BIOL 2100

This class was probably the hardest class i've ever had to keep up with in my life but not impossible. The labs, homework and readings are EASY (I never read the textbook) and don't really help on the exams. However, he records his lectures (audio only) which is what saved me. I would still go to lecture because through the recordings you can't see what he's demonstrating, but after I committed about 5 hours after every lecture to relisten to every single word he was saying and write DETAILED notes, making sure I understood what he was talking about. I also went to p2L every week but no office hours, and I ended up with an A in the class. If you commit to studying his lecture recordings, you will be ok!

Bio 2100 was definitely not easy, but it is a very manageable course if you use the resources available to you. First off, you need to be locked in during lecture. You should be taking notes on pretty much everything he says, because a test question could be based off something he only mentioned once randomly in lecture. He doesn't talk extremely fast, but once he starts he doesn't stop. If you miss something he says, mark the minute in your notes and relisten to that part of the lecture after class. Once you have your notes from class, you should work to fill out the learning objectives he gives you because those are the topics and points that he's going to test on for that unit. And if you don't understand something, read the textbook section related to that. Other than that, the readings really aren't all that important because he only tests on what he talks about in class. I wasted a lot of time at the beginning of the semester taking detailed notes on each reading and it was not helpful. After a few weeks, I stopped reading the textbook other than as a reference when I didn't understand something and that worked really well. Also, don't be stupid like I was before the first exam and wait til the day before the exam to write out your learning objectives. That was not a fun night. Another thing I couldn't recommend more is going to p2l and office hours! The p2l coaches really help you understand things that Dave might not have fully explained in class. Each one has a different style so definitely try out a few different coaches to figure out what works best for you. As for office hours, you don't even need to come with questions you can just come listen because there will be a bunch of people asking questions. I would just take notes and a lot of times people would ask things I was wondering about too. Also, Dave will usually tell you what will and will not be on the exams for a certain topic if you ask about it in office hours, which is super helpful. And then there's the homework. There's 1-2 mastering bio assignments a week. Just make sure to turn those in on time because you get 25% off each assignment for each day late, and you want to have a good homework grade to boost your overall grade because it's worth 10%. Lastly, for studying, make sure to work on application not memorization. Of course there are certain things you have to memorize, but you also need to know how to apply concepts, because Dave's questions often give hypothetical scenarios where you have to figure out how to apply a familiar concept in a new way. I found it super helpful to practice this application by studying with friends and talking things out and testing each other. Studying together is so much better! Other than the studying the week leading up to an exam, I probably spent maybe 3 hours a week working on bio ( filling out learning objectives) which wasn't too bad. Like I said, it was pretty manageable if you use all the resources you're given. The exams are hard, but doable and there's often some sort of indirect curve or way to boost your score, so don't stress. You've got this!!!

To be honest, I struggled a bit with this class. Taking this as one my first college classes ever I think was fine, but I also hadn't adopted the right study habits in time to succeed in this class as well as I could have. I did learn pretty quickly that the best way of studying for the exams was rewatching every lecture and writing down geniunely every word this man said. Then I would move it to the learning objectives and then do active recall on a whiteboard (if I could find one). I did meh on some of the exams, okay on others, and only performed really well on one. I ended with a B+ overall, which I was happy with, but be prepared to start studying a lot earlier than you think. You need to make sure you understand the applications of EVERYTHING, not just what they are or what they do. All the concepts are connected and he expects you to know and be able to apply those concepts. I liked him enough, he was funny occasionally, however he starts off the class by saying it's not a weed out class. It is. But you can definitely do well if you use the resources they offer.

I had an interesting approach to this class. I took this my first semester, first year, and it was easily my most time-consuming class, but I also took a relatively light course load so it is not saying much. I figured out pretty quickly what worked best for me, and though it is different for everyone else, I would leave my computer open in my dorm/library/study room/location of choice, do the poll ev, then watch the lecture after the recording was uploaded twice in a row. The first time, I listened for comprehension, while the second I wrote down every word he said and crossed reference his lecture with the textbook, which I always had open. You do not need the textbook to succeed in this class, but I know myself and I know I am very dense and would need it to solidify my understanding, therefore I would recommend it if you do not have an extensive background in biology. Additionally, GO TO OFFICE HOURS. I went to office hours every single time he had them and I cannot express enough how helpful it was. Also, Dave is really really sweet! It brings him joy to have familiar faces at his office hours, and he is very patient and understanding. I thought that the class was challenging, but not impossible. However, you cannot bs your way through this class like you can with others, and you MUST put the time in.
Key takeaways: rewatch lecture recordings, do whatever you can to solidify understanding (as test questions are very abstract and require complex understanding of topics), go to office hours, and be able to explain all of the learning objectives.