Underground Guide to Course VI
From GradBook
The Underground Guide to Course VI is published each term by Eta Kappa Nu, which serves the students of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (Course VI) at MIT by providing student-written summaries of nearly all the subjects taught in the department. Students generally use the Guide in deciding which term to take a required subject, what recitation section to get into, and what electives to take. As a secondary goal, the Guide provides the Course VI faculty with feedback from their students with the hope that they consider what their students said when planning future terms.
The entire staff, from the authors of the individual write-ups to the editors, consists of students in Course VI. The authors of the Guide try to produce the most candid, accurate assessment of the subjects possible. No one outside of HKN has editorial control over the contents of the guide, and the guide in no way presents official Course VI policy or the position of the administration of Course VI.
Contents |
Coverage
The Guide tries to evaluate as many subjects as possible, but this effort is limited by several factors. There is always a shortage of staff. Some subjects may not have been offered a particular term. Some professors will not let editors evaluate their subjects until almost the end of the term (this means that the evaluation will not appear until next term) or won't let the Guide evaluate them at all. For subjects which were not evaluated a particular term but are being offered the following term, their reviews have re-printed in the most recent evaluation.
Content
The names, prerequisites, and hours (class, lab, prep) given are not the official ones; students can look that up in the MIT Bulletin. Instead, the Guide presents what the students surveyed thought was appropriate. The lecturer listed is the lecturer for the term the subject was evaluated (also given), which is not necessarily this term. The lecturer listed for next term is based on the best information available to the editors at press time, and is unofficial and definitely not final. Often only the one professor in charge of a subject is known, even though the subject will be taught by more than one person. ``Not Offered means the subject will not be offered the following semester. The ratings are either on a scale of 1 to 7 or 1 to 10; the scale used is denoted in the review. Following the compilation of student opinion, a few quotations from the questionnaires are given which were selected both for their relevance and for their elegance.
Organization
The Underground Guide staff is a committee of HKN headed by one or more chairs, who serve as the Editors-in-Chief and are elected annually HKN induction ceremony. The rest of the staff consists mostly of newly inducted or soon-to-be inducted HKN members who are working to fulfill their service hours, though anyone is welcome to volunteer to contribute.
Review process
(To be added...)
Identity of editors
While the names of the editors are printed at the beginning of the paper copy of the Guide, the identities of the writers of particular reviews are kept strictly confidential and are known only within the Underground Guide staff. Students and faculty who wish to inquire about a particular review should contact the Editors in Chief.
Availability
The editors aim to publish the Guide online on the Registration Day following the term that was evaluated and to print paper copies soon afterwards. Extra copies of the guide are available in the Course VI Undergraduate Office, 38-476. MIT certificates are required to view the online copies. People outside MIT can obtain a paper copy by requesting one from Anne Hunter.
Criticism
(To be added...)
List of Underground Guide Editors-in-Chief
- Anthony Y. Hui (1999-2000)
- Christopher T. Lesniewshi-Laas and Geoffrey L. Goodell (2000-2001)
- Andrew A. Lamb, Lee C. Lin and Ketan D. Vyas (2001-2002)
- Stephen M. Hou and K. Lee Tang (2002-2003)
- Edmond Lau and Christophoros C. Vassiliou (2003-2004)
- Abhra Haldar and Vincent Yeung (2004-2005)
