LOVE HER! Joy is the kindest person and most helpful professor I have ever had so far. I personally enjoyed her class but getting up early sucks. DO NOT BUY THE BOOK. You don't need it and exams are basically notes (the study guide is very accurate). I got a 4.0 easy. It really required little effort on my part which was great because I still learned a lot. Also you have to volunteer somewhere at least once but thats easy just look for a place early. If you need help finding a place just email joy or talk to her.



This class would be a great elective too.

Pros: Nice professor

Helps with exam questions

Exams are easy

Final exam is extremely easy- consists of old exam questions

Cons: 8:30 AM class

50% of exam questions are true and false questions

GO TO CLASS!! I had to take the final exam at 7:45 AM because I was lazy and decided to skip 2 classes and missed 2 in class assignments, each worth 15 points, and I ended up 5 points away from a 4.0. This class is an easy 4.0 if you go to class and review a little bit before each exam. Joy is such a nice lady, the class is relatively interesting but mainly common sense. If you do have to take the final, don't stress about it. It's super general. Also, she includes abut 5 extra questions on each exam so there's a chance to boost your grade and there's also an extra credit in class assignment.

Mrs. Jacobs is really nice, and her class is easy if you're willing to study and pay attention in class. I highly recommend this class, it's a good GPA booster!

Pros: Easy 4.0. Go to class, write down her slides from the overhead, don't buy the book.

Cons: 8:30 am class.

This class is truly amazing! I really enjoyed this class. She gives you extra credit on the exams (3 exams/4 exams are counted for and on each exam is 5 EXTRA points that you could earn.) You don't even have to take the final exam if you believe youre doing fine in the class with a 3.5-4.0.

I do recommend that you should go to the class even if it is at 8:30am, since theres an in-class assignment that she gives out after class which is 5 points but let me tell you that adds up and it could REALLY hurt your grade in the class. The in-class assignments are random, so you don't really know when shes going to give one out.

There's not much of a curve in the class to earn a 4.0 because you need a 94% to earn a 4.0. Exams are 70pts each including 5 extra points.

Mrs. J is really a great professor and she does give interesting stories during class to make the lecture more interesting.

I would have to say STUDY the lecture notes! I didn't much read the book other than skim it, so, I wouldn't buy the book if I were you. It's not that necessary only if you want to learn the topics in depth a little more than Mrs. J did in class.

I did really well on my exams by just studying the lecture notes. Mrs. J doesn't post her lecture notes on ANGEL and good luck asking her for it since you need to have a good excuse such as a medical, etc. excuse. Basically, beg to your classmates if they could email you their notes, but, let me tell you, it does it get annoying when you see emails after emails from students who didn't show up for class and is asking for them. This would be a perfect time to start selling your notes off!!!!!!!! Hey, might as well make some business out of it since you went to class! =) I would say, students are more willing to give their notes out in the beginning of the semester but once you took Exam1, people just stop helping. Other than that, I truly think everyone should take this class, I did learn a lot from this class even though it's about relationships/marriage/etc. but, it is easy and interesting at the same time! I RECOMMEND IT!! =)

It has kinda a bad timing (8.30am in the morning), and for those of you who are used to waking up late in the mornings, do not take this course!!! I am a late sleeper and usually have troubles waking up early in the morning, therefore, I find it tough to concentrate during lectures when I am so sleepy already! Also, do not miss any lectures because you never know when you have an in-class assignment! Those 5points are really easy to get and just by answering some logical answers, you get them! I missed out on 1 activity during the semester because I woke up late! Those 5 points could have made my life a little easier during the finals!



Basically there is extra credit at every exam, which comes in the form of extra 5 questions. There are also like a few extra activities to boost your grades up if you require them.



The TA is quite annoying and keeps walking around like some kind of Army Sergeant-Major or discipline master. And she always send alot of emails through ANGEL to remind us about things which we already do know (A case of being too free as a TA?)



The notes which Mrs J shows are kinda shallow and have absolutely no use if you just copy them without taking down what she says. Also, read the textbook! Alot of questions came out from the text. I did not read the text for the 1st 2 exams, and when I did for exam3, my score improved by over 10 points!



Basically if you come for every class, read the text regularly, and take down notes and pay attention to what she says, guaranteed a 4.0!

I took the course because I was informed that the course was strictly lecture and fairly simple. Evidently this woman decided to just throw in a text last semester and half of the exam was on the book, which she did not go over in class at all. The syllabus had no organization and the amount of reading that is required isn't worth spending your money on. (Except for those of you out there who don't care because your parents pay for your tuition.) Anyway, the only thing that saved my ass was the in-class exercises. But like I said, this class isn't worth paying for. The TA's walk around and try to regulate the class like their some kind of authority figure which is really pathetic, and half the students in the class have no idea how to keep their mouths shut. Some subject matter made some people cry and you may hear alot of people laughing at tasteless humor which I'm sure you don't have time for. Who the hell our age actually wants to learn about marriage anyway? Don't take this course unless you know for sure that there is not going to be a textbook required throughout the semester.

TAKE THIS CLASS!! i took this class for an elective, and 4.0 it easily. There are 2 exams in the semester, if you want to you can take the optional final. If you decide to take the final, she only takes your top two scores. (Most people don't need to anyway) The lectures do usually take the entire time, but they are by no means horrible. She really likes to teach and gets involved in this class. She tells personal stories to keep you interested. Go to class because there are in-class activities that count for points, those are really easy too. If you miss one, she'll even let you make it up! Do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT buy the book!! I made that mistake and now I'm out money. I never used the book once! All I did was got to class, took notes. The material is mostly common sense. I didn't study at all for the first exam, and about 20 min. for the second, and I have a 4.0. Highly recommend this class to people with tough schedules looking for a blow-off, good GPA booster elective.

Joy Jacobs is a wonderful teacher. She is very nice and makes an 8:30 class not so bad. The class itself isn't very intellectually challenging at all, but there is a lot of material. She has 11 assignments throughout the semester, but she doesn't tell you when she is going to hand them out, so you have to go to class every time, unless you want to miss out on 10 points. The assignments themselves are really easy though! I would recommend not buying the book, you don't need it. She maybe has 5 out of 70 questions on her exams that come straight from the book and most of those you can figure out by using common knowledge. She always has extra credit questions on her exams, so there is lots of opportunities for extra credit. I wouldn't say this class is an EASY 4.0, but it is pretty simple if you take good notes. You probably could pull off a 3.0, by just using common sense on her exams.

Ms. J is a sweetheart you can tell she cares about your learning process and tries to make things fun and relateable. She is also really understanding and let me slide on one assignment. Shes kind of an idiot though i will admit.. like sometimes i feel that she just makes up some of the notes by what she thinks, and some information she gives in the notes is completely diffrent than the data in the book.



to get a 4.0 you have to go to class because she teaches very little out of the book and most test questions are from her lecture. Also you have to go to do the in-class assignments were are on random days so you have to go everyday or you coud miss one. So go to class, take good notes, and do the community service and your good! pretty easy class and worth taking

She is awesome. the class is pretty easy and she is a very nice, caring prof. the exams are for the most part pretty easy.. but if you struggle ASK HER QUESTIONS! i got a 3.5 in this class and i was upset about it.. i found out after the first couple exams that if you ask her questions SHE GIVES YOU THE ANSWER!!! i needed to get a 88% on the final in order to get a 3.5 in the class.. so i made sure to ask her questions on the final. I asked her (not exaggerating at all) about 40 questions, she gave me answer to all of them - i ended up getting 2 questions wrong on the final and beat 98% of the class because she helped me so much. go to class, have an idea of what is going on, and ask her questions on the exams and this should be an easy 4.0.

I agree. This class is majority common sense, but has many important points and I think all incoming students should have to take it. Her exams are overall easy, but particular, and a 94% 4.0 scale is what is making me have to take the optional final. That sucks. But she is really nice, & funny. The class never lets out early, and you DO have to go to class! The in-class assignments are "pop-quiz" style, and can hurt your grade seeing you only have a 6% slack to 4.0 it. Don't buy the book, just study in a group where someone has it. Elaborate in your personal notes so you can understand them later. Hers are weird sometimes looking at them a month later. All in all, great class.

Joy is a great woman who cares about her students. She will help you whenever she can and is always willing to talk before or after class.



Her class is easy as long as you attend lectures; I read the book one time and still ended up with a 4.0 in the class. It is all about life, and while it may not be challenging it is useful and applicable to your life currently and in the future.



Take advantage of the extra credit in this class, it will help to cushion your grade. Even though you may not need it, it might come in handy.



You should easily be able to get a 3.5 or a 4.0. If not, you may want to reconsider your decision to attend college.

This class is so easy. I don't understand how anyone can say it's hard. If you go to class and read the topics on the review sheet, you should do more than fine on the exams. Sure, some of the things she says do sound a little like an elementary teacher talking to students, but honestly? At 8:30 in the morning, who cares. I don't think she's biased towards females at all. Since the class is about families and since women are childbearers and usually childrearers, it makes sense that we focus on women more. I think anyone planning on having their own family one day can learn a lot from this class. It's definitely worth taking.

Pros: Super sweet. She handwrites or types notes in a way that makes it easy to follow. Drops the lowest exam, making the final optional and will let you make up activities as long as you email her within a day of missing it.

Cons: mm....none.

Best class at MSU. Joy is the sweetest and one of the best professors I've ever met, and loves what she does. She brings in a few guest speakers and has lots of cute stories to tell. The exams are extremely easy as long as you read and do the study guides, but even then, I'm sure you could fare just fine without even doing those. I think everybody should take this class.

Pros: Mrs. J is extremely nice and understanding. She makes the course material interesting.

Cons: The class is very early in the morning and you need the notes to do well on the exams. She does not post notes on Angel.

If there is someone currently taking this course (HDFS 145 Spring 2011) and has the notes from the last exam up to today's class, can you please get ahold of me. I am missing only a few and would pay money if I could get them from you. Email is muntinal@gmail.com. I have 80% of the notes so if there are any you're missing I may possibly have the ones you need. Thank you!

This class is pretty easy. Although most of it is common sense I did learn a few things here and there. By going to class you get points that are part of your total grade. I've miss a few classes (overslept) but as long as you be honest with her, she is very understanding. She let me make up the points!! How cool is that. The final was really easy too. All it is is test questions from the previous exams. So all you got to do is go to office hours that week and copy the old exams. Piece of cake. You should have no problem getting at least a 3.5 in the class.

This is a very easy 4.0. All the topics are common sense. Don't even bother buying the book because it's truly not worth it. You do have to go to class because there are in-class activities but the class is a piece of cake otherwise. If you listen in lecture and look over the Angel handouts, you are guaranteed a 4.0. She offers tons of extra credit - 5 points on each test and one in-class activity so it's a fail-proof class. You may feel like a kindergartner listening to some of her phrases and topics, but you will feel great when it boosts your GPA!

This class is really easy if you show up and have any common sense at all. But you have to go to class because essentially all the test questions come from lecture and there are unannounced in class activities. The tests are great because there are always extra credit questions on them and at the end, there is a make up activity. Because of that, I only missed 3 points the whole semester. Joy uses a lot of personal examples so you can see how the material is relevant to everyday life. She is really invested in the class and I really enjoyed it.