BIOL 2200

Dr. Manson is very knowledgable and accommodating. If you ever had an issue with anything, she was always available and able to work with students to fix any problems. I ended the course with an A+ and I do believe that ending with an A is very doable. Her exams may seem difficult but if you pay close attention to lecture and wording, you will be fine. She records her lectures and I highly recommend rewatching them for any confusing concepts. There were times where I feel I had to do my own research to fully understand a concept as lecture did not explain it in enough depth, but she never tests outside of the material she provides. She has homework and reading grades which help to "buff" out your grade and are very easy to do. Lab is only once a week but it is hit or miss depending on your TA. The workload for lab is very simple (we never had to stay until full time), it just depends how strict your TA is when it comes to grading. The class is not much work besides exams, however, it is important to study in advance and take good notes on the things she says in lecture.

Manson is a super sweet professor and is so willing to help her students. That being said, I found this class very hard. I got an A but spent countless hours studying and still didn't perform as well on most of the exams as I wanted to. I also hadn't taken 2100 before it so I can't compare the two. The strategy that started to work for me was to rewatch lectures the day of and take notes on literally everything that she says. Most people I knew in the class would rewatch all the lectures the week before the exam, but I think by doing it the day after you really drill the concepts into your mind and you won't fall behind. Then start dedicated studying the weekend before the exam (exams are on Fridays). I would make a quizlet and study that and also draw out phylogenies once you get to that point in the unit. Phylogenies will always be on an exam so it's really good practice for them. She also gives practice exams both through the online textbook and she writes her own with about 20 practice questions. Don't do these questions until you feel very prepared for the exam so that you can get the most out of it. I've heard her office hours are very helpful but I was never able to go because they were all during my class time. If you don't want to you really don't need to do the HW in my opinion. By that I mean you can just look up answers if you want to, you still have to do them for credit. Everything on the tests comes straight from lecture and there will be things in the textbook that you absolutely do not need to know. The textbook can be really helpful if you're struggling with a concept and need to reinforce it with more material/figures though. The final was 10x easier than all of the other midterms and it really only talks about surface level material. Most people finished in under an hour. Overall she's an awesome lecturer and I don't think she's out to get you with the exams, but they are challenging. Just make sure to do all the textbook HW and check all your work with TAs in lab so that you leave yourself with as much as a buffer for exam grades as possible. She offers a few different opportunities for extra credit too which is great.

I really enjoyed Mansons class, it thought it was much easier than 2100 (I was able to finish with an A+ in this class and a C+ in 2100). Its not an easiest class but if you put in work you can do well

Tips
- ALWAYS go to office hours! Manson leaves a lot of things out of lecture that and she goes more in depth about and explains in OH. They are usually pretty small and she answers every question and goes in depth. If you do nothing else PLEASE go to office hours.
- P2L for this class wasnt great in my opinion, I went like three times but I felt like the tutors didnt know what was going on, if you dont get to it for this class you arent really missing anything
- READ THE TEXTBOOK BEFORE LECTURE (only the pages she assigns). The pages are pretty short and easy to skim but if you dont read before lecture you will definitely be lost in every class. Manson's lectures about body systems were very confusing and reading the textbook or watch a video it is easier to understand.

EXAMS
I studied by using active recall, I made a quizlet after each lecture. Also going over PollEv questions (very similar to the exam questions), Mastering BIO and office hours. Manson has practice exams and she provides alot of other ways to practice problems. They are 70% of your grade so start studying at least a week out
- LEARN HOW SHE WRITES HER EXAMS. Mansons exams were hard because she uses tricky wording and vocabulary. If it seems like a simple question it probably isnt so make sure you read through each slowly. Also remember exceptions and specific language, especially when it comes to evolution (for example saying 'the goal of evolution' is always wrong).
- Her questions are heavy on process of elimination or which response is MORE correct. There are some where every choice is technically correct so be warned

The lab is pretty easy for the class though, depending on your TA, and you can usually do pretty well but some TAs are hard graders. She has a 1% extra credit for doing 90% of the PollEvs, it not much but it helps. Unlike Kittlesen though she also has an exam drop so take advantage of that (I got to skip the final).

Compared to BIOL 2100, this class was far more easy and enjoyable. Manson is great at lecturing; she likes to tell stories and give examples to help dumb down concepts. Honestly, I gave up reading the textbook after the first exam. Everything you need to know for the exam is said in lecture. Now this doesn't mean memorize her slides and you're all set for the exam. Her exam questions require a bit more thinking but they follow a reasonable line of thinking. Process of elimination is your best friend. She has a form you can fill out during the exam if you have any questions/concerns. Sometimes points are given back for another answer choice or all depending on the situation. I remember she once accepted all answers for a small typo (a word was missing an -s) because it may have been confusing. Poll Everywhere is still a thing BUT she actually goes through why the correct answer is right and all the others are wrong. Her PollEv questions are a good reflection of exam type questions SO TAKE NOTE. Lab follows lecture content based, however it was all over the place. Just know that your lab grade depends on your TA. A lab assignment is submitted at the end of lab. The questions are open response. Sometimes each group decides to research different things. So the rubric Manson gives to TA's is really just a suggestion. For example, her rubric will give points if a concept was mentioned and explained in the answer choice, but your TA may deduct points because "you could have said more" or "you're right, but this word you used in this context is wrong". I went to office hours about this, but Manson said she can't do anything about how TA's choose to grade. At the ends of the semester, I got an email that our lab section had on average really low grades compared to the other sections. She only offered to increase our lab grade by 1%. Unfair when you compare it to other sections, so be warned.

As someone who did not get an A in this class (I got a B -- and WORKED for it) listen up. This class is tough. Lecture goes extremely fast. I felt like many times the most important, complex topics were extremely rushed and never went over again. This class requires SO much time outside of lecture and preparing for exams. Let me help you. As someone that would start studying an entire week before her exams and take maybe 12-20 hours (or more) and still get around a B on all her exams, I want to help you succeed. USE P2L!!! This will help you guide studying and get a better understanding of topics that she rushed through lecture. (Especially if April is still a P2L leader, she is awesome! go to her!) Exams are 70% of your overall grade, so STUDY (they aren't curved either). Use your online resources. Don't read the textbook, it's a waste of time. Memorize her lecture slides, and as you are studying look things up online to get a better understanding. I felt like I taught myself pretty much everything in this class. Online videos are really useful and draw yourself charts, and compare/contrast. I would write 30 pages of hand-written notes from her lecture slides and from videos I watched online to help me study. (Obviously everyone studies differently, but it's important to give yourself enough time to go through everything). She does provide a practice exam the Tuesday before your Friday exam slot, THESE QUESTIONS ARE NOT ON THE EXAM SO DO NOT STUDY THE PRACTICE TEST. This is to help you use what you know and apply it to her questions. I don't think I ever saw a question she reused from one of them. My advise would be to have all the other lectures studied before you take the practice exam to really help you apply the content.

Additionally, she teaches new material up to the last class before the exam, and it is on the exam. Try to have gone through other lectures before the Monday and Wednesday that she teaches new material before the Friday exam. You don't want to have to rush last minute. When you get to the exam, her exam questions are long, confusing and very tricky wording sometimes. It feels like many times there are two correct answers, this is why it's important to have EVERYTHING memorized so you can rule out other answers. If you receive a low grade on one of the exams, you can drop it if you take the final (which is a little easier than her other exams, but still study!) There are 4 exams that count in this class (4 highest scores) and 5 total exams. Final is 'optional' if you are happy with your grade, but I would recommend taking it any way because it's meant to help you. Overall, this class is hard, but not impossible if you put in the work! I'm so glad this class is over, but I've learned how to study more efficiently for the future. Good luck!

I took this class as a first year biology major, and I ended with a B+. I had taken AP bio in high school and Dr. Kittlesen’s BIOL 2100 prior to this class. I loved Dr. Manson as a biology professor; she’s definitely my favorite out of the four biology teachers I’ve had. I fully believe she tries to make the class fair to everyone, no matter your interests or motivations. Her lectures are typically easy to follow, but it’s extremely important to understand what she says and figure out how to apply that to different scenarios. I went to P2L every single week from the start of the semester, and I still found many exams to be challenging. What helped me the most was reviewing the lectures (since her exams were completely based on what she said in lecture) and spending a lot of time on MasteringBiology questions. I read the textbook in the beginning of the semester, but I learned it was better to focus solely on what Manson had said, especially because she explains concepts very well, so there’s little need for clarification through the textbook readings.

There are 5 exams (including the cumulative final) that account for 70% of your grade, but she drops your lowest score. Labs (pre-lab quizzes and post-lab reports) account for 20% of your grade. Homework (MasteringBiology 3x/week) accounts for 10% of your grade. Participation through PollEv can earn you an extra 1%. I was really sick this semester and missed many classes, but I still got an extra 0.93%.

For my lab, my TA was extremely sweet and helpful. In my experience so far, you can earn a 100% in your labs as long as you communicate with your TA well to make sure you complete things correctly. Labs were cool when we got to use microscopes (for two of the labs), but I wasn’t a big fan of them otherwise. They were crafty (e.g. card games) and I never left the room with a better grasp on what they were trying to teach us.

I think I could have improved if I had gone to Manson’s office hours, and if I had studied with friends/groups more. The few times I did study with friends, we were able to point out each other’s misunderstandings because there’s so many intricate details (like all of the plants covered in exam 2) that are easy to confuse.

Overall, this course definitely taught me more than any other STEM course I’ve taken in my life. I enjoyed the content from the beginning, even if I wasn’t performing as well on exams as my classmates. I think my lowest score was 26/35 (exam 2), and my highest was 29.75/35 (final). Also, don’t be afraid to point out any possible errors on the exams. Manson is very open to comments. When I pointed out that one of the questions didn’t have a correct answer (because the correct answer was not totally correct), I was able to get a point back. Manson is extremely thoughtful when it comes to discussion. Her email reply to my exam comment was kind and conveyed how grateful she was to learn something new, which is an attitude I appreciated more than anything.

My one hour of groupwork each week was my weekly P2L session. My three hours of writing per week is my note taking on paper. I estimated that I read/studied 8 hours/week because I’m a slow reader/learner. #tCFS24

As someone who received an A+, this class certainly requires time and effort to do well. The exams are the primary focus, and everything you do outside of lecture should be spent preparing for the exams. Here's what I recommend:

1. Start making study guides ASAP. Some time after each lecture, pop back into the slides, make a few flashcards (I made plenty in Quizlet which certainly helped), and do your best to do a little bit of studying every day-- 5 min of review can be the difference maker in retention. Not only will it make it easier to study leading up to the test, but you'll save yourself precious cram time later on.
2. Ask yourself the kinds of questions you'd expect to see on a test-- Biol2200 is not a cut-and-paste, match the term/definition-style class. Think about the functions of processes in the greater scope of biology, and focus on how/why one thing affects another, not just what that thing does on its own. In other words, while vocab is extremely important, try to understand how all the pieces fit together, and the significance of each individual part.
3. Study with true/false questions. Every question on the exam is multiple-choice, so realistically, you should approach each answer option with a true/false mindset. Either the option is outright false, sometimes true (which is never good enough), or definitely/always true. She'll never include two options which are always true (though she does sometimes give out pity points for misleading questions, from which I certainly benefited). Keep this in mind when using process of elimination, and I strongly encourage adding your own true/false questions in your study guides to prepare for ambiguous questions, of which will be plenty.
4. *More of a superstition* - Avoid cramming a ton the day of the exam. In my purely anecdotal experience, if you study well leading up to the exam, then you can avoid yourself a lot of anxiety (and precious exam time) worrying over extraneous information. The stress of packing too much info right before a test and wondering whether you studied enough is often enough to throw you off your game when it comes time to take the test. You've got this, and you know everything. Don't psyche yourself out.
5. Never, ever, ever second-guess yourself. Unless you're 100% certain you misread a question, misunderstood an answer option, or remembered some last-minute detail, don't change your answer on a whim. Chances are, you were right the first time, and always try to prove yourself wrong before caving into that last-second panic attack.

You'll do great. The class is just another stepping stone in a long journey ahead of you. No matter what grade you receive, you are worth more than a single letter, and so much more than a 3-digit number. Happy studying.

The course is a very similar structure to BIOL 2100. I highly recommend attending lectures because everything on the exams is entirely lecture based. There is no need to read the textbook. For every lecture you will have a mastering bio homework assignment that is relatively short. I suggest looking up the answers to make sure you are getting them right. Homework is only 10% of the final grade but you want to make sure you get all the points you can since the exams are more challenging. The labs are a bit on the boring side, but they were all really easy. Her wording on the exams can be very tricky. I found myself over thinking the answer choices and getting stuck because multiple answers seemed correct. Make sure to fill out the form she gives you if you find any questions confusing. She will look through all the responses and gives credit for an extra question or two on each exam if there are enough responses. #tCFS24

As someone who got an A in the course and didn't have to take the final - got lots of tips and tricks:

How I structured studying for this course:
- Had class Monday, Wed, Fri. During the weekend I would re-listen to lectures from the week and use anki image occlusion on all of the power-points (and I mean ALL of it! I had about 500 cards per unit) including handwritten notes I wrote on the slide. I would also throw in my anki deck any homework questions I found tricky.
- A week before the midterms start synthesizing with a friend concepts. Test each other, draw stuff out on white boards (processes, concept maps, venn diagrams).

When taking the test
- I took the whole two hours. For each question I would write down a,b,c,d and cross out and scribble notes and reasonings for eliminating or choosing a certain answer choice. This A) makes it easier for you to go back and confirm you have the right option B) confirms that you picked the best option.
- Her wording is tricky, sometimes her questions don't make sense (those are usually dropped after). Be careful. Read every word.

Tips:
- I never once opened the textbook the entire course. Everything she tests comes from her mouth. Her lectures are your bible for this course.
- I would go to office hours once every other week if I had lingering conceptual questions, I found them helpful.
- Studying far in advance will do you wonders. There is a lot of content and the farther ahead you study the happier you will be. Just take it little by little.
- DO NOT undermine her tests. You are going to be learning some easy concepts but still put in the time to learn it.
- Re-listen to lectures at least once.

This class takes a lot of effort to do well, and her exams can be very tricky, but I hope these tips help!

Even as someone who took it for pre-med, I surprisingly enjoyed this course better than BIOL2100. Manson had a lot of passion for teaching about subjects she enjoyed, especially with plants, and it made learning the content more engaging. However, it is an intro bio course and it can hit you like a truck if you don't study efficiently. The grading scale is 70% tests, 20% labs, and 10% homework with a 1% Pollev bonus. I'll share tips on how I studied for each section (which wasn't easy at first even though I estimate my grade to be in the A range lol).

Tests (70%) - This one is typically the bane of people's existence - especially since her tests are notorious for confusing wording - and you will hear a lot of people on Yikyak complaining lol. What I did was take her learning objectives from the slides that she gave, fill out the learning objectives with her powerpoint notes and other additional details that I made, and put it into a Google doc for an extensive study guide. I use an Ipad for notes in class this but computer works as well. After everything is organized based off of learning objective + topic (ex: bryophytes), I would write down the main points/word the notes into my own words on a whiteboard. Drawing out diagrams is also extremely helpful - especially in preparation for the 3rd and 4th exams. After you write down everything, try to figure out how to connect all of these ideas since Manson's exams are application based like Kittlesen's. I also recommend studying with your friends since if they're confused on a topic - you can try to explain it to them and vice versa. Regarding actually taking the exam, be extremely careful in choosing answers. A tip that I use: if one part of the answer is wrong, the answer choice is completely wrong. It helps to narrow down answer choices! Take your time as well - her wording is confusing and you want to take as much time to comprehend what she's saying.

Labs (20%) - This one is dependent on your TA but I was lucky to have a really chill TA and lab group. Me and my lab group would divide the work (ex: one answers the post-lab questions, one does work on DataClassroom, etc) and we would be done within an hour or less. Make sure that your work is divided amongst your group and ask TAs for help!

HW (10%) - The HW is on Mastering Bio like BIOL2100 if you had taken it. For me, I would just answer based off of textbook/activity that Mastering Bio gives and check with Quizlet (which will be ur goat in HW trust). Don't make HW harder than it needs to be!

If you answer/keep up with pollev questions, you'll get the pollev bonus and you don't have to get the questions right all the time as well!

Intro Bio is hard but you got this trust! :)

#tCFS24