We asked Pitt students who their favorite professors are

Everyone knows that the first thing we must do when we are scheduling classes is research the best professors for the course. How do you pick a good professor? Everyone’s favorite website ratemyprofessor.com is great and all, but sometimes it is incorrect and/or outdated (which I have experienced before).

We decided to make a list of some of the best professors at Pitt to make your lives a lot easier. Here’s what we came up with.

Jake Dechant, Anatomy & Physiology and Microbiology

“He has to be the greatest teacher I’ve ever had. Jake understands how to keep college-level students engaged by telling jokes, including video clips in his lectures, and relating content to current events.  He held open labs every week and allowed us to come help him dissect cadavers (probably gross for most people but the coolest thing ever for a nursing student)!

“He made a Facebook page for A&P where he shared relevant nursing-related articles. We were also encouraged to ask questions on the page so that everyone could see and learn from his response.  For Micro, Jake made an Instagram (@jakedechantmicro) where we could share pictures of our petri dishes every week.  All in all, he is super down to Earth, relatable, and approachable while still maintaining a professional relationship with his students and teaching in a way that really helped to grasp the content.”

-Claire Corbett, Nursing

Rebecca Denova, Religious Studies

“Dr. Denova is REALLY well liked. A decent amount of people who take a class with her take another, and a lot of people take four plus classes with her (I’m on number four right now). She’s quirky as hell and honestly the most interesting person I’ve ever met, let alone professor! Varieties of early Christianity is her most popular class.”

-Natalie Gomez, Religious Studies/Classics

Bob Atkin, Business Administration

“He was always really there for me outside of the classroom for career advice and guidance, not to mention I learned so much from his class (Managing in Complex Environments). He super quirky and really encouraging. He pushes his students really hard but is always there if you need extra help!”

-Martha Leo, Marketing and Supply Chain Management

Ericka Huston, Department of Chemistry

“She’s just so enthusiastic about what she teaches. Every day she comes into class with so much energy. It’s clear how much happiness organic chemistry brings her from the way she hops around after asking the class a question – eagerly anticipating a response like a kid awaits gifts on christmas. It’s rare to experience firsthand a professor who loves what they teach, and with the amount of enthusiasm she has it’s hard to walk out of her 9am class without a smile on your face.”

-Cenk Atillasoy, Biology (Pre-Med Track)

Chiara Narone, Hispanic Languages and Literatures

“She teaches Grammar and Composition and Applied Linguistics. I think she’s great because she really cares about each of her students and goes out of her way to be available to whatever we might need to succeed in the class. Today she took my Applied Linguistics class to a Latin American Film Symposium and we were able to hear an Argentinian director talk. At the dinner reception for a faculty member afterward she introduced us to him and sat with us in a separate room for a little while to ask how we were doing. She just really cares about her students.”

-Camille Carr-Harris, English Fiction and Spanish

Mert Ertunga, French and Italian Languages and Literatures

“He was the best professor, teacher, educator I’ve ever encountered. I had him for French 1 and he engaged everyone so meaningfully and taught with such zealous enthusiasm that it was impossible for me to not suddenly have a newfound passion for learning French. I remember one time in particular he scolded us for collectively scoring low on an exam and the next day brought in doughnuts because he felt bad that he added insult to injury.”

-Isabella Sigado, Art History and Marketing

Charles Jones, Geology and Environmental Science

“He is incredibly knowledgable of his field, goes out of his way to help students and is deeply invested and passionate about both geology and the well-being/ academic and personal growth of his students.”

-Sarah Chartier, Chemical Engineering

Jennifer Cousins, Psychology

“She is an amazing professor, her classes are never boring, she’s funny, and is very accommodating. Her tests are fair, her classes are really interesting, and I would take her for every class if I could. She makes the most boring topics entertaining with her cute little anecdotes and comparisons. She’s wonderful!”

-Anmol Baxi, Psychology

John (Jack) Garies, Communication and Rhetoric

“He is absolutely one of the best professors I’ve ever had. He’s so enthusiastic when he teaches and makes the material easy to understand and interesting to learn and he’s really good about helping students outside of class if they are confused. You can tell he really wants the class to be fun and enjoyable and he cares about the students!”

-Stephanie Trozzo, Nursing

Virginia Teran, Hispanic Languages and Literatures

“She is one of the most influential professors I’ve ever had. Most people like super laid back professors who do not call on people or bother people. I do not. Virginia is loud, forceful, and will bother you until you speak, but man do you learn! I had her for Spanish 0001 and got straight A’s after spending my entire high school career getting straight C’s in Spanish. Now I have her for Spanish 0004 and love it! She keeps everyone awake and demands dynamism, which I love because I have no problem paying attention. She also really cares about her students. If you seem out of sorts, she’ll ask you if you’re okay and she’s very fair about grading and accommodations. If you are seriously interested in learning Spanish, take Virginia’s class.”

-Erica Spaeth, Communications

Did we miss your favorite professor? If so, please email Erica Spaeth at [email protected] with the subject “Professors”