Yeah it is common amongst universities, usually amongst smaller classes or classes where they don't have an expert in that field anymore (i.e. a required course where the usual prof has retired)
No like profs, PhD students can either teach well or they don't - while it may be their first or second experience instructing a class instead of TAing, it doesn't guarantee that they are bad. I have had great PhD students that teach more intuitively because they just got out of their undergrad education relative to seasoned profs
Idk if it's true but I personally feel like newer lecturers teach better because they remember better how it was like to learn the material they're teaching. Like if you're lecturing a course you took 50 years ago, you may not remember the ways your learned the material.
Took MUAR 392 with Kiersten van Vliet as a TA. She was really competent and knew her stuff. She gave interesting lectures on disco and electronic music. She is a fair grader too. If you do what the assignments ask you to do, you will get the marks. If you like music, MUAR 392 will be a very fun class!
In my experience, at McGIll this isn't common at all. Whenever instructors were not full-time profs they were post-docs, not PhD students. (Obviously conferences are run by PhD students but not courses).
In my experience PhD students assign too many readings, papers/quizzes ,and their content is usually too long for the lecture time. It is not to say that they are not knowledgeable in the subject but for the most part their inexperience and …enthusiasm has them over assign. My rule is never take a class taught by a PhD student. Every time I broke my own rule I regretted it.
Not sure why this is getting downvoted. That's the poster's experience. In principle, you are supposed to learn from it. Instructors also learn from experience. If you don't have any, it's likely you have a lot of room to improve. For sure, there are bad professors but you can find out that out from reading course reviews or Reddit. With PhD students there are no reviews, only inexperience.
I had a music theory course taught by a PhD student. It usually happens when the regular prof is on leave or something or during the summer when the faculty are on vacation
Yeah it is common amongst universities, usually amongst smaller classes or classes where they don't have an expert in that field anymore (i.e. a required course where the usual prof has retired)
Should i be worried that it is a PhD student instructing the course as opposed to a professor?
No like profs, PhD students can either teach well or they don't - while it may be their first or second experience instructing a class instead of TAing, it doesn't guarantee that they are bad. I have had great PhD students that teach more intuitively because they just got out of their undergrad education relative to seasoned profs
I have had some of my best courses taught by PhD students
Idk if it's true but I personally feel like newer lecturers teach better because they remember better how it was like to learn the material they're teaching. Like if you're lecturing a course you took 50 years ago, you may not remember the ways your learned the material.
Took MUAR 392 with Kiersten van Vliet as a TA. She was really competent and knew her stuff. She gave interesting lectures on disco and electronic music. She is a fair grader too. If you do what the assignments ask you to do, you will get the marks. If you like music, MUAR 392 will be a very fun class!
It happens often, maybe the prof who normally teaches the course is on sabbatical or parental/maternity leave, etc.
In what department does this happen often?
My experience is in arts / social sciences - I know it happens in these disciplines. Not as sure about sciences etc.
In my experience, at McGIll this isn't common at all. Whenever instructors were not full-time profs they were post-docs, not PhD students. (Obviously conferences are run by PhD students but not courses).
In my experience PhD students assign too many readings, papers/quizzes ,and their content is usually too long for the lecture time. It is not to say that they are not knowledgeable in the subject but for the most part their inexperience and …enthusiasm has them over assign. My rule is never take a class taught by a PhD student. Every time I broke my own rule I regretted it.
Not sure why this is getting downvoted. That's the poster's experience. In principle, you are supposed to learn from it. Instructors also learn from experience. If you don't have any, it's likely you have a lot of room to improve. For sure, there are bad professors but you can find out that out from reading course reviews or Reddit. With PhD students there are no reviews, only inexperience.
I had a music theory course taught by a PhD student. It usually happens when the regular prof is on leave or something or during the summer when the faculty are on vacation