John Millson | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 02/07/2019	His lectures are not very useful. In fact, listening to him may even confuse you more. The only saving grace is that his class is structured for you to pass. Homework of 4-5 questions every week with a quiz in discussion, which is just 1 of those questions. Midterms are based on his old exams, so make sure to practice them and learn all the distribution formulae
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/13/2018	Very unorganized, hard to understand in lecture. However the class is very easy and especially easy just to pass. I would only recommend if no other good teachers are available and you do not care about how much you learn. I say this because I did not learn anything and I did not put any effort and was able to coast by.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 07/11/2018	One of the worst teachers I've ever had. Do not expect to learn anything in this class. He mumbles in class so you can't hear anything he says. When he writes on the blackboard, it is usually illegible. Nobody goes to his lectures. However, I would still suggest taking his class because it requires little effort. If you do his practice tests, you are guaranteed to pass. His curve is very helpful. As long as you do average, you will receive a B or higher.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/22/2018	Ineffective as a teacher when it comes to learning the material, brilliant when it comes to needing a grade to pass. I got an average of 65% on all the exams (Final included) and passed the class with a B (It was a C+ but he changed it shortly after for reasons I do not know). Nice enough guy personality wise, but not easy to follow as an instructor at all. His curve is EXTREMELY generous. He even told us the first day, he sets up the class to help students pass with at worst a C. On a 250 point scale, Exams (2 of them) are worth 50 points each, The homework quizzes on discussions every Friday are 50 points (scaled down at the end of the year since they accumulate more than 50 points) and the final exam is 100 points. Out of those 250 points i accumulated 170 points. And that was a B. Take that for what it is worth. If you just need to pass this class and not taking any more classes above Stat400, Millson is your guy. I am giving him 4/5 just for that nice curve.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/13/2018	He is usually good at explaining but will miss points or get confused and start teaching other topics. He also starts lecture 10 minutes before class really starts so if you aren't on time, you'll miss out on a whole section of notes.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/14/2013	So I thought this class was very boring and simple even though I had literally never taken any statistics class before. BUT, if you spend 15 minutes per week reading the book and doing the problems he gave you, you should easily get an A. All the quizzes were a homework problem copied word for word. And the discussions consisted of a TA going over every problem. So for quizzes pretty much all you need is a half decent memory. The tests weren't bad (I think that over 10% of the class got a 100 on the first test) but the final was much harder than the other tests. So take this class if you want a fairly easy A and learn a tiny bit of statistics.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A Anonymous 03/04/2013	I give him 3 stars for 1 reason only- he makes up for his lack of teaching skills with easy grading. His lecture was worthless and I skipped it often and got the notes from my TA. I am not one to skip class, so this is kind of a big deal. If I had no TA to learn from I would have accomplished nothing in this course. That being said, if you want a non-time consuming basic course to fulfill requirements this is the teacher/class combo for you. If you want to pass your next class, STAT410, you may want to opt for a less lenient teacher.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/02/2012	Great professor! Scared me at first because I couldn't do those tricky poker hand probability problems, but once the class picks up you get the hang of things (the weekly pop quizzes in discussion, the lack of organization in his notes, his frustration with himself, the easy midterms which mimic practice tests)...and it all comes together at the end of the semester and you look back saying, wow what an awesome, cool, funny elderly man and what a nice easy 400 level course to end senior year! :) Highly recommended! (reviewed by a Bio/Pre-Med Major)
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A Anonymous 07/11/2011	Dr. Millson is my idea of a college professor. Elderly, funny, extremely intelligent, and a little disorganized. This was one of my favorite classes of the semester. He often uses interesting real world examples to illustrate the concepts. For non-math majors like me,it was very helpful. Exams are fair and there is a curve at the end. Read the chapters and follow his lectures will almost guarantee the A. If you need to take Stat400, his is the class to take. It was definitely a pleasure for me.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B motariq1991 05/25/2011	So, here is the deal with this professor. He knows his stuff but he is extremely extremely unorganized and makes too many mistakes during lecture, on his webpage and on homework. I honestly don't see why he can't just give out a syllabus and stick to it. He mumbles a lot and makes it difficult for students to understand what he is saying. His hand writing is TERRIBLE. Even though I sat on the front row every single lecture, there were times where I couldn't understand what he was writing. And it seemed like he was only teaching one side of the lecture, the front right. Every important concept that he wanted the class to understand, he would turn to the front right of the lecture and mumbles it away. But, the class isn't difficult at all. The combinations and probability chapter could get a little confusing but statistics chapters are easy as long as you know what you are doing.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A Luminaire 05/21/2011	2 exams worth 50 point each. Weekly homework quizzes 50 points total, and a final worth 100 points. With his unnecessary curve, I got an A with ease, while learning on my own. Lectures are too slow paced for me, as I can learn one month of John's material in about an hour of my own study time. Since I'm a math major, STAT400 comes naturally. For non-math majors, it's just high school stat and a little beyond. Whenever he sends exam solutions, wait about 4-5 emails for his "Corrections to Exam X Solution". The textbook is awful, and John complains that no one goes to class, but overall this is the class to take. I would encourage John Millson to repeat Spring 2011. It was a success
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A fma1 05/14/2011	I would say Millson is a pretty good teacher. I mean, he puts standard "good citizen" problems on the test. If you do your homework and get 100s on the quizzes and know how to do the good citizen problems, you can't fail this class (For goodness sakes, you only have to get a 125/250 to pass the class and get a C!). Good citizen problems are (1) he gives a pdf f(x), find E(X)/V(X)/F(X)/median (2) He gives a pmf for 2 variables, find pmf for X & Y, W = X + Y, say independent or not, find covariance, find correlation coefficient (3) Find (100-alpha)% Confidence Interval for mu (the mean) (4) Proof for two-sided/one-sided confidence Interval He does post his lectures online, and you don't have to take notes, but I recommend taking notes because many times HE WILL DO PROBLEMS FOR YOU. He will tell you how to find a confidence interval, telling you what you're really doing, instead of just plugging into the formula. Also, I recommend going to cramster and doing every single odd problem each week. It will help a lot instead of just doing the ones assigned.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A rockinbassman 04/20/2011	I'm not sure what STAT400 is supposed to be like, but Millson makes it VERY simple. If you're a math major or even a math minor, this will be the easiest math class you take in college. It is only a little bit harder than AP Statistics, since you do a few integrals here and there. The book is not very good, but Millson puts his handwritten (soon to be typed) notes online. Between the book, his notes, and the discussions, you don't need to go to lecture. HW quizzes were easy, so far >100% average on them. If you want to be challenged in statistics, take something more like STAT410. Otherwise, take STAT400 with Millson.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A toypajme 05/16/2010	Yes, the class is very easy because of his ridiculous curve and the grading system, but other than that, the class is terrible. He sits in the front of the class (because of a back injury) and reads off his hand written notes that are scanned online. Every few minutes he goes off on tangents. NOTHING is learned in lecture. Nothing, but sometimes he tells you what problems will be on the tests. The book is completely unhelpful and dont be surprised if you never know how to do the homework right away if you do go to lecture. Just pay attention in discussions and hope for the best. Tests are very easy and sometimes identical to practice tests. So yea, it's easy, but he's terrible. But since he's SO easy. He gets a 2.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A dm 12/30/2008	I think Millson is a great professor. He really wants his students to do well, and this is quite obvious in the way he teaches and communicates with his students. STAT400 is a pretty hard class, but Millson made it really easy.All his tests were open note, and he graded fairly.He wasn't keeping too well this semester, so I doubt he's going to teach this class again; but if he is, sign up for it!
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A astersh 12/29/2008	Easy course to get an A in. You probably don't have to go to class, but he's funny, so I do. Discussions = useless. My TA was simply abrasive. When she taught lecture (Millson had a few doctor's appts.), most people would just leave.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A pluralfacade 12/08/2008	The easiest A you could possibly get. Exams are open-note and generally mimic homework problems. He also gives a very handsome curve and is actually a decent instructor as well.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/05/2008	Very Easy A. He is also a great professor, makes the semi-tough topics very very easy. If you want an easy A, take this. Curves so a 50% overall in the class is a C. I only went to discussions to turn my hw in, but stayed the whole time before an exam. His practice exams are very similar to the real test.
John Millson STAT400 bbygyrl123 12/22/2007	EASY A!!!!! Just make sure you go to discussions and do the homework and ur golden. And a big hint is to check out the exam questions on the math test bank site! You see em again!
John Millson STAT400 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/20/2007	Great professor! Go to discussion sections, lecture optional. Great curve in the class.
John Millson STAT400 Expecting an A intrusion 12/03/2007	Very good professor. He teaches content effectively, and doesn't assume that you are smarter than you are (so sometimes it can seem like he is teaching to a lower level). His tests are open book, open note, and the curve on the class seems substantial (125/250 in class total is bottom of C). Highly recommended, especially for non Math/Stat majors who need the course for a requirement but aren't incredibly interested in the theory behind stuff and intense proofs and whatnot.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
02/07/2019

His lectures are not very useful. In fact, listening to him may even confuse you more. The only saving grace is that his class is structured for you to pass. Homework of 4-5 questions every week with a quiz in discussion, which is just 1 of those questions. Midterms are based on his old exams, so make sure to practice them and learn all the distribution formulae

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/13/2018

Very unorganized, hard to understand in lecture. However the class is very easy and especially easy just to pass. I would only recommend if no other good teachers are available and you do not care about how much you learn. I say this because I did not learn anything and I did not put any effort and was able to coast by.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
07/11/2018

One of the worst teachers I've ever had. Do not expect to learn anything in this class. He mumbles in class so you can't hear anything he says. When he writes on the blackboard, it is usually illegible. Nobody goes to his lectures. However, I would still suggest taking his class because it requires little effort. If you do his practice tests, you are guaranteed to pass. His curve is very helpful. As long as you do average, you will receive a B or higher.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/22/2018

Ineffective as a teacher when it comes to learning the material, brilliant when it comes to needing a grade to pass. I got an average of 65% on all the exams (Final included) and passed the class with a B (It was a C+ but he changed it shortly after for reasons I do not know). Nice enough guy personality wise, but not easy to follow as an instructor at all. His curve is EXTREMELY generous. He even told us the first day, he sets up the class to help students pass with at worst a C. On a 250 point scale, Exams (2 of them) are worth 50 points each, The homework quizzes on discussions every Friday are 50 points (scaled down at the end of the year since they accumulate more than 50 points) and the final exam is 100 points. Out of those 250 points i accumulated 170 points. And that was a B. Take that for what it is worth. If you just need to pass this class and not taking any more classes above Stat400, Millson is your guy. I am giving him 4/5 just for that nice curve.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/13/2018

He is usually good at explaining but will miss points or get confused and start teaching other topics. He also starts lecture 10 minutes before class really starts so if you aren't on time, you'll miss out on a whole section of notes.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/14/2013

So I thought this class was very boring and simple even though I had literally never taken any statistics class before. BUT, if you spend 15 minutes per week reading the book and doing the problems he gave you, you should easily get an A. All the quizzes were a homework problem copied word for word. And the discussions consisted of a TA going over every problem. So for quizzes pretty much all you need is a half decent memory. The tests weren't bad (I think that over 10% of the class got a 100 on the first test) but the final was much harder than the other tests. So take this class if you want a fairly easy A and learn a tiny bit of statistics.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
Anonymous
03/04/2013

I give him 3 stars for 1 reason only- he makes up for his lack of teaching skills with easy grading. His lecture was worthless and I skipped it often and got the notes from my TA. I am not one to skip class, so this is kind of a big deal. If I had no TA to learn from I would have accomplished nothing in this course. That being said, if you want a non-time consuming basic course to fulfill requirements this is the teacher/class combo for you. If you want to pass your next class, STAT410, you may want to opt for a less lenient teacher.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/02/2012

Great professor! Scared me at first because I couldn't do those tricky poker hand probability problems, but once the class picks up you get the hang of things (the weekly pop quizzes in discussion, the lack of organization in his notes, his frustration with himself, the easy midterms which mimic practice tests)...and it all comes together at the end of the semester and you look back saying, wow what an awesome, cool, funny elderly man and what a nice easy 400 level course to end senior year! :) Highly recommended! (reviewed by a Bio/Pre-Med Major)

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
Anonymous
07/11/2011

Dr. Millson is my idea of a college professor. Elderly, funny, extremely intelligent, and a little disorganized. This was one of my favorite classes of the semester. He often uses interesting real world examples to illustrate the concepts. For non-math majors like me,it was very helpful. Exams are fair and there is a curve at the end. Read the chapters and follow his lectures will almost guarantee the A. If you need to take Stat400, his is the class to take. It was definitely a pleasure for me.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
motariq1991
05/25/2011

So, here is the deal with this professor. He knows his stuff but he is extremely extremely unorganized and makes too many mistakes during lecture, on his webpage and on homework. I honestly don't see why he can't just give out a syllabus and stick to it. He mumbles a lot and makes it difficult for students to understand what he is saying. His hand writing is TERRIBLE. Even though I sat on the front row every single lecture, there were times where I couldn't understand what he was writing. And it seemed like he was only teaching one side of the lecture, the front right. Every important concept that he wanted the class to understand, he would turn to the front right of the lecture and mumbles it away. But, the class isn't difficult at all. The combinations and probability chapter could get a little confusing but statistics chapters are easy as long as you know what you are doing.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
Luminaire
05/21/2011

2 exams worth 50 point each. Weekly homework quizzes 50 points total, and a final worth 100 points. With his unnecessary curve, I got an A with ease, while learning on my own. Lectures are too slow paced for me, as I can learn one month of John's material in about an hour of my own study time. Since I'm a math major, STAT400 comes naturally. For non-math majors, it's just high school stat and a little beyond. Whenever he sends exam solutions, wait about 4-5 emails for his "Corrections to Exam X Solution". The textbook is awful, and John complains that no one goes to class, but overall this is the class to take. I would encourage John Millson to repeat Spring 2011. It was a success

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
fma1
05/14/2011

I would say Millson is a pretty good teacher. I mean, he puts standard "good citizen" problems on the test. If you do your homework and get 100s on the quizzes and know how to do the good citizen problems, you can't fail this class (For goodness sakes, you only have to get a 125/250 to pass the class and get a C!). Good citizen problems are (1) he gives a pdf f(x), find E(X)/V(X)/F(X)/median (2) He gives a pmf for 2 variables, find pmf for X & Y, W = X + Y, say independent or not, find covariance, find correlation coefficient (3) Find (100-alpha)% Confidence Interval for mu (the mean) (4) Proof for two-sided/one-sided confidence Interval He does post his lectures online, and you don't have to take notes, but I recommend taking notes because many times HE WILL DO PROBLEMS FOR YOU. He will tell you how to find a confidence interval, telling you what you're really doing, instead of just plugging into the formula. Also, I recommend going to cramster and doing every single odd problem each week. It will help a lot instead of just doing the ones assigned.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
rockinbassman
04/20/2011

I'm not sure what STAT400 is supposed to be like, but Millson makes it VERY simple. If you're a math major or even a math minor, this will be the easiest math class you take in college. It is only a little bit harder than AP Statistics, since you do a few integrals here and there. The book is not very good, but Millson puts his handwritten (soon to be typed) notes online. Between the book, his notes, and the discussions, you don't need to go to lecture. HW quizzes were easy, so far >100% average on them. If you want to be challenged in statistics, take something more like STAT410. Otherwise, take STAT400 with Millson.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
toypajme
05/16/2010

Yes, the class is very easy because of his ridiculous curve and the grading system, but other than that, the class is terrible. He sits in the front of the class (because of a back injury) and reads off his hand written notes that are scanned online. Every few minutes he goes off on tangents. NOTHING is learned in lecture. Nothing, but sometimes he tells you what problems will be on the tests. The book is completely unhelpful and dont be surprised if you never know how to do the homework right away if you do go to lecture. Just pay attention in discussions and hope for the best. Tests are very easy and sometimes identical to practice tests. So yea, it's easy, but he's terrible. But since he's SO easy. He gets a 2.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
dm
12/30/2008

I think Millson is a great professor. He really wants his students to do well, and this is quite obvious in the way he teaches and communicates with his students. STAT400 is a pretty hard class, but Millson made it really easy.All his tests were open note, and he graded fairly.He wasn't keeping too well this semester, so I doubt he's going to teach this class again; but if he is, sign up for it!

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
astersh
12/29/2008

Easy course to get an A in. You probably don't have to go to class, but he's funny, so I do. Discussions = useless. My TA was simply abrasive. When she taught lecture (Millson had a few doctor's appts.), most people would just leave.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
pluralfacade
12/08/2008

The easiest A you could possibly get. Exams are open-note and generally mimic homework problems. He also gives a very handsome curve and is actually a decent instructor as well.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/05/2008

Very Easy A. He is also a great professor, makes the semi-tough topics very very easy. If you want an easy A, take this. Curves so a 50% overall in the class is a C. I only went to discussions to turn my hw in, but stayed the whole time before an exam. His practice exams are very similar to the real test.

John Millson
STAT400

bbygyrl123
12/22/2007

EASY A!!!!! Just make sure you go to discussions and do the homework and ur golden. And a big hint is to check out the exam questions on the math test bank site! You see em again!

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/20/2007

Great professor! Go to discussion sections, lecture optional. Great curve in the class.

John Millson
STAT400

Expecting an A
intrusion
12/03/2007

Very good professor. He teaches content effectively, and doesn't assume that you are smarter than you are (so sometimes it can seem like he is teaching to a lower level). His tests are open book, open note, and the curve on the class seems substantial (125/250 in class total is bottom of C). Highly recommended, especially for non Math/Stat majors who need the course for a requirement but aren't incredibly interested in the theory behind stuff and intense proofs and whatnot.