Dobson, John  

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.

All negative reviews from other classes are invalidated here and now. Professor Dobson is a highly interesting teacher and a great person to get to know. This Business 301 class is new at cal poly, this is its first section and I have to say I love the format. You get a group for the entire day on day 1 (you choose members 2-4) you make 5-6 group presentations throughout the year including official debates, judgement adjudications of other student presentations, and unofficial presentations. You do a write up for presentations you are no presenting. No tests, midterms, or finals. 8 inclass quizzes which are very straitfoward (15%-30%). 1 final project research paper (he tells you exactly how to get an A) (worth 15%) personal student write ups (15%) Group presentations (40-55%). This class is knowledge based, there are no lectures, he does not claim to teach you anything he doesn't, because its more of a seminar type class where you open forum discuss what you like or don't like or agree with or don't agree with, he doesn't use powerpoint presentations or require you to write down anything he says. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU ONLY HAVE BOOKSMARTS, YOU WILL SUCK AT PRESENTING AND SCREW OVER YOUR GROUP. Only take this class if you are a responsible student capable of working in groups and willing to take a required class for fun

this class consisted of reading 30 pages a week out of the textbook to prepare for the reading quiz, and each group (class was split into 8 groups) giving a presentation on an assigned topic. each group will give 5-6 presentations throughout the quarter, but there is no midterm or final. there is a final term paper, 20 pages long, on a topic of your choice, but if you arein a 4 or 5 person group and split the paper into sections, 4 pages is a breeze. overall, very little teaching occurred, but we did learn a lot about how the global finance market worked so it felt worthwile

Dobson is very well educated on finance and the business world in general but very rarely did he lecture directly to us. Instead the class was entirely other groups presenting material (which were graded stridently). Extremely friendly and open to student questions and concerns and I would recommend this class, just be sure to get in a good group.

5 presentations(last one not graded and is based on term paper topic). Groups are chosen on the first day of class. No midterm. Final is only a term paper that can be done in a group or individually and turned in online. Do it in a group because you will have less to write and saves you time. Normal class routine - Day 1: Where in the world presentation from some group + Adjudication Presentation + Public Comment. IMPORTANT: Format for public comment!! - List out the point group's #, position, arguments and a little description of what they said about each argument. Do the same for the counterpoint group. Then state the Adjudicating Group's decision and reasons why that group won, weaknesses and strengths, other group's weaknesses and strengths would be nice, and also why you agree with the Adjudicating Group's decision. <-- Way to get full points on his public comment!! He will also talk to the debating teams for the next day after class Day 2: Quiz - beginning of class for 10 minutes. He doesn't seem to give too much time. ALL based on the textbook(rent it on Amazon). + Debate Presentations from 2 teams. Adjudicating group asks a few questions + public asks a few questions.If you are adjudicating, you have to be there(he will also talk to the adjudicating group after class to give you guidance on what to present - do as he says.) If you are debating team, go to his office hours a few days before debate to talk about your points and see what he says, he likes it when people go to his office hours because it probably shows they are putting effort and preparing. He does grade pretty hard on presentations. Make sure you follow all the guidelines to his presentations. I'm not sure how he graded the term paper, but go to his office hours and incorporate his inputs in the paper. E-mail him for any questions and he'll be glad to explain anything to you. Be well-prepared for each presentation!! If you need to leave early, do let him know beforehand with a good reason because he does not like it when you just leave without him knowing.

Professor Dobson is a solid professor. His Global Finance class consists of 4 group presentations, 2 of which are debating against another group, 1 is adjudicating a debate, and 1 where in the world presentation about financial centers around the world. There are about weekly quizzes on the reading from the book which aren't terribly hard. There is no final. However, there is a term paper due during Finals Week. 10 Pages on a Finance topic of your choice. You can do it in a group as well, however the paper is 20-30 pages. Dobson is very knowledgable about Finance and is a cool guy. Class can be boring at times but it gets out early A LOT. I would recommend taking this class to any Finance concentration looking to knock out there International Business requirement. It is helpful. Learned a lot.

I took Dobson for 301 and it is a very interesting styled course. He doesn't lecture very much- unless you count his brief talks on current events that he does at the beginning of class. The class is mostly student led. You do have weekly quizzes on chapters in the book which are not too hard. They get harder as the quarter goes on. Your group then has to do four presentations. Two debates, one where you are the point group and one where you are the counter point, and these debate topics come from the textbook. He is very specific on how these presentations have to be done but you'll catch on. Another presentation you have to do is an adjudicaiton which is when you present on who you think won the presentation and clarify any questions that came up. Those 3 presentations conclude the ones you have to dress up for. You also have to do a "Where in the World" presentation on a city with a major financial sector and then a base of the pyramid city and how it is emerging has a strong financial hub. There is no midterm and no final. The final is a term paper with your presentation group (or you can do it alone if you want) that is 20-30 pages on a current event. Overall the class isn't really too bad and you do learn a lot. He mentioned he wouldn't be teaching it again for a while though.

Dobson feels disinterested with this class, and fails to present the material in an interesting way. I took him, because I heard he is the easiest Finance teacher. I much rather of took someone more interesting and enthusiastic

This guy is seems extremely disinterested in class. But, he is obviously pretty knowledgeable when he decides to actually teach. His class isn't overly difficult, but I don't know anyone who received an A.

Worst Proffesor I have had in my Cal Poly career He has a no curve grading policy last quarter failed half of the class, looks the same for this quarter. Will not talk about grades in class must go to office. Often be-littles students in front of class. Basically has no compassion for students.

the guy clearly does not care about the students - he comes to class 20 minutes late and talks about donuts then expects you to teach yourself. he fails almost everyone and doesn't care if you have any progress, he's a generally mean guy, mocks students who ask questions, doesn't explain the tests (or why everyone failed,) grades unfairly, gives hardly any partial credit on a 5 question test which will kill you. if you're going to fail a class, may as well take it from someone like gorman who'll teach you something in the process.

some people say he's a lousy teacher but i don't think so. He knows his stuff and he's a fair teacher.

I thought that Dr. Dobson was a good professor until I took the first midterm...a great majority of the class got well below a 50%, however Dr. Dobson offered no help to us whatsoever. Even if you do more that what is required of you for the course, you are not likely to do well. The only thing that saved my grade was the fact that his wife had to take over teaching our class for him half way through the quarter. If you don't absolutely have to take this course from Mr. Dobson...DON'T!!

Prof. Dobson is apparently a reformed teacher based on past Polyratings. And having spoken to a classmate that had also had him for a previous class, he really has improved dramatically. While a bit too much time was sometimes spent on discussion of current events in the business world, his lectures were well organized and points made clearly. The homework he assigns is purely optional, but makes the perfect study guide. Do the homework (which isn't all that much), understand how you did it, and you'll do fine on the exams. He also allows a one page, front and back note page for the exams. All in all, I recommend him and found a majority of my classmates that I talked to ended up liking him, too.

I was really scared when first taking Dobson because of the ratings on this site, so I was totally surprised by how great of a teacher he was! He was friendly, mild-mannered, and explained the subject pretty well, considering that I don't really care much for finance. I personally liked the attention he gave to current events. Remember to study the current events carefully because there will be questions on test about them. If you do the homework and use the study guides, you should do just fine in this class.

Dr. Dobson has done a complete turn around compared to earlier ratings. His lectures were focused, had homework that was optional, even took some problems out that weren't focused to test material. He tests on the Financial Times current events, so even if you don't understand the financial part, you can get away with a C like me by just reading the Times. He allows a cheat sheat front and back of notebook paper. He encouraged office hour visits, and did his best to keep the class momentum up. I took Gorman the first time for 342, and Dobson is wonderful, trust me!!

Profesor Dobson was a descent guy, but hard. Your grade depends on two midterms and a Final. He gives you review questions from the book to study for the test, but then the test questions are a lot different and harder than what you studied for. He doesn't grade on a curve, and the class average on the first two midterms were around a C-. I honestly wouldn't recomend him unless you have a good understanding of finance or you enjoy that stuff.

John Dobson is an excellent teacher, and he keeps the material simple and easy to understand. If you are lazy, and you won't do problems unless you are required to turn them in, don't take Dobson. If you want to learn, and you aren't afraid of having to motivate yourself to review the material, then take him. We were allowed a sheet of notes for the 3 exams, which were exactly like the homework problems he suggested we do. Most of the problems are calculations, and a couple are conceptual. I reccommend him if you want a straightforward guy who teaches well and has a simple grading system.

Prof. Dobson was a good teacher. He certainly didn't seem nearly as bad as he was depicted earlier in these evaluations. The class was taught mostly by going through power-point slides, but these were pretty effective. His tests were challenging, but certainly doable. You will probably be rushed for time on the first test, but the others fit into the allowed time. I thought that he was a nice guy, and the one time that I went to his office hours, he was very cordial and willing to help. He made a mention to me about past classes that he has had in which the first test average was a D, and he didn't understand why. In my class, it was a high C that was the average. The material isn't easy, but most people shouldn't really have a problem working their way through it. Overall, I recommend him. If you don't like him, at least he has an entertaining english accent.

Dobson is a solid teacher, with staight forward techniques. He lectures off slides which can be a litlle dry at times, but if people ask questions usually there is great in class discussion. He has a good humor, but you have to push him to get it out. He is more than willing to help anyone and is readily available for any issues students might have. YOu get a 1 cheat sheet for exams and if you just study the homework, you'll do good, he plays no games. He teaches you how to do all calculations using a finacial calculator as opposed to a few professors who like to drill manual equations into the students. You have to make that decision, based on where ou want to go in business. I would say for 342 if you are thinking about doing the financial engineering track take Gorman, otherwise Dobson is the man. I also took BUS 445 from Dobson, he wrote the book and is really good on philisophical and finacial theory topics!

Dobson is an extremely boring lecturer. He is so dry you never want to come to class. Actually if you understand the material then you never need to come to class. His lecture is on PPT slides that are on the cd-rom that comes with the book. His test are a little tricky because they are MC and you can't get partial credit. Still he is probably the easiest finance teacher in the department.

Dobson is a pretty good teacher. He's very lax and you don't need to show up for lectures, although its a good idea. I learned tons in his finance class and he explains concepts very well. Tests are average difficulty. Take him!!

john is the best professor in the COB that i have had. He is cool, very professional, and knows the material extremely well.

Dr.Dobson is an awesome professor! I did poorly on the first two exams to the point where I didn't think I was going to pass the class. I went into his office hours to get help before the last exam and he was more than helpful. He made special hours just so I could come in at my convenience. He explained all the material very well. I came into Poly as a Finance major and was thinking about switching out after I didn't do so well, but Dr. Dobson helped me enjoy it again. He will make you love Finance!!

The class is all right, but it can be difficult to know why you are doing certain formulas. He didn't tell us until the last day of class that the answers were on reserve in the library. Although he did ask several times if anybody had questions, the class as a whole seemed lost. We didn't go over homework that often and it didn't help too much when we did. If no one else is teaching take him. If Sharons teaching, take her.

John is very accessible in his office hours. If you need help, he or his wife will be more than happy to help. However, I spent most of my time teaching myself the material. The tests he gives are extremely difficult! On the 2nd midterm in my class, there was one A out of 45 students, and that was after the curve. Overall, I cannot recommend this teacher. I was very lucky to squeak by with an A-. I hear his wife is easier and a better teacher. Take her if you can.

This teacher is a pretty cool guy but he has the hardest test i have ever taken. The problem that i have with it is that they arent all fair. He has great office hours so take advantage of them befcause in class he is so vague. If you are a finacnce major dont take him because he is so vague. The class overall is pretty rough because he has hard tests but you can get by.

John Dobson gives the hardest f*cking tests ever. They are nothing like the problems you do in the homeworks or that are in the book. They are usually 2 or 3 part questions that take at least 10 minutes to do. His exams consist of 25 multiple choice problems that are extremely hard and time consuming. You're allowed a page of notes for the exams but the tests are so hard that you actually need the entire book in front of you to do well. I recommend taking Sharon Dobson for Finance instead of John.

POOPY HEAD! I really liked the topic of this class and I plan to double concentrate in it but I don't think he was a very good teacher. He gave examples of easy problems on the board and gave lots of notes. The homework was easy a couple of times but then they got really hard and your best off working with a group of people to get it done. The tests were extremely hard! They were even multiple choice and they were still extremely hard. People did so bad he had to pass them back out and let people fix the problems they missed for half credit. He didn't seem to care about his students. My friend would go in to ask him for help and his wife would end up being the one to help her. I hear she is real nice and the best teacher to take for Financial Management.

Alright here is the deal. I am an older continuing student who works full time and attends full time. When I choose my classes I, choose them according to my schedule, I do not have time to view polyratings. BAD IDEA!! I never thought that I would contribute to this sight, but I had to take time out of my busy schedule to write something about this professor. This has got to be the worst class that I have ever taken, and I dont mean just in school. This includes work seminars, and sunday school for that matter. Mr. Dobson is the driest most unconcern human I have ever met. Do yourself a favor and do not take him, unless you want to teach yourself.

I would have to agree with the person above. Mr. Dobson is the worst teacher ever to step ground on OCOB. His office hours are great, but half the time you get his wife, (who is a really cool person). And being that the class is so vague, you need the office hours to actully learn anything. The tests are extremely hard, he gives you a 2-sided sheet of paper, and that doesnt even help. If it was an open book test, I bet some students would still fail. I would recommend taking this class with a professor who will teach you and not rely on the book to do all the work. Overall, I would say that other then a math professor I had 3 years ago, Mr. Dobson is the second worst professor at poly.

John Dobson knows his stuff. However, he is a little dry and kind of a push over. If you want to leave class early, just coordinate it so that everyone starts to pack up their stuff about 10 minutes early, and he will say something like, "Well, I guess you guys have had enough for today...We will pick up from here on Wednesday." Really nice guy though. Tests are all multiple choice, which is great for guessers but not so great for those who survive on partial credit. Homework is due every week, but you can go and check your homework with him before you turn it in and correct any mistakes, so it's easy to get a 100% for your homework grade at the end, and dumb not to. His wife, Sharon, is the nicest, most helpful woman I've ever come across. They share an office and if she was there and he wasn't, she was more than willing to help his students (she also teaches Finance). So it's like having two great teachers at your disposal for one class. I would highly recommend either one of these two!!!

Dobson you are the fucking MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Awesome teacher.

Dobson is an excellent teacher. His teaching style is completely different than his wife

Worst teacher I have ever taken. This teacher will lecture for 30 minutes and then he asks students to complete problems out of the book. His lectures have no relation as to how to complete finacial problems and he never goes over how to do them. His participation policy is retarded he requires students to walk to the board to write up a problem which has no value to the rest of the class since he posts solutions online. No need to attend class except write a problem on the board 3 times for participation (10% of your grade). 3 multiple choice exams most of the questions are simular to homework except the final.

John Dobson is a great finance teacher if you are the type of person to work problems straight from the book. He gives the answers online which I thought was pretty helpful. His tests are all based on the homework (3 multiple choice midterms) and a really difficult final... but you get one page of notes, front and back. Give this guy a break. Other finance teachers such as Gorman fail most of their students and unless you are a finance major, take Dobson! He's awesome and if you go to his office hours he actually wants you to learn and he'll help you out. Read the chapters.. go to class.. do the homework over and over and you'll pass with flying colors. I don't even know how I pulled off a B, seriously.

If you need to take 342, and you want to actually learn, Gorman is your first choice, Dobson is your second for sure. I took Dobson, did alright, he is a good teacher, if you care about what your learning you can take a lot from this class. Im in gormans upper level finance classes, my friends who didnt have gorman or dobson are getting hit really hard by the material. Dobson teaches you the formulas, then just uses a calculator, your best bet is memorize those formulas which he doesnt really make you do. Thats the only difference. 342 is the most important class for finance. If you put time into learn, its not that hard.

Dobson is a great professor. He focuses on calculations and math; most of the class time is spent working through problems. He also brings in current events and connects them to the course material which makes it more interesting. His tests are all 25 multiple choice questions (scantron) so there is no partial credit. All except sometimes 1 or 2 of the problems are calculations and you absolutely must know how to use the financial calculator. He does a good job explaining how to use the calculator in class and is happy to help at office hours too. He did allow graphing calculators, but he doesn’t use them for explanations in class so you may get lost if you don’t already know the financial functions. To prepare for the exams, work the problems! Doing the end-of-chapter problems 2 or 3 times is sometimes necessary. He posts the solutions on blackboard. The average on the tests in our class was about 70%, but some people would get 95-100%. Also, he allows an exam ‘cheat-sheet’ for each test – one page, both sides. This class is not easy simply because Finance is not easy. If you want to do well you must be prepared to put in time and effort.

This guy is so lazy... scantron tests but it takes him 2 weeks to get scores back to us? wtf... its pathetic. He does not teach. Ever. He does a few random example problems on the board and mumbles and then lets us out early. This sounds easy right? Yeah, it is. its really easy. Too easy... If you are a finance concentrationa and actually want to learn and succeed in your classes that build off of this one, dont take this guy. He gave me an A and I still hate him.. That should say something.

John Dobson was a pleasure to have class with. 342 with him is straightforward and simple. If you do the homework and readings, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't get high A's. He prides himself on writing straightforward exams with no tricks. He's a sweetheart. I did the homework before class, which helped, because he is a little scatterbrained.

John Dobson is brilliant. He is disorganized and does not use the two hour class period effectively, but if you pay attention you will know enough to talk intelligently about finance and apply the concepts to real world situations. He is very by the book. He says if you can do the problems at the end of the chapters you'll be fine on the test and that is absolutely true. His tests are easier than the book problems. His test have no tricks and could be the most straightforward exams I have taken at Poly. Dobson is awesome. Take him for finance if you DO NOT plan on being a finance concentration.

Class was a joke, but I went every class to understand the material better. there were only 3 midterms worth 25 points each, but the best 2 of the 3 counted towards your grade. throughout the quarter there's a project. the parts are pretty difficult so work with other people in the class and start them early, because they are very time consuming. the final project is due on the day of the final so it's a lot less stressful than a test. but, if you are looking into concentrating in finance, take gorman instead because you'll actually learn a lot more about finance than i did in this class

Dobson gives a fair amount of work, lets you use the internet, textbook, notes and whatever other resources you want on the test so it's more of a real world atmosphere. Homework isn't mandatory but almost all of the test problems are exactly from the homework with different numbers. Grades consist of 3 tests, he drops the lowest one, and a project at the end of the year which isn't that bad. Overall I'd recommend him.

I don't know how anyone was supposed to learn anything. It seemed like he never taught or lectured. Although the stock project was a good idea if we h Knew what we were doing and ow to do it.

Dobson is a super cool guy but if you want to learn a lot from this class you have to make the extra effort to apply yourself. If you are fairly motivated I recommend taking this class because it is very manageable and an easy B. Do the end-of-chapter problems a couple times before the test and you'll be money. The most valuable part of the class was the project done throughout the quarter. It is hard and time consuming but you get a taste of the real world because you select and value stocks/bonds and do research/analysis of the respective companies. The project is heavily weighted so it can make or break your grade. Dobson is very chill and helpful in office hours, just make sure you ask the right questions because he won't straight-up tell you how to do the project.

Dobson is, quite frankly, the worst teacher I have ever had. He's a really sweet guy, and does seem to want people to succeed. He doesn't lecture or teach at all, he simply picks a few problems and takes an hour to do each in the most convoluted and confusing ways ever. I actually understood the material better before he started talking. He also puts everything in the book on the test, even after specifically saying certain things would not be on the exam.

Finance is a hard class in general, but I feel Dobson wasn't great at teaching it either. He is a really nice guy and truly does care about his students. He works as hard as he can to get you to pass his class, but he just isn't a very good at lecturing. For lectures, we literally went over a problem from the back of the book the whole time. The plus side is that you will always get out half hour early if not a full hour early. There are three midterms (worth 30% each and is 25 multiple choice questions) and a final project (worth 10%). I failed the first one, got a C- on the second one, and got an A on the last one. Towards the end of the quarter I realized the key to passing his class is reading the chapter, doing all of the practice problems in the back of the book, and going to tutoring and office hours. If I would have done this from the beginning of the quarter, I would have gotten a high B or and A in the class no problem. THIS IS A DOABLE CLASS! Overall, the class is definitely passable, but you have to teach yourself. This is by far an easier option than Gorman.

This was one of the most dreadful classes I have ever taken at Cal Poly. Honestly, if Dobson wasn't such a nice guy, it would have been a lot more torturous. He is not a very good lecturer at all, and he just dives into the material, assuming we know the basics when we actually don't. Most of my classmates and group members did not know what was going on at all until the day before an exam. That last day was just tedious hours of cramming-- know what to cram. His tests are thankfully the most straightforward tests I have taken in my entire life. There are no tricks or misleading answers. Make sure you get a good group for the project. For the test, you just do the practice problems in the back of the book, and you will most definitely pass. Cheat sheet is allowed during the test; however, the test is limited greatly by the time allowed to do a huge packet of problems that he barely taught. If you happen to struggle with the exams, visit his office hours asap because he is such a sweet and caring guy. Lastly, everyone below is right: the project does make or break your grade.

I personally LOVE Dobson and his class. While Finance isn't his first love, business ethics is, he does a good job at teaching it in a way students who are not planning on concentrating in finance can understand and enjoy. There are a few midterms, and one course project that are very doable if you plan on spending the time on them. You are never in class for the full 2 hours, but if you have any questions or need any clarification he is always willing to help. I loved the class because it made me feel like a more well rounded student without making me overwhelmed by a class taking up all of my time that I am not even concentrating in. LOVED taking his class.

Decent class. Dobson is a great guy. Always looking to teach the students and help them learn. You should get 100% on project. Make sure you know how to use calculator on tests and you will be fine. He also lets you use a note sheet on each test.

Dobson's a nice enough dude, but I felt like I had to teach myself everything. If I were you, I'd try and get another professor.

Take Dobson if you are not concentrating in Finance. This class is not hard at all and for those people saying never to take this class, it's probably because they did not do any of the problems he assigns or understood them. If you understand all the homework problems (he never collects them) before the test, you'll get an A or B on the test. He's an easy grader when it comes to the project. Dobson does curve some of the tests (if the average was low) and does curve overall grades. I can tell he cares about his students and wants you to ask questions if you do not understand something

Dobson is my favorite teacher at CP. He is soooo sweet and is so eager to meet with his students and help them however he can. He can't really teach you the material--it's kinda up to you to put the time and effort in. He just kinda rambles on about current events that have nothing to do with the exams. I never went to class, and if I did, I probably only paid attention for a total of 10 min. Do his example exam problems and the problems in the back of the book and you'll be golden.

Overall, he is a very nice professor. He's very helpful during office hours. Maybe a bit unclear about the materials during lectures. Be prepared to do a lot of independent work from the textbook. Should be an easy class if you do the work and know the material.

This guy didn't teach anything. The tests were really easy, and I never went to class. Once you discover that nothing useful ever comes out of his mouth you stop going to class. If you want to learn anything take another professor.

I took Dobson for both 342 and 404. Unlike 342, 404 is taught in a way that makes it almost impossible not to pass. There are no midterms or finals and the class is based solely on group presentations which he grades pretty easily on. Take him if you get the chance!

Dobson is fuckin hot. he has the best style and the sexiest accent. Aside from that he is a pretty smart guy and I LOVED how the course was set up. It's all debates and not tests which is super easy. Definitely take him for BUS 404!

This class was pretty easy. Just some group debates and presentations in which he tells you exactly what expects. He didn't really lecture at all, but I still learned a good amount from the presentations. He is pretty scatterbrained but still helpful when you need him.

404 is based almost entirely on in class presentations and debates. This makes it pretty hard to fail, but he's not an easy grader. If you know your stuff, make few mistakes, and give decent presentations, expect a B. My group grade was a B, I ended up with an A because I spoke as much as possible during debates.

Took this class over the summer and it wasn't bad at all. I had been putting 404 off because I knew it was case/group oriented but there's really no way around that. From what I've heard Dobson's class is better than the other 404 options and I personally enjoyed the material. Definitely a good class to take in the summer because you get through it much quicker.

You have to read an article each week and write a 1 page summary on it. Articles are very wordy and sometimes hard to understand. You also debate twice, and give 2 presentations on ethical theories as a group. Final is a 20 page paper, but only about 4 pages per person with your group. Make sure you pay attention to rubrics for presentations! He stick strict to those for grading. Overall, okay class. All group the whole quarter. I would say the workload can be very little some weeks when you have no presentation, but then a lot when you do have a presentation. Also ask him advice for your presentations and you will get a higher grade.

He's a great teacher! Very straightforward on what's expected in his class. His 404 class is all presentations and one term paper. NO TESTS!

Fair and straightforward. Average amount of effort will get you an A. Only an idiot could get below a C. Let the record state that he is a very attractive man!

Dobson teaches fine, But the class has nothing to do with his teachings. As a matter of fact, the majority of the classes invovled him not teaching at all. This class is all outside research, debates, and papers. Dobson didn't teach us much. It was more of a role play class where tidbits of realworld business history was given and little tidbit pieces of info were taught. It was great debate practice. Dobson's role in this class is as a spectator and grader. Not much more than that.

This class has been THE most helpful class when trying to prepare for the real world. You get experience making presentations, putting reports together, and having an assignment without too much detailed instruction. The deadlines are short and the pressure is intense, but isn't that how a real job will be? Dobson grades fairly, even probably a little nicer than 95% is an A, 90-94% is a B... if you put in the time, work hard, and pull your weight in your team, there is no reason you shouldn't be able to get an A. No, this class isn't your typical two hour lecture class, but who wants another one of those this late in the game? This course embraces Cal Poly's "Learn by doing" attitude. There are few courses in college that teach you any skills that you can learn in the workplace. Most courses give you knowledge but little chance to apply it (other than in exams) and few opportunities to learn how to accomplish a difficult task within a team and present your work in a professional-type setting. Most of us, when starting out, will probably have to make alot of presentations and this class allows you to see what works, what doesn't, and gives a hint of what is expected. Dobson also allows for alot of student discussion in this class, which gives you a chance to think for yourself. I highly recommend Dobson and his style of teaching this class, and his 438 class is a great warm-up to this one.

Dr. Dobson is seriously the best professor I've had since coming to Cal Poly. He's incredibly intelligent, and does an excellent job in class discussions. I took him for Case Studies in Finance, and Ethics and Behavioral Finance, in both of which it is very possible to earn an "A." Both of these classes required a lot of group work (especially case studies), but if you keep up with the reading, consistently and intelligently contribute to class discussions and groupwork, things go smoothly. Because neither of these classes was a lecture course, we didn't have any tests, but the workload was fair compared with other classes. In Ethics, the workload kind of builds toward the end of the quarter, so get an early start on the final paper. HINT: He's especially helpful in office hours... if you have a problem, you should definitely take the time to go ask him then.

Dr. Dobson is a very good teacher. It is true that his classes are structured to encompass a lot of group discussion, which I enjoyed better than a typical lecture-oriented course. I suggest taking Dr. Dobson and keeping current on the assigned readings. Good luck!

Take Dr. Dobson! Use his office hours...he is very helpful and more than willing to discuss any problems that you may be having in his classes. Or, if you prefer to not talk to your professors, then just keep up on the assignments/readings and you should do well.

Very straight foward. Reading quizzes are random, and a rather large portion of your total grade. Do the reading for each class (which is never more than 30 minutes worth), and show up to every class to take the random quizzes over it. the rest of the class consists of a Research paper and a presentation (both can be done with a partner). There are no Exams, not even a final. One word of warning on your presentation, if you cant answer questions regarding your topic outside of what you presented on, dont present on that topic! If you present on Social Security, you better be prepared for Dobson to ask you how it would compare to IRA's 401k's etc. He expects you to be an expert on your topics. Those who were able to answer his questions got an A on the presentation.

Dobson is a great BUS professor. He's really engaging and passionate about what he teachers. The class itself is pretty relaxed, you usually get out half an hour early. Grade based on quizes that are easy, and one research paper with a presentation, participation, and NO FINAL which was great. I would definitely recommend taking him for a BUS elective! He's relaxed and chill, but make sure you participate (as in speak up so he knows your name) a lot if you want to get an A.

2-6pm on Fridays is brutal but Dobson lets you out at 4. For a finance level elective this is a great course with no math, just readings and quizzes, participation, and a group research paper. No midterm or final and Dobson is very passionate about Behavior and Ethics in Finance. The class is actually enjoyable without the stress of exams and you really learn a lot and want to pay attention. Great course with an even better professor, I highly recommend.

The guy is a philosophy major trapped in a body of a finance professor. He knows his stuff, on a philosophic basis, but that doesn't do you any good for a nuts and bolts subject like finance. Main problem: seems detached, as if he's thinking of the next great thing he's going to put in a paper he will get published, instead of the students who don't know finance and philosophy. WARNING: the final was multiple choice and we could preview old final exams. Don't be fooled, study for the final.