HIST 2214

I scarce write a review, so that should tell you how fantastic this class is. Professor Hitchcock is the most engaging, caring, and funny professor I have had during my time here at UVA. It is evident through his lectures how much he cares for his students and about the subject matter. Truly, his lectures have been the only ones in my time here that I was genuinely sad to leave. Some basic things about the course: there is mandatory section, and I don't think that section is super necessary but you do have to go. Section could sometimes be a little boring, and there are four quizzes that Professor Hitchcock says are super easy but I sometimes struggled with. Attend lecture and do the readings and you'll do well -- and trust me, you DON'T want to miss lecture. They are super interesting, and although I am a history-oriented person, his lectures are very engaging no matter what you study. There is also a twelve page final paper on any topic of your choosing, which is a little daunting but is a lot of fun to write, and Professor Hitchcock is there to help you if you need it. This is a MUST TAKE class at UVA - if you get the chance, TAKE IT!

Professor Hitchcock is incredible! Please, please take his class! I also highly recommend Cleo Boyd for a TA. She is a really fair grader, relatable, and wants us to succeed. Professor Hitchcock is an absolutely amazing lecturer--so engaging, excited by his topic, ordered, and his PowerPoints are clear. The quizzes are only based on the PowerPoints, rather than the reading, which is really nice and takes some pressure off. Still, the readings are really interesting and I recommend doing all of them. The midterm is an in-class paper (50 mins), which you are well-prepared for.

TAKE THIS CLASS. Professor Hitchcock is an incredible lecturer and incredibly knowledgeable. His powerpoint lectures are never boring and always has jokes and fun stories to share to keep everyone engaged. This is a class that I was excited to go to every day. Discussion section was interesting too and helped with understanding the material. That being said, there is A LOT of reading assigned, but as the semester went on I learned you don't *need* to do all of it since the quizzes and midterm material come from the lecture exclusively. Reading the primary documents he assigns is way more important than the chapters in the book. The class consists of 3 very easy vocab quizzes from the lectures (he says they are suppose to be easy), a midterm (in class essay), and a long 12 page final research paper. I was very scared going into writing the final paper, but it ended up writing itself because the databases Hitchcock gives to us have so much info to use. My TA was also very very helpful in helping me with my final paper. Cannot recommend this class enough to anyone who has a passion for history: TAKE THIS CLASS!

Wow. Professor Hitchcock is an expert on every aspect of the Cold War (is even a pulitzer finalist author on WWII, although you won't hear him talk about that in class) and is one of the funniest, most entertaining and interesting lecturers I've ever had. The class covers the Cold War from a global perspective that gives you a great basis for understanding the political make-up of the world today. While there are a lot of readings assigned weekly, they are not very necessary to do in order to succeed on the 3 quizzes and midterm but I enjoyed doing them because they added some nice details to the topics we covered in class. Also, I met with him to go over my final, 12 page paper outline and he was extremely helpful and excited to talk about the topic. He is both great at lecturing and answering specific questions and I just loved the class!

I really enjoyed this class! It would be a good choice for someone not as interested in history looking to fill a requirement. There is a decent amount of reading, but that's to be expected with a history course. I did all of it but you could definitely get away with skipping most of it. Professor Hitchcock will tell you himself that the quizzes are extremely easy. If you go to lecture/have any basic knowledge of the Cold War, it's very easy to get an A. The grade breakdown is: three 10 point quizzes, 30 point midterm (essay), 10 point final paper outline, and 30 point final paper. You can add or lose points in discussion. The final paper is 12 pages but you get to pick any topic you want and honestly wasn't too bad if you had your sources picked out when you had to submit the outline. Professor Hitchcock is an excellent lecturer and I honestly never minded going to lecture. Definitely agree with a previous review that this is a "you get out of it what you put in" type class.

This course was amazing. Professor Hitchcock is a great lecturer and covers the information incredibly well. There is a LOT of reading, but it's really interesting and manageable if you have an easier course in your schedule too. He covers specifics from readings on the quizzes but chances are you might cover it in lecture or discussion. Other than the reading not a ton of outside work except for the final research paper, which is also really interesting. Totally worth the effort and a "you get out of it what you put into it" kind of course

Professor Hitchcock is the best lecturer I've had so far at UVA. He's so engaging and really knows how to present even the most minuscule details in an interesting way. The quizzes are pretty basic and easy to do well on even if you just skimmed the readings. Definitely attend lecture, though. His PowerPoint slides are dense. The midterm and final are a big portion of the final grade, but if you keep up with the readings and go to class they're not a problem. However, the discussion sections were basically just a regurgitation of points made in Hitchcock's lectures and didn't add much to the class overall.

Absolutely a phenomenal course and one that I would highly recommend! It was definitely the highlight of my semester with Professor Hitchcock and TA Matt Frakes making this one that I looked forward going to every week. So long as you keep track with the weekly readings and attend lecture regularly, it's not too hard to pull off an A.

Professor Hitchcock is an incredible lecturer and the reading for the class is not too dense. Grading is fair and is done by the TA. Class is excellent and I highly recommend

I absolutely loved this class. If you have the opportunity to take a class with Hitchcock, you definitely should. He made the material engaging in every lecture, told fun anecdotes, and lowkey reminds me of Jeff Goldblum. Grade consists of a midterm, discussion participation, short quizzes in discussion, and a long final research paper. The quizzes are usually definitions and are super manageable if you attend lecture. Almost all the reading was interesting and very relevant. I would wholeheartedly recommend this class.