I really wanted to enjoy this subject more than I did, but something about the structure just irked me. We spent the first 4 weeks of semester covering content related to neither Greece nor Rome, focusing instead on other civilizations which led into the aforementioned. Whilst the content was interesting, one third of the entire course seemed like a bit much to dedicate to not the focus of the subject. Additionally, the tutorials were one week behind the lectures, meaning that Rome only ended up getting 3 tutorials of focus. It ended up feeling like we did much more Greek history, with Rome just sort-of being tacked onto the end. The lectures themselves were engaging, and the guest lecturers were all highly knowledgeable and helpful, especially when it came to questions. The tutorials, on the other hand, were highly disengaging, with us just talking amongst ourselves and then sharing with the class. Whilst my tutor was very clearly passionate and knowledgeable about the topics, the structure let the entire class down. The assignments, however, were generous and fun to write. Overall, if you like Greek/Roman history you'll like this subject.

Topics were engaging and readings were quite cool, especially primary ones. 2 hour long lectures but lecturer (Hyun Jin) was engaging enough and it usually ended half an hour early. Tutorials brought up interesting questions and assignments were fun to write. Noah was an excellent tutor who obviously was very passionate about Ancient Greek myths.

Every topic in this subject was fascinating and engaging, but as a whole, the subject lacked cohesiveness. I found myself enthralled by each week's content, but there was little attempt to craft a historical narrative or some sense of continuity. Each week we studied a different aspect of Classical culture, whether that be an object, text or institution, but these appeared to be selected at random. In my view, the tutorials were an attempt to explain and clarify what was a really unusual way to lecture a subject by the coordinator. James was an incredible tutor whose passion was tangible, and I really appreciated his thorough comments and advice. But, the subject coordinator was the issue for me. Her topics were very random, she never really delved into anything deeply, and she had a very patronising lecture-style. Incredible tutorials, lame lectures.

This was a really interesting and fun subject if you stay engaged with the material. Monique is a really good tutor and an organised and responsive subject coordinator. I am a science student and while this subject was a challenging breadth, it was super interesting and rewarding. The feedback given on assessments is also very thorough and detailed. Definitely recommend it if you are interested in ancient Greece/Rome.

What an amazing unit. The teaching staff (especially the lecturer, Monique) have made this course extremely relevant and updated for contemporary society, meaning my peers and I could deeply engage with the content. I especially liked how Monique broke down the weekly lectures and paired them with specific sources. Some weeks also had assessment lectures that were extremely helpful for me, as this was my first Ancient World Studies unit. I do feel like the second half of the subject, which focused on Rome, was less engaging than the section on Greece, and the assessments were a bit of a challenge. However, this unit ended up being one of my favourites for the year.

This subject is overall quite good. However, I would just say that it has an overly large focus on 'woke' issues like gender, race, colonialism etc. Be prepared to spend most of the tutorials discussing these issues. I found this a bit repetitive at times, however overall still an interesting subject.

Monique was an excellent tutor, the seminars were engaging and interesting and the feedback she gave on assessments was very helpful and detailed. It was a challenging subject, especially since I am a science student with limited background knowledge, but if you put the work in your marks will reflect that.

An interesting and engaging subject, covering an extensive syllabus. I had no prior experience with ancient world studies (had not taken VCE ancient history), and found the material easy to keep up with and grasp - so definitely don't be put off if you think the content is too much! It was relatively easy to get a H1, if you keep up with the coursework, watch all the online lectures and do the readings. The readings are really great (you will be reading some of the oldest literature in the world!) Also be careful where you sit in seminars, you will have to form groups with those you are sitting with to discuss readings/sources, and if you are with a group who are using the subject as a breadth wam booster than you won't get much out of the seminar.

I loved this subject. As a science student, it was nice to take a subject that challenged me in a different way. Monique, one of the tutors, was always engaging and was great at fostering in class discussions. There is a lot of readings to do, so you need to stay on top of them. The lectures are also all offline so it’s very tempting not to watching. I felt the assignments were fair and were graded fairly.

Very fun subject, but keep in mind you have to be somewhat invested in the topics or you're not going to get much out of it. The lectures are online so are easy to just not watch and there's a fair amount of reading. The assignments were somewhat stressful (especially for me as a science student) but were overall interesting and fun. The exam was also quite fair. If you took classics in VCE or have an interest in it I would recommend this subject.