if he can read over it! It'll help you get a better grade and you'll show him that you're putting in the effort. The class is very well organized and he gives you an awesome review sheet to work off of prior to each exam. The only thing I didn't like was having to use TopHat because I already have a physical clicker (which you pay for only once) and with Tophat, you have to renew the simple button pressing online clicker every semester (oh corporate profits at the sake of college students). Though I think some students were able to get out of paying for it by just writing their answers to clicker questions on paper and turnign it in at the end of class? Not sure. Other than that though, this class is really worth it, really awesome, and that's mainly because Dr. Lucas is an awesome teacher. :)
Jeffrey Lucas
SOCY230

Expecting a B
lbuzek
05/10/2011
Professor Lucas is an incredible instructor. He spends a lot of time telling stories in class in a way that really helps to reinforce the material we are learning and keeps the class's attention. His rules are fairly strict but he is also very understanding of personal situations and it's clear he wants his students to succeed. The best advice I could give to anyone taking this course is to show up to class and read the book. (I'm not someone who usually reads textbooks, but this one is a good read) It's work, but it's not too much work, and it's really interesting. The class is very well structured and the in-class quizzes definitely help prepare you for the midterm and the final.