Good luck. Exams are hard. If you have the time, talk to a TA as much as possible.

Gainer has archaic standards, requiring students to write in pen and specifically use a composition style notebook. He disallows graphing calculators on his tests forcing many students to scramble to get a scientific calculator. The final was terribly written having a significant portion of its questions on content from one lecture.

Taking this class made me realize my life's just a misery.

It was not the hardest class in ucsb but the worst. I didn't realize there was a practical test until the last experiment. Prof Gainer didn't mentioned it in syllabus. Also, the quizzes were unfair and were made by TAs. Always one harder and one easier version. Don't take it unless you are required. Good luck.

6AL and 6BL took a lot of effort and lab reports took forever, but also some of the most interesting, fulfilling, and rewarding content and classes I have EVER taken. Everything Gainer says really clicks. He's a great lecturer and amazing person to ask questions to. Absolutely adored him and ended up really loving these labs.

Lab reports/quizzes are all graded by the TAs. He was a good lecturer in 6AL, only thing he does in 6BL is essentially make the final. Final is VERY difficult and will probably bring your letter grade down by one (happened to me and all my friends). Study for the final create a routine for the class.

y'know what? smash.

Gainer was a good lecturer overall and explained concepts pretty clearly. The midterms were pretty fair and doable, but the final is a lot trickier and harder and basically determines your grade, so make sure to study a lot for it. Lectures are mandatory and it's pretty pard to catch up if you've missed one

Definitely feels like a heavier class than other lab I've taken. You have to go to lecture or you will be soooo lost. A lot of grading depends on what TA you get but overall if you put in the work it's doable.

Gainer's classes can be challenging, but engaging with the material and using study tools like unstuck study can help you succeed. The final is tough, so focus on the lab reports and quizzes. Overall, a worthwhile class if you put in the effort.

Gainer is very active during lecture but doesn't teach as well as Lewis. You will have to learn material outside of class as he expects you to know more than you probably do. Has a hard final which he creates while his TAs make the quizzes. Do well on the lab reports and 3 of the quizzes and you will do well. Cushion your grade before the final.

Dreaded going to lecture because they were so dense, with little to no explanations (always left confused). The exams were quite difficult, you definitely have to study or at least review something. The labs are alright, it really depends on your TA to make or break your grade. The prof was passive aggressive, vibes were off, not very welcoming.

Study for the final - it basically determines your grade in the class. 6AL is not too hard except for the final. Gainer is really nice, but becomes a new beast on test days.

6AL really was just a pain. Not a single thing about it was fun. TA was passive aggressive grading assignments, and Gainer is also passive aggressive. The whole thing was just too uptight for literally no reason. I don't expect classes to be fun, but this class was so miserable for no reason. Miserable class, miserable people.

I honestly will 100% put him up there with Scott Price because they are that good. Chem 6AL by far, most work I ever had to do for one class but not impossible. He is such a clear lecturer, FUNNY and is SO nice during office hours (very understanding). He explains the concepts so clearly and I looked forward to his class sm! I also had a goated TA.

He is one of the professors that does not care about his students (which was hard coming from Lewis who goes above and beyond). Slides are mostly blank. Recorded lectures missing chucks of material. He lectures in the barest bones of chemistry and expects you to teach yourself. Highly elitist.

This class wasn't as hard as people say. I'm glad I took it as a 4th year so that I could focus on it more. Barely anyone ever went to his office hours which is weird bc I found them to be helpful. He is nice and will help you if you ask for it. He's not condescending like other chem profs can be. Gainer makes tests very difficult though so study!

Highly disagree with the bad reviews. Amazing chemistry professor. Super approachable and gives plenty of resources. JUST DO THE RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOK PROBLEMS, they are recommended for a reason. Slower paced than other chem courses. Take ASAP after finishing prereqs even if you don't like the lab time. The final was the only rough part. Lab is fun.

Lectures are pretty much useless since he pretty much only reads off the slides. The final was extremely theory heavy for a lab class but was fair in terms of difficulty. Probably the most mid professor I've had so far, but he has personality.

Not bad. He wants students to succeed and is kind. However, the most concerning thing about the class is definitely the "class environment" since the class grade is curved and on average only 3 people can get A in the class. Every student in the class is a potential competitor of you.

Dr. Gainer is a good lecturer and presents the material well. However, he does not provide many resources to practice for exams. In the material he does provide there's often little explanation or errors which makes it difficult to prepare for quizzes.Your grade will ultimately be based on the exams instead of lab... for chem lab.

He is a good lecturer but his quizzes are too long for how much time he gives us. The final is heavy on theory for a class that is a "Lab".

I had Professor Gainer for 109A and did alright. I felt like he was way behind in grading in 6AL and that he wasn't super accessible outside of class. I also had a very strict TA who was tough on grading but not super helpful in the actual experiments.

This is my 2nd time taking Gainer. I lost my A+ this time because there's a super knowledgeable student in my section. He gave fair quizzes and lab final, and made them as college-level as possible. TA was super helpful that she proofread my lab reports every week in the office hour and offered helpful comments on how to improve. I liked Labflow.