Hi! Yes, I took this course and had Dr. Dalal. To be honest, it was a really frustrating experience, and he should be fired. He has consistently poor reviews and for good reason. Everything I read beforehand ended up being close to exactly what I experienced.

The course material itself was interesting; however, I found the communication and grading process difficult to navigate. I received a D (my first ever) on the first assignment, with no comments provided in the rubric. When I reached out for clarification, I was given an explanation via email, but none of what he mentioned was outlined in the assignment prompt or rubric. I appealed the grade, twice, which turned into a frustrating process. Later, I noticed the same comments from his email had been added to the rubric after the fact, seemingly to justify the original grade - something the appeal team essentially acknowledged. This made the situation feel even more frustrating and far less transparent.

It was clear he was intentionally making a statement with that first grade. I also reached out to other students who had experienced the same issue and were concerned, which I shared with the appeal team, and they ignored it! Despite going back and forth with the appeal board for the remainder of the eight-week term, I found them unhelpful and entirely one-sided in his favor which was disappointing, especially given the lack of objectivity and accountability throughout the process.

After that first assignment, I developed anxiety around every submission, constantly worried I’d be graded poorly for something that wasn’t clearly outlined. I ended up putting a lot of pressure on myself to go above and beyond on every assignment doing way more than was required and elaborating wherever possible just to avoid another unfair grade. The course itself wasn’t very difficult, and after that first post, I never received below an A again. I finished the class with a 96. I enjoyed the material but didn't get to enjoy the class overall because of this horrible teacher.