I agree wholeheartedly with other reviewers - this subject is vastly different structurally, and can look like a really good breadth given lack of exams. It is also very interesting, and very cool to hear from different experts every week (and it's a good networking opportunity, particularly if you're looking to go into research). The coordinator Fiona is very passionate and very invested in making it an enjoyable subject experience. It's a small class size, so Fiona takes the lectures & tutorials, but she is a super fast marker (2/3 of my essays were marked the day after I submitted them). I really enjoyed it, but it's definitely not for everyone. Take it if: - You are good at researching and writing open ended essays - You enjoy debating, and speaking in class - You find science interesting, and would like to know more about current science - You're looking for a (relatively) easy Pass. Don't take it if: - You're looking for an easy H1 (it's hard to get) - You like to be silent in tutorials & lectures, or not come to them. - You have trouble analysing arguments/finding weaknesses or dislike writing essays

I really enjoyed this - each week is a different debate so you get to learn a lot, and you get to choose when to do your assignments so you can focus on what interests you and also plan around other subjects. Definitely make sure you’re really clear on what’s expected from you before doing the assignments - ask as many questions as you want because the subject is quite unique so you really want to make sure you know what’s expected. BUT the marking was ridiculously harsh - I spoke at length with my tutor to be super clear on all the criteria and made sure to hit it all, but the highest mark I got was an 80. In one assignment the feedback was overwhelmingly positive with one note to improve on (and this was actually something I had clarified before beginning the assignment - the feedback completely contradicted what I had been told) but the mark was a 77. Don't expect your marks in your other subjects to be reflected in this one.

This subject was really interesting and very different (structurally) from other subjects with no exam (no assessable content) nor essay during exam period. You are given a lot of independence for writing and researching your essays and tutorial presentation with little strict criteria (but guidelines in the Assessment Overview which were sufficient). This can be a bit daunting at first, but as long as you put effort in, do plenty of research and build a strong argument, the marking is fair (plus I got lots of feedback on how to improve the essays). I will stress again, it is critical that you make an effort and do lots of research to support your argument – also, whenever you think you can write an essay, do it! Good opportunities for writing an essay do not come about as often as you might think, and you can only write on a topic from a debate that was presented that week

The harsh marking and lack of proper coordination really let this subject down. We were given barely any guidelines your grades suffered from the lack of tutors to appeal to when you felt something was wrong. At least the content was interesting

There is essentially no content in the subject but the lack of any difficulty is made up for by harsh marking. The debates are pretty interesting but the speakers, being experts in fields which relate to the debate, aren't necessarily good at presenting an engaging or compelling argument.