[MATH V1101] Calculus I

Professor Masdeu is incredibly nice and helpful. I thought he did a good job of explaining the concepts and emphasizing the accessibility of his office hours. He did have little patience for people who were just scraping by, or taking the class because it was a prerequisite, and didn't care about really understanding the material. Masdeu expected some measure of interest and commitment to the material, but was then an excellent professor. As someone who took Calculus only to fulfill the econ prerequisite, I still thought Masdeu did a great job helping those people who asked for it!

I had Prof. Vela-Vick for Calc 1. I took Calc 1 in high school, and expected this class to be a nice review over what I had learned before (READ: easy A). Vela-Vick seemed to almost over-simplify terms and concepts, but after getting used to his teaching style - he labels everything that he deems important as "definition" or "theorum" or "tip" and occasionally even states "this is very, very important". He is not very approachable in office hours (semi-standoffish), but is overall a friendly person. Sit in the front of the class - he can be pretty soft-spoken at times. Vela-Vick gives practice exams before the test (posts about a week before the exam), and then posts the answers (with work!) about 2-4 days before the exam itself. The practice exams were very indicative of the actual tests, with maybe one or two problems thrown in from WebAssign or the homework. I found the midterms to be very fair, and are extremely do-able with some studying beforehand.

Professor Snyder is an amazing person; he is extremely nice, especially during office hours, and really does try to help you once he knows who you are. This class is a breeze for anyone with previous experience with calculus, and the tests were pretty straight forward. Honestly, no one should really complain about this class because he is VERY FAIR with grading and tests. I mean, come on, he drops the two lowest homeworks (one on webassign and one that is written) and pretty much e-mails everyone in the class the basic outline of the midterms and the final AND during lecture he actually gives hints as to what he will put on the test.
His lectures I didn't find them the most useful BUT they definitely weren't boring only because he stops often and makes little jokes to liven the class. The curves aren't too great, but it all depends on the class. The class average was generally high, which is why there wasn't a high curve. I came out of that class with an A and I had calculus AB two years ago, so I found him to be generally good. I would 100% recommend him for calculus. OH and possibly one of the greatest things is that he is one of the very few calc teachers at Columbia that doesnt have an accent, so even if you disagree with this entire review of him, you can't really complain about his accent.

I’ve been told to take Culpa with a grain of salt. After a semester of Calculus I with Wei Ho I understand why.

Wei Ho is not a good teacher. This might come as a surprise, after reading the other ridiculously good reviews she has. Actually, it led me and some of my classmates to believe that these reviews were not written by other students…

There are many things to consider before taking a class but for the sake of this review I’ll consider only the most obvious two: The teachers’ pedagogy and your ability to get a
good grade.

Calculus I is not such a hard subject. Self-studying from the book (good), utilizing Khan Academy (God), and the help of friends and the math help room will put you in a perfectly fine position. Wei Ho is exceptionally smart but in the end she didn’t really contribute much to my knowledge. On the rare occasions I could’ve actually used a bit of help and went to her office hours, which she’s exceptionally stingy with, all I got was an alien look followed by her directing me to the math help room (so why do you have office hours?) Moreover, if you’re struggling with the class and go for advice the only response you should expect is just to drop the class. (I guess she'll also help you cover the fees).

Now we get to the painful part; your ability to get a good grade. I’ll actually
ignore the homework part, even though many people complained, because that part is up to you. If you work hard and compare with friends you'll get good grades. I’d rather concentrate on the exams. Wei Ho’s exams are extremely difficult! Yes, I know I said Calculus I is not that hard, but I did not say it was easy either. At times I felt as if Wei Ho just wants to ruin your life. Why? Well, not only are the exams are extremely hard, but Wei Ho does not provide you with any practice exams or preparation sheets. She claims “she doesn’t believe in them”, I say she’s lazy, and if I pay more than $1300 per credit I don’t really care what you believe in, I want something, anything to help me prepare for an exam. You might think that solving many exercises from the book will help you, but this is not true as Wei Ho’s questions are as far removed from the book as possible. To "help" us a bit more she held review sessions during the last class before an exam (this meant it was 10 days before the final exam), not really sufficient time to go over the material and ask important questions. Also expect an average of two minutes per question, on questions that should take 10 minutes, in the exam. She kept saying we "should not memorize but rather understand" the material; don't listen to that if you actually want to finish most of the exam in time. It’s true that all the exams are curved and easier exams would be easier for everyone but at least you’d know what to expect and where you stand.

So, Wei Ho’s teaching doesn’t really matter and her exams are horrible, why would you want to take this class? You wouldn’t – stay as far away from this class as you would from fire.

RUN! RUN! RUN!

if you don't have a background or haven't taken AP calculus in high school DON"T waste your time with this guy! He goes over problems a few times giving lame excuses that he didn't "learned yet how to teach them".... Yes. that what he said in class. Find his own mistakes the next day and corrects them half class time...
Absolute waste time.You won't learn anything in particular. Exams are fair.Grading awful.

If you come into this class with prior knowledge of Calculus from Calc AB or Calc BC in high school, then the class will be fairly easy.

He goes through lots of examples in class, so as long as you write them down and review them some time after class you will be fine when the exams come.

The midterms and finals are not that hard because he reviews the material that he is going to put on the test in the last day of class before the day of the test. Something that I found slightly annoying on the tests were the conceptual questions. For instance, proving how (x^a)^b is equal to x^(ab). However, you can use simple logic to think these questions through.

All in all, I would definitely recommend this class to anyone looking to take Calc 1.

Not good. He spends all of class going over proofs and theory, and only did a few real examples all semester. Even so, you should go to class because he will tell you certain things that will be on the exams. Even if he only tells you one or two things, it is extremely helpful because midterms are 8 questions and the final has 16. I took calc in high school, so I thought I didn't need to study...then I took the first midterm and got a 50%. After that, I prepared for the other midterm and the final by reading the instructional part of each section and doing all the odd review problems for each chapter. I ended up getting a B, which was good considering he told me I would fail the class. He seems like a nice person, but is pretty stubborn about agreeing with his TA's grading.

You have to buy an online program called WebAssign, I forget how much it costs but you only use it to do about ten problems per week. It's a waste of money if you ask me, but it does boost your grade because you will pretty much get 100% on every assignment.

He could be worse, but he could definitely be a lot better.

Written homework, 10%; webassign homework, 10%; two midterms, 20% each; one final, 40%.

Professor Ho is a really good teacher; I mean really good. She's absolutely brilliant in her field and also when it comes to teaching, which I find is rare in most colleges. She explains the material fairly well and is spot-on when answering questions. I've never had a math professor who answered questions so clearly before. The only thing is that her exams lean on the creatively difficult side. The two midterms were fairly easy but don't expect anything straight forward such as: "derive this" or "integrate the following." There were problems that required a degree of comfort with the material as well as a mastery of it that was a wee bit beyond me. I definitely recommend studying like mad for the two midterms so even if you bomb the final, it's fine. Honestly, I struggled a bit throughout the class but that's just because math and I are like oil and water. I learned a bit but not as much as I thought I would and I found the tests extremely challenging though I've spoken to some people who described them as cake-walks. It depends on the student I suppose.

Overall, a great professor. She teaches the material and answers questions and she's super nice to boot. I guess if her tests were easier, she'd be too perfect of a professor. ;)

You're not gonna learn much here.
He teaches what he likes, without much order, and makes going to class very unattractive.
The tests are easy, but that makes it extremely hard to get a good grade in the class. Every point you get wrong severely limits your chances of doing well in the class in terms of a letter grade.
Homeworks were easy. However, interestingly enough, even after comparing my answers to the textbook solutions, I still got points off. That basically means that Stewart himself wouldn't get the homeworks right.
In office hours, I found it quite difficult to get Snyder off the game he was playing on his computer in order to focus on my questions...
Really, there's not much more to say about this guy.

No complaints about Wei Ho. She is a very intelligent Professor who is skilled at effectively teaching the material of the class.

Her classes are very straightforward. She first highlights the new concepts, defines the necessary terms, and then goes through several examples. Pay attention to the more difficult problems because these are the ones that are highlighted on the midterms.

The homework is very manageable, but some of the problems can be especially tricky, so I would recommend first trying to complete all the problems yourself, and then going over the problems with a friend or group of friends.

The midterms tend to vary. In my experience, the first midterm was very challenging; the class average was around an uncurved 50%. The second midterm was much easier, with the average somewhere around an uncurved 75%, but this was followed by a final that was close to impossible.

You will definitely succeed in Wei Ho's class is you are able to fully understand the concepts behind the problems and not just a list of steps to help you solve them.

One anecdote about Wei Ho is that, occasionally, she will go over a problem that requires a third of the class time, and all of the chalk boards at her disposal. After ultimately coming to an answer, she will nonchalantly conclude that "This is really just some basic algebra and a little manipulation...you all should be able to do this."

I really looooved this class! I admit, I have taken a calculus class before, but even to those who are new to the topic, Penev does a great job at explaining the material. I think she is a graduate student and has an accent, but it's not very heavy. I was still able to understand her. Also, she assigns light problem sets that shouldn't take more than an hour to complete. Most of these sets are like 5 to 6 questions long.
Her exams are also fair. She does not give out complicated questions, and sometimes throws in an extra credit question. I've talked to friends with other calculus 1 teachers and seen their exams, they all seem much harder.
Also, the main reason why I picked this class was because it's very small compared to all the other calculus classes. Most of the other lectures/professors have classes with about 60-120 students, but Penev's class is only 30 students! She does have a low voice so you might have a hard time hearing her, but you can move up if you want. Also, the small class environment allows people to ask questions freely. She seems to be a little socially awkward but I find it amusing. I definitely recommend her.

I absolutely hated Calc in high school, but after taking this class with Professor Ho, I began to really understand the material and to appreciate the applicability of Calc. She approaches the material in a very straight forward manner and never fusses around with any difficult information that you won't need to know. She is also very tuned in with the class, and if she senses that students are confused, she will always stop and go over a few more examples or explain how to approach a problem differently. After taking Calc I with Professor Ho, I feel more than confident that I am prepared for Calc II or Calc III.

The only con is that the TAs do grade the homeworks harshly, and sometimes even incorrectly. Having said this, the TAs are extremely approachable and helpful, and if you ever think that a grade on your homework needs to be changed, they are more than willing to meet with you.

Bottom line: TAKE THIS CLASS!!!! It is absolutely painless (and sometimes oddly rewarding)

I had this class at 6:10 and found myself more focused on how much I wanted food than on Calculus. That said, Penev is a genius. Very, very, very quirky, but a genius. She can explain any question you have in a way you'll understand.

Her midterms were also really, really easy if you knew what you were doing, and the homework is a good example of what will be on the midterm.

Class is boring though, and the extra two minutes she always tacks onto the end of class are the most painful two minutes of the day.

Still, good teacher. Worth taking. Don't be stupid.

He is a nice guy and incredibly smart but does not realize that math does not come easily to everyone. He is always surprised when someone asks him to repeat a step or to go back and explain something. He doesn't seem to process that you may not immediately understand and will usually skip multiple steps while solving problems out on the board which makes it a lot worse.

The homework often takes an unreasonable amount of time to complete, not so much because there is a lot of it but because while doing the homework you will realize that you learned nothing in class. He spends too much time trying to explain the concept and not enough on doing actual math. You'll leave the classroom with an understanding of what a derivative is but no idea how to actually calculate one.

The homework problems and class examples were misleading. If you can do 70-80% of the questions in the textbook, there is no guarantee that you'll pass his tests. His tests are very much based on your ability to recognize a random substitution at a very specific time, so if you don't remember to substitute (sin x) / x for 1 at the right time, you will get the problem wrong.

Do not take math with Masdeu unless you are extremely math inclined.

Prof Snyder's lectures are pretty solid. He's engaging and dynamic, and clearly puts a lot of effort into the design and lecture. I understand that some students have trouble picking up his lecture style, but I really enjoyed it. He's helpful in office hours, and a friendly guy.

He makes studying for his exams quite easy, by pretty clearly stating what you need to know. He was great about grading quickly, returning them fast, and providing info about how you did and how he expects you'll do in the end. I found the midterms to be totally reasonable, and people who felt like they understood it largely did well.

I think Professor Snyder is a bit wasted on Calc I at Columbia. He's incredibly into mathematics as a concept, and has a deep intuitive sense. However largely the students taking Calc I don't care, or don't know enough to really get some of his references. I supplemented lectures with Khan Academy and videos from the text book's website, but I think that says more about me than Snyder.

Literally the best professor in the math department. Her lectures were clear, and she would always slow down and spend as much time as needed to make sure a concept was understood. She was great at office hours and would walk me through a lot of the homework problems and guide me to the right answer. Her tests were very fairly graded, the homework was manageable. She drops the lowest homework grade which was good. I won't take another calc class unless she is the professor.

Really great guy with a natural kindness to him. He is helpful in his office hours and willing to go above and beyond to help you succeed. However, I recommend not taking Calc I over a summer six week course. It is way too much material in a very short amount of time. I struggled in the course but it was in no way Luis's fault. As with all COlumbia math courses, there was a generous curve (I got a B on the midterm with a 62).

Prof Snyder is a really nice guy and pretty funny/relatable while teaching, however he is
a pretty below average teacher for calc 1. My high school teacher was a lot better at introducing the material, and because of his cloudy explanations, the class average stayed nice and low, making it a pretty easy A if you have any calc experience.
The first exam was a joke, I got a 41/41 and the class average was a 31
[He really was not the best teacher for someone with no calc experience]
the second exam was pretty tough, average was a 30/48 i think, above 40 was an A,
and final was pretty straightforward, he told us what we needed to know the class before and then most of it was on the test. He included one tricky question about sigma notation, but if you study/do practice problems from the book enough, overall it'll be an easy class.
You have to buy webassign for a weekly homework, which is really annoying and expensive for such a short homework assignment that pretty much just changes constants in the questions from the book.

Awesome Professor. she is for the most part very clear about the subject matter. she is easy to understand and very personable. she always starts out class by asking if anyone had any problems with the homework thereby ensuring everyone understands the material before moving on to something new. she does have a tendency to assume that the class has some basic knowledge of math so every once in a while the class had to ask what a quirky symbol meant or how she got to a certain answer because she will take short cuts so don't be afraid to ask.

I disagree with all the "great for non-math minds" reviews. On a personal level, Prof Stein was great. He had a great (though infrequent) sense of humor and he was very approachable. He was also fairly no-nonsense in the classroom, which I appreciate. If you understand the material, his class I'm sure is very enjoyable.

That said, I thought his class was harder than it had to be. I never had a problem with math and tested into calculus 1 with a nearly perfect placement score. But I was always, always lost in his lectures. Class consisted of him flying through problems on the board. Sometimes he'd skip steps without explaining, sometimes he'd just erase portions of the work and fill in the new numbers (which sucked when you're struggling to copy the problem and don't have time to rewrite what he is doing.) He is also one of those math teachers that thinks the harder problems are the "fun ones," which was really unfortunate on tests and homeworks. Like I said, personally, I like him very much. If you're entirely confident in your calculus skills, take his class. If not, find another way. Or make a worthwhile investment in calculus for dummies. It saved my grade.

He went quite quickly. Quirky and nervous on the first day, but you will hear subtle humor here and there. He is MIT and Harvard educated. Young Russian guy. Go to office hours and let him learn your name. I learned the grades on HW, midterms, and the final were all "negotiable", so fight for every point because he doesn't always agree with the way the TA's grade.

Tests are much more straight forward than other classes.

Overall, I'd definitely take him again. Got an A for Calc I with him.

A very good teacher who is approachable, knowledgeable, and caring. I was initial scared I wouldn't be able to understand her, but she is very clear, although sometimes quiet. She explained calc 1 in a way that made me learn it far, far better than I did in high school. All in all, the class was challenging, but doable, and my favorite one of the first semester. I feel confidant moving on to calc 3 because of her class.

Professor Ho is very young, but she knows her stuff, and wants you to succeed. She really wants you to understand the material conceptually, and to test your full grasp of the subject she often puts tricky true/or/false questions on the test. The homework of the course was extremely tedious and harshly graded; however, even with a low homework grade you can still manage a B or higher in the class.

If you get Wei Ho then you may as well stay in the class. Not the very best math professor I have ever had (granted this was her first time teaching), but certainly nowhere near the worst, and you can survive even with no prior knowledge/understanding of calculus.

I was in class for two days. That should be enough for a review on this "professor."
This is what I learned:
"You know when cartoons get into a washing machine and they get dizzy from the spinning, well if they got back in and spun the other way, they would not be dizzy anymore. Makes sense?" (Masdeu, 1st day of class).
"God created the natural numbers 1,2,3... maybe 0" (Masdeu, 2nd day of class).

This class is a joke!

-'nuff said

The first time I saw her, I thought ,"Gosh...just how much calculus is going to come out of that tiny flip-flop wearing thing?"

Well, I'm glad to say Wei proved herself way beyond her size and rubber flip flops. She genuinely tried to make material easier to understand and was always open to helping during her office hours. At the beginning of every class, she would go over important points from the previous session so missing class wasn't too detrimental. Her curves weren't too bad either- with some effort, anything over a B+ is very possible.

The only thing I wasn't too fond of was her assignments. They always had a couple of unnecessarily long and annoying problems therein. To be fair though, my distaste probably stems from the fact that I'd generally start my homework a few hours before it was due :/. The final was no piece of cake either, but judging from my grade, it must have been generously graded.

Wei was not half bad! If I had to, I'd definitely take her class again!

I found Woit's lectures pretty unbearable, sometimes actually a detriment to my learning. Everything mentioned in previous reviews- distracting stutter, dry approach, and chicken scratch chalkboard tactics- held true. The class material is pretty straightforward, though, so the class isn't impossible to get through- about halfway through the term I decided that the textbook was a better teacher and my grades improved accordingly. I survived, but I would recommend taking the class from a more highly reviewed professor, if possible.

PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU HAVE A BAD FOUNDATION IN CALCULUS.

I took AP Calculus last year in high school thinking that this class would be easier because I had previous knowledge of the material. I had Professor Ho on T/Th in the mornings. I attended all the classes and did all the homework but this is not an easy class.

Professor Ho teaches by the textbook and only by the textbook. She plans her lessons out by copying from the textbook and explaining the book to the class so attending class was not a big deal (attendance is not taken). The class consisted of about 90 - 100 students and I found it extremely difficult to learn in such an environment (lesson learned) esp. since there were some students who did not belong in the class. She'll ask the class if they understand and students will blankly stare back. She'll explain the easy problems in class and then assign the hard problems for hw, maybe because she wants to see if we really understand the topics, but how am I supposed to the hw if she explains the easy ones in class and I'm faced to the hard ones by myself?! On top of that, the TAs grade the hw's harshly as if they were a quiz - if you make a little mistake, you get points taken off.

Her tests were ridiculous especially her finals which she made outrageously hard for no reason. Most of the things she teaches in class is not on the test.

Honestly, I did not learn much from this class.

Her office hours are on Tues. mornings from 9-11 am and she is very nice but I feel that if you want to really learn calculus, choose a diff. teacher.

And yes, she speaks in a low, sweet voice so sit in the front if you choose to attend this class.

The material he covered in class was not relevant to the homework, the homework and review sessions did not prepare us for the exams, and neither the exams nor the comprehensive extra credit review he assigned could have prepared us for the final. In class, it often seemed as though he utilized the least direct problem solving strategy possible, making it even more difficult to process the material he was presenting in order to gain a strong grasp of the material (that of which he did actually cover, of course). Furthermore, there were instances in which, despite having prepared his solutions, he struggled to solve the very problems that he himself had assigned. I'm not sure anything could ensure success in this course, but a masters in math might help. Or better yet, just don't do it! 
 

He is a very nice guy but he is an awful teacher. I believe he once told me that I was not going to learn anything from him, thats what the text book is for, and he was right I learned nothing from him. The homework is not terribly difficult, once you teach yourself how to do the problems that is, and this can be very misleading when test day comes. I was able to do every problem in the text book but somehow struggled immensely with his tests. His questions do not simply ask you to know the math, but how to apply the math he "taught" you, and since I am not a math person (nor is anyone taking calc I) I had a lot of trouble. Do not take a class with him if you can avoid it, he will make your semester very unpleasant.

Nice guy, competent, very quick to grade. Decent in one-on-one.

Has a lisp, stutter, thick Chinese accent and quiet voice, so don't bother coming to class.

Or even taking the class, come to think of it.

Seriously - I could not understand a word he says. He often skips steps too and assumes we understand.

Just buy the textbook and do some problems.

He works very directly from the book, chapter by chapter (by Stewart).

He will sometimes curve the exam and sometimes not, depending on how well people do.

Professor Munteanu is a super nice man who is very nice when you approach him during office hours. His tests are straight forward and follow his practice midterms and finals pretty closely. He explains things very clearly, and he picks out the important things for his classes. He doesn't care for optimization or approximation or related rates, which makes everything easier in his class.

The curve in his class is super nice. The tests aren't difficult, and it should be pretty easy to get an A. His examples in class are pretty helpful, and he picks problems directly from the practice tests, homework, and examples. There are no curveballs.

Calc 1 is difficult if you've never been exposed to the theory of calculus. Professor Masdeu focuses a lot on the theorems involved, and how to use them, and not much on actual "plug and chug" mathematics. This can either be a good thing, or a bad thing, depending on how you learn, because if you never understand the theory, you won't pass his exams. You also have to implicitly know how to do the basic mathematics, because it is assumed you will be able to solve the problem after he shows you how to apply the theory. He also forces you to think mathematically, not just as a problem solver.

It was difficult at first to get used to the style, but after the first mid-term, you realize that you have to focus more on how to learn and apply the theorems to calculus than how to actually arrive at an answer to the question asked. Masdeu is a really nice professor, and seems to enjoy teaching, though I'm not sure if the realizes the incredible difficulty of his exams. He is very eager to give partial credit, if you look like you have a clue as to how to answer the question, in this I disagree with the previous post.

Personally, I enjoyed the class, because it literally made me interested in mathematics, not as a problem solving device but as a tool to understand how the world works. Most people in his course, however, would likely disagree. The workload is rough (though I'm not sure it is any worse than any other Calc class); I spent about 6-8 hours on Saturday working on an assignment, and then would go to the Math Help-room for about 2 more hours during the week to complete it. The exams are honestly very difficult, but if you understand the theories and how to apply them, he will award partial credit. There is also a big curve, which means that you don't have to worry about your grade. If you got a 30% on the exam, that means you knew 30% of the calculus that you were supposed to have learned, not that you will fail the class.

In all, the class is challenging, but it is "real math," and for that, it is interesting. Masdeu is a good professor, because he focuses on the math and theories, which is fundamental to understanding calculus. I do however, recommend the help room, and office hours; there you can learn more the steps to come to an answer for the problem, than just the theory taught in class.

I had Calculus I with her and went into it a bit intimidated, especially since I don't have the strongest foundation in math. I have to say, getting into her class was especially difficult because there was a sudden fever for this professor. But, for GOOD REASON. I can confidently say she was one of the best math teachers I have had. She has no accent...which is nearly impossible to find in any university math department. She is clear, concise, teaches you exactly what will show up on your midterm and final, and gives plenty of examples of how to work out certain problems. She is so so so NICE, easy to talk to, and accessible. She returns emails promptly and if there is a grading problem, she is happy to regrade the material. The class is an easy A, but I recommend showing up to lecture. The curve is pretty generous too. Class average on the 2 midterms was each time about a 42 out of 70, and anywhere from a 50+ she makes an A.

Only complaints: her TAs are merciless when grading homework. Not graded based on completion. Basically treated as a mini quiz and they dock points on any little mistake you make. Sadly, I can gaurantee it will be your homework grade that brings you down, not your test average. Then again, homework isn't worth much anyway.
Also, she has a soft voice, but don't freak out, just express your inner geek and get a seat in one of the first few rows. nbd.

GOOD TEACHER. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. FOR SURE THE BEST CALC I TEACHER COLUMBIA HAS TO OFFER.

First, let me start off by saying he's not a bad guy which makes the entire class even worse due to its horrendous difficulty. He got his degree recently and he is incredibly smart and I think that is what is limiting him. He seems to have issues with the idea that calculus is difficult if you don't have a math degree. Almost all the work will be incredibly theoretical and so when you get to the mid term (we had two the first had 7 questions and the second 4) you will find yourself spending a significant amount of time blathering through things.

The homework is incredibly difficult, just because the explanations given are quite scanty. He is more interested in theory, but a slight language barrier means that he spends 50 minutes describing something that could be done in 10 or less. This leaves little time for problems and those he does do, he doesn't clearly explain each step. As a result, you will think you get the material and then, come exam day, he will throw weird items at you in a problem to make it nigh impossible to do in the alloted time. Also, he gives nearly no partial credit unless you were practically right anyway, something that is not helpful when the theories involved means that there is a significant chance that you will have no idea how to do a problem at all.

I would not recommend this class unless you are a math genius by college standards, not high school, have a significant amount of time on your hands and are willing to sacrifice your GPA

I am going to be perfectly blunt. Ms. Huang is a nice lady, but an absolutly ineffective professor.

First of all, she doesn't cover the homework in a meaningful way in class. That is to say, she will go over some simple examples, which she will explain in a convoluted and confusing way, then assign problem sets which far surpass, in terms of difficulty, the examples she goes over in class.

She also has a nasty habbit of going over the homework after it's graded, and says things like, "oh most of the class missed these questions". But it never occurs to her that of course the class missed those questions, SHE NEVER WENT OVER IT IN CLASS!

She did the same thing with her midterm exam. Instead of doing a comprehensive review before the test, she spent an entire class - after the exam was handed back - going over the questions that most of the class missed.

Second, her english skills arent the best. And I feel bad saying this, but it was a bit of a problem. Especially when someone would ask a question in class and she didn't understand the question and gave an answer to something completely unrelated.

Third, the TA's were worthless, and she was just as bad. At one poit I was having a problem with one of the HW questions, which wasn't covered in the text, and emailed the TA, who - not at all promptly - emailed me back and essentially told me to figure it out on my own. When I emailed Ms. Huang, she never responded and when I approached her in class she directed me to he TA and when I told her the TA's were of no help she told me to consider getting some tutoring and suggested that I wasn't studying hard enough.

Most of the class quit attending the lectures as they were completely useless, and I am fairly certain that a significant percentage of the class was using a website called cramster, which is essentially a website that enables cheating. I didn't use it and felt a feeling of helplessness thoughout the semester, had I not had a good friend who knew calculus and helped me though it I probably would have failed Ms. Huangs course.

I would suggest you do not take this woman's class. In my opinion she shouldn't be teaching until she A.) learns how to teach and B.) significantly improves her english.

I am writing this review 2 years after having taken Calculus I with professor Munteanu. After taking 7 math courses with 6 different professors here at Columbia I have a decent ability to gauge math professors abilities. Professor Munteanu is an excellent professor; he has a very understandable accent and his lectures are clear and concise, he teaches at a reasonable pace, he blends the perfect amount of proof/theory and practicality, and he gives a very reasonable workload. Munteanu tends to go over an example of all the tricky types of problems that will show up on HWs/exams, so there are rarely any surprises. Furthermore he always gives a practice test before any exam and the real exam has practically the same layout/types of questions with different functions and numbers.
My roommate was in my Calc I class and also took Linear Algebra with Munteanu last semester and said he taught it in a very similar manner to Calc I. The only con I found with him is that he is not very receptive to questions during lecture, however he is very nice and helpful if you go to his office hours. One thing to also consider if you are thinking of taking a class with Munteanu (which I suggest you do if he is teaching a course you need) is that he has been a professor here for-I believe- three years now, the majority of professors teaching intro math courses like the first few Calcs are usually fresh out of grad school and have little to no teaching experience (or reviews here on CULPA), so its a gamble when you take a course with them.

Dr. Fusco knows Calc well. But that does not mean that he teaches well. Every class was straight out of the book, so if I missed a class, all I had to do was read the section.

One thing that was very frustrating (as a precursor I will say I dont know if this is because he's foreign or something although that would be a lame excuse) is that he made you feel stupid for asking questions that were obvious to him but not to anyone else since mostly everyone was taking Calc for the first time.

Each midterm and final were fair, but with two TAs there were grading inconsistencies which was frustrating.

His office hours were 'after class' when he didnt seem to interested in trying to help you. It seemed like he was tired and wanted to go home. I asked him a question about a homework grade and he brushed me away and told me to talk to the TA. I saw someone else ask a question about a midterm grade where he did the same thing. Yeah, TAs grade the stuff, but you are the teacher; you make the grading standards.

Homework was the best part since the cumulative homework score counted 20% which was as much as a midterm.

Calc I was one of my favorite classes in that I went about once a week and still received an A. In general, Sabin is not the best lecturer. He's quite hard to hear and to understand. In class, he moves extremely slowly, making it unpleasant to attend. His examples, however, can be used as blueprints to solve almost every assigned homework question. The class was very straightforward - there was nothing on the homework or exams that was not covered in class. Sabin is also a tad bit absent-minded when it comes to rescheduling exams (I had to reschedule my exam, and he "forgot" to tell me when the makeup was AND originally told me that I was not allowed to take a makeup). Sabin is a nice guy though, and it is easy to see that he's possibly brilliant. Perhaps Calc I was simply beneath his talents? His jokes are a little dry, but he tries pretty hard.

In summary:
Not the most interesting class but very straightforward and fairly easy.

When I chose to study calculus 1, I knew it would be like diving into icy water. What I didn't realize was that Lan's class was frozen solid; I came out of the first two weeks with a mental broken neck and an unconscionably useless understanding of limits or whatever the hell it was we were learning back then.
Lan's spoken English is not perfect, which can cause some confusion when she doesn't write everything down on the board. Frankly this made easing into her class most difficult, and I found myself skipping lectures about a month in or so simply because I didn't feel I was learning anything.
The first midterm was absolutely brutal; 26/50 was a B. Plus Lan spent half the term giving us double-sized problem sets; no fun.
The math help room in Milbank became my weekly haunt, which will always be an option: regardless of whoever teaches your section, the TAs are really helpful and explain everything with remarkable clarity. They'll tell you the book is straightforward and you should just read that but they're lying.
Strangely, about halfway through the term I came back to Lan's classes and started warming up to them. While what she teaches won't seep through in one go, the TAs will explain all that you don't understand. Plus Lan's stories about ancient Greek mathematicians and blunt addresses of Asians' propensity to allergies are amusingly cute.
In the end I am a fan of Lan's, although perhaps only for her quirkiness and not for her ability to teach calculus.

If you were enrolled in Professor Schertzer's Calculus I section in the fall of 2009, there are a few things you should know:

Professor Schertzer resigned at the end of the semester after a relatively short run at Columbia.

Schertzer created conditions that would make grading final exams easy and painless for himself, because it takes little time to grade exams which are predominantly incorrect. This saved him a lot of time in the few days he had to post grades. He also very effectively lowered student expectations so grade disputes would be minimal.

He created a final exam that included material not covered in class. One optimization problem accounted for 11 out of the total 80 points on the exam. This section (4.7) was expressly omitted from the syllabus during the semester.

Schertzer effectively cut final exam time to 1/2 of the allotted time by showing up 30 minutes late and cutting over an hour off the end of the exam time. This in a time universities have strictly enforced policies allowing students with learning disabilities EXTRA time to complete examinations - beyond the university-wide three-hour allotment.

If you were in this section of calculus, you should know you have rights. You can dispute your grade officially by emailing the undergraduate mathematics department chair, Patrick Gallagher, at pxg@cpw.math.columbia.edu and demanding a regrade. You must do this soon because there is a statute of limitations for a grade dispute. If you get no response, talk to the Ombuds office and your advisor. The university has conducted section-wide regrades in the past.

Registration for one of the many calculus sections at CU should not be the academic equivalent of playing russian roulette with your GPA. There should be some standardisation between sections. Let professor Gallagher know the math department will be held accountable for hiring unprofessional instructors and allowing them to wiggle out of fair grading and exam administration policies at the expense of student grades.

Finally, many students, undergrads and post-bacs alike, have adapted to the code of silence that surrounds ivy league education. Express displeasure with your experience and your grades if you feel they've been recorded unfairly. Silently concealing your disappointment with an exam or your grade will serve noone's best interest and will only give you a greater challenge in raising your GPA later in your education. You should share this information with your colleagues. You should expect more from Columbia University.

He knows what he's teaching and what to expect from students of that level.

Rotated his shirts and khaki pants in three-week term. You can count, that's another fun taking a class from him.

A genius, very nice and kind, open to questions. I'm majoring in math after taking the class from him.

Homework: all in the big textbook.

Exams: fairly easy and also difficult.
Easy because questions that appear on exams are mostly from the textbook with slight changes in numbers. If you do your homework (not relying on websites and etc), you will know how to solve them.
Difficult: He likes experimenting with one very tricky question which is labeled as 'extra credit' question at every exam. If you do score it, you'll get A+ (or guaranteed A).

Compared to other Cal1 classes, I'd say it's medium to heavy load. But he is quite generous in terms of grading (on my transcript it says almost 50% of the class got As-including + & -). You won't have any problem taking Cal 2-3-4 if you take 1 from him. Solid foundation.

I picked Peter Horn's class because Dr Horn's first language is English. But it turned out to be a great class for other reasons as well. Dr Horn's lectures are clear and organized. But that doesn't mean they're boring: he's extremely enthusiastic about the material. He came in one day and said "I was so excited to be teaching related rates that I put on a tie this morning." He was only half joking—he really likes teaching related rates!

Dr Horn tells math jokes and his final exam had two extra credit questions on it. That's not something you see frequently in a college level class, and I really appreciated it.

His test questions are fair. They're not easy, but they don't come out of left field either. He wants you to succeed and doesn't fill them with tricks that only mathletes will catch on to.

He learns all his students names and is very receptive to questions. There were tons of students in the class who had already taken calculus. Unfortunately, I think that's quite common. But all you really need to succeed in this class is a solid understanding of logs and trig—at this level the subject matter is very straightforward.

Boring lectures but come on, it's calc. Not that hard to understand him despite his accent, trouble will be not falling asleep. You don't have to go to lectures though and as long as you submit the weekly problem sets and turn up for the midterms and final you'll be fine. Rumen is actually a very nice guy and holds frequent office hours during which he gives you all the extra help you need. Go to his review classes because he covers all the topics you need to know for the upcoming midterm/final and often gives hints about what not to study.

deriving so much
takes little integration
some such clear lectures

I took a horrendous AP Calculus BC class when I was still in high school, and I was terrified that my professor at Columbia would be equally incompetent, going off only examples from the book and leaving little concepts for clarification.

However, my experience with this class was very much the opposite. Professor Cautis is indeed soft-spoken, but I sat in the back of the classroom for most of the semester and was able to hear him clearly. He does only go off examples, but I found his explanations of the thought processes behind calculus before delving into those lent me a much stronger understanding of the material than I had previously been taught. Some of the examples are obviously developed to lengthen the class time, as we often would get out ten or even twenty minutes late, but this is more of a testament of Cautis's ability to get to the point of each lecture rather than ramble on.

As a new professor, he obviously has flaws in being stuck in that distant didactic lecture style, but he showed an obvious passion for mathematics and often showed it through the way he talked about the concepts. Also, his style was very appropriate for calculus, though still in the rough, especially at the beginning of the semester, when his lectures seemed more muddled, but he improved over the semester.

The two midterms were relatively easy. The final, however, was a bit harder, and I'm guessing it was extraordinarily curved from the difference between my semester grade and what I got on it.

I went to lectures usually to listen to the first twenty or thirty minutes before they got too dry, then after that I would do something else and then pay attention again to copy down his very clear notes. It is also of note that some of his examples were also on midterms and the final.

I would encourage anyone to take a Professor Horn's calculus class! He is an all around great teacher and great person.

If you know the material, there is no need to go to lectures. Keeping up with homework and webwork is more than enough. If you don't know the material, it's good to go to lectures to get that extra help and ask those pesky questions. He's great about answering questions in class and during office hours. He's also great about getting to know his students. He knew most people's names and even what they were struggling with, even though there were 100 people in the class.

The material is tough and the workload is tough -- but very enjoyable if you like math. For me, it required hours and hours in the math help room. That one-on-one attention with TAs is essential if there's something you're just not getting.

The workload (problem sets and webwork) is heavy, but is perfect preparation for the exam. As you're doing it, you realize you're not just doing it for the grade, you're doing it to prepare for the exams. The most annoying thing is the webwork because a lot of the time its on material that has not been covered yet and its due before the material gets covered. Also, some of the problems are unreasonably hard-- even the TAs struggle with them. But you can get away with finishing them easily, by getting help from others.

The exams are tough, but if you sit through them and think things over and if you've kept up with your work, you can do well. They're also very generously curved.

Overall, I would suggest this class to anyone that wants or needs to take Calc I.

He does his best to teach the material to the best of his ability. He has a thick accent, but he is understandable, which is more than can be said about the majority of the Math department. He responds quickly to emails, gives credit for problem sets even when they are late, and is a fair grader. He has office hours frequently, more around exam time. He curves pretty generously at the end of the semester (not for individual tests). He's not spectacular in his teaching abilities, but you have to essentially teach yourself Calculus anyway. All in all, a good guy. Plus, he gave out candy during the final.

Professor Piechnik is a very good Calculus professor. She is very clear in explaining the concepts and is lively enough to keep you awake and interested. The course material covers very basic limits through the applications of integrals. Weekly homeworks from the textbook helped reinforce concepts and a few pop quizes thrown in throughout the course makes sure you know the material. There are two midterms and a final. If you keep up and understand the material, it is pretty easy to do well. The tests are not meant to trick you, but rather to make sure you know the materials. If you don't understand the material, she holds several office hours and extra help opprotunities. Overall, Piechnik a very good teacher who is organized, clear, and truly wants to see her students succeed.

Great professor who speaks English fluently (at least above the usual math standard). Very funny, he clearly comes very well prepared for class and his lecture/notes show. Dr. Horn is very friendly and approachable: he learned everyone's names in a matter of 2 weeks. The man is very patient in answering questions the students have. Although that occasionally slowed the class down a bit, I'm sure some people appreciate that.

About the class: not very difficult if you took calculus before. Could be quite challenging however if you hadn't. We moved through the first 6 chapters of Stewart's textbook (a speed some could consider break-neck). The principles and applications of differential and integral calculus were all covered (only minimally though, as this is calc I). Dr. Horn is all in all very understandable of students' situations. Very caring as well, as he wrote detailed comments on exam results, in addition to grading them very quickly.

Great teacher and mathematician, even though this is his first year at Columbia. I recommend his class to anyone, both the beginner and the advanced (although it might be more advantageous for the former).

Cautis is a very good professor, especially considering it's his first time teaching here at Columbia. He does talk low, but after the first day no one complained about not being able to hear him. He bases his lessons off of examples, and is always willing to do more if someone asks. Approachable, has a slight sense of humor, and organized in a simple way. Meaning, he collects/hands back homework in two folders: Last name A-M and O-Z. Keep in mind that you can see your grade on courseworks, but homeworks are posted on a specific website he gives you the first day. And don't leave homework in his mailbox, he doesn't like that. Overall, I would recommend him to someone taking Calc I.

Terrible teacher, awkward, cloudy, just horrible teacher. Grad student. Need I say more? He doesn't use a textbook, he writes MATH PARAGRAPHS instead of in blocks, his method of teaching is extremely difficult to understand, and his grading methods are just ridiculous.

Sabin Cautis is a nice, albeit slightly awkward professor. His voice is slightly low so you might wanna sit in one of the front rows so you can still understand what's going on. Even though the course was on the large side, he always took questions, although in the beginning his explanations were sometimes lacking and not as clear as they could have been. I have the definite feeling that this improved over time though.

As mentioned by the other reviewers, Thibaut really is a cut above your average Columbia math instructor.

I've had my fair share of graduate students and professors as I've worked my way through 6 math courses at Columbia and I'd have to say that the only instructor who came close to Thibaut was Robert Friedman.

Thibaut has a rare combination of great organization/preparedness (he clearly put a lot of time into the course, even creating his own course materials), genuine mastery of the subject matter (he can explain things n different ways, if need be), the rare ability to map ideas from the head of a math practitioner to a layman (he doesn't just throw theorems and ideas at you, rather he mixes them in with the right mindset) and he just plain appears to enjoy both teaching.

My experience in his course was great. If I ever had the opportunity to take another class with him I'd jump on it. I see he taught Linear Algebra at some point: I must say that as I slog through it now with an "average" Columbia math instructor, I truly wish I'd known and taken it with him.

Great professor, very Woody Allen-esque, minus the constant barrage of self-deprecating wit. Stein does launch an occasional joke every couple of weeks that usually cracks the class up.

He's reasonable, and approachable, and very smart. You really get the sensation you're understanding the mechanics of calculus with his strategy of highlighting theory before getting to the gross mechanistics.

Professor Wang is awesome. He's a good calculus teacher, a fair grader and is available to his students for at least an hour a week where you can work out homework and class problems on the board, one on one. He's also well organized. The class had a flow to it and he was clear and concise in his teaching.
Another nice aspect of the course was that it was small (only 20 or so people) so it wasy easy to ask questions and have a class discussion. He also graded exams immediately--I often found my grade posted that night.
I was so scared to take this course having not taken anything math related for six years, but he made the transition easy and I have been able to use this foundation for my science courses in working derivatives and integrals. One tip--go to class often and get to know him because with such a small group of students, it's easy for him to see who's trying and who's not.

Nam Le is funny, sensitive, and really cares about what his students are getting out of the class. He moves quickly, but he makes sure that the class always understands concepts before moving on. Open to questions, extremely available and friendly at office hours, and good at explaining concepts, he is worth choosing as a Calc. professor. Also, he starts almost every class with a math joke or funny story.

Professor Le is one of the sweetest prof i know at Columbia. He really tries his hardest to make his students get everything, and in the exam he doesn't waste time and energy by making us do impossible calculations. He tests the main idea and concepts with relatively easy functions to solve. His class is funny because he tries to keep it lively by cracking jokes. Although he has a strong accent, you can understand everything easily. Plus he writes what he teaches on the board systematically so note taking gets easier. I would highly recommend him for Calc 1. He is a really nice man, and because he is so prepared for what he wants to cover in each lecture, on most days he leaves us about 5 minutes early. He gladly answers questions and doubts in class. He also gives u sample midterms to practice before the actual midterm, and his midterms are based on the samples.

Phenomenal. Many of my classmates and I were surprised to learn that it was his first semester as an instructor because of the quality of his lectures.
From Russia but his accent does not impede
Very careful with what he chooses to say so he does not confuse
Very rarely made errors
GENIUS and does ridiculous calculations in his head
A bit goofy
The best math professor I have ever had...ever
Some of the homework can be challenging but the math lab is good for that and if you can do the homework you should have no problem with the exams

It was NOT open book and Homework only counted for around 20%. Some of the other sections had open book exams and homework counted for 40% in one of the sections. I had to work for this class but it was easy to do so because he was a thorough and clear instructor. I highly recommend him. Especially if you are taking the course to learn something. It is great prep for physics, advanced level math courses, etc. If you want an easy A, perhaps you should try someone else.

Maksym was great. He understands the material and is able to teach you just enough that a quick review of the textbook should get you through homework without too much pain and tears.
My only complaint is the webworks portion of the class which was awful but he gave a bonus at the end which helped.
Take Maksym. He's the best for Calc 1.

I thought he was a relatively good professor. He has an accent, but it isn't too difficult to understand what he is saying. He's usually clear about the explanations he gives in class. He is harsh about grading homeworks, but then, if you get it wrong you deserve points off and this is Columbia. The standards are higher.

The only truly negative thing that I can say is that he sometimes seems short-tempered when the class isn't following him as quickly as he wants, or when the grades come back poor. And he is not always able to prove things relevant to the material--for instance, he was unable to prove a theorem about logarithms when I asked him in office hours. It wasn't essential to the class material, though.

adam's calc 1 class was pretty bad. he would murmur only to the few rows of students at the front of the class and go in extremely roundabout ways of teaching, never really making anything clear. he is as helpful in office hours as he is in class, which is not very helpful. also, he absolutely did not prepare us in the right way for the midterms and the final -- although he puts up practice questions prior to the exams, the exams are always extremely brutal and of a whole different style away from the practice qs. you could argue that this is challenging, sure, but when you're smacked in the face with a first midterm with a level of difficulty he didnt prepare you for, it's a whole different story. his TAs on the other hand were extremely helpful and taught way better than him, always getting to the point and explaining the math in very clear and concise manners. bottom line: messy style of teaching, impossible exams with harsh grading, unhelpful, unengaging.

Professor Le is a wonderful professor. His exams are fair and reasonable. In the first exam, I was a bit thrown off by the last two proof and abstract questions. He usually gives 5,6 questions with 2-4 sub-questions with one difficult bonus problem that counts about 20% extra. Second exam was a lot harder with with another pair of proof /applied abstract questions that were unfamiliar to us (only few students got them right). As long as you do the homework and read notes, it shouldn't be too hard to get an A even though you miss the last two hard questions. He let us bring 4pgs of notes during the test that allowed me to study the materials while I was drafting notes although I never got to use it.
Exams are more straight forward and less complicated (except proofs) compared to other professors'.
Professor Le is very accommodating and friendly. I highly recommend his class.

G. Michael Guy is an excellent Calculus I professor. I had him on my first semester as a freshman and his class was one of the best I took that semester. He is very clever explaining things that at first seem complicated. Besides that he also had some good jokes and made the environment in the class feel very relaxed. If you actually want to learn Calculus in a classroom take him, if you prefer to learn the material on your own let someone else take your spot.

Professor Munteanu, coming from Romania (I think), is very knowledgeable about Calculus. The class is not too exciting, but most of his lessons are very clear and precise. The only thing negative about him is that he doesn't encourage you to ask questions and when you do, he sometimes make you feel stupid. But still ask questions anyways -- he does the best he can with answering them.

Ovidiu is an alright teacher. He moves briskly through the material but explains concepts relatively well. He does less well when answering questions during class. He would usually quickly repeat what he had just said when asked for clarification. I've heard he is much more helpful during office hours, but I never went myself. One thing I noticed is that he seems to not have a sense for the math knowledge base of an average incoming freshman, even one that has not taken calculus before. He adjusted his lecture and exams after the first midterm though, so I think he is getting the hang of things.

Maksym was easy to deal with, and respectful of the students, eager to help everyone learn. I still had trouble with the class....hard homework and webworks problems...and I think he skips steps when writing problems on the board so sometimes I couldn't keep up with the lecture, but I got through with a B. I'd recommend him for Calc I and as a professor who is pleasant...and, importantly,understandable (accent not bad).

Adam was a fine teacher. He explained things well in class and posted all of his lecture notes online. He (or maybe his TA's) were particular graders, so don't expect a bunch of free points for writing down a few possible functions. He was definitely difficult to get a hold of outside of his scheduled office hours (I had a conflict and despite repeated attempts to make an appointment, we never did meet). The homework he assigns is fine, but his tests can be tricky. He gives out reviews before each test, however, which pretty much cover everything that is going to appear. Do them several times each and you won't have a problem getting an A or A+ in his class. I don't know if this will be standard for all of his classes, but there was a generous curve.

Probably the strangest, most awkward, and least effective professor ever. Absurd problem sets and tests created mass confusion and a significant curve that probably saved most. Mannerisms so bizarre you'll have to restrain yourself from laughing. And I forgot, he's 20 years old. Get help on the homeworks and use the extra credit to get a very high HW grade and not have to worry so much about the tests (the midterm was relatively straightforward, the final was madness). All in all- don't do it.

A really nice guy. Very understanding and knows what his class needs. He is a good teacher, bit of a tough accent, and tries really hard to be funny, which is funny in itself. I enjoyed the class.

Had him for Calculus 1 and couldn't stand it. People stopped coming to class and started teaching the material to themselves. I know I learned a lot more sitting with a text book in front of me for 30 mins then sitting in his class for an hr fifteen. AVOID IF YOU CAN! We had a good amount of work and the hw was graded very harshly. The only positive thing is that his study guides are pretty similar to the test, but if you don't know how to do it, then that doesnt help. I couldn't understand anything he was saying. He is definitely smart and knows his stuff, but not a great teacher.

Calc 1 with Helge Pedersen is the WORST math course at Columbia. Helge is downright incomprehensible. I tried sitting through his horrible lectures, but realized that I learned more just asking my friends for help than I ever did listening to him.

His basic structure for lectures is to talk the entire time (without asking for questions or even really looking at the students to make sure they are still awake) about the philosophy behind Calculus. Instead of teaching you how to do problems, he spends the entire time proving why each theorem is valid.

He barely speaks English--he's Danish, I think. So very, very difficult to comprehend the words coming out of his mouth.

Avoid this professor at ALL costs!

He is quite dry as a teacher. He veers into tangents during his lectures quite often however all tangents are somehow related to Math or Physics or an application there of. His tests tend to be much harder than most of the homework assigned, so expect a generous curve. His personality however is very nice, approcahable, and he generally makes himself available at the students convenience. He is knowledgeable about calculus, and does make a strong attempt at teaching the foundations of calculus, however as I mentioned before, he goes on tangents while teaching, making his lectures confusing at times. However if you do the homework, and the webworks, you will pass the class. Talk to him if you aren't and he will help you through the calculus either by assigning you a tutor or helping you during his office hours.

Professor De Jong is very smart, but I don't think he's a very good teacher. He basically copied the book down for us on the board each day, and did a few problems without really explaining them. His teaching was disorganized, and he was not confident in the information he presented to us (he often stepped back and asked the class if we thought his word choice was correct, for example). I felt like going to lecture was a total waste of my time because he didn't really teach anything. His extra review session for the final wasn't helpful either--he just gave us a list of topics on the test...which was the same list as was on our syllabus. The tests were graded using ridiculous standards so that a 50% was curved to an A. I had taken Calc I before so I wasn't too terribly affected by his teaching, but if you haven't taken Calc before, I would not recommend this professor ( I wouldn't recommend him anyway, but especially if you haven't taken Calc yet).

If you're looking for a professor who will explain Calculus step-by-step, steer clear of this one. The previous reviews are rather nice to Prof. Mosina, but after taking Calc I with her, I don't see why. Maybe if you already took Calc in high school, then she would be an ideal professor, but if Calc is brand-new for you, Mosina is bad news. Her workload was not anything killer (just don't do it the night before), but she can't teach. She's the type of professor who talks to the board, asks people for questions and and answers them in a condescending tone. She does not answer questions she deems as too easy. Also her grading seemed a bit unfair. The problem sets were all hand-written (she does not like courseworks), and she would pick 5 of the 10-24 problems to grade. She does not curve. After the first midterm she accused one of my friends of cheating, and another of not having studied. I do not know how she came to those conclusions, but she refused to go over the problems individually with them. She rushes through the material from start to end, rarely referencing the book, so it's hard to keep up.
If you have Calc experience, be my guest and take Calc I with Mosina, but if you've only had up to pre-calc, find another professor.

I disagree with the previous reviewer. I think he/she does not have experience with taking math classes at Columbia, so he/she does not know the extent to what some other math instructors suck! I find Mingmin a very good instructor. He tries really hard to make things as easy and clear as possible. Unfortunately, Calculus is not an easy subject, so you really need to put a lot of effort into it (i mean if you are bad at math).
Advise: go to his office hours! He has the talent of making you get it!! And best... you don't feel stupid when you ask questions.
Ok! having said that, if you haven't taken Calculus, I would strongly recommend Mingmin... or else pay the prize with professors that perhaps don't have an accent, but really really suck at teaching!

Being honest, calculus doesn't do it for me BUT if you are going to take this class or any calculus class take it with Michael Guy. He is totally enthusiastic about it, which is funny if you are like me and just dont get how people can get excited about differentiating really long things. But he made the class funny, always had a joke. And was clearly waaaay into terrible TV (Tila Tequila included) and found some way to talk about it every class.

If you have had any calculus experience before, this class should be fairly easy for you. However, if this is your first time taking calc, look for a different professor. There is a ridiculous curve (50% or higher A, 33% or higher B)if you have never taken calc before you will easily be in the bottom 30% because all his examples come exactly from the book and he does not cover extra material/provide exceptions to rules. If you are in his class you would be better off staying in your room and reading the book yourself, that way you can make sure that everything you study is correct.

In my opinion, de Jong was NOT a good professor. His notes came word for word for the textbook. His examples were the same examples in the textbook.He didn't make an effort to see whether students understood what he was teaching during lecture, but he was very nice (and helpful) during his office hours...almost the complete opposite of lecture. Exams are hard but there is a curve so your grades will most likely be fine. Written homeworks are given weekly and are fairly easy. Webworks (online homework) about once a week. All suggested problems should be done when studying for exams! It's definitely possible to get an A in the class (because of the curve), but if you really want to learn calc, i would NOT recommend him.

He can't teach at all. AVOID HIM AT ALL COST! Even if you think you know Calculus, you'd still struggle through the course. The average grade of the first midterm was below 60 out of 100. You would have needed to have taken CALCULUS three times before taking this course in order to pass with a C+ or higher. And he can't pronounce half the mathematical terms. It takes you five minutes to figure out what he's saying half the time.

There are two midterms and one final that is worth 40 percent.

Lauda is quite adorable. He makes frequent errors with simple mathematic calculations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. However, a student is usually quick to correct him on this. His humor is upbeat and oftentimes geeky, which makes the class more like a highschool class in which you feel free yelling out a question without being gawked at. He has a strong understanding of the topics but the lectures flow slowly. Sometimes he will leave gaps in the material and you will need to consult either him or the book outside of class. The Webworks is always several days ahead of the lectures, so in order to complete them you will need to review the text a little bit.
Students with previous Calculus experience dominate the class, and beginners tend to be much slower with comprehension.

this man is wonderful, truly wonderful. he makes math bearable and he will make you a better math student. you have to hand in weekly homework assignments. they're not very difficult or intensive, and they help in that you actually have to learn the material instead of just cramming for the final. also, your midterms and final come straight from your homework assignments (literally - he lifts problems from the homework), so it's definitely worth your while to do them. make sure to attend class - the textbook is rather useless and he simplifies concepts in his teaching. all in all, i'd say lauda makes an introductory math class as bearable as possible.

Mirela is a very nice lady. Sometimes this is hard to tell by just attending her class, which is why I would suggest going to her office hours. She tries really hard to explain things to you in person. Unfortunately, however, the same does not apply to her lectures. She teaches straight from the book, and doesn't explain what she teaches very well. I took calc in high school, and found her way of explaining things very confusing, especially to someone who has never taken calc before. As for her exams, they are not too difficult. Much easier than the HW. Yet, the grading of the exams is harsh.
Even if you get the correct answer but forget to show one step, she'll take off 3 out of 4 points. Good Luck!

Professor Guy is by far the best professor that I have ever had for a class. If you like professors that just lecture all day with their faces always towards the blackboard, then this is not the Professor for you. Professor Guy will make it a point to learn your name, what you struggle in, and how help you. He is very flexible with his office hours, and will do his best to find a time to meet and help you. If you have never taken Calculus before, or have taken it in the past and think you can learn more, then TAKE THIS CLASS.

During class you can expect Professor Guy to be very humorous and always helpful. If you don’t know something, then raise your hand. The odds are strong that someone else has the same question. When he introduces a new concept, he explains it in full detail. Expect to always be taught the easiest way to think and do a problem.

In order to pass the midterm(s) and the final, you need to do the homework, attend class, and pay attention. If you do all of this, you will pass this class. When it comes to test taking, the answer is never more important than how to do the problem to Professor Guy; show as much work as possible (even if it is wrong) and you will receive some credit. Professor Guy is very reasonable, and gives tons of partial credit. He is not there to make you fail; he is there to help you learn. In order to get an A, you will need to work outside of class.

If you have the option to take his class then do so, because I guarantee that if you miss your chance, someone else will snatch it up. Every Calculus Professor at Columbia is well educated, and knowledgeable; however, in this writer’s opinion, Professor Guy is the best.

P.S. A homework assessment is not a QUIZ, it is a Homework Assessment.

Professor Guy is AMAZING. He is clear, explains things well, always willing to help, and absolutely HILARIOUS. If you want to actually learn and understand calc/if you want a good laugh, Guy is the man. Absolutely fantastic. I'd reccommend him to everyone, especially to those of you who dont love math because this guy knows what he's doing and makes compicated things easy!

Michael Guy was great! He actually teaches calculus as if you have never taken it and does not make the assumption that you're coming into columbia already having done AP calc BC. This actually works out for the better for both types of students that take Calculus at columbia. For the ones that have already take Calculus before, they get to go over topics very throughly (like going back to limits, mean value theorm, etc.) and for students that it's completely new for, it works out because you will actually learn the material! He is also a very fair grader. He makes his first exam very easy, the second one is tougher. But he's very fair!!!!! Which is exceptional in a calc professor!!!

Prof. De Jong's very friendly, he doesnt make you feel pressured or overwhelmed, but if you haven't taken calc before this class might prove to be difficult. Although most students in the class did abyssmally in both midterms we took he didnt create a session outside of class time when we could discuss and understand our mistakes. I've spent many hours in the calc help room, but if you're taking calc I this is probably one of your best options.

He clearly is a very intelligent man, however, his heavy Chinese accent and lack of teaching skills (since he is a grad math student) make this class difficult. He doesn't explain things thoroughly enough and if you're not a math person I highly discourage taking his class. If you've taken a Calc class before and are for some reason in this class, then you probably will be fine because your already know the info. Otherwise, the class is very challenging, much as I like Mingmin as a person.

WORST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, worst professor/ teacher i have ever had! yes the man is brilliant, and yes he is famous but he still doesn't know how to teach. maybe its a language barrier!!!if you want to learn don't take his class. you will pass but you wont learn anything you didn't already know or taught yourself. all he does is regurgitate the book and when asked to go further into detail or explain something ( other than word for word) he just gives a blank stare and smile. again, this is where the language problem comes in. in my opinion he's a nice but but horrible teacher and can't explain things well.

unfortunately, if you aren't like most of columbia and haven't taken up to calc 3 in high school, he's not the professor for you. get used to hours upon hours at the math lab and meetings with ta. although, you will probably be happy with your grade just wait till you get to calc 2& 3. the whole point of taking calc 1 is to have a good foundation not just pass a class. thank goodness the people at the math lab.... oh and don't, if you make the first mistake, no matter how tempting take him again. when you finally do switch professors your grade book is in for it

Super nice guy, ultra well informed, great one on one, not very clear in class and tends to say "and the rest is obvious..." when discussing non-obvious results.

Bellaiche is not all that bad actually. take his class if you have taken calc in highschool. it will be a breeze. his problem sets can be really difficult but they are doable. midterm and final resemble practice exams.

I highly recommend you to take this guy if you have taken Calc already in highschool, and is being a lazy bum by taking it again.
Although he is not a good lecturer (you tend to fall asleep in his classes), he is a very fair and lenient grader.
His midterms/finals are very similar to his sample exams, so do the sample exams and you should be fine.
The exams themselves are not difficult and the curve is generous.
His accent isn't that bad (I mean, all the math profs are foreign anyway) and nothing beats his grading system.
Final Word: take Xiaobo for calc!!

He's a very nice guy, at first it was hard to understand his accent, but it got better as the semester went on. He gives you the option to not go to class, says it is your choice. Fair grading, fair homework assignments. If you don't go to class and read the book you should be fine, but I still found it more helpful to get the notes from class just because it helped me learn the material on the spot rather than have to learn it on my own.
I really enjoyed having him as my professor and would definitely take another one of his courses.

the final will screw you over.