Cruikshanks, Randal  

He is the best general ed teacher I've ever had. He is passionate about what he teaches and has incredible insight. I think every student should take Pols 325 with him.

He was interesting to listen to for the most part. He's one of those guys that has been every and done everything. Because of this he is brillient in the area of political science. He expects a lot out of his students. He expects that you are up to date on all current events and that you remember a lot from what you learned about government from high school. Unless you are really into POLS I wouldn't recomend taking him. His tests are very hard. The multiple choice are picky detail from the book and the short answer questions are only graded as right if you put the exact answer he was looking for.

Proffesor Cruikshanks was one of the worst experiences I've had at Cal Poly. His lectures are very unclear as to where he is going and what subjects he is covering. That makes it difficult since half of his tests are from class material. Every test I had with him always had a few questions that were never covered from the class material. He's also very rude and cuts people down in class a lot. the other half of the test from the book is fair because it's straight from the book. His grading is also very very unclear. I had the highest point total going into this guys class and has extra credit, but miraculously came out with a B after the final. This guys workload won't kill you and he's not all that hard. But i also wouldn't take him if I had another chance.

Dr. Cruikshanks was an okay teacher but i definatly wouldn't recomend him. His test are hard and there is a lot of reading. The only good thing is that you don't have to write a term paper. I worked very hard and read everything yet still received a C. He was interesting to listen to but his lectures had really nothing to do with the reading or his tests. Overall he was alright but there are not many good poly-sci teachers out there anyway. If you take him---Good Luck

I would not recommend Dr. Cruikshanks to anyone. Even though his lectures can be interesting, he often gets upset when students don't know really obscure facts and details. His tests contain a short-answer section which I found to be graded quite unfairly each time. Basically, I felt like I knew the material well enough to get an A but struggled to get a B because of those tests.

Political Science could be a very tedious and boring subject. However, Dr. Cruikshanks makes the subject somewhat interesting with his illustrations on the current events and issues. He doesn't quite guide you through the course and mention every subject in detail. In his class you're better off reading on your own and come to class with questions. He explains questions clearly and supports them with current examples, and that's where he gets your full attention. Try to stick to a major current issue and use it for his problem questions on the exam. I owe my A in this class to Elian Gonzales. The Gonzales case was always a very good example for many of Dr. Cruikshank's qestions. The elections are also something to keep a note of. Here's a brotherly advice, don't ever read the Mustang Daily, gossip, or nap in his class..... he's good at scolding thee. Good luck and keep up with the news :) P.S the christian monitor on line is such a great deal www.csmonitor.com check it out.

Time does fly when you spend three hours a week being utterly confused. Dr. Cruikshanks had excellent knowledge of the manner in which the government operates, but lacked the ability to deliver his points to the class effectively. The above evaluations called his tests picky. I would say they are out right persnickety. If you have a tape recorder, bring it to class. You will need it to answer test questions that will inquire about any minute items mentioned. He seemed very hard to please and often would show disappointment in his class when they failed to deliver an opinion about a topic one way or the other. There has to be a happy medium between the texts required for the class and the lectures delivered during instruction. Reading and memorization skill are a must for this class.

This man is evil!!!!! By far the worst teacher I have ever had, and one of the meanest people I have ever met. It's impossible to pass his tests, so don't even bother to read or study. He likes to ridicule his students in class, and has a mean reply for every question. Save yourself - don't take this class!

The meanest and most hateful person I have ever met! His tests are impossible to take, and he likes to ridicule students in front of the class. By far the worst teacher at Cal Poly!

I took this class 3 years ago, but came across my class notes which listed stupid things he did and figured i'd share. 1. He wrote "Constitution" up on the board and underlined the "tit" part for reasons no one will ever understand (was it on purpose?. 2. he said "And game I use as a metaphor for politics, with checkmate and so on and so forth." This class was brutal and filled with asinine commentary and questionably graded written portions of tests. I couldn't find the rest of the examples, but here are 2 classics.

Great guy, eloquent speaker, very informative

Dr. Cruikshanks is very knowledgable in the International Relations. However, his ability to lecture clearly on the subject and in an organized fashion is lacking. His lectures were not concise and very unorganized. I found it very difficult to "follow" his lectures and found myself very bored in his class. His tests aren't extremely difficult. The multiple choice questions are straight out of the book. But watch out for the short answer questions, which are based on lectures. Because of the unclear structure of his lecture it is difficult to predict what type of answers he is looking for. Your best bet is to visit him in office hours for a little one on one explanations. All in All, I would think twice before taking him again

Cruikshank's class is very informative and fairly easy to follow (if you pay attention).

If you can find a way to take this class from any other instructor i highly advise it. Cruikshanks is easily the worst teacher i've ever had. His lectures are nebulous and cover not a single word of the material in the book. He believes that he is high and mighty and all-knowing of the internal workings or our government and the international system all because he was drafted for two years during vietnam and spent his time in an office filing papers for army intelligence. Not only that but the multiple choice questions on the test could have numerous answers and the essays are questionably graded. I went into his office hours to go over my test and was met with the overwhelming smell of hard alcohol at 8:30 in the morning. Mainly i went in to argue one particular essay which was word for word the answer he gave to the class yet only received half credit. This class has the potential to be extremely interesting, but only if cal poly can find someone better able to teach it. Cruikshanks does an extremely efficient job of making an exciting class an exercise in fighting off boredom and if he does one thing well it's that he prepares you to deal with all the other "expletives" you'll meet in life.

Cruikshanks, you're an asshole. It's time to retire.

OMG!!! this was quite possibly the WORST and most PAINFUL class of my entire educational career to date.... absolutely HORRIBLE teacher... i am majoring in poli sci and concentrating in foreign affairs so this should have been the class for me... i found the book to be interesting but the teacher KILLED IT for me... i rarely went to class... regretted it when i did... left half way thru... and at the end of the quarter i wanted to get my money back... he is a mean old man who should not be allowed to teach... cal poly, do ur students a favor and get rid of this guy

Dr. Cruishanks. Where shall i even start? I usually don't take these things too much to heart because I usually end up liking the professors, but everything they say about this guy is true. His test grading is ridiculous and when you go to discuss it with him, as he suggests you do, the first thing he says is "don't be adversarial or i'm done talking with you." because he knows how pissed you will get with his illogical semantic crap. when you complain to him about something, or even when you politely ask him to go over a test question, he gets offended and then gives you some BS logic that doesn't even make any sense. His rule was if you continually improved throughout the quarter on your tests, you would get in the class what y ou got on the final. well, i improved and ended up getting an 89 on the final. which would be a B+ in a normal freaking class. but it was a C in his. A C!!! for an 89. Since the whole class did well, his curved screwed people who got below a 98! it was ridiculous. The only reason i got a B- was b/c i got his extra credit questions right. anyway, the main point of this is don't take his class. you will get screwed and he won't care. he only teaches one quarter a year, so he doesn't have to deal with you when you get pissed off after receiving your grades. i never complain about teachers, but take it from me, you do not want to take this guy.

Dr. Cruikshanks IS very passionate, but expects the same from the students. Outside reading is huge and the tests are long and picky. I also thought he was very unapproachable.

I am a small and wiry man, supple and yearning. I enjoyed my time in this class, I have memories of Randall I won't soon forget...

THis prof is very passionate about the subject but his tests are often picky and not based on the lecture. If you want an A on his tests you have to memorize the book. His lectures are interesting but his tests flat out suck.

Cruikshanks is a mean and unapproachable teacher. He gets his multiple choice questions from the authors themselves, meaning that you have to know each chapter and their small details. The tests were very difficult. To do well in this class you need to go to every class period and pay attention. Watch out he might call on you for a question you do not know and then degrade you in front of the class. Since I was not doing well on my tests, I went to his office hours. He basically made me cry because I got so frustrated with him. He acted like just because I was doing poorly in his class that I was a bad student. He was not positive and everything he said to me contradicted what he said in class. All I can say is good luck and hopefully you never have to go to his office hours.

This class was a two hour discussion each meeting about current events. If you enjoy that then take this class. As a polysci major, I do not believe that he knows what he is talking about, however. Good luck on the test... he tests you on the book, though he never discusses it in class. It isn't that hard to get an okay grade, but this is the most boring class i have ever taken... seriously. If it were possible to die of boredom, my entire class would be annihilated.

His claims are outrageous. He says that he watches the news on the weekends, but the 'tidbits' he talks about during the week aren't covered at all in the news. He claimed that Collin Powell had plagerized a college student's essay in front of the UN. Where did he hear this, did he back it up at all? NO! He seems to think he knows more than anybody else. His tests are rediculous. Multiple choice whose answers are so vague that many apply, and he really is stubborn about you contradicting him. I honostly believe he has no idea what he's talking about. His 'facts' are laughably unsupported and his definitions make Samuel Webster cry.

I never took these ratings extremely serious, but PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TAKE EVERY WORD TO HEART!!!Cruikshanks is a horrible teacher. Here is a test question: ____ poverty is defined as suffering from inadequated housing, pervasive illiteracy, malnutrition, and high rates of infant mortality. a)relative b)absolute c) abject d) moderate e) all. B is the correct answer, but really who cares it sounds like poverty to me!!! From just reading the chapters, oh by the way he says dont read for concepts, you should be able to "recall" exactly what kind of poverty this is from one sentence that he copies directly from the book. Dont bother going to talk to him about helping you if you are struggling because he will tell you that you have been in college X number of years and you should know how to take a test. To sum it all up he has been teaching for many years so you are just stupid and need to deal with that fact. If you need to take this class, may God truely help you!!!!

cruikshanks? what the fuck kind of last name is that u fuckin commie. i'll slit ur fuckin throat biotch!!!!!!!!! anyway, this class fuckin blows , u are definitly a fuckin fairy. FUCK U!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He has an incredible capacity for following logic which only he can understand. He does not introduce topics, but proceeds to follow random connections wherever they might lead, like an infinite game of associations. Then after an hour he says in exhasperation "I don't think you guys are getting this." His tests didn't give me much of a problem personally.

Wow, they still haven't fired this guy! I took this class 2 years ago and it was the worst class I have ever taken. The first quize asked "name the past 12 Russian leaders in chronalogical order" and he counts mispellings as wrong answers! Fucking bastard! I have never put so much effort into a class in my life to end up with a C. It was his first quarter teaching and the dept. head had to come and fix the grades or we would have all had Fs! Don't ever take this fucking ass hole!

Taking this instructor is like being in a Twilight Zone episode. You just can