Western Kentucky University / P / William Parsons

This professor is unorganized, loses materials that are turned in to him, does not stay on subject and changes his mind mid-stream on what is expected in class. He focuses on the Global Awareness Confernce in excess. The expectations for the project due at the end of the course continally changed. This started out as a huge class and anyone who could - dropped the course. The midterm exam was on the syllabus for a certain date and nothing was said about it. Two weeks later, the blackboard said Midterm Exam today and it was passed out!

I learned nothing about management in this class. Prof. Parsons barely covers the material in the book; he twists everything into global business. For example, he will take a concept in the chapter and then use that concept to talk about something globally instead of the subject it was written to discuss. He is primarily concerned with manufacturing management (because that is his expertise). We never covered retail management or management in the service industry. His main focus is the Global Automotive Conference, which he coordinates every year. His graduate assistant grades the exams (and probably other assignments). This assistant will often mark correct answers as incorrect and will mark the entire question wrong if it is not word for word as it is in the book, wheras Prof. Parsons claims he is concerned with "general concepts." There are three exams and a final. These exams are impossible to study for because you haven't really talked about anything in the class! The exams include a few multiple choice, more (tricky) T/F and LOTS of short answer and definitions. He gave 25 points in extra credit questions on the second and final exam. You have to do a huge group project on an automotive industry supplier. The paper is worth 25% of your grade and there is a presentation. Prof. Parsons loses many items that are turned into him. Be sure to save all of your assignments because you will probably have to turn them in multiple times! If you attend several out-of-class presentations and write a one-page summary he will give you five extra credit points. We had the opportunity to earn about 60 extra credit points throughout the semester by attending these events. If you have to take MGT 310, DO NOT take Prof. Parsons.

Parsons is a very interesting man and he makes the class enjoyable because he is always telling interesting stories about his life. He has much experience in the management field and the stories are great, but you are not tested on them. Instead you are tested on the material that he didn't go over because he was telling stories. You also have to do a huge research project and presentation. I talked to people in other MGT 310 classes and their's seemed much easier. If you want to learn everything yourself and hear stories, take Parsons. If not, take someone else.

Dr. Parsons is one of the worst professors I have had. He is all about the Global Automotive Conference (i,e, GAC) and none about the class. I am left leaving the class with as much knowledge about marketing as when I entered the class. It is very unorganized, and I suggest that if you are able to take someone else for any Marketing class, do, and it will be worth it.