ANTH 2280

This was a wonderful course that actually lead to me wanting to pursue Global Public Health as my major! Professor Scherz was so engaging, inquisitive, and passionate about her work and the content she was teaching. I loved attending lecture and reading all the excerpts she assigned. Definitely a good amount of reading per week, but they were so interesting and I learned so much it was easy! Tests were of average difficulty, but you definitely need to do the reading - as there are many niche and specific questions.

Great class for pre-meds. Really get to see an inside look at medical anthropology over the years. You learn many skills that will be relevant and useful in future practice. Seems odd at first but everything starts making sense as the lectures go by. Very organized and easy. Do the readings, pay attention in lecture, and participate in discussion and there should be no problem getting an A. Three exams and an essay. Exams are easy/short if you do what I said above and the paper wasn't too much of a stress. Very applicable course.

This was a really interesting class. China is a great professor who did a great job explaining the concepts while keeping everything fun. There is a lot of reading but if you are into this subject it shouldn't be hard to finish.

This is one of my favorite courses I've taken at UVA! I'd never taken an anthropology class, but the material and the tests certainly were not difficult. This is not a class that you actually have to do all the reading for, but most of the reading is so interesting I ended up doing it. Professor Scherz was an engaging lecturer and super approachable in office hours.
Would absolutely recommend this to anyone pre med or anyone looking for a first anthropology course.

Professor Scherz is amazing!! She cares so much more about our learning and questioning that there is very little emphasis on exams. This is class is incredibly topical and relevant. Her lectures are so interesting, it's easy to stay engaged. Just one final paper, 4-5 pages. The readings can be a little long and challenging to understand at first, but discussion sections definitely fill in any of the blanks. Easy A, awesome professor, everyone should take this class!

Professor Scherz was nothing short of incredible. I would highly, highly recommend that anyone even vaguely interested in the medical field take this class. She has curated an amazing selection of readings that really teach you a lot. It's not completely necessary to go through every reading in extreme depth because you go over them in class and discussion, but do read what you can. The tests are extremely reasonable. They're mainly based on understanding the different arguments that authors were making on certain topics. There's a midterm that was 25 multiple choice questions and a 1 page free response question. The final was the same set up, but more multiple choices questions and two free response ones. One great thing about Professor Scherz is that she's extremely flexible and willing to work with her students. For example, she got rid of some of the readings to lighten our workload, and she made the final a take-home final because some students expressed concerns about conflicting travel plans. Also, her lectures are amazing. She is really passionate about what she teaches and really engages with the class. I would also recommend going to her office hours and introducing yourself. Ask her about the field research that she does. She has an ongoing research project in Uganda, and she may be looking for some student help!

This is the best course I’ve ever taken at UVA. Professor Scherz is an absolutely amazing lecturer, and so interesting to talk to during office hours. There is a lot of reading, but it’s really not necessary to do well in this class. I read the articles because I found them extremely interesting, but could’ve definitely gotten away with not doing them at all. Discussion sections were nice because the TA really encouraged you to think more abstractly about the concepts. Midterm and final are both easy if you take decent notes and pay attention during class. The 2 short papers you write are also graded extremely fairly. This course is not designed to be tricky; Professor Scherz genuinely wants her students (many of them pre-med) to understand that there’s more to medicine than science. If you are a pre-med student or interested in bioethics or public health, take this course!!! It was the highlight of my semester!!!

Very interesting, extremely easy to succeed. While there are a lot of readings (which you should do if you have the time cause they're interesting), the tests can be aced without putting in the effort to fully read each text. Professor Scherz is a great lecturer and I would recommend this class to anyone interested in medicine or bioethics. Discussion section was great too!

This course is absolutely outstanding in my opinion. China is an excellent professor who genuinely cares about her students, and she even adapts the course throughout the semester significantly in accords with feedback she seeks out throughout. The material is extremely interesting, and it presents aspects of biomedicine and the medical establishment in ways one may not otherwise see, which is a very enlightening experience. To be completely honest, you really don't NEED to do the readings to score well, but I would highly recommend them because they are genuinely interesting and you will gain a lot from them. The difficulty is generally very low, and discussions are extremely helpful throughout the course to acquire a better understanding.

Great class! Professor Scherz is a great lecturer. You have to read a lot for this class but its the only work other than a few short and easy papers. Most of the time the readings are really interesting. Great class for anyone going to the medical field!

This class is not an "easy A." I went into the class not really putting in much effort, and this definitely hurt my midterm. I ended having to work pretty hard to pull through for the A. There is a considerable amount of reading and many of them can be extremely dense, but they get better as the semester goes on. I also personally preferred the political/structural concepts we went over in the second half of the semester. With that being said it takes a good amount of motivation to sit down and understand the material, but it is necessary if you want to do well on the exams. Professor Scherz is a good lecturer, but she writes little to nothing on her slides, so you have to make sure you take good notes and attend every lecture. Overall, I would recommend this course to all pre-med students, but make sure you are willing to put in the time.

Professor Scherz is a good professor, but the material can be pretty dry for someone interested in medical ethics. There is a considerable amount of reading for a course that seems to loop back to the same material in each unit. The exams are not difficult as long as you attend discussions and have a good TA. I would say that most people get an A or high B depending on the effort that exhibit. Readings are recommended but not necessary as long as you have a good idea of what each one's argument is by the end of the week's discussion section. Necessary for a Bioethics minor almost definitively.

There's a fair amount of reading. And it is important to do these readings and to understand them. She goes over them in lecture, but not in a lot of detail. In your discussion section is where you really dissect the readings and are able to get a better understanding. The class isn't hard. But that's only if you do the reading and are participating (or at least understanding what is going on) in your discussion section.; Be sure to ask questions if you ever have them. She gives out a study guide for both the mid term and final which is very helpful if you take the time to do and understand. There is 2-3 page essay that you write about yourself and then at the end you will expand that essay to 4-5 pages but you will include things that you have learned in the class. The paper isn't too bad to write and is a good of demonstrating what you have taken out from this course. If you are looking into the medical field, I cannot recommend this class enough. Seriously, if you want to be a nurse, a doctor, a dentist....TAKE THIS CLASS

Professor Scherz is so engaging. I really enjoyed this class with her. The readings were interesting although at times very long. I would definitely recommend this class to anyone who wants a good GPA boost.

This was such a great class. China is an amazingly kind, funny, and energetic professor. The class is divided into 2 "sections" with the first section readings slightly less interesting in my opinion - covering topics such as witchcraft and spirit possession. However, the second section discusses mental illness, dementia, and cancer. The articles for these topics were more relatable and very interesting. Although I didn't like the first section as much, China did a great job at connecting the newer readings to the first ones.
The class is pretty easy - just a 3 part paper about you or someone you know with an illness. It was actually fun to write!
The midterm and final both had study guides, and she really sticks to them which was amazing. Overall, I'd highly recommend this class even if you are slightly interested in the medical field and/or anthropology!

Professor Scherz is incredible! This class is not difficult--there are readings every week, but you could get away with skipping them and just attending lecture and discussion. The TAs were also very engaging and eager to help whenever we needed it. The exams are short but not hard; Professor Scherz gives out a study guide well in advance and sticks to it almost perfectly. She is a great lecturer, funny, and loves the subject. She often integrates her personal experience into the class, which livens it up and makes it interesting to be at. Anthropology is not my favorite subject, but I really liked the professor and would take it again just to hear her lectures.

Professor Scherz is an amazing professor and genuinely cares about her students and their comprehension of the material. The course is very easy just a mid-term and a final (both have study guides), a 5 page ethnography, a first hand account paper, and a discussion grade. Loved the class and would definitely recommend it to anyone who is pre-med or just wants to learn about other cultures' views on western medicine and healing.