Sergio Urzua

This professor has taught: ECON175, ECON375, ECON396, ECON417, ECON422, ECON423, ECON472, ECON708, ECON771, ECON772, ECON878

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Sergio Urzua ECON175 Expecting a B- Anonymous 07/21/2023	Have you ever wondered how grad school was taught? I swear this guy teaches this 100 class the same way he does grad school, there's a ridiculous amount of readings to do and he's very unhelpful.
Sergio Urzua ECON175 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/21/2023	This is a 100-level course but we were expected to complete work that was the equivalent to a 300 course. He would show us these complex graphs and equations and told us that we "did not have to understand them as long as we were able to take away the main purpose". However, these graphs and equations would show up on the (graded) Problem Sets. He would never give a straight answer to anything and is prone to debating students. The average for the midterm was a 61% and the average for the final exam was a 63%. It is extremely difficult to get an A in this class, and many students end up either withdrawing or retaking it next semester. So I suggest that if you are taking this for an elective you chose another course.
Sergio Urzua ECON175 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/17/2023	Avoid this class at all costs. While he may be better at teaching higher level courses, the same level of strictness shouldn't apply for a 100-level gen-ed class. We were given new readings/articles/books every single day and the total pages of reading exceeded 10,000. There is no proper preparation for the midterm/final. For the midterm, we were given a small list of readings and that's it, while there was much more than what was on the list on the midterm. The final was completely undocumented and we have no idea what's going to be on it. For the essays, there is not a rubric. Literally. No rubric and it's impossible to know what he wants. Whenever somebody asks a question (like a yes/no) he will go on a forever long tangent about how there's no answer.
Sergio Urzua ECON417 Anonymous 12/18/2022	Definitely demanding but also passionate about the subject. I think this was his first time teaching ECON417 and his expectations were very high for the undergraduate level. The final grade was based on 4 time-intensive problem sets and 2 written exams. The grading was fair but the content was difficult. That said, Dr. Urzua is willing to help you if you ask for it. He is responsive to emails, has accessible office hours, and is willing to re-teach a concept in class if you communicate that you're confused. His problem sets are also collaborative, which is very helpful. This class is open to BA and BS students and working together helped fill in everyone's knowledge gaps. Even if you don't earn the highest grade on your transcript, I would recommend a class with Dr. Urzua. He definitely prepares you to work or study further in the field. I can probably code Stata in my sleep now, and his focus on the applications (not just theory) of econometrics made the class way more interesting than ECON422.
Sergio Urzua ECON423 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/26/2020	Left this review on rate my professor as well: He is very accessible and really wants his students to succeed. This course was extremely challenging and needed a lot of time dedicated to it. COVID updates to his normal syllabus: No final, dropped lowest midterm, and several quizzes. He curved to a B (I think he did this in normal semesters). Very knowledgeable and passionate about economics.
Sergio Urzua ECON423 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 01/04/2020	I learned a lot from Dr. Urzua, but he tries to cover too much material in a class. Many of the concepts he teaches branches into graduate-level economics, and having that knowledge will give you a leg up for internships/jobs as research assistants or junior economists. As a result, many of the concepts are taught in a rushed manner. If you don't stay on top of your work, you can easily fall behind in class. His problem sets take on average 10-14 hours to complete, and the knowledge needed to complete the questions aren't explicitly covered in his lecture. His exams are notoriously difficult and tend to have class averages between 20% and 55%. His lectures are almost completely oral with occasional writing on the board to write the occasional equation or regression. His office hours aren't too helpful since he tends to be very vague with his answers. The class involves a lot of independent studying and will allow you to have a more thorough understanding of the concepts. Don't take this class if your schedule is pushing anywhere more than 16 credits.
Sergio Urzua ECON423 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/24/2019	Econ 423 is HARD. Urzua is good at making the class worthwhile. He's less about the math, and more about the economic reasoning. Exams (3 Midterms and one cumulative Final) are difficult. Each builds on the last. Expect repeat questions, so take the time to learn from your previous mistakes. Problem sets (4 total) are also hard. Each takes at least 10 hours. Very STATA-heavy, so expect to be thrown into STATA with absolutely zero class time taken to explain the basics. Curves to a B/B+, depends on the class size.