At the beginning of the semester my professor walked in and informed us that a fair amount of those enrolled in the class were not history majors. The class I am taking is a 4000-level writing-intensive class. Hypothetically, only 20 students should be enrolled, but there is twice that amount in my class. The professor had to write in 20 or so history majors because they needed the class and there were people who were taking up the needed spaces. He could not kick out those who were wasting space. All he could do was suggest an alternative for an easier class and plead for those who didn’t need the class to drop.
Everyone knows what it is like to try and get into the classes you want. The seniority system is designed so that people can get the classes they need to graduate. The more difficult classes to get into are those that are mandatory or intensive. From the beginning of my studies, I have had problems getting into the necessary classes, which is one reason that I am just now taking the one class required in the history department, as well as my writing intensives this semester. This specific professor is especially difficult to have a class with. In fact, one year his classes filled up within the first hour of registration, but only a few of those were history majors. It has been said that the students enrolled in pre-med majors are able to register earlier than the rest of us, no matter how many credit hours they have earned.
The hype about the professor is enormous and some are eager to take his classes for whatever reason. People across campus know who he is, either out of respect or scorn. My theory is that people who are looking to experience new things while they are at college are shocked to hear his language or his amusing stories. An authority figure that is so atypical serves as a sort of miniature rebellion to people’s parents. Just looking on ratemyprofessor.com, he has over 50 reviews, (including one that described him as “a gangster that will go medieval on your hiney”) and they are almost all accompanied by a smiley face. Most of these ratings are based on a general core class, which anyone can discern a professor teaches differently than he/she would an upper level major-specific class. The general core class is not necessarily easy, but the professor teaches it in a way that makes it less difficult. It is an enjoyable class for most people and that generates a lot of positive buzz. However, taking a professor just for the way that he/she talks or dresses just seems fundamentally wrong to me; it should be about wanting to learn a new subject. Isn’t college about broadening our horizons and confronting things that are challenging to us?
Unfortunately, not all majors have the same money earning potential, and history is one of those degrees that does not generate a lot of money after college. Many history majors, as well other majors, sacrificed future financial security to study a subject that they love. Admittedly, there are some that just decided to pick their majors because they couldn’t think of anything else to do, but the majority falls into the former category.
Personally, I would never dream of taking the upper-level classes in other subjects that wouldn’t help me graduate. Nor would I limit myself to taking just one professor. It would be a shallow and unprofitable experience to only take what one individual has to teach; that is why the university gives us multiple professors and options. If you are considering taking some courses in history, my suggestion would be to try different professors. There are quite a few characters in the department that have a lot to offer. I have not had a negative experience with any of my professors and there is a lot of variety to choose from.

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