As a fourth year who has switched her major multiple times, I have taken multiple classes that have no relation to my major but have made an impact in my college education and my life overall. Many of these classes might not seem that important, but the professors are amazing, the class is informative, and it has altered my view of the world in some way. If you have the chance to take any of these, please do, as I promise it will help you in the long run.
1. Commercial Law 1
This class is honestly so important, whether you're pre-law or just a regular UVA student. I learned so many things about laws that I had no idea existed and which play a monumental role in everyday life. For example, many students don't know that, unless you're driving a car, you don't have to show a policeman your ID (even if you're intoxicated). Simple things like that can really steer you away from bad experiences as a college student! In addition, Sherri Moore (the professor) is the best person on the planet. She’s extremely funny and keeps you interested in the topic the entire semester. Her last lecture in class truly changed the way I thought about life in general; I don’t want to spoil it for the people who are currently taking the class, so I won’t say what her lecture revolves around, but I will tell you that about 90% of the class was crying by the halfway mark.
2. Russian-American Relations or Russia in World Affairs (aka any class with Allen Lynch)
Allen Lynch is my favorite professor at UVA and you will learn far more about Russia’s domestic and international relations that you would in any other class. The man is basically a genius when it comes to anything relating to Russia. I took a summer class with him and by the end decided that I wanted to double major in Foreign Affairs and Russian and Eastern European Studies (the man changed my life path). By taking his class you will learn so much about Russia and why its’ involvement in today’s politics is extremely important in the grand scheme of things. A fun fact about Allen Lynch is that his office is literally a mini-Russia haven; he has a Russian rug, a samovar (basically an old tea maker), and more books about Russia than you could ever imagine. If you have the opportunity to take a class with him, do it!
3. Any class with Yuri Urbanovich
Honestly, I thought I was biased when I told friends to take a class with Yuri Urbanovich because I am a Russian major, but I have heard great things about his classes from English majors, Engineering majors, and people who are in the Comm School. The man is just about the sweetest person on the planet, but his thick Georgian accent and grand stance can seem a little intimidating at first. In addition, the classes are not extremely hard as long as you do the readings and show up to class. He is currently teaching University Seminars, but he has taught Politics and Russian Culture classes in the past. If you have a spot open in your schedule, make Yuri a priority.
4. Principles of Microeconomics
Let’s not pretend you haven’t heard of Professor Elzinga, who is a legend on Grounds. I have met students at UVA whose parents had Professor Elzinga when they attended UVA years ago. He is a very friendly person and will give you life advice if you show up to his office hours. The class is huge (about 500 people), but if you show up to class and pay attention, you will learn a lot about economics and probably general life tips from Elzinga himself. Even if you’re not an Econ major, I would recommend taking Econ 2010 with Elzinga just to be able to say you took the class and knew the legend himself.
If you have the opportunity to take any of these classes, please do. It will change your life in one way or another, I promise!
