Professor profile for Derek Wills
Student reviews of Derek Wills
Review from a student who took AST 301
I thought this would just be a fun and interesting class- I was seriously wrong. Do NOT take astronomy. It wasn't just this professor- my friend took AST 301 with someone else and also found it to be terrible. I worked my butt of in this class and studied with a guy that made consistent A's on all the tests- yet I ended up with a C in the class. Wills is nice and always willing to help in office hours, but his lectures are little like the test. Do the homework b/c it helps with the tests but it won't make you a good grade on the test to only understand those concepts. The notes seem easy to understand in class, but then you get to the test and realize that you must apply those concepts to figure out complicated problems. Hardest class I've taken thus far. If you just don't get it, you don't and you won't do good. For those who are quick to understand it (it reminds me of physics- those who like physics will probably do well), they do VERY well. Wills is not a good lecturer and it is a little hard to follow and concentrate b/c he clucks like a chicken due to his disorder. If you are willing to come see him and spend lots of time studying then take this class b/c he is very willing to help you.
I thought this would just be a fun and interesting class- I was seriously wrong. Do NOT take astronomy. It wasn't just this professor- my friend took AST 301 with someone else and also found it to be terrible. I worked my butt of in this class and studied with a guy that made consistent A's on all the tests- yet I ended up with a C in the class. Wills is nice and always willing to help in office hours, but his lectures are little like the test. Do the homework b/c it helps with the tests but it won't make you a good grade on the test to only understand those concepts. The notes seem easy to understand in class, but then you get to the test and realize that you must apply those concepts to figure out complicated problems. Hardest class I've taken thus far. If you just don't get it, you don't and you won't do good. For those who are quick to understand it (it reminds me of physics- those who like physics will probably do well), they do VERY well. Wills is not a good lecturer and it is a little hard to follow and concentrate b/c he clucks like a chicken due to his disorder. If you are willing to come see him and spend lots of time studying then take this class b/c he is very willing to help you.
Review from a student who took AST 307
I thought that class would be an interesting elective, but it was anything but. The lectures were easy enough to understand, but they rarely had any resemblance to the exams. Neither the lectures or the exams looked like anything from the textbook. The lectures were often dull, once the class got over the fact that the professor does have Tourette's. The only reason I made a B was the homework was a significant part of the grade. I ended up spending much more time on this class than I thought I would. I don't recommend this class to anyone, if you are interested in astronomy but don't really need this class, take AST301.
I thought that class would be an interesting elective, but it was anything but. The lectures were easy enough to understand, but they rarely had any resemblance to the exams. Neither the lectures or the exams looked like anything from the textbook. The lectures were often dull, once the class got over the fact that the professor does have Tourette's. The only reason I made a B was the homework was a significant part of the grade. I ended up spending much more time on this class than I thought I would. I don't recommend this class to anyone, if you are interested in astronomy but don't really need this class, take AST301.
Review from a student who took AST 309
Wills is not the best professor in the world. his communications skills are lacking, at best, and this has nothing to do with his tourettes syndrome. i found the class to be boring, the tests hard to decipher from the lectures. I would not recommend Wills to anyone
Wills is not the best professor in the world. his communications skills are lacking, at best, and this has nothing to do with his tourettes syndrome. i found the class to be boring, the tests hard to decipher from the lectures. I would not recommend Wills to anyone
Review from a student who took ast 301
It is hard to take good notes on his class b/c his doodling sucks and sometimes makes no sense at all. He seems to know a lot, but his lacking a lot of lecture skills. Defenitly not the best prof, just ok.
It is hard to take good notes on his class b/c his doodling sucks and sometimes makes no sense at all. He seems to know a lot, but his lacking a lot of lecture skills. Defenitly not the best prof, just ok.
Review from a student who took AST 307
BAD, HARD, STAY AWAY... This has to be the worst class I've ever taken, in all of my life. Seriously, though, I'm a 4.0 student, have always gotten straight A's, and I love astronomy and read books on it, but I find myself in trouble in this class! I've taken plenty of math and physics (all A's of course), and yet I believe the problems are too difficult. The grading is a pain, mostly because the problems are so hard. The homework and exams are very tough, more like advanced physics. The book doesn't have any similar examples or answers or hints, and the lectures don't have any problems nearly as tough as them. Quite frankly, he is boring, too. Half the class falls asleep, because he is so disorganized, monotonic, and simply a terrible lecturer. He jumps around, introduces a simple formula, and doesn't explain it, nor how it fits in with anything else. This class is TERRIBLE, STAY AWAY or you'll regret it!!!!111
BAD, HARD, STAY AWAY... This has to be the worst class I've ever taken, in all of my life. Seriously, though, I'm a 4.0 student, have always gotten straight A's, and I love astronomy and read books on it, but I find myself in trouble in this class! I've taken plenty of math and physics (all A's of course), and yet I believe the problems are too difficult. The grading is a pain, mostly because the problems are so hard. The homework and exams are very tough, more like advanced physics. The book doesn't have any similar examples or answers or hints, and the lectures don't have any problems nearly as tough as them. Quite frankly, he is boring, too. Half the class falls asleep, because he is so disorganized, monotonic, and simply a terrible lecturer. He jumps around, introduces a simple formula, and doesn't explain it, nor how it fits in with anything else. This class is TERRIBLE, STAY AWAY or you'll regret it!!!!111
Review from a student who took AST 301
This is the CLASS OF DEATH. Killed my GPA. What was once an innocent and pure 3.2 dropped hardcore after I got a D in the class. Like everyone else has said -- the class is NOTHING like the tests. If you are lost, you will remain so b/c everything builds upon itself. Homework didn't really help me that much. Avoid this class, as well as ANY astronomy class, like the Plague. I'm not joking. Consider yourself warned.
This is the CLASS OF DEATH. Killed my GPA. What was once an innocent and pure 3.2 dropped hardcore after I got a D in the class. Like everyone else has said -- the class is NOTHING like the tests. If you are lost, you will remain so b/c everything builds upon itself. Homework didn't really help me that much. Avoid this class, as well as ANY astronomy class, like the Plague. I'm not joking. Consider yourself warned.
Review from a student who took AST 307
Applied physics would have been a better name for this class. It was very hard and it sucked. I have a 3.6 and I made a C.
Applied physics would have been a better name for this class. It was very hard and it sucked. I have a 3.6 and I made a C.
Review from a student who took ast 307
Dr. Wills is a good professor. He doesn't give much homework, but do it when he does. His lectures are pretty good, but one thing that might get you is that he has a nervous tick which can interrupt his speech. Nothing worng with it, it just is hard to concentrate. His tests are much much harder than you think going in but his grading rubric makes up for it - 75-100:A, 60-75:B, 45-60:C, 30-45:D.
Dr. Wills is a good professor. He doesn't give much homework, but do it when he does. His lectures are pretty good, but one thing that might get you is that he has a nervous tick which can interrupt his speech. Nothing worng with it, it just is hard to concentrate. His tests are much much harder than you think going in but his grading rubric makes up for it - 75-100:A, 60-75:B, 45-60:C, 30-45:D.
Review from a student who took fPatKjNGLEhH
oZu2Aw Major thankies for the blog post. Want more.
oZu2Aw Major thankies for the blog post. Want more.