MDST 3559

Easily one of the best professors I've had at UVA. Not only does he make you feel like your thoughts matter (as opposed to other professors who very obviously think they're higher up on the food chain than their students), but he is also an all-around amazing person! He is the type of professor who emails you just to say good job, and his comments on papers can be pretty lighthearted and constructive. There isn't a lot of homework: just an article or two and a reading response before each class (but you can miss EIGHT out of the 24, which is a godsend). That being said, because Rubin holds you to a high regard his grading can be relatively harsh but bearable. All things considered, take a class with him if you want a kindhearted professor who makes you laugh and feel comfortable approaching him with points or questions. He's the man!

I had Professor Rubin for Intro MDST, and didn't love him. But this semester I am taking History of Music and Broadcasting with him, and I absolutely love it. The class is much smaller, and music is his thing so he is incredibly passionate about the subject matter and makes class really fun. We have great discussions, and he genuinely wants to help you. There are readings due before each class which are a little tough in the beginning because they are background information, but get increasingly more interesting to read. You can choose to either take 5 reading quizzes throughout the semester or do a 200 word reading reflection each night (you are allowed to skip a good amount of them with no penalty). If you put in the work on these, you automatically get a 96. There are 5 radio journals due throughout the semester, where you just listen to the radio and write about your experience. These are graded as "full credit" if you do the work. The last grade is a final research paper where you can write about literally anything you want as long as its somewhat related to music. Ultimately, would definitely recommend this class if you're in the media studies major or just interested in music.