This class is said by UVA students to be an "easy A" but I'd say it is far from that. I thoroughly enjoyed this course and it opened my eyes to many different perspectives than what I originally had. Prof. Wilcox is open about his personal views and he does sway very far right, but I wouldn't let that avoid you from taking this course. He is open to all and new opinions! The exams are very much memorization and you NEED to do the readings in order to have quotes to pull from for your written part of the exams. Overall, I would recommend this course, but don't go into it thinking it requires no effort. If you do the readings, pay attention in class, and participate in discussion, I would say you're set!

Amazing class! One of my favorites I have ever taken. Some of his views are a bit controversial, but they will really make you think. He is respectful of all opinions. Discussions were chill - I had Eleanor Fang, she was amazing! 1 paper, 1-2 pop quizzes, a midterm, a final, weekly discussions, a debate, and attendance taken on iClicker. Class is quite pricy though, a couple books (Wilcox wrote half of them), $17 iClicker subscription. I would recommend even if you disagree with his views, it's easy, and there was always an open space to speak your thoughts #tCFfall25

Amazing class! I loved how the class is so much different from a regular sociology class by focusing on the family. Professor Wilcox is very impressive (most of the research studies that you look up are associated with him) and very common sense. He gets a lot of hate just because he is a conservative, but he backs all of his views up with statistics, which is hard to disagree with. He makes space for talking about other perspectives and doesn't have a problem with students disagreeing with him which is great. Would definitely recommend going to office hours and chatting with him - he is friendly and tries to get to know you and is also very knowledgeable on the subject so is able to answer any questions or talk about different ideas. There are readings to do before each class, and while they are all pretty interesting, they can also be very long and hard to get through, so I would recommend writing down a few key points and statistics that you are able to reference on exams and you should be good. There's a term paper that you can write on anything, which is pretty easy as long as you get an early start on it. There are two pop quizzes (also very easy), and a midterm and final that both involve a lot of writing, but as long as you pay attention in class, take good notes, and memorize some important statistics you will be fine. There's a weekly discussion that can feel like a waste of time, but this is where you and a partner have a debate that takes just a little bit of prep work but isn't too hard. Overall, this was a wonderful class, and I would highly recommend it whether you tend to agree with Professor Wilcox or not - it is super relevant and really makes you think about current issues surrounding the family and dating/relationships today.

Very kind and knowledgeable professor. I enjoyed taking this class because it is topics you really never talk about. The grade is based on a midterm, a final, an 8 page paper, 2 pop quizzes, and attendance (he takes it using IClicker). Not bad exams at all, basically just some writing and fact memorization. Overall simple class but does require you to at least skim the readings so you have something to cite on the exams (this is a must!).

#tCFfall25

I really enjoyed this course. Professor Wilcox is very nice, and he cares a lot about his students. The lectures are pretty cut and dry, but he does take attendance via iClicker. Discussion sections are pretty interesting as well, and attendance is also required. I got an A+ in the course and all you have to do is show up and you will also do well in the class

This class was overall fine. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it. Prof Wilcox is obviously very conservative so if you are going to be bothered about that, just don't take the class because you will probably disagree with mostly everything. A lot of the class is athletes or people just trying to fill gen eds, so it isn't very hard. One of my biggest complaints about the class is that my TA was very bad about entering grades. Even after the final we never saw our grades for participation or the debate, so I never really knew where I stood which was frustrating. Prof Wilcox is very passionate about the topic and is happy to help you in office hours. I found the lectures to be interesting at first, but they can get very repetitive towards the end of the semester. I didn't do every single reading, but you will need to do some if not most so that you have something to cite in the midterm/final. Overall, it's a pretty easy A and I would recommend to most.

I think Professor Wilcox gets more hate than necessary. As a pretty progressive person, I knew when the class began that he was a conservative. I did not agree with everything he said, but as long as you skim the readings (I didn't even look at half of them), participate in the lecture and in the discussion section, and follow the rubric/requirements for the very minimal assignments, you'll probably get an A. Most of what he teaches is rooted in common sense (even for those who, like me, are not conservative like Professor Wilcox) which makes it easy to get away with not reading every assignment. That said, I do recommend reading at least a few of them to keep them in your back pocket for exams. The biggest part of this class is the lecture. It's small for a lecture class, so he often calls on students (sometimes randomly) to participate. The lectures are where most of the exam material is located and he specifically notes which topics will be tested on. He also takes attendance via iClicker, so it's kind of crucial to attend. Otherwise, easy A class with a moderate amount of effort and good attednance.

As someone who is currently taking this class and has a more recent review than the past ones I have read, I would highly suggest against this class. As a woman, it is very frustrating to be sitting in this class. Wilcox is openly conservative, which I respect, but the approach he takes when discussing men vs. women is extremely outdated and somewhat offensive. For example, he spoke about how having more sexual partners only negatively impacts women and didn't even mention its impact on men. Specifically, my TA put a "fact" on the board during discussion that said that the more sexual partners a woman has before marriage, the less happy she is in her marriage. I was shocked when I read it. He also spoke about social media's impact on relationships only regarding women, meanwhile it affects everyone. He spoke about how hookup culture only impacts women in a negative way because women lose respect right after. Also the way in which he asks his polls is clearly yearning for a certain response and doesn't even offer all of the possible answers, or an "other" category. It just felt a lot like he cared more about influencing women to be virgins and get married rather than to objectively be teaching a class on marriage. Obviously that is a leap but like... not a big one.

Wilcox is an interesting professor, you don't necessarily need to come to class, but you learn a lot. He reads off of the powerpoint, but overall you can definitely get away with not going to class or doing the readings. The exams are easy, but they are essays which make it easier if you have a basic idea of the lectures. You have to go to discussion which is fine. Overall, the class is very interesting and eye opening. If you need an easy class to take, I recommend this one.

Really easy class, honestly. He puts stars in his lecture slides next to things you need to know for MC on exams. Your grade is one two pop quizzes, a midterm, debate (in discussion), an 8-page paper, and a final (plus participation grade), so a lot of areas to do well. The material is honestly interesting too. As long as you take some notes on the readings (enough to be able to site in the essay sections of the exams) and learn the stars in his lecture you're set. A lot of it is kind of common sense too, so its not hard to grasp the concepts.