<p>Next to UW, due mostly to the grad student instructor more interested in his own work than our section (and understandably so), ArtHum was the biggest waste of a class that I’ve had at Columbia. This, like so many courses at Columbia, varies by instructor, but be careful with CULPA – my instructor has glowing reviews on there, but so many students from that class couldn’t stand her. If it’s any consolation, the flashcards can be printed and memorized, at least in my case, a couple of hours before the exams and still earn a perfect score. Not a total waste of time, but certainly close to it. And watch out for the know-it-all morons, or laugh at them. There seems to be one (and only one) in <em>every</em> core class.</p>
<p>As for CULPA in general: be careful. 90% of the time, you’re going to find students that either loved or hated the class (with sometimes absolutely no reflection on the professor), with very little room in the middle. I’ve had a few professors on there slammed that turned out to run fabulous courses, while, likewise, some of my worst received glowing reviews.</p>