Reviews for Naveen Sarna
Average Rating:| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A March 26, 2012, 8:39 pm | One of the best professors I've had at UMD. He explains very complex charts and relations in a very simple manner that makes them seem common sense. He tries to make lectures enjoyable and is very good at what he does. The book is not that boring either so if you get lost, reading up won't be too bad, although the book isn't absolutely necessary because his slides are very good |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: February 3, 2012, 6:22 pm | Best econ class ever. he is funny, explains the material in a very comprehensible manner, and the tests are very very very easy... as long as you have actually somewhat paid attention to lecture/read the text book you'll do just fine. the only problem was the aplia problems. i thought they were more difficult than the exam questions but when i went to get help the TAs weren't allowed to answer our questions. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: B January 9, 2012, 9:37 pm | Sarna is a great professor but the class is difficult. He's very approachable and will go to every length to help a student. He relates the class to real life and keeps it interesting. However, the TAs are absolutely useless. I went to discussion once and it was a true waste of time. |
| Hosea Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A December 25, 2011, 10:27 am | Great professor. Really no complaints. Clear explanations, clear powerpoints, easier tests than the other sections (i think). Wants everyone to do well and he tells us that he is our "friend". Has a slight accent which may be unclear at times but just listen carefully and you will be fine. If you need to take micro definitely take Sarna. I actually ended up with a B in this class but that's because I stopped studying the material towards the end of the final. THat was a mistake. If you keep up with the material there is no reason why you should get less than an A. |
| dklafds10 Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: B December 20, 2011, 8:11 am | Sarna is a really great professor! Unlike other professors I've had in the past, he really cares about how well his students do in the class and wants them to really understand economics. I ended up getting a C+ in the class (78!!) because i get really bad test anxiety but thats a whole other issue. If you take your time with the course and look at it simplistically (microeconomics is a pretty simple subject that can get confusing if you think too much about it)you should do fine. His exams are not even directly from any readings from the textbook so mainly pay attention in lecture and/or go to his office hours you should get a B or higher. The only thing I didnt like was that the other class got to do an extra credit assignment and we didnt! It probably would have brought my borderline C to a B. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A December 9, 2011, 5:33 pm | Professor Sarna has a great sense of humor! For Micro, it wasn't really necessary to go to lecture though, because he posts his lecture powerpoints online after class, and they include information that's all in the textbook. He genuinely cares about his students though! On the first exam, I guess many people didn't do very well, so he dedicated twenty minutes of the next lecture asking the lecture (of over 200) what could make a difference for them on the next exam. We also have mock exams before every exam. He was a little rude a few times when people asked questions in class, but I think it was mostly unintentional. Overall, good professor and easy class! |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A December 1, 2011, 10:15 am | Awesome professor, awesome class. Challenging at times, but it's really not that hard at all as long as you keep up with the content. All the topics build upon each other as you progress through the course so just make sure to keep up. Sarna is great at teaching and I definitely learned a lot. If you have an interest or need the course, take it. |
| agaybaby Course: ECON317 Grade Expected: B May 20, 2011, 5:37 am | If you are not familiar with macro concepts this class might be a little tricky for you. There were 3 quizzes, a midterm, a paper/presentation, and the final. Paper/presentation was easy, around 20 pages split between 4 people and a presentation that lasts ~20 minutes. He explained things clearly and kept things relevant, using the first few minutes of class to discuss world economic events and how we could use what we've been learning to explain what's going on. Funny guy too. Be prepared to put in a good amount of time for the class, there's a lot of info to cover/understand. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A February 1, 2011, 6:06 pm | The material is straight forward and he follows the textbook very closely. I definitely would have skipped lectures if another professor was teaching but he's too funny. If you actually listen to his lectures, he's a really funny guy, although not always intentionally. For the first few weeks, he somehow managed to mention Georgetown cupcakes in every lecture. If you need to take an econ course and he's teaching it, definitely take him! |
| Lunar01 Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: B December 28, 2010, 9:21 pm | How well you perform in this class depends on how much you understand the concepts presented in the lectures. Therefore, attending class is mandatory. Having said that, this class will teach you a lot of things about the world of economics and how they relate to every day's life. The professor is nice and knows his material. He has an accent but that factor will not stop you from learning what you need to. The power points slides are equally helpful in explaining concepts that are difficult to understand. Discussions in general are optional. The professor encourages students to attend discussions but I find them very boring and merely reiteration of the concepts the professor has talked about during lectures. Nevertheless, if you don't understand something in lecture, come to discussions for clarification. You will have several problem sets during the course which will be online. I suggest you start them early as some questions might take up a bit of time. The course has a midterm and a final, they are straightforward and cover the topics have been talked about during lectures. I personally recommend this class because it can be very interesting once you understand the concepts and able to make the connections from the classroom to everyday's life. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: December 11, 2010, 9:59 pm | Professor Sarna was a great teacher. For my first time taking Economics, I definitely learned a lot and it was not at all difficult. In this class, we had homework every other Sunday and only 2 tests throughout the year and one final. The final wasn't cumulative. All of his lecture slides are online. I never went to discussion because I didn't need to because he taught everything well in class. This class did not give me any stress. Definitely take him for Economics!!!!! |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A December 2, 2010, 4:57 pm | Professor Sarna was great for my first experience learning economics. He explains the material clearly, and always adds in little jokes to keep the class intresting. All the matrial can also be learned from reading the textbook and reviewing his powerpoint slides which he posts online, so its not a big deal if you miss a class or space out. His tests are very fair and if you understand all his powerpoints, you will do fine. I'm definitely taking him for ECON201 next semester. Discussion is pointless. I only went once this semester. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON200 Grade Expected: A December 2, 2010, 1:29 pm | Professor Sarna did a great job of making economics interesting and understandable. He takes difficult concepts and breaks them down into simpler analogies that are easier to understand and relatable. His tests are generally 45 multiple choice questions and very straightforward. He genuinely wants everyone to do well. In addition to the tests there are online assignments through aplia every other week which are worth 25% of the your grade. These are also generally very straightforward and it is not hard to do well. He posts all his lecture slides online, and his lectures follow the textbook. I really enjoyed going to lectures. Overall i really enjoyed this course and would highly recommend Professor Sarna. |
| Anonymous Course: ECON317 Grade Expected: C June 1, 2010, 10:16 am | Professor Sarna explains economic models with simple analogies that help you better understand them. I wish I had him for 200 and 201 rather than bad lectures. The material I failed to learn in my fundamental courses, he reviews in class. He curves at the end. There is a presentation and paper that is easy. If I did not have a heavy schedule, I would have received a B in his class. There are 2 quizzes 1 midterm 1 project (presentation & paper) and 1 final. He's not as boring as other economic professors, which is a plus. He has a slight accent but it does not affect his teaching style/ability. Overall I enjoyed the course. |