Honestly my favorite professor at UCSB. His lectures are engaging and midterms/final were heavily based off of the slide/lecture material. I would recommend rewatching the lecture and going over the types of problems done in section before exams and you should do well!

Very nice guy. Content lectured on is exactly whats tested, no need to read textbook. Tests are very straightforward, questions are always expected. Only problem is sometimes questions are vague and it's hard to tell what he wants to see in your answer, there's a few Q's I've gotten wrong despite knowing the material, just because of wording.

I attended every 8am lecture, only for the test content to be based primarily on the book. Volland was a nice guy, but his tests just felt vague, and you cant get by by just attending lecture. In my opinion, you're probably better off taking Lalo.

Honestly wasn't upset the class started at 8am, Professor Volland is fun and prioritizes his students understanding the material. Office hours and textbook helps a lot. If you watch the recordings just know sometimes he writes new topics on the whiteboard, that doesn't get recorded. Exams are over 87% of your final grade so tread carefully.

Fall 2024 was the first time he lectured a course, so I gave him some leeway on that. The section material felt relevant for exams. Even though it was an 8 am lecture, it's hard *not* to be engaged with how he lectures and goes into detail. Overall, a great and cool professor!

I had professor Volland for MCDB101A during the Fall 2024 quarter and I thought he did an amazing job. His lectures were clear, engaging, and genuinely inspired an interest in genetics in me. I honestly wish he was teaching other classes because I would be sure to take them. Exams were not confusing, pretty much just off the slides from class.