Peter Coughlin

This professor has taught: ECON200, ECON306, ECON414, ECON451, ECON708, ECON709, ECON808

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Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting a B- Anonymous 11/17/2023	Professor Coughlin was a solid professor. He gives a generous curve after each quiz, usually bumping your grade up by 3-4% points. This is not a challenging Econ class in terms of the material. Its a overview of alot of 306 material (indiffrence curves, optimal prefrences etc). The class is 5 quizzes, 20% each quiz, but they are not hard. If you show up to class, you will 100% pass.
Peter Coughlin Anonymous 10/27/2023	Fantastic professor. Lectures are clear and concise; the material is very well-organized.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting a B Anonymous 01/13/2022	Seems very nice but the only grades during the course were 5 quizzes so it was hard to get a high grade even when understanding the material!
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Anonymous 05/09/2021	Boring and didn't post study guides until the day of the exam. Wouldn't recommend.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting a C Anonymous 10/26/2020	Pr. Coughlin was nice but very dry and boring. His lectures do not prepare you for the quizzes (there are only 2) and the schedule is very vague. He speaks very monotonously and isn't good at communicating concepts. This class is NOT work intensive and has very few assignments. Just read the books on your own and you will be fine. Honestly watching the lectures online (covid times here at umd)made me more confused than not attending.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/16/2018	Boring but you'll know the material. Tempting to skip, but go to class
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting an A Anonymous 07/24/2016	Professor Coughlin has to be the most considerate professor I've had besides from Verma (ECON230). He structures the first half of the course going over key micro principles. The latter half, he skips around in the book covering topics in a more logical order. Trust me, if you study in the order he teaches them, the information flows better. He'll also set aside time to cover larger topics such as public choice, game theory etc. This actually help you gage what's interesting/clicking in your head and you can go on to register for those specific respective classes at the 400 level. He has 2 midterms, 1 final, and weekly Aplia hw - no discussion/clicker/attendance stuff. The material he covers in class is directly from the book just in detail with lengthy run-through explanations. The exams and hw are TRICKY but DOABLE. Make sure you know the concepts well and HOW TO APPLY THEM! I think he drops one hw but they are freebie points anyways since the answers are often available online. Before each exam, he has TAs set up review sessions to go over concepts and last minute questions we all have. The TAs are all very knowledgable. Svetlana is the best at explaining concepts, Prateik is best for the game theory chapter, Hao will give you the most straight forward answers to the math application problems. When the grades come out for each class, he likes to run stat models on them and use a regression model to make the class average around 80. This means you could potentially get a 60% and be bumped up to 75% depending on the respective curve. It really helps those that are towards the bottom but not so much so those that do well to begin with. IN THE END: Go to class, ask questions, put in a decent effort and it's not hard to walk away with a B!
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/16/2016	This is my second time having Coughlin and he has been a horrible lecturer each time. He always seems nervous and is undeservedly rude to his TAs. Lectures are dry and the material covered in them is easy theory and straight from the book. Definitely buy the book. The homework questions and exams are difficult - much more in-depth and complicated than any of the lectures. Don't worry about going to class. Just read the chapters and do all of the homework questions yourself - even though you can find the answers to basically all of them on CourseHero.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/12/2015	I enjoyed having Coughlin for ECON200. He taught the material very well (although pretty monotonously the majority of the time), and there was never a time during lecture where I didn't totally understand what he was teaching. However, this can also play as a downfall. His ability to teach the material as if we are in elementary school made it seem to the majority of the class that the course would be a total breeze, and I definitely knew of people that had trouble especially on the exams. His exams, although not hard per se, were definitely on the tricky side, but he curves them so that the average is in the mid 80s. However, there was seldom any material that he taught during class that you couldn't have learned from the textbook. The only work besides the exams was the online homework, of which is extremely easy, and even if you can't find the answers, they are bound to be somewhere online if you look it up on Google. I can't say for any other microeconomics professors, but if you don't want to work too hard for a B (or A for that matter) in this class, take Coughlin.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Anonymous 12/19/2014	This class was SO pointless. The hour and 15 minute lectures drag on so much to the point that MAYBE 50 people will show up from a 400 person lecture. The content is incredibly easy, but the midterms and tests are very tricky and do not reflect the easiness of the homework and the lecture content. He is very condescending to his TAs, but overall seems like a nice guy. Just very boring and not a good professor. We only got through 2/3 of the textbook material while other classes (with different professors) got though their entire book and seemed to have legitimate knowledge about the subject, unlike me.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 06/02/2014	Dr. Coughlin is a nice person, but he really doesn't teach the material well for this class. The hw doesn't really relate to what we learn in class. I didn't miss a single class and still did badly on the exams, except for the first one. I had him for 200, and I think he was better at teaching that material than this one. I wouldn't recommend this class, Dr. Coughlin really did not teach the material well. And it's kind of annoying how he uses the projector and the computer at the same time. The notes just kind of become very disorganized.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting a -A deans 12/27/2013	Coughlin was just a boring teacher. He actually had to point out which parts of his lecture were not from the textbook. The tests were a little tricky, but only because he didn't provide any good study material. TA's said the best way to study is using questions at the end of each chapter (not aplia), but they never provided us with the answers to those. By the end of the semester 100 people showed up to his 300 person lecture. Not bad for a guy who makes $73k in 2013
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/21/2013	Professor Coughlin is very fair and wants his students to succeed. The course consisted of two midterm, the final, and online homework assignments from Aplia. Each was worth 25% of the total grade. The tests were fairly easy and he curved so the average was a B. He explained the material thoroughly in his lectures, almost to the point where it became boring, but it was very helpful. I would definitely recommend taking his class.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/28/2013	Easy enough class. 12 problem sets (graded for completion), 2 midterms, and the final. The final only covers the last third of the course. The tests are a little harder than the problem sets, but if you go to class and follow the general ideas, you'll be fine. Also, don't purchase the textbooks/packets, they're a complete waste of money. I don't know anyone who actually used them.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 01/20/2013	I liked Professor Coughlin, he did get off topic sometimes and could be a bore but the class material is pretty easy to understand. Be aware that the tests can get tricky so make you actually study. The TA's are really helpful so go to their reviews before the tests.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/30/2012	While this guy is really nice, he is so boring. He literally regurgitates what's from the book without offering any new insight etc. He talks very slowly. Basically you can read by yourself or with a study buddy and learn twice as fast as the rate he is teaching. I stopped going to class once I realized this ( 2 weeks in) Some things to note: you don't have to attend lectures or discussions. Some other professors require a clicker but there is no attendance/random quiz. It is straight up 25% HW, 25%
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/03/2012	Professor Coughlin is an absolutely wonderful man. Although this class can sometimes be a bit boring, I never dread going, simply because of the teacher. He is incredibly good-natured and deals with his not-so-good audience with humor. He tells some corny economics jokes which make things a little better. Although his multiple-choice tests are quite tricky, I would recommend this professor. Econ 200 is not much work.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A asianzero 05/27/2012	This class was pretty easy for me since I took macro-economics already. He uses powerpoints and slides which make the concepts clear. The homework is fairly easy and counts for 25% of your grade. The other 75% are the 3 tests, which are easy if you get the concepts of the course. If you don't show up to lecture, you won't understand what you're doing. His teaching makes the concepts clear. However, he likes to make corny jokes all the time, which just kills the flow of the lecture. It's very good to read the textbook then go to lecture, I found that helps a lot. A pretty easy class for me, all you have to do is go to lecture and understand the concepts. I barely studied for the 3 tests and got an 88, 97, and 93 respectively. Also, there's a slight curve to the tests, which is always nice. Good class, and decent professor overall.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/19/2012	Unlike any ECON class you'll ever take. A lot of the class seems to be common sense based, but he still teaches it well. Tests can be tricky but shouldn't be a problem if you've studied. Homework due every week, but it's simple. He does move pretty slow, but I guess that helps in the long run. Overall a very nice man who does a good job to communicating the subject matter. I would recommend taking this class.
Peter Coughlin ECON200 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/26/2012	So fun and funny. Sweet man with a genuine passion for the subject. Taking as an upperclassman makes me appreciate his effort to involve a bunch of uninterested and unmotivated underclassmen.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/22/2010	This course is the very definition of "fair." The material is VERY easy too grasp. Its almost insulting how carefully the professor goes through the material. I went to maybe 50% of the lectures and ended up with a B. He tries to get the class involved with corny jokes and whatnot but it does make the class that much more bearable. Homework- The homework is straight-forward but you definitely need to attend some of the lectures to understand what they are about. (I was able to wiki some concepts but not many) Exams- 2 exams. The exams were not hard in any sense. All MC. He offers very helpful study outlines which are a great supplement (even substitute) to the lectures. Final- Ridiculously long. All MC. Again, not too hard but it will take you at least 1.5 hours to complete. Some problems require an easy but exhaustive process. There are a few questions that draw upon reading and lecture-only notes. Honestly, this class is not hard but you will have to give that little extra effort for an A.
Peter Coughlin ECON451 mayabcd 03/25/2010	I really liked this class. It's different from any other Econ class I've taken, which is refreshing. But, because of that, you are basically required to go to every lecture because otherwise you won't know what's going on. Dr. Coughlin knows his material, and he teaches in a way that really enforces it. Lectures were small. Overall, a really good, easy class. I recommend it.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting a B toypajme 12/14/2009	Aplia is annoying as everyone said. The exams are 30 questions or so multiple choice and the average is around an 80 normally. He tries to make the class interesting but doesn't (as most of the econ department). He does test on things not completely explained which sucks. As with most UMD econ courses, some of the questions on the tests come out of left field and you have no idea how to do them. You just roll with the punches
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting an A- Anonymous 06/16/2009	It sounds like this class has changed. There was no discussion, Coughlin taught everything in lecture. The Aplia homework can be annoying, but it's really not very difficult. You will see some of the homework problems on exams, so understand them. The exams were pretty fair, but a lot of the questions come from lectures, so it might be helpful to attend them. A lot of the concepts he teaches are theory, yet the exams seem to have a good bit of algebraic/numerical problems. He doesn't really go through too many of these, but they were on the exams. Overall, Coughlin isn't such a bad professor, but his exams can be tricky. It's pretty difficult to get an A, but the top 50% or so should get at least a B.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting a B tulch 04/10/2009	Professor Coughlin wasn't that bad, I can't say that I enjoyed the class, but it wasn't miserable. The book is more helpful than lecture. He makes corny jokes/shows corny comics in class, but I thought it was sort of endearing. Don't make the mistake that I made and think that there won't be a lot of questions about game theory on the final, it's what dropped me to a B from a 93%.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting an A natashkamd 12/23/2008	I hated his class. His lectures are useless, his exams are hard, his voice quite irritating (he sounds like Gilbert Gottfried), korny econ jokes and comics. 2 exams and a cumulative final. Hard to get an A. Some questions are ambiguous including computation problems. Note that he never mentions problems during lecture nor does he explain how to do them. Aplia homeworks are mostly stupid and unrelated. The only suggestion that I can give is read the book to do well on the theory questions and understand how to do the ADDITIONAL GRADED SET problems (only these types of problems are on the exams, not the regular sets). Problems require some basic knowledge of calculus. Don’t even bother going to class. I showed up once in a while just to feel good about myself for not attending class. His lectures are truly just confusing you more. I got an A, his curve on the 2nd and final exam helped.
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Expecting an A Anonymous 10/14/2008	Coughlin is a good guy. His class is difficult but an A is easy if you keep up with the homeworks. Do the homework, understand it, and you'll get an A
Peter Coughlin ECON306 Anonymous 08/22/2008	All i gotta say is DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR! he does not get the class involved..and any questions during the lecture are strictly discouraged! Discussion is taught by TA and you'd be very lucky to get a "good" TA who can actually answer your questions. Tests are very HARD and full of ambiguous questions. rest is on you..
Peter Coughlin ECON306 ecdysis7 06/09/2008	Not a great professor but not a terrible one. Lecture was not mandatory, although you probably will want to attend your discussion section. Aplia was worth 25% of the grade. While the tests were hard, you were allowed to bring a page of notes. I'd advise taking the class with someone else, but Coughlin isn't the worst professor in the economics department.