Miklowitz, Paul  

A non-philosophy major, attractive, female was taking this class along side me. She constantly was asking me for help as we were friends. Since the material was difficult and she had taken no philosophy classes I spent a lot of time going over her essays and critiquing her work. The teacher did not know we were friends. Every. Single. Paper. She got an A on it. We each had to critique a particular chapter and explain it to the class. She got an A. I got a C. I was getting C's on my essays. The outright, obvious sexism in his grading was so apparent it was breath taking. My friend even admitted that my essays were clearly better. Maybe I didn't deserve an A, I'll grant the audience that. But the work I did was to anyone who would read both our essays, superior. This is no knock on my friend by any means. She was taking an upper division philosophy class with only the intro philosophy class under her belt. This teacher cannot hide how outrageously sexist he is in the way he treats his female students, and his grading. I've taken him multiple times and this display is frequent. He has a cool house though.

This is a difficult, required class, but Miklowitz is a great prof. for it. Miklowitz is great at presenting the material clearly, and will try his best to help those are struggling so long as they have the balls to let him know they need it. He will do what he can in class, and he will help as much as you need if you visit him in office hours. The class material is extremely difficult, and will require thinking outside the box (as it appears some of the engineers below had trouble with.) but Miklowitz will do all he can to help you understand. He has no homework, and has three tests consisting of 10 short answer questions, followed by an easy, short, MC final. He uses a straight but fair grading scale. Considering the class is centered around the books, the may be helpful, but Miklowitz pulls all of the necessary material out of the books, since it merits explanation anyway. Purchasing his lecture notes is more helpful than the actual literature.

Miklowitz was one of the best professors I've had at Cal Poly, and the people with different opinions likely just hate philosophy or hate to be challenged. I took this class last year and it was so fuckin hard to absorb his two hours straight of hard to understand lecture info that i'd leave everyday with a migrane that would last up until the next time i had his class. That said, I learned a ton and was forced to used my head. His tests are fair (hard as hell), and he is also fair. He wants you to work hard and if you do he'll give you a good grade

Professor Miklowitz is clearly a very intelligent person and holds an absolutely ridiculous amount of knowledge about philosophy. He's a dynamic speaker and he does a pretty significant amount of review as the quarter progresses, so if you love philosophy he's a good bet. Be warned though, he can be very rude to his students, which is problematic when a huge chunk of your grade is participation. His attitude can definitely make you dislike the class and feel like you can't go to him with questions for fear of being criticized. Besides that, the three midterms are essay-based (not fun, but you get to use your book, so annotate wisely) and the final is cumulative multiple choice (not fun at all and much harder than the midterms). Overall, if you're not a philosophy major, opt out if you can.

Dr. Miklowitz is one of the best professors I have taken at Cal Poly. His knowledge (or is it Socratic ignorance?) of philosophical studies is amazing. This guy knows the material inside and out. He answers questions with amazing clarity and never hesitates to throw in some humor in every discussion. Hands down the best choice for PHIL 230. Miklowitz tosses in his views on physics, politics, and motion pictures and incorporates them into the lecture. This way, no one has an excuse not to grasp what he is teaching.

Prof. Miklowitz is a great guy whos always willing to help you. the thing is, his tests SUCK!! if you miss a single word, there goes your grade. dont take him if you cant do complete writing exams. he lectures can vary from really exciting to downright nap time. it all depends on the material you're going over that day. his tests have got to be one of the hardest i've ever taken, hands down!! if you like to write A LOT on tests, go for it. if not, avoid at all costs!!

Yes I got a D but this guy is a little crazy and loves to hear himself talk. He is a upity snob and is very hard to understand or talk to cause hes got his head up his intelectual ass.

I have attended a few different universities--from Cal Poly (relatively small state school) to large research institutions--and by far Prof. Miklowitz is one of THE best professors I have ever had. If you treat this course seriously and don't expect to waltz through it, you will be in for a real treat. You won't know, however, just how good of a professor Dr. Miklowitz is until you are further along in your academic career, however.

Miklowitz is by far one of the most brilliant people i have ever met. He knows the material very well and presents it in a very clear manner and he also makes the lectures very intersting which is pretty hard to do on such a dry subject. All in all, the man knows his shit is very nice, and truely cares about how his students are doing in his class. I would recommend this class to anyone.

Miklowitz is a very passionate teacher who presents the info well. My only problem with the class is that he did lecture for the full two hours, usually without break. Two hours of lecture would definetly have always put me to sleep had he not been so excited about the material. As it was I only caught my self dosing about half of the time. I would definetly recommend taking him.

This guy is the best teacher I have had at calpoly. The best thing about him is that he actually knows what he's talking about. The second best thing about him is that he can actually answer peoples questions with good answers. The class was two hours but it was not that hard to stay focused since the material is so interesting. The only hard part about the class was the crazy multiple choice tests. Now you may think multiple choice tests are easier than writen exams, but these are the hardest multiple choice tests you will ever take. On some of the questions it seems like either everything is the correct answer or nothing is the correct answer. But the whole class is only 3 50 question midterms and a 75 question final, so there really isn't all that much work to do except reading.

I would never have taken this professor if I knew what a horrible job he would do teaching the class. He's so cocky - he tells the class how philosophers feel they are the smartest people on the planet. The exams were all scantron and so confusing, it took me the whole class period just to figure out what the questions were asking and the anwers all seemed the same to me. When I went in during his office hours to try and get help on how to study he made me feel like I wasn't smart enough for the class. I didn't even want to bother after that. DON'T TAKE HIS CLASS!!!!

you have a choice: (1)this will be the worst class ever, you will want to stick you finger in your eye over and over again during the two hour lecuture while Miklowitz rages on about pumkiness. (2) go to office hours and get a clue as to what's going on (which you cannot attain by simply siting through lecture...trust me) as well as some important test material, sit back relax and let the man expamd your mind.

Ok so here's the big secret: he's going to scare you the first day about how 230 is a hard class and 231 is easier if you're better with concrete concepts. This class is challanging...BUT we all have to take it for GE's, so if you're interested at all in arguments for the immortality of the soul and God, take a chance and take this class with Miklowitz! It's incredibly interesting and he's got a great sense of humor. I went in the second day of class (after being FREAKED out from the first day) hoping to just pass the class and get through it, but surprisingly out of the 3 midterms (one on each philosopher descartes, plato, kant) I got 2 A's and a B then got an A- on the final! Here's also the thing: normally the class is about 30 people so it's more one on one and the tests are essay. Mine was 100+ people and multiple choice and was great! I recommend trying for a larger class with him and then TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HIS OFFICE HOURS IF POSSIBLE! He's incredibly knowledgable and I was only able to make 2 office hours at the end of the quarter and both were the best experiences I had all quarter! This class is do-able!!

Dr. Miklowitz is great source of knowledge when it comes to philosophy, but the material is really hard for those looking to take this course that are not phil majors. TAKE 231!!! This class will scare you the first day. It can be passed but it will stress you out. Go to his office hours if you get stuck taking this, they will help out a lot. His lectures also are extremely good for clarifing the books' material.

I was really worried about taking a philosophy class because I had heard so many horror stories but this professor was great!! Each day he would begin by going back over all the material we had previously covered. It was a great way to really get the concept in my head and really understand it. His tests were all short answer of which I felt he graded very fairly. He has a lot of enthusiasm and can read his students really well as to whether they understand the info or not. I would really recommend taking him for philosophy!

The key- go to his study groups before the tests. I was quite confused most of the quarter, probably because i couldn't really stomach the reading so i never did it...but if you go to the groups you will do fine. He basically tells you what questions will be on the test while you are there, and also gives you the answer he is looking for. He's really interesting when he's not talking about philosophy. Totally pointless subject matter in my opinion, but having a nice guy teaching the class helps a lot...just ask him to have study sessions, and go to them. you'll do fine.

First of all, if you want an easy A, get the hell out of this class. This class requires a lot of effort, abstract thinking, and reading, and if you don't like these things, odds are you won't like this class. That said, Miklowitz is an excellent professor and relays the material very well. If you participate in class and take notes, it makes the reading infinitely easier.

This guy is heartless. I went to the hospital the day before a midterm, and he wouldnt let me retake it. He does not try to help those that are obviously in need of help.

Professor Miklowitz is an intelligent man. Unfortunately, if you aren't on the same level as him he will consider you to be unimportant in lecture. For GE purposes, this class is very advanced and the concepts were difficult to grasp. I have never worked harder to succeed in a course, and the professor was not very understanding or helpful. He made me feel like it was my fault for not completely grasping the ideas. If you feel up to the task of deciphering complex material without the care of an arrogant, un-waivering professor, take 230 with Miklowitz. Just be prepared to sweat and struggle.

Miklowitz is a smart guy who knows his stuff. What i liked about him most though was his ethusiasm for the class, he really gets off and this stuff, and more power to him, it help to keep me interested. Overall, the class is alright, scantron, if you study a lot you will do well.

This guy is definitely into philosophy. If you love to think and grasp difficult concepts, take this guy! He is so into his work, its really cool actually, he really gets into the lecture. But for me, trying to fill a GE, I thought this class was above the reqired GE level. If you want a good phil class and an A, take Flores, my roomate has him, he rocks. If you want to work your butt off, for most likely a lower grade, take Miklowitz. He did warn us though, that his class would be harder, but I really didnt have a choice, It was the only class I could take.

miklowitz is a cool guy, he is a good lecture and he understands and gives good responses to really vague questions. However DON'T take his class unless you have no other option. His tests are ridiculous. He rocks the double negative real hard and the wording is crazy. Philosophical classics are not easy to start with you don't need a complicated multiple choice test to increase the difficulty. Again not a bad guy you're just not gonna get a good grade if that's what your after.

This class is difficult and confusing. The material is hard, and his lectures are pretty boring and confusing too. The tests are ridiculous, very wordy....like solving a logic problem just to figure out what he's asking for. On the bright side, he always curves the tests , and sometimes he's funny in class. He seems to be a nice guy, but this class kicked me in the face. Don't take it unless you have too....or unless you are wishing for a bad grade.

As far as the material in Phil 230, Paul Miklowitz really knows his stuff. He's so into philosophy that he really pulls you into it as well. I got an A in the class, but then again, I was way deep into the sparknotes for all the books. Also, I was in his 120 student class, which meant that all the midterms were based on multiple-choice exams. If you're good with MC, then take his big class. If you study the sparknotes and attend all the lectures, then you're set. Every question can be answered using the sparknotes guide. The only warning I can give is that he'll ask some questions about what examples some of the philosophers used in their books, and to trick you he'll include some of his own examples from lecture in the MC. But seriously, because I'm good with MC questions, this was one of the easiest classes I've gotten an A in.

Miklowitz is a great teacher who really know his stuff about philosophy. We studied three "books," novels, or what have you and he did a great job of going over every one to completion. I didn't actually end up buying the last two books becuase after the first test i realized that he pretty much only tested on what he lectured on, plus i couldn't stand reading the philosophy texts. So three tests on the three writings, each 10 essays long and very difficult to do well on. He grades very sternly and even though i knew the facts, i couldn't seem to get better than a C on the last two tests. I did, however, get an A on the first test but the information on that test was much more straight foward. The final is a multiple choice test for which there is an online sample test which is very similar. Overall, miklowitz kept me entertained in class and he did a very good job going over everything we needed to know, so study hard for tests and you should be fine.

Ok, here's the deal...unless you really like philosophy you shouldn't be taking 230 in the first place. PHIL 231 is not only a much easier class as far as the subject matter goes, but it also has a couple really easy professors that teach it. That being said, if you are still going to take 230 it must be because you really want to learn something, and in that case you have to take Miklowitz. Yes, he is the hardest grader in the department; yes, he talks extremely fast; yes, he uses big words; yes, he uses the entire two hours. BUT...he is without a doubt the most intelligent professor I've ever had. Not only that, he is extremely passionate about the subject matter, which helps immensely in a class where the topics can be dry even for people who are interested in them to begin with. Another thing...if you are a philosophy major, you HAVE to take Miklowitz because the last book he covers in 230 is the first one he teaches in 315; so if you've had him before, you pretty much start out with an A when you have to take him for German Philosophy. Two more things: first, use his office hours(!); he loves when students come in with questions; and last, pay close attention to the material he reviews at the start of each class...those questions have a habit of showing up on the midterms.

Great guy and an excellent lecture to listen to even thouth I got a C in the class it was only due to his difficult grading of his inclass essays but other than that he makes the class very intresting and supplies you with more than enough information to pass the class.

Dr. Miklowitz was very clear and organized. He started each lecture with a Socratic review of the previous few lectures, which helped a lot. The class consisted of three midterms, one each on Plato, Decartes, and Kant, and a cumulative, multiple-choice final. Go to class, keep up with the reading (although I sort of didn't), and you'll do fine.

I LOVED this guy. Dr. Miklowitz is very intelligent, kind, and understandable. He will review anything you need, and will answer any questions you have. The tests are doable if you go over the supplemental notebook/lecture outline notes. Thats all i did for every test, and i got a B. They are short answer essay tests, and if you pay attention in class, you will eb able to answer about every question. The only thing i didn't like about this class was the final, it was multiple choice, and very wordy. I f you want to enjoy class, and philosophy take this class. Its not the easiest, but it is definitely doable.

Make sure you read his notes. He covers most of it in class.

If you are intelligent and quick-thinking, if you crave challenges and stimulating discussions, if you're tired of the b.s. the average CP class serves, if new ideas thrill you, and if hard-earned success seems sweeter to you, then maybe take this class.

avoid at all cost!!! does not present material in any sensible manner and when a real question is posed, he fails to answer it with any type of knowledge.then he continues to preach that philsophers are the most intelligent people in the world, when they have not improved upon anything in the past 150 years?!?!? I know, therefore he's terrible!

Michelob man is an ego at work. ... [H]e is biased and presents false truths on the exams. He's extremely difficult and will rip your exam to shreds with his cutting remarks. He also tries to get the class to meet at a cafe or his house outside of class which I think is weird. ... If you're a gal, don't go to his office alone - go with a male classmate. On a positive note, he knows the material well but just doesn't seem to present it in undergraduate language but in doctoral language.

i highly recommend miklowitz to anyone that needs to take this class. i was not looking forward to taking a 6-8pm philosophy class (something about being forced to contemplate the existence of god and the nature of reality seems pretty cruel after a long day) but i actually looked forward to this class and found it to be refreshing and interesting. miklowitz presents potentially confusing and convoluted material in a straight forward way, and is very good about making sure the class understands the important concepts. it sometimes seems like he's hammering the same ideas into you, but you'll be thankful come test time. it seems like a lot of the enjoyability of this class comes from how "into it" your classmates are. i was lucky to have a very involved class, and miklowitz used this to our advantage, so it was a very discussion-oriented environment. we weren't sitting through 2 hours of droning lecture. if you go to class, and at least read the material on sparknotes, you should do well on the test. he focuses the essays on the general topics covered in class. as long as you're willing to get involved and try to cover the material, you should enjoy this class.

NO, ok LISTEN to this: i've read ALL of the ratings about Miklowitz and i'm going to give you the real deal. FORGET about what anyone said about him conveying shit easily and about the tests being easy. One concluding phrase: do NOT take if you are looking for an easy A or easy B at ALL as you will not get it. He rips all the engineers to shreds, i was hoping to get an A in a goddamn philosophy class as this philosophy is NOWHERE near as hard as thermodynamics or any of the EE classes or anything, but no, you are up for the most conFUSING f-ing midterms and wow, good luck on the final, what a joke, you think multiple choice is easy? after taking a piece of shit hard as HELL Kant midterm you are greeted with this beautiful final exam the next week...even if you get an A on the first midterm and a B on the second and the third, you're lucky to get a B- in the class because NOTHING is curved. Look, for you who are reading this, props to you because you are taking the first step to your salvation. Just listen, if you LIKE philo and it is your MAJOR or you want to do further study, TAKE Miklowitz because he knows his shit and is extremely intelligent with philosophy, BUT if you want an A or a B take someone else. TRUST ME ON THIS and dont say I didnt warn you. i was like you one quarter ago and i thought i could do it....yeah right...thanks for a horrible GPA this quarter philo 230 and miklowitz (and i am NOT alone at all by the way when i say all of this)....

this class sucks but you have to take it and this teacher isnt bad. hes kinda funny sometimes, his stories are pretty good too. the class was too large to have essay tests so we had 3 scantron midterms and a final. if you go to class and listen you can kinda get away with not reading bc some of the books you wouldnt understand if you read them anyways. hes passionate and knows his stuff. you have to take this class, and hes not a bad teacher. but go to class!

Miklowitz sucked the joy out from my bones. Needless to say, I found him to be an inadequate teacher. His tests were not extremely hard; however, if I had known that all you have to do is buy the study guide and none of the books, I would have been a bit more cheerful and had a couple bucks to spare. He is a bit egotistical, and will happily both berate and praise members of other sections to the point of nausea. To do well in one of his classes, it would be good to be a kiss-ass: he loves people that (constantly) show up to office hours. Would I recommend this teacher? Not a chance. I might have enjoyed the GE if I had taken it with another teacher; as it is, I finished the wretched Philosophy requirement and now I can graduate.

do not take this guy. First he is way to intense, almost clinically insane by some standards. He does not have an open mind and believes the philosophers he lectures about are gods. You must regurgitate every little fact and stipulation on his written exams to get full credit. His grading standards are a disgrace, extremely harsh. On the second midterm he didn' t even grade it himself, letting one of his past students grade. You will get marked off on every argument if it wasn't his exact verbatim. Some of the material is interesting, but he forces most of it down your throat, and rips on people who try to question the arguments. P.S Teachers shouldn't wear the same shirt to class for five weeks in a row.

This class was very difficult for a general education class. The material is confusing and the books are impossible to understand. His tests were difficult, and you still end up with a bad grade after he curves them. All he does is lecture which is incredibly boring and confusing. He gives 3 midterms (one on each book) and a final so your grade is entirely test based. Take PHIL 231 if at all possible or aviod his class.

A nice guy who seems to care about whether or not his students get the material, but he is EXTREMELY difficult. The first test is deceptively easy and then its all downhill from there. Avoid him if you want an easy teacher but take him if you want to be challenged

This teacher was great. I went into the class taking it CR/NC thinking it would be my hardest class and praying to get threw it. Five minutes into the first lecture I knew it was going to be great and I switched to graded. This class was mentally stimulating and challenged you to think. The tests were strait forward based on the book and if you could answer all the questions on his review sheet his tests were not hard. Take this teacher/class if you are interested in learning something.

Miklowitz was the best professor I've had at Poly and I'm not even a philosophy major, but here a couple of notes. First, I took him in the large lecture hall so we had multiple choice tests. They were some of the toughest multiple choice tests I've taken in my academic career. Second, he is a difficult professor for a general education course. If you are not willing to put in the time for this class then look elsewhere. His lectures were engaging and almost never boring and he is quite excited about the material. He emphasizes discussion in class and will bump up your grade if you talk a lot in class or go to office hours. Overall an great choice if you have a quarter with an easy workload.

Paul\'s energy about Philsophy would make anyone excited about it. It\'s obvious he loves the subject matter and it makes you feel like really getting involved in the class. His excitement and humor made the class very enjoyable but he is pretty difficult professor at the same time. It was hard at times to follow him in his lecture notes because he would jump around a lot and start going off on tangents that you could not tell were relevant or not (but they were usually always entertaining). His multiple choice tests had some very tricky questions on them but if you go to all the review sessions and actually read the books, you will get an A or B no problem.

He obviously knew his stuff about philosophy, but if you are not passionate about it don\'t expect to get a good grade. I went to every lecture and paid close attention and I was still confused. You are expected to read three books, which are super short but confusing and write an in class short answer exam for each. It was an interesting class but will not benefit me in any way for the future. I would recommend taking 231 unless your a philosophy major.

Miklowitz is legit! He\'s genuinely passionate about what he teaches, he\'s very clear in lecture, and he\'s helpful in office hours. Definitely recommend him

Dr. Miklowitz is a very interesting lecturer. He definitely knows what he\'s talking about but I felt like he didn\'t really recognize the difficulty of understanding some of the concepts. I did the 5-week summer session course so it was extremely fast-paced. I don\'t recommend taking this course during the summer!! All of the tests were MC but they were pretty difficult since he likes to put a few right answers but one of them is the \"most right.\" I feel like if there was more time to absorb all of the information and enough time to go to office hours then I could have done better in the course. People definitely have the potential to do well, it\'s just a matter of putting in enough time to figure out some of the more obscure concepts.

Dont take this class. Take it online. You will only bring your GPA down. There are 3 tests and a final, and all the questions are extremely hard and confusing. He\'s a cool teacher though, if you dont mind getting a bad grade.

This class is extremely difficult for a GE. Not only is the reading very difficult to follow after the first book, but the first test is deceptively easy then the 2nd and 3rd hit you hard. There are always those who \"get\" philosophy, while most students won\'t, and for the majority this class requires a lot of sitting down to study. Definitely buy the lecture notes booklet, as it is much easier to read through than the books, and the tests follow the booklet fairly closely. Bottom line is, if you have to take philosophy as a GE, take 231. The material in 230 is extremely hard and Miklowitz doesn\'t make the tests any easier for students.

I really liked this class, even as a GE, because Miklowitz really knows his stuff. He tries to stay on track with the notes that he puts in the bookstore so you should buy those. I think it\'s great that he doesn\'t use slides because philosophy can be hard to understand and I appreciate that he didn\'t try to make us read slides and listen to him at the same time. I wish more teachers did that. The tests can be tricky but all I can suggest is reading and doing the review sheets. He was not very helpful in office hours, though. I had work so I came for the last 30 minutes to review my test but he said he just finished reviewing it with the other students so he just gave it to me to look over myself while he continued discussing Inception with a student. He seemed surprised I got B+ on that test. Hmph. Also the final has more philosophy history than I expected. It brought my grade to a B- after 2 B+s and a B on my 3 books tests. He doesn\'t use blackboard so I didn\'t get to see how that worked out. But anyway in class he made the material a lot more understandable than it could have been, so go to class. He reviews previous material for a long time before starting new stuff to make sure you understand. And often gets on tangents, but mostly because of annoying students trying to prove their philosophical intelligence with hypothetical arguments. But he can have fun with it too. The 2 hrs didn\'t go by too slowly.

Miklowitz definitely knows his material very well but I found it really difficult to understand his lectures. He would either go through the material too fast or he would talk in circles. I did take this class during the 5-week summer course which made it even more hard to keep up with the material. His tests were also difficult since his questions were long-winded or very specific. They were the types of questions where four of the five options would be right but one is the "most correct". If you do have to take Miklowitz, I recommend writing down absolutely everything he says. There is a "textbook" for his lecture notes and I definitely would write everything you possible can. Reading the books does help, even if you don't understand everything. It's good to at least familiarize yourself with the reading.

If you plan to take this class, understand that Professor Miklowitz loves philosophy sooooo much that he can't teach it very well. His lectures consists of 2 hour long whirlwinds of philosophical content. Most of the time it is unclear whether the content is course related. If you want to do well, go to class every time, bring some sort of recording device to listen to the lectures again later, sit in the front rows (make eye contact), and go to his office hours whether you'd like to speak about course information or just life in general. Sparknotes is helpful also. After hearing the examples used in lecture, you might question whether he prepares his lectures by reading Sparknotes or just deciding to show up to class and speak whatever jumps into his head next.

Miklowitz is absolutely riveting in lecture. The class was well structured, the exams were completely fair, and he made the subject material fun so that I wanted to come to class every time. Miklowitz was also very approachable in office hours; he always clarified any issues I was having trouble with without being impatient or making me feel like I was dumb for not understanding the material. He was friendly but also professional, and obviously very knowledgeable about philosophy. I thoroughly enjoyed this course, and I highly recommend this professor!

Honestly I don't know why so many people think this guy's tests are hard. If you go to class and you study for a few hours, you'll be fine... everything he tests you on is stuff that he goes over at length in class. This class was a lot of fun and Miklowitz is an awesome dude!

After taking 4 years worth of classes at Cal poly and never recieving below a C in any of them, I have to say this class is HARD. It really doesn't matter how hard you study because he creates the most confusing multiple choice tests he can where all 5 answers could be true. THIS IS HOW HIS TESTS GO- You have to find the MOST true answer while deciphering awkward sentence structure designed to confuse you in the first place. It is the only class I've ever experienced where you can actually know the subject well and bomb his tests. My friend felt the same way and he went to office hours explaining if it were a written test he wouuld have done great and that the tests were just too confusing. Miklowits said ya you porbably would...and thats it. great teaching there buddy! I have heard from people that if you bring your test in he hill give you points back so TRY THAT! Ultimately, this guy just has a chip on his shouder because philosophy is not a real science and he wants to show how hard it can be. CONGRATULATIONS MIKLOWITS! go fuck yourself.. ... it will prove your not in decartess dream-state theory.

He was interesting in lecture, but the material is confusing as hell. There's no homework, three midterms which are impossibly hard, every question is confusing and all of the options seem like they could be correct. Overall he was an interesting guy but his class is way too hard for a GE. Take someone else if possible

This was a GREAT class and a GREAT teacher! The tests are pretty hard, but if you go in for office hours and prove to him that you are trying your grade will end up fine. He's extremely fair and rewards students for their hard work. The course material is very interesting, not to mention Dr. Miklowitz is funny and entertaining. If you're willing to read the books and pay attention during class, you'll get a lot out of the course and it's worth taking!

I took this class thinking it'd be a decently easy, (or at the very least pass-able), GE....NOT THE CASE! The material is ridiculous. In lectures I was constantly asking myself, who the hell cares?! Oh and if you didn't read the other comments, the midterms are impossible. Don't think reading the books, sparknoting, not missing a lecture, AND doing the office hour thing will get you through this waste-of-time class. I honestly dont know how anyone did it. I felt like I knew the material yet when it came to test time it almost felt like he wanted to confuse/fail you. Nearly every question seemed to have multiple right answers. At that point what do you do, guess??!! shitttt i dunno. What i DO know is that YOU SHOULD NOT TAKE THIS GUY. dooonttt dooo ittt.

Dr. Miklowitz is one of the best lecturers I've ever had. He's enthusiastic and really good at explaining tough material. You might not appreciate this if you don't like philosophy, but you probably wouldn't enjoy any other philosophy class anyway. I highly encourage you to go to office hours because Dr. Miklowitz is very patient and will go over the notes, study guides, etc until every one gets it. The class covers Plato, Descartes, and Kant. I found Descartes to be the hardest. The entire class is based on 4 multiple choice tests. Study well, go to office hours, and you'll do fine.

I think this professor is one of the coolest guys I've had at poly. I'm someone who just can't grasp philosophy and I always struggle with it, but he is so into it that I found myself actually interested. I think 230 is a really rough class in itself but his class is pretty straight forward. 3 essay midterms, each on a specific book and he gives you a detailed study guide where he takes exact questions from. The final is a multiple choice final. I didn't read a single book but used sparknotes and was able to answer every question on the study guide. He lets you buy his lecture notes from the bookstore which was SO helpful!!! but i skipped a few days and that makes everything so confusing and make no sense. Go to class and pay attention to lecture, he's actually really captivating in his lectures. Also you can tell he's such a smart guy, I kind of wish he hadnt wasted that on philosophy.

Avoid this guy and don't take this course credit/no credit. He knows what he's talking about but he constantly goes off on tangents about nonsensical allegories that just distract you from what you actually need to learn. They guy spends an hour clarifying topics that would have taken 5 minutes had he used a chalkboard more than just to demonstrate that the shortest distant between to points is straight line. Bottom line, he went to Yale, he's so much smarter than everyone else, and I'm pretty sure he smells his own farts. Anyways, hindsight 20/20, if you're not into philosophy take this class online at a community college. It'll be way less of a hassle and, if you're not an idiot, you'll get an A.

Miklowitz is a really cool guy and very knowledgeable about the subject he teaches. He makes class interesting by telling stories, referencing cool bands like led zepplin, and is enthusiastic. However, I personally was not a fan of the subject of philosophy and my grade reflects that. The class is broken down by 3 books/ philosophers: Plato, Descartes, and Kant. Exams are in the form of 10 short essay questions, a cumulative/ multiple choice final, and 10% is participation. Definitely helped to be in a class with about 25 people rather than a large lecture. Would recommend credit/ no credit. If he asks essay or multiple choice format choose ESSAYS. If you enjoy philosophy you will do great

I can't guarantee you a good grade in this class, but I can guarantee you will learn about philosophy. Miklowitz curves his tests, but they are difficult and sometimes ask for "the best possible answer", which, as well all know, means there are multiple correct answers and only one "best" one. However, regardless of my final grade I can definitely say that I learned a lot about thinking, perception and the world in general, and for those of you who enjoy philosophy and/or enjoy having conventional thinking challenged, this may outweigh the cons of difficult tests.

I would recommend taking Miklowitz for Phil 230, but try to take the course credit/no credit. He curves on his tests (There are 3 a quarter, plus a final), but that's because they are quite difficult, especially when his questions include picking the best of 2 or 3 right answers. Overall, passing the class shouldn't be difficult, but be careful because his multiple choice questions on philosophy can be very tricky.

Your grade is nothing but your midterms and final. Sounds scary, but his questions are extremely predictable. Everything's on the study guides and explicitly answered in class. If you're really not sure about something, you can go to office hours and get help quick and easy. The reading isn't too bad. It can get confusing, but you can easily get a B in this class just with Sparknotes.

I think anyone who gave him a bad review probably just sat on their computer all class or only takes classes that you can get by without doing any work. <br> If you actually listen to him, he's really good at explaining the material and isn't a boring lecturer, which says something because it's a philosophy class.

Very engaging, knowledgeable professor! There are a couple of multiple choice tests that are straight forward for the most part (if you'd read the books). I strongly recommend taking this class with him if you have a love for philosophy. Now, I might want to minor in Philosophy.

Going into this class I expected to enjoy philosophy, but the combination of horrible material and Miklowitz's bullshit destroyed any hope of that. I've never found myself less motivated to put work into a class. The lectures consist of Miklowitz rambling off topic, realizing he's off topic, acknowledging it, and then continuing to go off topic anyway. He spent so much time teaching us Descartes, we barely had time to cover Kant, which is more difficult. To make up for this, he made us a summary of the material that needed a dictionary to decipher and didn't make sense or correspond to the study questions he made. Sometimes in this class I actually question whether he's trying to make it as difficult as possible for his students, simply because he has a superiority complex and making his students struggle gets his dick hard. Simply put, Miklowitz loves philosophy and is extremely intelligent, which leads to him wasting time making noises with his mouth that none of the class understands.

Does not give two shits about his students. Reluctant to go over his tests for you in office hours. Always says he doesn't have a key (yeah right then how do you grade the scantron tests?). You dont get a good grade on the tests if you know the stuff, you get a good grade if you happened to strike lucky on the multiple choice. thats it.

let me see . . . girls will probably do better. cute girls will do better. anyone who dotes on him will do best. lectures frequently off-topic; did not get through syllabus evenly. Tests were uneven-some ridiklowitzly simple; others difficult (to guarantee enough students pass the course?). Not very helpful-go to his office with a problem and be prepared for a rundown on his own life successes . . . not interested. Major who worked hard and hoped to learn more about ACTUAL philosophers (not about THIS teacher of philosophy). I don't know if the divorce is final, but leave it at home. Students are not therapy dogs.

Miklowitz is a super cool guy who I bed would be awesome at parties, in that he always has something interesting to say. That said, I found his tests extremely frustrating. It never feels as if he is testing your knowledge of the material he teaches, but rather he is testing your test taking. His tests are FILLED to the brim with "all of the above" and "none of the above" and "pick the most right out of all of these right answers". It is not easy to get an A on a test, even with the curve, but at least he was obviously very passionate about the subject.

Miklowitz is very engaging and passionate about philosophy. The lectures were interesting and there was a good amount of discussion for a class of 150. His tests are hard because they have a lot of "choose the best answer" but honestly don't worry about it too much. I got a C on all 3 midterms (before curve) and got a B+ in the class. I had regretted not taking the class as pass/fail but at the end of the day I did fine. You really don't have to do too much of the reading; the stuff he lectures on is pretty much what he tests on. That being said, you'll have to go to class and pay attention if you want to do will in his course.

Trust your instincts, take this class pass / fail. You will not regret it. Super interesting and insightful course, but very difficult to do well in.

I JUST KANT. While saving your credit/no credit GE class for your C4 is a good idea, if you have Miklowitz, I would strongly suggest using your cr/nc for his class. Because the class was so huge, the only things that were graded were multiple choice exams. This was horrible because his exams were filled with questions that had three very similar answers and then "all above" and "none of the above". The class average for the first two exams were D's. BUT, he does curve, so thats good.

Miklowitz is very obviously a smart guy- knows his philosophy and understands it on way higher levels than we can comprehend. This class was a 2 hr, 250 person lecture hall. If you zone out during lecture you will not do well in this class, the tests are based off what he says in class. Also, the tests are multiple choice which is a really difficult format for philosophy. Do not take this class if you're hoping to pull an A in a GE; it's way too hard for that. That's what I did and I put in a good amount of work along with other engineering classes and still couldn't do well. If you're stuck in this class, would recommend going into his office hours and grilling him until he tells you the answers to the review questions, or at least getting on his good side.

Professor Miklowitz is an incredibly intelligent man who does a great job explaining the quite confusing topics of this course. He answers questions thoroughly and will make sure he did before moving on in lecture. The course itself is easy if you do the readings and pay attention in class, if you do both of those and answer the study guide questions youll be guaranteed at least an A or B. Don't trust when everyone says that this class is awful

I attended all the lectures and took meticulous notes. I literally tried my best to type every word that came out of his mouth during lecture. His multiple choice tests are completely unfair because every answer basically means the same thing. I am a senior that has a 3.75 overall gpa and actually tried in this course. I ended up with a C. This guy is just a horrible professor.

I highly recommend taking this professor! The content of the class was super abstract and foreign to me, but Professor Miklowitz was super energetic and knowledgeable and I found lectures really enjoyable. It's kind of funny how in love he is with philosophy, but I loved the energy he brought to every class!! Overall a very fulfilling class!

I got hand cramps from writing so much shit on his midterms/final. 2 hours of nonstop scribbling kills! The class was really interesting and his lectures were really easy to listen to. You don't have to buy the books just as long as you pay attention and take good notes. Write every last detail you can on the midterms or he won't give you full credit. It's not an easy A, but it was definitely my favorite class I've taken so far.

Difficult teacher. Tests are hard as ****. Final is the only easy one and by that time your doomed anyway. Take a different instructor if possible. If not possible, plan on spending all your free time in his office.

Doesn't give two shits about his students. Good luck trying to email him, you won't get a response. The only reason I can imagine anyone giving this guy a decent poly rating is if they happened to strike it lucky on his impossible multiple choice tests, giving them a false sense of accomplishment. Overall, DO WHATEVER YOU CAN TO AVOID THIS PRICK.

I would not recommend this guy to my worst enemy. Take a different prof if possible, especially if this class is multiple choice. He even warned us at the beginning that the class would be much harder since it is multiple choice and not graded via essays. SUCK MY LEFT paul.

This teacher tries to throw every complex word in Webster's dictionary into his lectures, and makes absolutely no sense. His lecture notes are just the same. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

Miklowitz does not make German Philosophy very easy. The material's tough anyway, but trying to cram Kant and Hegel into ten weeks is crazy. His knowledge of the subject far surpasses anything I've seen from any other teacher. He uses his extensive vocabulary unnaturally often (now I know what 'exegesis,' 'propadeutic,' and 'apodictic' mean), but he doesn't throw it all in to sound intelligent. This class has three tests and a final. The third test is dependent upon actually reading any Nietzsche; we got so far behind that not only did we not get to Nietzsche, our second exam was turned in at the last class meeting. That was also our only lecture on Nietzsche. It especially stunk because we didn't know our grade going in to the final. The final was a fifteen-page term paper. He's really flexible on topics, which makes the assignment easier. There's no homework, but there's lots of reading every night. You can mostly get away with not reading the books at all because his lectures (and his lecture notes) are VERY thorough. And the texts are so obfuscated (another word I learned) and unintelligible that they're not very helpful to read anyway. He's very helpful in office hours and is able to explain the material in several ways. Honestly, the caveat is more for the class than the teacher. It's the philosophy course that philosophy majors avoid. Don't take it unless you're a masochist or you're really interested in the material. I fit into the latter category and I survived, but it was more work than I did in all my other classes combined. But I loved it more than any of my other classes too.

This was my second time around with Dr. Miklowitz. Again he proved to be the best instructor I have taken at Poly. There's not much more to say since I wrote a rating for PHIL 230. He's a genius, a comic, and a scholar.

One of the most gifted, intelligent, and passionate professors at Cal Poly. If you like to learn, take him cuz he knows just about everything. If you like to slack, do not cuz you'll fail.

Dr. Miklowitz is the best professor i (as a major) have taken--i have taken him for both Phil 315 and 316. His demand for precision on exams and essays is just what philosophy majors (and other majors) need in order to maximize their educational experience. His command of the subjects (German Phil and Contemporary European Phil) coupled with his ability to tangent into other areas of higher education (music, art, religion, science, literature, film, etc.) in order to explicate the material at hand is often brilliant, creative, and fun. If you want to study philosophy--do philosophy--take Dr. Miklowitz and enjoy the fruits of his intelligent insight. That said, i give him an A+.

Dr. Miklowitz is an amazing teacher who really understands the material. You can tell that he has put an extreme amount of effort, thought, and time inot the the texts and lectures, in turn, this allows him to thoughtfully answer any questions students may have. The coarse was challenging, but with hard work and his help it can be extremely rewarding. I recomend finishing the paper early and bringing it to him for coments at least once. You will learn a lot from it and your grade, as well as your writing, will improve substantially.

One of the coolest professors I've ever had. Very interesting to talk to, very helpful in office hours and a very intelligent man with great taste in literature, music, and film. He talks ALOT so it's hard to keep up with the note taking. The class is very awesome. Hegel will change your life..

Yawn yawn yawn . . . is it over yet? AMEN. Signed in to learn about philosophers, not this phil prof. Can you pronounce E-G-O???

Dr. Miklowitz is a very difficult professor, and the material in this class is no easier. The man is amazingly well-read and knowledgeable, but to the point that his insights on the material, its context, or how it relates to other philosophy, can go right over your head. I DO NOT RECOMMEND TAKING THIS PROFESSOR FOR A GE, UNLESS YOU ARE WILLING TO WORK VERY HARD TO KEEP UP. That said, the difficulty of his classes ensure that you learn and retain the material, and if you're into continental philosophy, there's definitely no man better than Miklowitz to learn it from.

This guy is quite intereseting and a very good lecturer and teacher in general. He grades pretty harshly and is a big fan of LONG papers and essays.

Prof. Miklowitz is one of the most intellectually stimulating professors I've had at Cal Poly. His lectures move fast and assume a certain level of intelligence of those listening. His midterm are intimidating, consisting of one one essay question, but it's entirely open book and note. The paper is long and requires a high level of independent thought, but he is extremely interesting and helpful during office hours. Of the two other philosophy professors I've had (Phil. 125 and 230), he's the only one I'd recommend whole-heartedly.

This teacher may be exactly what you are looking for if you are a philosophy major, I am not, so I don't really know. What I do know, is that I wanted to take a class on the philosopher this class taught. I did all the readings, took extensive notes, went to office hours, attended every class. What happened? I was insulted in his comments on my midterm (25 percent.) He called me a protentious (he mispelled the word) rambler with incoherent writing. He offered no constructive criticism to give me any hope of getting better a better grade in the class. When attending his office hours, he made an excuse to leave after 5 minutes. He gave me the lowest passing grade possible after I spent 25 hours on the paper just writing it. That does not include the background reading which included 4 full length books most over 400 pages. This guy is bitter. Yes, he may be interesting, but a lot of his 'facts' he throws out don't check out. He pretends to know a lot more about music than he does. I know it must suck to get a PHd from Yale and not be able to teach at a better philosophy department than cal poly. sucks for you miklowitz.

Prof. Miklowitz is the most intelligent, articulate, and affable man I have ever met. Anyone with a genuine interest in philosophy should take him.

Missed the first day, went to the second day. Went to the midterm. Went to the Final. Three days of class total. I got a B, easy. This kind of shit gives our school a bad name.