Avoid this teacher. It's impossible to reach out to her. Not once has she responded to a single email I've sent her. This class was supposed to meet remotely and yet both class and office hours are on a stupid group chat (BTW there's a quarter of thousand people in this group chat). Even there, they'll pick and choose what questions to answer.
Very nice lady but would not recommend taking this class remotely. Only hour long discussions twice a week that couldve easily been completed in a 15 minute zoom. Grade based on participation, essay, midterm, and final. Extra credit offered which is nice but I wish there were more resources available. We had to set up zooms with each other.
Do not take this class online. Her lectures are super boring and ridiculously confusing. She doesn't make PowerPoint slides with important information, she just rambles and it's impossible to know which concepts and details are important. No study guide is given for tests so we had no idea what to study, and what we are tested on are small details.
Prof Coggins is by far one of the worst professors at UCSB. The midterms are graded harshly and are worth far too many points. When we ask questions through Nectir, only some are answered (a select few that aren't even the important questions). She claimed that this class would help people and make it less difficult, especially now. She LIED.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS ONLINE. We were supposed to meet through zoom since it is a synchronous class but never met. We used nectir in where she never gave us direct responses to our questions. She doesn't bother to make her lectures interesting, her lectures are so boring. Do not recommend taking this class.
I am really mad that this synchronous course did not meet over zoom. Our "Synchronous" portion of the course was literally a nectir group chat where it was impossible to understand what was going on with 270 students sending messages into the chat. Her slides are also very poorly made and she makes zero effort at emphasizing concepts in her slides.
I don't think I've ever seen a teacher make such an interesting topic seem so boring. She puts little to no info on her slides and it's impossible to know what the takeaway for each slide should be. It felt more like a philosophy course than international relations. I also hate how this course was supposed to meet over zoom and yet we've never met.
Coggins was a solid professor. The first half of the class was really interesting but the second half was pretty dull. If you are interested in the topic of civil wars, I recommend you take this course.
Coming into this class, I thought it would be easier than it was. Make sure you attend lecture & take good notes, otherwise you will become completely lost. Bc the midterm is only 15 questions (but worth 100 pts) each question is graded heavily, so it's easy to lose points. Other than that, there's only 5 pop quizzes, a 2nd midterm & a final paper.
You need to go to class to get the material or you will be confused. Made me switch out of the political science major. Very theory based, not a lot of practical application of concepts. A TON of reading and pop quizzes in section made sure you were on top of it and reading the New York Times every week. Got an A, but really had to work for it.
If you are thinking that this class will be an easy A / good basic background info sort of class, you are SADLY MISTAKEN. I'm a 4th year Global Studies major and this course should have been easy peasy but it WAS NOT. Don't take this if you're not going to put in MAJOR effort / if its not required.
She does not explain her slides very well. She posts her slides but with minimum information so make sure to go to class in order to fully understand the material. You will be give 5 pop quizzes in section, so make sure to keep up with the news, reading, and lectures. Midterm was difficult, no final but short paper due at the end of the quarter.
Coggins is the best, all of the lectures I went to were engaging and made me want to get more involved in international relations. You have to know the information to do well on the tests/ quizzes, but if you go to lecture and section it should be clear. Plus, you don't have to buy a book which definitely a plus
Prof. Coggins is my favorite professor so far at UCSB. She stresses the theories of IR a lot in this class, but beyond that, it is mostly current events, which is interesting. As long as you study and ask for help when you need it, the class is fun and not too hard.
Coggins was a very good professor, although her lectures are a bit dry. Despite this, she is very caring and very funny. Definitely want to take her class again but in a smaller setting, she seems to be better in small groups rather than a 180 pre-req class. Her class is pretty easy, just show up to lecture and take good notes and you will do well.
Coggins teaches exclusively theories of IR and barely touches on any real applications of those theories in real-world events. This makes the class seem like a theory class rather than an IR class. Further, her quizzes are specifically designed to trick you rather than to test whether or not you have been reading on schedule. Very difficult class.
Professor Coggins is a great lecturer and makes her lectures easy to understand. She is very thorough in her explanations. The class was very interesting. Highly recommend taking it with her.
Coggins is incredibly knowledgable, friendly, and understanding. Would absolutely recommend taking this class with her - great professor!
Loved Professor Coggins! Super smart! Super knowledgeable! The class was a healthy challenge especially with the readings. DO the reading but don't stress over them. Her lecturers are mainly spoken so go to class! Her class is great overall, no textbook either which is nice.
Based on past reviews I thought this class would be easier. The stuff you learn is really cool, midterms are fair, her lectures are mainly talking (cant depend on powerpoint) & you dont learn what your 2nd midterm or final paper grade are so you cant figure out where you went wrong. Gives EC for attendance sometimes. Lots of reading, interesting.
Coggins is a new professor but you would never have guessed - she was SO clear, funny, and informative and made the class really enjoyable! All of the grading of papers/tests & level of difficulty (especially w/ pop quizzes in section) depends on the TA. There's a lot of reading/writing and discussion of current international events!
This class was ok. Don't try to put off all the readings, and she doesn't give a study guide so make your own ahead of time. A good amount of writing involved too. Professor Coggins was nice overall.
She's great! Her lectures are clear & concise and she pulls no tricks. She's inspired me to take more Political Science classes. Prioritize her lectures over everything, and even if you can't keep up with the reading you should be fine. Always friendly & approachable. Goes at a great pace through the material. Definitely take if you can!
Professor Coggins is an amazing teacher! She is nice and really knows her stuff. It was her first year teaching and you couldnt telI. f you show up to class you'll pass the quizzes in section (3 questions). The final is a 1 page single space paper on a current event. She is very helpful and really chill. Gives opportunities to boost grade.