ECON 3430

Definitely one of the best courses the econ at the University. Professor Shobe is awesome and is very passionate about the content and that is something you can see in the way he teaches. He's approachable and genuinely cares for his students. The course changed the way I look at the world. Absolutely do the readings as they're so worth it.

Professor Shobe is very energetic and passionate about the material. I think this class would be ideal for someone interested in the field. Because of covid, he had to change how he grades the course. Our breakdown was 10% to a short paper, 20% to Poll Everywhere questions (with no clear explanation of how they're graded), 30% to the midterm, and 40% to the final. Shobe assigned multiple, lengthy readings per week and 6 problem sets to go over in discussion with your TA. I had Tyler as my TA and he was really dedicated and provided clear explanations. Overall, Shobe was a great professor, but I'd only recommend this course to those as passionate about environmental economics as him. Otherwise, it's really hard to pay attention and do well.

Firstly, this class is broken down into the cumulative final (40%), short paper (10%), midterm (30%), and HW questions (20%). Shobe is a really nice professor, but he's quite repetitive and the exams are written in a way that compliments his lecture style. I'm not going to pretend that he isn't dry sometimes; however, I like hearing information a couple of times to make sure that I understand it. The exams are 6-10 short answer prompts with multiple parts and there's always more than enough time to finish them. I didn't find them or any of the material particularly difficult to comprehend, but I'm also an Econ major (and I think that's where most people struggle with the class). Furthermore, there's no micro requirement, but I personally think there's a major learning curve for those who don't have basic knowledge of comparative statics. I was really worried that this class might be fraught with political themes based on the policy aspect of it, but thankfully it's not. Shobe makes it a goal to not bring in any political bias into his lectures and I think it's much appreciated. Also, somebody below says to do the readings, but I didn't find them particularly helpful unless there were hw questions assigned for them. Shobe covers the important ones that will show up on the exams in lecture, so skim if you want but I wouldn't do a deep dive unless you were super interested or something. Lastly, he curves the class to a B+, if that isn't a sign of generosity, I don't know what is.

TLDR: Cool prof. Skim the readings. Okay material that isn't too difficult. SA exams with ample time. Tyler is a really good TA. Good elective for somebody looking to boost their GPA. #tCF2020

Pretty interesting class, focus is mostly on how bargaining and policy affect the outcome of situations involving sustainability. Very light on math and mostly emphasizes approaching problems with logical thinking. Shobe is visibly passionate about the material and sustainability in general, and it shines through in his lectures. The material itself is usually engaging but there are a few dull periods, though Shobe introduces them well enough with examples. If you look up Coase's Theorem and get a basic understanding of it before the semester, you'll be well prepared for a huge portion of the material. Grading is fair and maybe on the generous side, especially during the COVID semester. Overall, the course is not too challenging and makes for a good choice for people interested in the environment, sustainable business, and filling out ECON electives.

This course mainly talks about bargaining power and how it affects creating economic policy in relation to different environmental impacts it can have. Your grade is made up of online poll questions (5%), an essay (10%), two exams (25% each) and a final (35%). To start with, Prof. Shoebe is a great professor. He is very enthusiastic and passionate about teaching the course and makes the lectures very engaging, which definitely helped the class understand the content. However, this is probably the only upside to this class: The content is pretty dry and can get repetitive sometimes, and the reading is what I would describe as being above-average for an economics class. Problem sets don't help much on exams, which are made up completely of essay questions and require you to manage your time extremely well in order to achieve a high grade in the course. I wouldn't take this course unless it's the only available Econ elective you have or unless you are very interested in learning more about how economic policy impacts the environment, and I would definitely say that this class is NOT a GPA booster. #tCFfall2021

Pros:
- Material was very interesting once I developed an understanding of it
- records all lectures and publishes all slides
- (During covid) tests are open note including online material
-Final exam is was extremely "preparable" for
-The exam average is curved to an 87 (Could be a con if you are a bad test taker)
- A- seems very achievable
- Professor is cool and likes his students
-You can get away with not doing most of the reading (but a question about a specific reading did pop up on the first exam)

Cons:
- You have to write an essay...in an economics class....and it's not a completion grade...
-He tried to get us to use TopHat and was gonna make it 5% of our final grade, but gave up because of covid. This isn't a negative if covid is still going on, but will be once were back to normal
- They definitely nitpick when grading. Getting a full A should be challenging because points get taken off for really minor stuff like not including certain vocab words (again...in an ECON class?!?)
-85% of your final grade is 3 tests.
-the pacing of the class is really poor. We would have an exam and be 4 weeks into new content that wasn't going to show up on the exam before testing our knowledge.
-Material can be hard to understand at first. This was clearly a grad-level class that was brought down to the undergrad level. I took it as a second year and needed to spend a bit more time than usual to get topics to click, but I did eventually get them to click.

Overall, a solid B of an elective for those who aren't interested in the material. If you are interested in the material, definitely take it.

Loved the content of this class. If you're interested in sustainability and how economics can be used to achieve it, this is the course for you. Two midterms, one final, and a paper (exams are worth most of your grade, so those are impt). One of the few econ classes where you get to write! (and it's not a research paper). A good amount of reading too for an econ course. #tCFfall22

Great course and the professor knows his stuff. It was hard as an ETP major to wrap my head around what he was saying originally but showing up to class and being able to draw the graphs made all the difference. The discussion sections were a bust, but you didn't need them to succeed. Also you use kritik to peer review essays so that makes it more forgiving. #tCCF23

*Taken Fall 2024*
I didn't think I would enjoy this class, but Professor Shobe ended up making this my favorite econ course! He is super engaging and fun to listen to. When he wants to make a point, Shobe will stomp his feet, slam on his desk, and shout the key term - it's funny and surprising, but effective. He's also happy to help during office hours or after class, so don't be afraid to ask him or your TA if you're confused.
Your grade is almost entirely based on the results of your 2 midterms and final, with a few percentage points dedicated to writing and peer review. On the test essay questions, try to tell Shobe the "story" of how you got to your answer (aka throw your entire train of thought on there and see what sticks.) I took until the last minute on the second midterm and final, but it worked out in my favor. Try to go to class, as the way Shobe narrates the material is great, but he puts the presentations online in case you miss it.

Biggest piece of advice: do the readings! It's okay if you don't pick up everything, but it's very helpful to have the background that the readings provide.

Shobe is a very passionate professor, but very nice. I believe his whole career is closely related to what he teaches, so he is very knowledgeable and passionate about sharing that knowledge. His lectures are basically him going through slides and speaking through them. Fairly standard presentation, just with a lot of energy. The material is interesting, and he tries to make it interesting to. He applies many of the micro principles to environmental and sustainability issues in his own quirky way. For work, there is no homework, your grade is based on a peer reviewed paper, two mid-terms, and the final. He is very accommodating with all the assignments. For example, out midterm got pushed back a week just because that's what people preferred. Everyone also had the opportunity to submit their exams and paper for regrading too. He provides lots of resources to do well on the exam. If you decide to do the readings, there is a lot, however, I did almost none of the readings and was fine.