Nicholas Danis

Dr. Danis has been one of my favorite professors here at WashU. He cares that everyone does well, and will go to lengths to help anyone. Definitely recommend!

5/8/2025

Professor Danis is a really genuine guy and is passionate about Linguistics. The class isn't bad at all because there are few homeworks and he gives the exams online. I am a computer science major and was able to excel in this class easily. I would definitely take this class for a more laid back class and something fun to learn.

5/5/2025

His lectures can get a bit boring on occasion, but he's overall a good lecturer and clearly knows what he's talking about. Homework is all very manageable and easy. Textbook is technically required, but admittedly I did not read a single word of it, the lectures were enough to understand the material.

4/29/2025

2 or less hrs/week

Danis is great and I really enjoyed his lectures. He is funny in a kind of nerdy way, but I loved it. The content is very interesting and has made me heavily consider getting a minor in linguistics. This is an easy A class. There’s very minimal work, and most of the grade is based on the 4 take-home exams and various homework assignments throughout the semester that are not too bad. Sometimes the exam questions can be worded in a confusing way, but overall a great class.

12/27/2024

2-4 hrs/week

danis is funny in a dry way and the content is actually pretty fascinating. tests are take-home and open-note, but questions can be tricky sometimes.

7/7/2024

His lectures were mind-numbingly boring. I like linguistics as a subject, but he makes it so tempting to skip. The grading is super easy and there is very little homework so I didn't learn much in his class. He made it so easy to skip that I didn't go at all between Thanksgiving and Christmas and got an A, I wish I had been forced to learn more.

5/19/2024

Professor Danis has always been passionate about constructed languages and linguistics. The extra readings are inspirational and well-chosen. I walked into the class not knowing much about constructed languages, but I walked out of the class only to find myself willing to explore conlangs more.

5/13/2024

Workload is very manageable; all quizzes are take-home, and grading criteria are clearly communicated. Prof. Danis has a somewhat monotone lecture style, but his interest in linguistics is palpable. He is extremely accessible outside of class and grades assignments quickly and fairly. Very caring and professional instructor.

2/6/2024

I would highly recommend Professor Danis to anyone who is looking for an inspirational and funny intro class. Overall the course is pretty chill and the workload is not heavy. He will introduce you very quickly to this amazing world of linguistics. You can always ask questions and discuss anything related to linguistics with him at study hall.

12/28/2023

Super interesting class and Danis is a funny guy. He always made the 8AM entertaining by including jokes and photos of his cat on slideshows. Quizzes are take-home and open-note, but the questions can be pretty tricky. Keep up with lecture notes and ask questions during study halls, and you should be fine.

12/24/2023

Not a fan of Danis' teaching style or course structure. A bit too dry and too few grades. No study guides or quiz resources. Tests are purposefully worded so that the answers cannot be found in the textbook, although the tests are "open note." Interesting content, but you really have to read the textbook and take notes. Don't skip.

12/20/2023

Danis is a relaxed professor and a nice guy. Very dry disposition. You do have to take notes and learn the material but it's a pretty easy class. Interesting too, with good slides. I enjoyed it. It's not a complete freebie but it's a pretty easy class.

4/21/2023

I had absolutely zero previous knowledge or experience with linguistics but tests aren't bad and the study guides are like practice quizzes which you can retake as many times as you want. The pace was quick and he tried hard to keep us engaged, making jokes, explaining concepts with memes and telling us stories about his new baby.

1/18/2023

Professor Danis was great! Engaging lectures aided by memes and fun interactive participation, and he doesn't give much homework. As long as you take basic notes and skim through the textbook, you can easily get an A. This class piqued my interest in linguistics and language as a whole!

12/28/2022

Dr. Danis was such a fantastic professor! The class was engaging with really interesting lectures and discussion. Great dad humor. You could tell Dr. Danis really was passionate about the class. Will definitely take more linguistics classes from him and HIGHLY recommend taking a class with Danis.

2/4/2022

I really enjoyed Intro to Linguistics with Prof. Danis. His lectures aren't always the most engaging, but I learned a lot, and sometimes he throws in pictures of his cat and funny examples/videos. There are textbook readings and weekly quizzes but not a ton of work. Intro to Linguistics is a great class and definitely worth taking.

1/11/2021

Entertaining lectures and a really caring guy. Professor Danis really made linguistics interesting to learn about. Thoughtful and meaningful class discussions. Light homework load.

1/10/2021

Able to convey material clearly and learned a lot! Very approachable, accommodating, has clear slides, and has dry/dad humor. A great intro class overall and a survey into lots of linguistic topics.

12/1/2020

Phonetics was interesting and professor Danis is really nice. Overall, low stress class, but you still learn a lot.

4/24/2019