CHEM 1410

Welch is an incredible professor!! He explains the concepts in a manner that is clear and engaging. His tests are very fair in that they cover the important concepts, their exceptions, and of course the application of them. There are 4 tests that make up 45% of your grade but the lowest score only counts as 6% whereas your other three count for 13% each. There are weekly reading quizzes composed of 5 questions which can be challenging at times when you fall behind. The sapling problem sets are also weekly and these may take anywhere from an hour to 3+ hours if your understanding of the topic is rough and you take the time to fully grasp the material. Clicker questions are basically in class participation which is only 5% of your grade. If you answer at least 90% of your clicker questions tho, then you get the whole 5%. The final is also very fair and if you go over the past exams, reading quizzes, problem sets, and lecture notes you will ace it.

I would suggest doing the readings before lecture (they are usually just 3-4 pages) and taking diligent notes during lecture. I found the sapling problem sets to be one of the best resources for solidifying your understanding of the material.

Gen Chem is a very difficult course for many, but with Welch and very hard work on your part, you can achieve the grade you desire and learn a lot.

He was a very good teacher and explained what was going to be on the tests there was reading quizzes each week which we sort of a pain in the butt to do but would aid in your understanding of the material. All i did to study for tests was review his lectures and a couple of the saplinglearning problems and got an A- in the class. Also he would usually have a review day the day of the exam since you take the exam during your discussion time which was very helpful since he would review what you specifically needed to know for the exam. I had a lot better experience with him than my friends did with the other chem teachers.

Welch is my man! He's really good at explaining complex concepts and he'd always answering questions at the end of his lectures. 10/10 would recommend. His lecture is very high in demand, so sign up as soon as possible!

Welch is the best CHEM 1410 professor. Hands down. Highest averages among Lisa and Metcalf. He covers mainly class material on the exams and is a pretty good lecturer. He will help you understand the material a lot more if you go to his office hours. So if you have trouble, try and meet with him. He's a pretty funny guy and is real understanding. If you are going to take Chem I, he's pretty much the way to go. Exam averages speak for themselves to be honest.

Welch is by far the best teacher for Chem 1410. He's a really goofy guy and makes lectures fun. If you put time into weekly questions and mastering chem and pay attention in class, you should be successful on the tests. I've gotten As on every test and and ending with an A in the course.

Kevin was by far my favorite professor this semester. If you are not taking Chemistry with him I'm not sure what you're thinking unless theres an EXTREME schedule conflict. Vey knowledgeable about the material and he is very fair knowing how difficult chem can be.

I succeeded in AP chemistry in highschool, but decided to take this course instead of 1810. I personally thought AP was MUCH harder than this course with Welch. I barely studied and only missed points for significant figures on each of the exams. All of my friends in Morkowchuk and Metcaf suffered so much in this course, while everyone in Welch had a pretty good experience. I like chemistry a lot so I though all of the lectures were pretty interesting, sparsely boring. This year, Welch's exam averages were around 84 each exam, Morkowchuk 78, and Metcaf 70, to give you a little insight on the discrepancies of the classes. Take chem with Welch if you can!!!! PS here's a tip for the discussions: they're extremely boring and they take attendance at the end, so I would show up 45 minutes late every week just in time to write my name down to get those extra credit points ;)

I struggled with this class, it is one of my more difficult classes and first semester of my first year. I have no prior experience with AP chemistry, and I took chemistry in high school my sophomore year, much of which I didn't remember at all. Welch is a good professor to take Intro Chem. He made the room feel smaller in his entertaining lectures. Clicker questions were used for attendance and often I didn't attend lectures and didn't feel too left behind thanks to slides being posted and pretty predictable. Grades consisted of Weekly Questions, Participation, Mastering Chemistry, and Tests/Exams. Welch is a good teacher and gives out amazing slides that look really good, but he sometimes would go on tangents which often confused me. His lectures were interesting however I felt I wasn't prepared fully for the tests with lectures and classwork alone. Readings are crucial, especially for understanding the math behind many of the problems, due to only broad concepts being covered in class. (meaning I used an of Organic Chemistry Tutor youtube videos to understand concepts fully) (really recommend his hybridization video because Welch explained it horribly https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otYj92d7rB0) Mastering Chemistry was often frustrating with the lack of help from the book and class. Thankfully Mastering Chemistry wasn't due until the end of the semester (in December) so we didn't have to worry much about getting that done by the end of the week. Weekly Questions acted as a quizlike grade, open book, and open note, and open friends. However, questions were extremely difficult. I would recommend getting friends to work on them together with to get them done. Tests were quite difficult and often tests far beyond the concepts taught, asking students to know things beyond class concepts. I would recommend studying the Mastering Chemistry and grey areas in the margins of the book. I also strongly recommend checking back on the tests and requestion resubmissions, which I found out about late in the game, due to many errors on the test and errors in grading. I didn't find the TA's discussion times especially helpful, due to silly busywork and it is a waste of my time often. At each discussion, you could get a half point extra for your final grade for participating and filling out a card. I didn't receive my full credit I guess due to errors in the collection about it, whatever. I won't be taking with Welch again because I didn't like how he left out the math part of chemistry and I have heard a lot of amazing things about Linda Columbus and her much higher averages, so we shall see.

Let me tell you how much I LOVED this class. I was terrified of taking college level chemistry but Kevin Welch totally turned that around. Lectures were informational, coherent, and even fun. Clicker questions aren't graded, and he never made anyone feel bad about asking stupid questions. Exams were extremely fair, and he only asked about things we explicitly covered in class. Concepts are tough, but you can absolutely be successful in Welch's gen chem 1 if you're willing to put in some effort.

Welch has been my favorite professor at UVA. He's an engaging and funny lecturer, and makes seemingly dull topics interesting. If you read the textbook and pay attention in lecture you'll do just fine.