Dr. Finkelstein is a great teacher and is the most helpful person ever. Not going to lie, really tough but rewarding.

Dr Finkelstein is very helpful and understanding if you talk to her. She will also give you hints by "clarifying" her tricky tests if you ask her intelligent questions. She is a very nice woman!!!!

Not really helpful. It is extremely useful if you attend CLAS. Her final was pretty hard. Be prepared to know every detail that lies within her slides and even more. Her tests make it extremely difficult to pick the actual correct answer because they will be formatted to be: A, B, C, A and C, or All of the above (this is an example of course).

Very smart and knows her stuff. However, her test questions are very tricky. 4 words: know everything about everything. Yes, plant physiology is boring, but this isn't her fault. SOMEONE has to teach it to us. However, the fact that she makes her test questions very tricky IS something that is in her hands. Again, know everything about everything

I liked her! I studied A LOT but since I did, the final was super easy. Just go over her slides a lot a lot a lot. Honestly, the hardest part about her test is that the answers are wrong because one word is off or something. But if you study you will do great! And she always answered my questions after class. She's really nice.

She has an affinity over plants, she really does; but teaching plants was just not her thing. She's very smart and knows everything about plants, but plants are just not something that many people enjoy. I liked her, but not plants. At least she tried. Teaching plant physiology is just not her strength at what she does.

BRUTAL final. Know everything about everything. She's really smart and knowledgeable at what she does. But that doesn't make things any better esp. when you're a premed and need near stellar grades for your goals of going to med school. booo

boring lecturer, horrible slides that fail to define a lot of simple processes or terms, and dull subject. covers a lot more depth than I needed for an intro class.

sweet lady! you can't help but smile if you talk with her in person - she loves to help people and gives proper direction. if you have any problems, or think the class is too hard, TALK TO HER! she will make it so much easier!

great class. she has clear lecture slides and she provides great supplemental detail! to all those people leaving (-) comments, they prob just don't know how to sort out supplemental detail from what she wants you to know, which she makes clear even in 1b. Very knowledgeable & a GREAT resource for plants, genetics, or developmental! give her a try!

Had her for mcdb 1b too. She's one of the smartest people I know - I don't just mean knowing the material. There is so much people can learn from her, and I think you have to take something other than an intro class of 800+ before you can properly judge anybody - she is so much better than these comments

I liked her. You could tell she really loves plants. She just seems really boring when she's following Dr. Low who is so enthusiastic! If you study all the material and do her practice final or quizzes you'll do fine.

she is very smart but her lectures are incredibly boring, unless you happen to love plants. that isnt her fault though. her test questions are very difficult and you need to know the information backwards and forwards.

Not only are her lectures so boring its unbearable to sit through, but her exams are the hardest tests ever. I'd rather watch plants grow then listen to her talk about plants. avoid if possible. she tries to kill students with exams and doesn't care if ppl do bad

Her midterm was ridiculous, not because the material was hard, but because of the way she worded the problems. Did not read the book, because all her exams were purely from her vague lecture slides. Not a very good professor, does not explain the concepts well.

She isn't mean, but she didn't seem to care if the class understood what she was talking about or not. Doesn't explain things well. Tough and tricky exam. I had to read the book thoroughly to figure out all the information for myself. She goes into too much detail about things. Avoid if possible.

I thought she was ok. The final is straightforward, if you keep up in the info and take CLAS you will do fine. I almost got an A, and everyone made it out to be impossible. Don't be scared of her, just keep up and you will do fine!

very confusing and tedious class. i definitey put in many hrs before the final but got an A

she's sooooo boring! monotone voice, stands still behind the podium the whole time, and every once in awhile says, "does anyone have a question? well i have a question for you." her tests are EXTREMELY hard. have fun learning about plants.

Lectures are helpful if you can stay awake during them. Her tests are a bit ridiculous with the way she words the questions and it really seems as if she doesn't want her students to do well. The class is definetly passable though and plant bio only lasts for 5 weeks

WORST PROFESSOR I'VE HAD. End of story. Class couldn't be more boring, reflected by the fact that about 10% of the people actually understand wtf is going on. She is monotonous, says the same thing over and over, and tests you on your ability to memorize worthless details. STAY AWAY FROM THE FINK!!!

I went to her office hours frequently and she is very helpful and approachable! This class was not easy but if you actually go to lecture and study you will find the tests are fine. She is such a nice sweet lady and does not deserve most of these comments. I think she's a great teacher.

She's a nice teacher. Lectures might be a bit all over the place. But the tests are straight forward. I have to disagree w/ these other ppl's comments about her, because she's a nice person and very approachable and helpful. If you think her class is hard, it's probably your fault. Because I worked hard and I got a really good grade. No complaints.

She needs to retire. Worst teacher at UCSB. Tests are impossible even if you are an expert at the material. Tries to confuse the hell out of you on every question. Completely unapproachable and very moody all the time. Only way to get an A is to get lucky no joke.