I thoroughly enjoyed taking this class with Professor Shneyder. He created a supportive environment where all students felt comfortable asking questions or sharing their opinion. The course readings, movies, and art all came together to provide a well-rounded view of Russia during this time period. The professor provides a class without bias and encourages students to deeply examine why we perceive Russia the way we do. I wouldn't necessarily call this an easy class, but I would encourage anyone who is interested in widening their perspective on Russia to take it.

Russian 90B with Shneyder was such a treat and a great way to satisfy a GE! He really emphasizes that it isn't a history class, but a class meant to help understand the reality of the situation with Ukraine, so it was very interesting! He presents the history of Russia from 1900 to the present with little bias, and his activities and discussion allow you to form an opinion on the situation. DISCLAIMER: Since this class was taken during the TA strikes, from week 6 on he stopped lectures to stand in solidarity with the TA's, which greatly reduced the number of assignments and made our final essay no-harm. Here's how his course was structured normally:
Regular Quizzes (10%, 6 quizzes worth 2% each, lowest dropped): Shneyder posts these quizzes almost biweekly, and even though they are open-note, they are difficult. I really recommend taking notes on everything he lectures on, because he will ask about some intricate details on these quizzes!
Event Report (25%): Shneyder requires you to consume some form of Russian media, like a movie, in-person event/panel/workshop etc., book, podcast, etc. and has you make one of those Instagram style infographic posts/slideshows on it.
Short Reflection Papers (15%, 3 papers, 5% each): Choose 3 course readings, films, questions or concepts and write a short reflection on it. These were all due by the end of the quarter but we were encouraged to submit beforehand to get feedback and points back.
Attendance (15%): Attendance to lecture and discussion were mandatory, but you were able to miss 2 lectures and 1 discussion.
Final (30%): Response to the discussion of Russia in the 20th century in the form of a scholarly essay, video, work of visual art, composition, etc.) If you choose a research paper, it would be 7-8 pages and required references.
Although the course ended prematurely because of the strikes, it was super manageable, interesting and the professor is extremely kind and knowledgeable, so I recommend taking this class!

This class was very engaging and the professor took into account the pandemic. There were weekly quizzes based on the lectures (and occasionally one of the readings) but they were easy if you had taken notes on the lecture. Because of the pandemic, there was no midterm nor final. We had three short essays due by the end of the term. The instructions for these essays were vague because they said they wanted reflection papers but they actually wanted rhetorical analysis. There was also a "instagram style" slide show that required you do listen to a podcast or attend a seminar based on the class material but it was easy. The final project was very open-ended and leniently graded.

Shneyder is an epic professor and this class is epic for those who are interested in the subject. It is quite important that you have at least a slight interest in Soviet History to stay engaged with the class, but if you are engaged with the material, the class is not too hard. There is a decent amount of reading but a lot of it is for personal knowledge and how much you learn in this class depends on the effort you put into completing these readings (and videos). Shneyder connects all the material spectacularly, presenting different opinions and perspectives and inviting students to think from different viewpoints. For a topic as controversial as this, professor Shneyder does a great job diving in deeper into the material and studying history, geography, and touching on current times as well.
Highly recommend this class and professor!

Professor Shneyder is one of the most thoughtful, engaging professors I've ever had. Never before had I seen a student ask a question and, when the professor didn't know the answer, have him actually get back to the student in the next lecture with a well-researched and thoughtful answer. The class content was intriguing, shedding light on events that you've definitely briefly heard about or know, but actually getting a real, unedited point of view this time. The discussions for this class were great too, really engaging and content rich. Would 100% recommend.