Very fair teacher, has video lectures and practice midterms/finals that are exactly like the actual exams. Just do your ALEKS and textbook problems and you are set. It's chemistry, so you have to put in a lot of the effort yourself instead of just relying on her lectures. Also heard she was one of the easier chem profs!! VERY PASSABLE CLASS :)

I was lowk a hater earlier in the quarter, but she ended up being a great professor. The lectures can be confusing because she goes through content rather quickly; it just depends on your learning style. The class is passable; you can fail both midterms and still pass if you lock in for the final. Def recommend taking her.

She's a nice person, but chemistry isn't. Lectures sometimes moved a bit too fast. Her midterms are similar to the practice ones, but 17 questions in forty-five minutes is CRAZY. Final wasn't so bad, it's a combination of all midterms, but just harder. To pass this class, you have to study every day, do ALEKS, attend office hours and go to CLAS.

Took her for Chem 1A, and the class was extremely difficult. She talks too fast in lecture and you have like 2 grades that make your final grade. Tests are mcq but if you get one wrong it tanks your whole grade. Didn't enjoy this class.

I really enjoyed having Sylvester, her practice midterms are almost exactly like the actual midterms. Her final is harder and way less like the practice finals she gives you, but your final replaces one of your lower midterm grades if it helps.

goes really fast and doesn't go into detail unless asked, but students are so confused they don't even know what to ask. section definitely helped but that was thanks to the ta.

Hot take I loved her. She was straight to the point and taught what we needed to know. Gave us plently of resources to do well on tests, tons of practice tests, only had multiple choice. Obviously you have to put in effort, especially if your bad at chemistry, however, you have all the resources to do well.

Professor is very clear in both lectures and setting expectations for the class. Though she doesn't take attendance, you should attend all lectures to fully take in all the material. Do all the assignments and study and you should be fine in her class. The toughest part of this course is one midterm score can make or break your grade.

This class was extremely challenging, you must be on top of ALEKS, study every week, and go to lectures. If you get stuck with a bad TA for section, good luck, my TA was arrogant and wasn't very kind to those of us who were suffering. Very test heavy, you must do the textbook problems, they WILL show up on exams. Sylvester is very sweet and funny.

Caring teacher who has clear expectations on grading and curves. The first midterm hits hard if you aren't ready, but the end-of-course curve is really nice.

Sylvester's lectures are a bit fast paced, but she gives you all the tools needed to succeed. Do as many book problems as possible (some book problems are harder than test questions but help you really understand topics), and take all the practice tests (with a timer).

Most of your grade is based on two midterms and a final. She provides practice exams for the midterms and the final, but not all questions are identical. Some textbook problems have also appeared as exam questions. This course can be challenging, but it's definitely doable--ask questions, go to CLAS tutorial groups, STUDY EARLY!

Sylvester is great+funny, but this class drained my soul like a fifteen-year-old laptop's battery. She curved after the final, but grade was based on two midterms and a final (+ALEKS completion). So if ur like me & don't test well, sorry ur screwed. I would rather breastfeed a snapping turtle than ever go near this class again + ALEKS is hell

Very good at explaining the material. Homework and practice tests prepare you well for the exams. Not difficult as long as you pay attention and study a little bit.

Great professor, only downside is the weird questions that come up on the exams. her practice exams prepare you for the midterms and final, but only for 85% of the actual test, cuz there will always be one problem that you've never seen and have to think critically on in a way you haven't really if you want that A.

I really liked how she taught by writing notes on the chalkboard--it made it much easier to follow along and process what we were learning. If you only do one thing to study: DO THE PRACTICE EXAMS (posted on Canvas); the tests are usually very similar. Do them until you understand all the problems and you'll be successful.

This was my first-ever chemistry class, and she made it easy to follow along. The class isn't bad at all because if you don't understand something in the lecture, the videos will also help explain the lecture again. Her sarcasm is pretty funny and she doesn't make the lectures boring.

Sylvester is honestly a solid professor in the chem department. I don't really see why people have given her a hard time in the past. She tells you what to do to succeed and even posts study plans. The practice exams are ESSENTIAL to studying, as she does pull from those as well as the textbook occasionally. Her class is very doable.

Very nice professor who makes an effort to relate to her students. I didn't love her lectures, feels like she simplifies things and moved too quickly at times. Homework is much easier than the tests so be ready to study a lot on your own from the textbook.

She was clear about what to do to be successful. That is, take the practice exams. However, I did find that her lecturing wasn't all that clear. I recommend Joseph if you want to feel like you thoroughly understand the material. Sylvester just gives a very simple explanation without the nuances that sometimes appear on exams.

makes chem pretty easy to understand and gives practice tests that are suuuuper helpful to prepare for exams. i never did book problems and i was fine just do all the practice tests and watch the vids if u miss lecture

I took chem 1a with two different professors (Jospeh and Sylvester) and I found that I loved Sylvesters teaching style a lot more. Jospeh focuses on slides, while Sylvester works it out on the board, and I found that to be really helpful. She is also less strict on tests and relies more on practice tests for problems. Would take again with her!!

In my opinion she is one of the top chem professors at UCSB. If you have the opportunity to take her class, I would.

I was a fan of how she taught! Pretty straightforward.