Michael Severson

COMM331 · COM325 · CCOM321 · COMM101 · COMM301 · COMM321 · SPCH110 · COM301 · COM331 · 139 lifetime ratings

AI rating: 36/100
RMP rating: 3.2/5
Take again: 29.17%
Difficulty: 3.8

The decision

if you want a rigorous public-speaking challenge and and heavy group work; otherwise pick someone else.

Best fit · Hardcore LearnerTough GraderHeavy WorkloadMandatory AttendanceGroup ProjectsHarsh Feedback

and frequent harsh critique of speeches and papers.
Workload is heavy for a 3-unit class: , and .
A and growth; many report anxiety, unfair grading, and urge avoiding him.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

HardWork

32/100

An A usually needs full effort on speeches, papers, group work, and .

; no online reviews.

Is the course easy?

Challenging

28/100

Content and pace feel advanced for intro Comm, with , and high speaking standards.

; no online reviews.

Is attendance flexible?

Mandatory

18/100

and skipping risks failing.

; no online reviews.

Is this professor recommended?

Avoid

30/100

and many urge others to pick any other professor despite a few strong fans.

; no online reviews.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Harsh

22/100

; students report letter-grade hits for small speech flaws and .

Format shift

Workload

Overwhelming

18/100

Multiple speeches with , and heavy group hours.

Format shift

Teaching experience

Average

48/100

Some call lectures amazing and feedback strong; many .

Format shift

Assessment method

Balanced

55/100

Grade mixes speeches, outlines, papers, group projects, quizzes, and .

Format shift

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

50 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

In-person Comm courses feel like a UC-level load with and papers, strict timing rules, and ; a minority find the rigor rewarding.

Main concern

Unfair or , and overwhelming group plus paper workload for 3 units.

What students said

“ ”
COM301

“I wrote a total of 76 pages! if you want an A.”
COMM331

“ . . Too much group work.”
COM301

Remote format

Online

0 reviews

Low confidence

No stored summary is available for this format.

Main concern

No main concern is stored for this format.

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

, but grading is still harsh and criteria can feel unclear.

Assessment risk

Standard

58/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

Students report , plus pop quizzes and speech-heavy evaluation.

Take-Home ExamOpen Book ElementsPop QuizzesSpeech Heavy

“ and answers are on books and notes.”
COM301

“5 takehome exams”
COMM301

“Awful at giving grading criteria for .”
COMM301

Online

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice
“If you're thinking about taking this professor, DON'T.”
Voice snapshots generated from 50 in-person reviews, highlighting toughness, workload, and mixed teaching. Credibility rating: High.

⚖️

22/100

“ . You can lose an entire letter grade on a speech due to ONE aspect.”

📚 Workload Intensity

18/100

“I wrote a total of 76 pages! Amount of work is INSANE.”

👍 Split Recommendation

30/100

“10/10 recommend him!!”

🎤 Teaching Mixed Bag

48/100

“He teaches very well and you will learn the skills to be a more effective communicator. However, consider this professor your last option.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

Amazing lectures
He creates a Really comfortable environment for a comm class
Constant criticism does not help students

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

If you want a A you have to do the
Not an easy A
Getting an A is possible, but you'll have to work your butt off for it

Theme 3

⚠️ About Classroom Climate

stroke the professors ego to get a good grade
arrogant, condescending to students
.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

Recent reviews read by the AI

139

Lifetime ratings

88/100

Evidence confidence

50 detailed in-person reviews spanning many years with consistent themes on toughness, workload, and mixed teaching quality.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 536

4 out of 532

3 out of 532

2 out of 519

1 out of 520

Course coverage

COMM30118 reviews

COM30115 reviews

COMM3315 reviews

CCOM3214 reviews

COMM3214 reviews

Show 4 more courses

COM3251 review

COM3311 review

COMM1011 review

SPCH1101 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

25 reported outcomes

A range

A 11 · A- 2

B range

B+ 2 · B 4 · B- 1

C range

No reported values

D range

D+ 1

F

No reported values

No letter grade reported

Audit/No Grade 1 · Drop/Withdrawal 2 · Rather not say 1

Michael Severson

x x x if you want a rigorous public-speaking challenge and x x x x and heavy group work; otherwise pick someone else.

Four answers before you build your schedule.

HardWork

Challenging

Mandatory

Avoid

See how this professor fits your week.

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

In person

Online

See what students actually said.

⚖️ x x

📚 Workload Intensity

👍 Split Recommendation

🎤 Teaching Mixed Bag

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

⚠️ About Classroom Climate

See exactly what the AI read.

Quality ratings

Course coverage

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

A range

B range

C range

D range

F

No letter grade reported

if you want a rigorous public-speaking challenge and and heavy group work; otherwise pick someone else.

⚖️