PSYC 2200

Very hard class. Not gonna lie though, definitely possible to get an A if you know how to grind. 5 short mid-terms, you get to drop the lowest grade. Listen for minute details in lectures, because that's what he likes to put on mid-terms. I found this class very hard because he asks very specific questions that requite an in-depth knowledge of the topics. Definitely do all of the readings when they're due, don't procrastinate otherwise you'll get screwed. Looking back on it, I should've gone to office hours. They are very willing to help you, so take advantage of that.

My only problem with this course is that it seems like the exams are designed to trick you or fail. The professor's goal is obviously for you to learn, but the tests are designed to trip you up and stump you on very-detailed information. Not a huge fan of this type of testing.

He curves the class a ton so don't be discouraged if you get 70s on all the mid-terms.

ALSO DO THE PRACTICE QUIZZES THEY HELP A SHIT TON.

The content of this course is very interesting if you have any interest in the topic. You definitely learn a lot, and I enjoyed Brunjes as a professor while in lecture. However, the tests are extremely frustrating. It is very nitpicky. You need to know every little detail from lecture so this is not a class to take if you like to skip. You also need to know every little detail from the book- nothing is off limits from the assigned reading, and there is a good deal of reading assigned so do not procrastinate on it. Definitely use the old exams to study with because he will pull questions from there. The curve is really helpful so while the exams could be frustrating, it works out so the vast majority of people pass the class, with the top 60% getting an A or a B. I wouldn't recommend taking this just because, but if you have to take it for Cog Sci or Psych, you will get through it. Just be prepared to put in some effort!

I would not recommend this class to anyone. Brunjes makes sexist jokes and literally does not know what he's talking about half of the time. He doesn't want students to use laptops but makes it ridiculously hard to follow his lectures while writing notes. He is all over the place and often says the exact opposite of the textbook. Questions are often ambiguous and he always has errors in the keys. Very hard to do well in the class even if you memorize the textbook and lectures because of poorly worded questions. Brunjes is not a good professor and should be avoided.

I would NOT recommend this class to anyone, it has been my least favorite class to date. Given, I am not science-oriented so I should have strayed away from this class in the first place, but I have never been so frustrated with a course. I have been to every single lecture, kept up on every single reading (taking extensive notes each time too), and done all the practice tests and still have received my lowest exam grades of my college career. This class is extremely frustrating because hard work will not necessarily pay not. Brujnes lecture style is a mess. He refuses to use a microphone so it is hard to hear him when he begins mumbling and in addition he jumps around a lot in the material, and does not project any sort of notes, just pictures and diagrams. His multiple choice exams are only 35 questions, but the are super specific, it is never general questions. I think the class may have changed since a few years ago because he switched the textbook, therefore studying the old tests that refer to the old "Kalat" textbook hasn't proved to be too helpful like I had read. Once again, if you are good in science courses you may have a completely different experience, but I personally regret not dropping this class every single day

I took this course over the summer, so my experience probably differs from many others, but I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this course. Prof. Brunjes definitely loves what he does and has a great command over the course material. He lectures from memory without relying on PowerPoint, which made for a more engaging lecture experience. The textbook was interesting and clearly written too (although many sections were quite dense). Once we got past the units on neuroanatomy and sensation, the course material got increasingly more fascinating - especially the chapters on motivation and addiction, hormones and sexual development, and emotion. We were able to ask questions during class on material we were unsure about. Tests were difficult and specific, but he provided all his old exams from the past five years so we could get a feel for how they would be structured. This class definitely takes a lot of effort, but taking diligent notes and making flashcards from the bolded words in the textbook definitely helped to solidify all the information. If you're considering signing up for this course, keep an open mind about Brunjes! I know he's gotten a lot of bad reviews on CourseForum in recent years which almost turned me off from taking this course, but I can say that I actually enjoyed the material a lot and found his lectures very interesting. Plus, he curves the grades at the end so that the top 60% of the class gets B-'s and above, so don't panic if you're getting grades in the mid-70s or 80s. Plus, you get to drop your lowest exam, including the final! Overall, I would recommend taking this class with Brunjes, especially over the summer, which helps with keeping the material fresh in your mind over the shorter timespan.

If you want the best grade possible you have to go to class and read the textbook. There are around 5 or so questions that come from the textbook on the exam. Do the past years practice tests, it's astounding how close they are to each other, some of the questions are even the same. The information was really interesting once you take the first test and your worst test is dropped. I recommend taking this class and studying with a partner and quizzing each other.

A extremely hard, yet rewarding class. It is very science based which is difficult for those psych majors who have disdain for anything science related. Brunjes makes the test, and the class itself, annoyingly hard. He refuses to use a microphone, so sit near the front. I found it incredibly helpful to read the textbook sections that will be discussed in class before lecture, so you have some sort of idea that whats coming up. Also, Brunjes does not use any sort of outlines or powerpoints in class, just abstract pictures, so knowing that you're looking at helps to piece the information together as he tends to jump around and seem a little disorganized by his failure to prepare for lecture. Class attendance is not mandatory, but I highly recommending going because although he will post the "slides" from class, but they are just the abstract pictures. To study for the exams, DO THE PRACTICE EXAMS. They are good guides for what the actual exam will be like, and a lot of the time, he will reuse a lot of the same questions. But my biggest advice is read the damn textbook and remember seemingly unimportant details because he likes to use details to test whether students are reading or not. The test are really tricky so be prepare for literally anything even if you havent talked about in class. I didn't find going to office hours super useful because most of the time, he was not there. But at the end of the day, the material was interesting but taught poorly. Thankfully, lowest one of the exams, including the final, will be dropped. Also there is a curve in the class, but you will not know your grade until the very end of the class, as he only curves to make a standard bell curve distribution in the class. That being said, if you are semester that is doing fairly well on the exams, then the class will be curved less than other semesters. I received a 63 on the first exam, but ended the class with a B+, just two points away from an A-. Good luck to all.

Yike. The whole class is a big yike. The content is interesting but Brunjes' teaching style is terrible and ineffective. He is often disorganized, which usually leaves my notes disorganized as well. He doesn't use powerpoint slides, instead he uses usually random pictures that you have trouble locating when you want to look at them. He also writes on the chalk board, which isn't a problem, but he doesn't organize his thoughts well, which goes back to my previous point. He also refused to use a mic to lecture, which would be fine if our class wasn't in the big lecture hall (Gilmer 130). There are only exams in his class, which were 35 or so hard multiple choice questions that were based off of obscure, insignificant parts of the book or random parts of his lecture. Overall, the class was not worth it. Would not take unless necessart, and would not recommend. I took it to fulfill my psyc requirement and the only alternative was animal minds which had even scarier reviews than this class has.

This guy's like a million years old and refuses to use a mic for a 350 PERSON CLASS. He doesn't use slides, he only uses pictures from a website you can't access off grounds (SDAC ppl good luck getting notes if you miss, I asked and he said "Not my problem"). Exams are extremely hard. This man's a menace. However he grades based on class averages so maybe I'll get an A with like an 80 average. Don't take this just take a different PSYC req or a neuroscience class.

this has honestly been one of the most unnecessarily difficult classes i've taken at uva. the only things that are graded are your exams. there are five exams including the final, and the lowest score gets dropped. the exams are usually 30 questions multiple choice and 5 true/false (or sometimes more multiple choice). it's usually more from lecture than reading, but the reading is also pretty important. however, the questions are so arbitrary and unimportant. they are about pretty irrelevant details in comparison to the topic overall. he also gives you five practice exams for each test, but doesn't give you the answer key. some of the tests are also based off the old textbook, so it doesn't help much there either. people get 100's on the exams, so it's not impossible but i can't imagine the amount of studying and natural ability put into it. i did the readings and went to every lecture, crammed/studied up to a week before, and still struggle. like others have said, he doesn't use a microphone for his 350-person lecture hall, so it can be difficult to hear especially when he mumbles under his breath. grades are on a bell curve and he sends updates after each exam, but you never really know for sure what grade you're going to get in the class. overall, 10/10 do not recommend.