Very funny and charismatic. Can get a little bit confusing if you have no prior knowledge. Can also be annoying if you are there purely to learn. Buddhism is hard to grasp. Definitely can tell that he also gets bored with what he is teaching at times too. Tests are easy. Paper was a bit difficult. weekly assignments are tedious. Readings are boring

Professor Hillis was amazing. His lectures were always funny and engaging, and also recorded and posted online. He gave comprehensive study guides, and was very personable in office hours. Would strongly recommend him.

I didn't really like this class. The lectures were long and boring, and the final was a in-person exam and 5-page paper. Sections were mandatory but helpful, and the material can sometimes be interesting (even though there was way too much assigned reading). But overall I would recommending looking elsewhere for an GE.

EACS21 is a great class, very easy GE. Prof. Hillis understands that his class is taken primarily as a GE, and as such ensures that the material covered is not extensive tested. The class is extremely manageable, and reading is only super necessary depending on your TA. His enthusiasm for Zen Buddhism is delightful and I would 100% take again.

If you enjoy religion, this may be good for you (I don't). Exams were going to be online but he suddenly switched to in-person for the final. Prof. said to only read book if we wanted then said we should have read the book if we wanted to do well on the final. TA was a harsh grader and gave me a C on my paper although he said it would be easy.

Professor Hillis' lectures can be pretty boring however he does his best to make sure students know the material and are prepared for his exams. The work for this class comes from section; depending on your TA you could have to do a lot of reading every week. If you take notes during lecture and put some amount of effort in you should be fine.

All the assignments are given based on your TA so go for a TA at the end of the week that way you won't need to do extra reading. His midterm and final were very easy if you take notes from the lectures. The reading isn't useful and I never went to class. Be sure to watch his lectures on 2x because he talks slow. Definitely take this for an easy GE

I thought this would be a super easy class and a break from my STEM classes. Nope. The readings were extremely long and boring and I could never figure out my TA's grading system. The lectures would always go over the time slot and it felt like he didn't respect our time at all. I ended up taking the class P/NP-- I don't recommend

My grade dropped from an A+ to a B because Greg decided that attending section was not enough to earn participation points. Worst professor at UCSB by far.

Hillis was a real gem. His lectures were easy to understand and follow along, and if you took notes on them you would be able to get an easy A on the midterm/final. He is overall just a nice guy who loves what he teaches. There is a lot of reading each week, but if you skim you'll be fine. Tests are easy and clear. Would recommend the class+Hillis.

He is a really nice guy with a good sense of humor which definitely helped when watching his lectures, but there is so much reading, like, a ton of reading and it was necessary to read everything to be able to complete the weekly assignments. I loved Hillis and would definitely take one of his classes again.

TAKE GREG!! I recommend reading the texts up until the first paper. After that, it isn't really necessary as long as you are going to lecture. Easy final and the midterm was just a paper. He's also really funny, tends to go off on tangents, but otherwise very passionate about Buddhism and is very positive during office hours.

Hillis is hilarious and entertaining. I scraped by with minimal reading. Pay attention to lectures to get the general ideas so that when you write some of your papers, you have an idea of where to start and can do the relevant reading/get evidence. I got an A- because I didn't study the quizlets online long enough for the final. Easy A.

Grade split equally between two papers (5pg/each), section attn, and final. You can get by with just skimming the readings, tho it can be interesting if you're in the mood. I didn't *love* the rambling lectures, but appreciated not sweating for the GE. He gives a study guide for the final, which is very straightforward, so don't worry too much.

He's very funny and clearly enthusiastic about what he's teaching, but the material wasn't always engaging (to say the least). That being said, the class is very fair considering how detailed the material is and the TAs are super easy graders! If you're one of those existential hippie philosophers, the material will probably resonate for you anyway

Greg is super passionate about his topic and really tries to make lecture interesting (the man put a shoe on his head and walked around to illustrate a concept) This class is mainly about Zen Poetry. Consists of two 5-6 page essays, one is due as a midterm, the other due around finals. Final was mc and short response but easy

Greg's lectures are pretty chill, almost too chill. He kind of has that Bob Ross type of voice where you want to sleep because it's too relaxed. I never went to lecture because one, he posts all the notes online, and two, I fell asleep every single time. Section is easy too overall, but the last paper & final can drop your grade from an A to a C.

Professor Hillis is a really good teacher. He posts the power points online so you don't have to go to class. Don't waste your time and money on the books. Your grade consists of two 5 page essays, participation is section, and a final. He made a study guide for the final that was exactly like the test. I highly recommend this class for an easy A.

BEST professor for a GE I have every had. He is super funny at times and the class is super easy. There is a lot of reading assigned but I got through this class without having to read much of the material. The final was exactly like the study guide he handed out. The papers were pretty manageable. Overall, this class is an easy A!

Professor Hillis demonstrates an enthusiastic interest in both the subject and his students. He is very cordial and will talk with you after class if you need advice on your papers and what not, plus he's a funny guy. If you participate in lecture he will happily interact with you. To get right to the point: this is a fun, low maintenance class.

My TA was a tough grader, but thanks to the final that got moved online because of the fires and the 25% boost from attendance, I got an A-. His lectures were pretty pointless and the class was easy to wing. I didn't really need to know much and he didn't expect you to either because the curriculum was really complicated.

Hillis is the bomb! I took Zen Buddhism with him Fall 2016. The class was interesting and Hillis is hilarious! There were clear grading guidelines, and definitely go into Hillis/TA's office hours for credit feedback (TA grades your stuff). Class consisted of midterm paper, final mult choice exam, and final paper on your own topic. TAKE HIM!!!

Hillis is a great guy, he loves talking about Buddhism. He assigns a lot of reading but after taking the final I realized it wasn't necessary, just DO the study guide he gives you, go to lecture and take notes. There are 2 papers for the class itself - 5 pages each, make up 50% of your grade. Depending on your TA there are more. Fairly easy GE.

This class was AWFUL. SO much work to do well. The TAs expect a lot of effort in the essays and the final is A LOT of memorization for a GE.