PLCP 3500

This class was extremely informative, and I'm definitely glad I took it! Professor Schoppa is a great lecturer and a funny guy. This class was a good reminder for me why you should take classes where the topic is the professor's career specialty because the professor will obviously be very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject. I learned a crazy amount of information about Japanese politics, but it was never overwhelming. The readings are doable, but you'll have to skim every now and then if you run out of time. The partner presentation was a longer process, but it all depends on who you get as your partner. I had a great partner, but some of my friends weren't as lucky. The exams were extremely reasonable, and everyone who paid attention in lecture did well on them. It was a great class and I highly recommend taking this class if you can!

I recommend this class if you are interested in an overlap of Japanese history and Japanese politics. I liked the professor but since it was such a small class, it was all discussion based. You had to do the readings in order to understand what he was talking about on the slides. He uploaded the slides, but omitted text. The midterm was difficult-- it was just writing for short answers in class and a take home essay. The in-class portion was hard if you didn't memorize every single event and politician. The final essay was also difficult. Throughout the course you basically prepare for a presentation on a topic and then write a final paper on it.

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