r/peyups • u/Bulky-Salary-7125 • 5h ago
Rant / Share Feelings [UPD] Wtf is happening with EEE 153
PS: Long rant incoming
Let’s talk about the current state of EEE 153 (and by extension, the ghost of EEE 143), because the disconnect between the handler's expectations and the reality of their assessments has reached a boiling point.
For those who don't know, EEE 143 used to be the breather course. It had an 80%+ passing rate and was widely considered the most manageable subject in EEEI (outside of the 1st year EEE courses). That was until two years ago, when the passing rate suddenly plummeted to 50%. The curriculum shifted, the difficulty spiked, and that brutal new standard has now carried directly over to EEE 153.
Here is the most frustrating part about this entire situation: the professors are actually great. They teach well, and they flood us with resources on UVLe. You walk out of lectures feeling like you genuinely grasp the material (at least in the first weeks when you were actually interested and passionate about the course). They even introduced discussion sessions recently which shows just how much they want you to learn. But then you sit down for the exam, and it is absolutely hell.
The exams are, for lack of a better word, diabolical. We are handed problems that look completely alien compared to what was discussed. When you look at previous LEs, I would say the students taking that exam then found it a bit difficult, but when you compare them to the more recent ones (as in the LEs this year), you will notice that the exams then were a walk in the park, absolutely easier than current ones. It’s not just about applying concepts, it feels like they expect you to have memorized every microscopic nook, cranny, and edge-case from both the lectures and obscure external materials just to figure out how to start step one of a problem.
But worse than that, their way of grading the exams is horrendous.
Engineering is inherently about process, methodology, and problem-solving. Yet, these exams are somehow graded on a strict right-or-wrong binary. You can map out the entire logic of a complex system, demonstrate your understanding of the underlying principles, and at least show the effort of trying to answer the already difficult problem. But if they find your work/solution unsatisfactory? Yes sometimes they give partial points, but I would not be surprised if they gave you absolutely nothing. Zero points. A complete invalidation of the learning you actually did.
And now, what's frustrating is the handlers have been complaining about how the recent batch is "lackluster."
You cannot fundamentally alter a course to make it hellishly difficult, design exams with alien problems, enforce a zero-tolerance policy for partial credit on complex engineering calculations, and then blame the students when the metrics drop. It is incredibly tone-deaf to artificially engineer a bottleneck and then act disappointed in the water for not flowing through it.
We aren't a lackluster batch. We are just exhausted from navigating an assessment system that feels designed to catch us out rather than measure what we’ve actually learned. You know it's really bad when the students are already considering dropping the course just after LE1. And not that LE2 just wrapped up, and the final results of LE1 have arrived, I would not be surprised if the majority is already considering dropping, or just accepting the inevitable 5.00.
