PUBPOL-390T
BASS CONNECTIONS SPECIAL TOPIC
Not in Fall 2026
Term
Instructor
Overview
Feedback is mostly positive. The strongest signal is that students say they actually learn something useful. Best for students who want substance, not a disposable elective.
DepartmentPPS
Terms offeredFall, Spring
Typical enrollment5–9
Semesters of data3
4.1
Hrs / week
25
Responses
40
Enrollment
63%
Response Rate
Evaluation Scores
Overall quality
Teaching, content, and experience combined.
4.7
Intellectually stimulating
Challenges students to think deeply.
4.8
Instructor effectiveness
Explains concepts and facilitates learning.
4.7
Difficulty
Higher means harder.
2.4
Feedback Analysis
Feedback Analysishigh
Analysis based on student evaluations
Based on 45 comments across 5 sections
Feedback is mostly positive. The strongest signal is that students say they actually learn something useful. Best for students who want substance, not a disposable elective.
Student Reports
How hard is the A?
More reachable A
Student comments make the grading bar sound relatively reachable. This reads more like a course where steady work is rewarded than one where students describe the A as unusually hard to land.
Homework Load
Moderate homework load
Homework load looks moderate. The recurring signal is steady weekly work, but not a course that turns every assignment into a grind.
Lecture Load
Regular lecture load
Lectures matter here, but the evidence points to a fairly standard lecture burden rather than a course dominated by long or exceptionally dense lectures.
Strengths
• Students repeatedly say the course teaches something concrete, whether that is content mastery, research skill, or a strong foundation.
• Readings, films, or outside materials come up repeatedly as a real strength rather than filler.
Tradeoffs
• There is no single dominant complaint theme, but the feedback is not uniformly glowing either.
Best fit for
Best for students who want substance, not a disposable elective.
Student Responses
Writing memos, communications skills, group work
Fall 2023 · Brooks, Minda
One skill that I learned was research and memo writing which I developed through writing a memo outside of class. Another skill was note-taking and networking with legislators and other leaders by attending the NCLF leadership forum. Finally, we learned about political polarization and participated in a values forum in the classroom.
Fall 2023 · Brooks, Minda
I learned about policymaking in NC and the barriers and concerns that policymakers have. I learned how to analyze and brainstorm solutions for certain policies-- like ones relating to low-income housing and voting in elections. A great experience I had was going to the NCLF forums where there were a diverse group of people that came together and worked towards a common goal of finding the most imminent concerns with policy and coming up with various solutions. It was great to see the format of the forum as well!
Fall 2023 · Brooks, Minda
I learned skills of engaging with legislators, writing memos, reviewing literature, and working on social media materials.
Spring 2024 · Brooks, Minda
- Research skills - Academic Writing Skills - Group Communication
Spring 2024 · Brooks, Minda
Rating History
Rating history
Error bars show \u00B11 std dev
| Term | Instructor | Overall | Difficulty | Hrs/wk | Enrolled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2025 | Soucek, Sarah | 4.8 | 2.2 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Spring 2024 | Brooks, Minda 0.0Rate My ProfessorsQuality0.0Difficulty0.0Based on 0 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 4.2 | 2.2 | — | 8 |
| Fall 2023 | Brooks, Minda 0.0Rate My ProfessorsQuality0.0Difficulty0.0Based on 0 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 4.8 | 2.6 | 4.2 | 27 |