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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2024 |
Incredibly easy class but a really bad professor. If you red to be spoon fed information do not take this class you will fail. If you can learn yourself, also figure out what how she teaches it because they are relatively strict with the grading and want code written a certain way. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2024 |
I feel absolutely awful writing this review. Nora is such a sweetheart and really does her best to help. She just... really doesn't know what she's talking about. I can't count the number of times she's messed up in lecture or seemed more confused than any of her students. This was largely a self taught course, considering she would rush through slides with minimal explanation, just odd tangents loosely related to the material. The course was also improperly paced with our class never doing an official project on Threads or Graphs, two essential concepts for later CS courses. The exams were far from impossible in their actual content but we were so ill-prepared for them that the averages consistently hung in the high 70s range. Nora, if you're reading this, I'm sorry. You're truly such a kind human being. But please, brush up on your concepts, maybe make some speaker notes for lecture and write your exams far ahead of time so you know what to prepare students for. I'd also like to mention that she dealt with a family emergency during the semester, moving houses, and a large transition from high school to college so she really wasn't at her best. Hopefully future semesters will be better but for now, I'd select the other option if given a choice. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC133 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/19/2024 |
She's a nice person, but not a great lecturer, so her lectures are super skippable. Only take her if you're already comfortable with the material beforehand/from high school. Otherwise, take another prof for ur sake |
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Nora Burkhauser
Expecting an A Anonymous 12/15/2024 |
Really nice person... HOWEVER she can't teach ngl. To be fair, it's her first semester teaching at a university, so it must be hard for her, but I imagine she will only improve over time. I had to put a considerable amount of time into understanding the material outside of class because it can just be hard to follow, like I remember she made Linked Lists so much harder than they had to be. Quizzes and projects are free points, so as long as you lock in for the exams, you should be fine. My TA was a cool guy and super knowledgeable as well. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/15/2024 |
Alright Alright Alright- The way she articulates her words makes the content impossible to understand. I had Pedram last semester and was able to get an A using just the lectures he gave, but you cannot succeed in this class without hours of self-teaching. Also, no, the projects do not take "a couple hours" They take days. Most students do not know HTML, so that took forever. Sadly, many cs kids are insecure about their intelligence and believe glazing burk(giving 5 star reviews) and saying the class is easy makes them look smarter. Also, there is a TA named david and he is evil. Someone will ask a normal question on piazza and he either gives a completely condescending response or just tells the student he is not "required" to help. Mans needs a gf. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/14/2024 |
Chill person to talk to, but I completely would recommend you have your bases covered (everything from cmsc131), this class shifts from a programming class to a dsa class around the 4th week, which is a mental shock to many. This shock lasts for a few weeks, so I wouldn't depend on the prof as a crutch if you don't understand things, try and use online resources and the slides to study consistently. That will reduce the stress of compounded exam + project weeks. It will also help for finals. I don't think the class is incredibly difficult, but it is somewhat hard. Exams averages are around C's, so as long as you attend discussion, do the worksheets there (Christina is my goat), and review consistently, you should jump the hurdle that is this weeder course! |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC133 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2024 |
I think the students know what they're doing more than she does. She makes a ton of mistakes in lectures and cannot answer questions half of the time (probably more) so going to lectures was a waste of time. Also, her exam review content can be wildly different from the actual exam. Sometimes I feel like I overprepared since the exam only involved a few topics that we learned. While projects are easy, they are not assigned consistently; this semester, we only did 4 out of 7 planned projects. If you only care about grades and have some solid Java knowledge going in, taking Nora for 133 isn't the worst, but please try to take literally anyone else if you can. Nora, if you're reading this, please take all the criticism to mind and improve your ways of teaching, for my sanity and the sanity of future students. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2024 |
Learn it all urself, not a hard class but it sucks if you just have to do it all urself |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/12/2024 |
While these reviews are unfair, they are not unfounded. While her lectures are okay, they really don't teach much. Yes, this is her first time teaching as a college professor, and yes, it is her first time using Java. The quizzes vary wildly in difficulty, and the class felt fairly disorganized. Projects for her course were okay though, and typically never took too long. I highly recommend another professor, but if you can't take any other, Nora is acceptable. If you spend the time to learn on your own, you should do well in this course. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2024 |
Class was very manageable and the tests were not very difficult. Despite what reviews say, if you know your stuff you should be good. The practice tests she gives where actually a great guide for the real exams, and I thought the real exams were fairly straightforward. The quizzes initially are worded pretty bad, but she fixed it later in the semester. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2024 |
She does not know the content she is teaching. You are better off not going to lectures and reading through the slides. She makes simple, understandable topics confusing and convoluted. She often gives incorrect information while teaching and cannot answer even the most basic questions on the topics she is teaching. She takes almost a full lecture to explain a topic that a 10-minute YouTube video would explain better. She is a literal high school teacher and should not be teaching this class. You are better off taking another professor. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/10/2024 |
I don't know how there are 5-star reviews because the experience has NOT been the same. The average on the exams are around Cs and C+s, which are not like the samples she gives. I think she is lenient with dropping the grades, but I still do not recommend taking the class with her. She does not record the lectures properly. She didn't have recordings for important topics which threw everyone off. Please please please do not take her if you have the choice to. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/10/2024 |
this is her first semester teaching a college class. lectures are pretty boring but the slides are easy to follow and useful for studying. projects are pretty easy and will only take a few hours at most. quizzes are also easy for the most part and the last few ones are online and you have unlimited attempts (plus the lowest two quiz grades are dropped). the worst part of the class in my experience were the exams. the practice tests she posts aren't reflective of what the actual exam ended up being, and there is no review in lecture or discussion (except for the final). the concepts on the exam aren't hard to grasp but grading is a bit tough. if you have to take her, it's not the end of the world, but i would consider other options. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/09/2024 |
I made this account just to write this review, she is not good. Exams - She does little to nothing to prepare the student for the exam Projects - Not terribly hard but the pacing of the projects are all out of sync, she does not have any for the first month of school then crams the remaining projects into the little time she has left, she does drop the lowest project grade which is helpful Quizzes - Her quizzes vary wildly in difficulty but overall very manageable if you study, the later ones are all online and unlimited attempts |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Anonymous 12/09/2024 |
her lectures are disorganized, more confusing than the slides, corrects mistakes days later which misleads the class. TAs are more helpful, exams are full of trick questions |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/06/2024 |
The Burkhauser Experience – A Comedy of Errors Imagine showing up to a computer science lecture, ready to tackle the mysteries of linked lists, only to feel like you’re watching someone assemble IKEA furniture without the manual—Nora Burkhauser at the helm. Her lectures are an unintentional escape room: you’re trapped, searching for logic, and no amount of clicking “hint” will save you. Her teaching style can be summed up as “Oops! My bad.” A 10-minute explanation for a 2-second concept is the norm, followed by so many self-corrections you’d think she was debugging her life in real time. Projects? Borrowed wholesale. Exams? A mix of puzzles seemingly written during a caffeine crash. Still, she’s not all bad. If you ever need a crash course in self-reliance, this class is your dojo. Just don’t expect to leave it with your sanity intact. Grade Expectations: A- in the class, D+ in emotional stability. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC133 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/05/2024 |
Class is very straightforward. There are 4 quizzes, 3 midterms, 4 projects, and a final. The class is fair if you take advantage of the office hours. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC133 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/05/2024 |
Class is super straightforward and easy. Her lectures are boring but slides are posted online after lectures without fail. The slides that are posted are very clear and explain the topics thoroughly. Only 4 quizzes, lowest 2 are dropped, 2 were online. 4 exams, first one is a little tough but the rest of them are super straightforward and easy, only 1 or 2 questions might trip you up (multiple choice). Overall great experience, definitely recommend taking this class with her. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/05/2024 |
Look She is just terrible. I dont care how understanding she is. Her job is to teach and she doesnt know the content she is teaching in the slightest. This class was not hard. at least 50% of the class could teach it better than she did. Even the TAs know the info better than she does. dont take her. dont even consider it. the lectures are time that i can not get back. so incredibly boring. |
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Nora Burkhauser
Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/05/2024 |
I think she's ok. Definitely had a bit of a learning curve with this being her first time teaching in college. So this meant a lot more studying on your own and working through practice exercises to understand stuff. If you were willing to put in a lot of time outside of class it wasn't too bad. Projects were generally pretty easy. Exams were a mix of easy and hard, 1-2 hard parts with the rest not being bad. Maybe she'll be better in later semesters but if you can play it safe with an experienced professor. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/03/2024 |
Nora, Nora, Nora.... You are not slick. as you can see, the review below me is the only 5-star review. Every idea presented in it is the opposite of all other reviews. You thought throwing in that your lectures can be boring would throw us off? Nuh uh sister. On a serious note, the UMD human resources department needs to stop macrodosing on ketamine when they are hiring people. She is literally a high school teacher, teaching a language she has minimal knowledge of, yall had to be faded to the max looking at her resume. Do not take her class . |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/03/2024 |
While it is her first semester teaching on a college level, I would still take literally anyone else as a professor. Her lectures were presented as if they were a simple high school class, and sometimes she would confuse herself with the information and take a long time teaching simple concepts. There were also other moments where she was unable to answer any questions students asked before lecture, there are probably points where you end up self teaching the material. Her projects are usually ripped off from other professors and her exams are a mixed bag of super easy questions and weirdly complicated questions. The teaching TA's are solid, but they sometimes lack confidence in their teaching and get really quiet. As for office hours, there was one time a day before a project was due where I asked a TA for help and all he told me was "I didn't open this project until you asked this question" (thank you so much Pranav.) If you ever miss lecture, don't count on lecture recordings because there are some moments where she forgets / can't record. The only upside to this professor is that she's super lenient with quizzes, release tokens, late submissions, and how many grades are dropped. Overall, while this course wasn't impossible (I still managed a B), it was made so much harder by how much of a mess this professor was. Hopefully this is just because it's her first semester. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/03/2024 |
I feel that the other reviewers are being unfair for a few reasons. For one, CMSC132 is a difficult course, no matter who you take it with. It's an entry level class in a competitive program; this is very clearly a "weeder" course. Burkhauser is also pretty new to the school so I can excuse some speed bumps along the way. Overall, she is a very understanding professor if you take the time to meet with her one on one. The exams were a bit funky, but again, new prof. I'd surely take her again, especially with a smaller class size. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/02/2024 |
Nora is a nice teacher the tests are pretty easy if you study the old exams. Projects are also super easy will take you 3 hours max per project. Lectures can be boring but the slides are pretty detailed. Quizzes aren't too easy but she drops the lowest and gives infinite attempts on the latter ones. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/19/2024 |
Exams have tough questions, projects are just her copying other lecturers, does not know simple things, gets confused during lectures. Does not even record properly half the time, we don't have videos on random days when she just "forgets" to record. 2nd Midterm was surely designed by her, because it was super tough and I swear she didn't go over half the things which were on the exam in depth. Every quiz has a different format, first one was on elms, second on grade scope, third was on paper and fourth one was as many tries as you want. Some of the quizzes have really abstract questions too, and there's no way a premier institute like UMD employed someone like her in the CS department. Lectures are just me trying to slog through the hour, and the TA's are average, some grading tougher than others. If you can choose a different professor, PLEASE DO SO. I had Pedram in CMSC131 and I still go back to his lectures to understand stuff when she confuses me. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/18/2024 |
Her exams are so weird, hard but easy at the same time. I feel like they dont really test you on what you know and just really odd questions. I would say run and pick someone else but also im not suggesting herman. I dont know why she is lecturing and why umd got this lecturer who doesnt know anything considering umd is supposed to have a good cs program. I would say if you watch the lectures on the recording and not go to the lecture that might be better. I also think you should go through all the slides once to prime your brain before you watch the lectures. And then watch a video trying to explain the concept so you know when she is messing up in the lecture because that happens quite a bit. The one thing i hate are the exams and quizzes. The exams are just so damn weird. not like the practice at all. I think im doing really good in the class (95) because im studying all on my own and using chat gpt to give me help! Save ur self if u can |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 11/17/2024 |
Give a hamster the 132 slideshow and it will do a better job at teaching than Burkhauser. You can try to self study but her practice exams are not reflective of the midterms at all. The questions on the quizzes are worded so weirdly, like the hardest part is figuring out what the question is actually asking, and does not reflect your knowledge of cs. Do not get burkhausered, run while you can. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 11/16/2024 |
She does not even teach and makes so many mistakes during lecture. While she teaches she would always correct herself and it is so annoying. The second midterm was horrible, I think our average was like 10% less than Herman's average. If you have the choice, pick Herman or anyone else. She should stick to high school where there are less lectures and more group work or smth, she's definitely not fit to be a lecturer. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/14/2024 |
She is so lazy and doenst make her own tests or projects. my current project is literally just nothing and she told us to make it |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 11/04/2024 |
her practice exams are not helpful at all and don't prepare for exams. she doesn't explain things well and . she may be lenient in the way that she drops quizzes and deadlines she can be flexible but idk, the exams themselves are hard and she does not teach well. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 10/07/2024 |
She usually takes way too long to explain something super simple. we were doing linked lists and idk why she is taking so long to explain something that just takes two seconds |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 09/27/2024 |
Terrible professor. Has never taught college before (only high school) and it definitely shows. Will confuse you on information that should not be confusing because she will make errors, correcting only using the answer key. I enjoyed the concepts and discussions, but dreaded going to lectures because of her as a professor. Take someone else. |
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Nora Burkhauser
CMSC132 Expecting an A- Anonymous 09/16/2024 |
This teacher is badddddd. She doesnt know how to teach and is really bad at her job. She is confused half the time and is confused all day. She is boring to listen to. I had her in the MMH building so the building was ass. the seats were ass. Everyone was confused. she is bad. Better than Herman if you can study by yourself tho. I think she may be lenient but idk. have fun if her and Herman are your only options |