just put the effort into learning, and it will pay back, her tests were very similar to the practice test she gave out.

Most of lab section is spent sitting and waiting for something. The experiments we do are pointless and uninteresting, but every bio major has to take this class at some point. Your TA will determine how easy or hard the research paper assignment is. At least its way easier than 1LL.

Terrible professor. Monotonous tone makes lectures unbearable, tests you on the most obscure and minuscule details, and overall makes the class very unenjoyable. Only positives were the curve (~8%) and that she played music before lectures started in-person.

Prof. Finkelstein's teaching style did not align well with many students. It involved a lot of lecturing AT us and little to no interactive learning/engaging lessons. The iclickers and quizzes were slightly useful for gauging knowledge... but overall, a really poor learning experience. Tests were hard, and there was no traditional curve.

Finkelstein does not make this hard class any easier. Her lectures are extremely slow, and she asks for very detailed answers on her exams. Plant physio was tough, but CLAS helped somewhat.

Doesn't explain literally anything, regardless of whether the entire class gets iClicker questions wrong. Tests are ridiculously detail-oriented on things she mentioned offhandedly once, aren't on the slides, or even in the textbook!!! Not even enough time to look through them anyways She does provides a lot of resources for studying though

This is THE WORST professor I have EVER come across. I am so sorry if you ever have to sit through a class with this person. Her lectures are absolutely dreadful and her exam questions make you wonder why anyone would ever want to study biology. Seriously, I don't get what she is thinking when she comes up with these exam questions.

Her lectures are really hard to pay attention to because they are really dull and she has a very low voice. The slides she uses are really hard to take notes on because they are all pictures and very few words. I try so hard to pay attention in this class but catch myself zoning out every 5 minutes because she is so boring

The Biolab classes (1LL and 2LL) are horribly organized and a huge waste of three hours every week. This class also has super strict rules on grading and attendance and they will almost never make an exception for students under any circumstance. The only upside is that the final exam is a group test in 2LL.

Not good at her job. Has made multiple mistakes such as telling people incorrect grade cut offs and accusing people of cheating and later admitting it was her mistake. Makes you feel like a number. Weeder class

Half the class was accused of cheating on the last day of the quarter so no one could do anything about it. She didnt respond to the emails. Left us in the dark. Some got letters saying it was a mistake on their end. All exams had multiple mistakes they refused to fix. Waited to very last minute to submit final grades so we could not protest.

I liked Finkelstein even though her lectures were a little dry. She is very knowledgeable and always answers any questions you have. There are some scientific articles that are hard to understand but she helps you learn how to analyze papers better which I think is a good skill to have.

Lacks empathy and contributes to the (minimal) toxicity in the bio major. I dont understand how she has a job considering the immaturity and lack of self-awareness that she has. How did she even end up running the Intro Bio Labs? I cant believe the intro lab classes for the most impacted major on campus is this disorganized. UCSB deserves better.

If I could give her a zero I would. She is by far the worst faculty member I have ever had experience with at UCSB. This class was horribly organized, had unclear requirements, and Dr. Nguyen displayed a complete lack of compassion for her students on several occasions. I was actually excited to this class but this professor ruined it. TA was nice

Class is terribly organized, she doesn't respond to emails, changed grading policy to be harsher mid-quarter during a pandemic, even though the class uses 3 different websites to turn things in, all with different times due which is extremely confusing and difficult to keep track of. She is also uncaring and unsympathetic to student hardship.

literally the worst and least organized professor ever, does not respond to emails, is NOT understanding, changed the grading policy mid quarter to be less accommodating during the pandemic, and is m o n o t o n e

The class wasnt well run but not necessarily that difficult besides that. Dr. Nguyen didnt do her PhD in a molecular biology field, which was apparent when she tried do discuss even intro molecular biology topics, and especially more obvious in hindsight as you go on to upper div MCDB classes. Not the same level of quality as other UCSB profs.

Totally unorganized, making the material which was clear in lecture more confusing. Many of the questions she writes dont feel fair and her grading policy is rigid for a 1 unit class. If you every have her, Im sorry

The actual worst, she overcomplicates the lab practicals to the point where they're more difficult and time consuming than the actual classes. The lab manual is disorganized and barely corresponds to lectures anyways. Probably the worst person they could have chosen to organize the intro bio labs.

If I could rate her a zero I would

I am not someone who has a hard time focusing in class, but her monotone voice and lack of personality really makes it hard to get into the material. She does about 5 iclicker questions per lecture so bring that sucker to class. Tests are very hard, but as long as you study the lecture slides and do the online tests you will pass.

Her lectures are extremely boring. Watching the recordings 2x fast is the only way to get through them. Iclickers for accuracy, a few extra credit quizzes, and a review session for the final. Provides good resources, but really makes you work for a decent grade. Definitely do clas.

The literal worst, the labs are completely disorganized and the practicals test on tiny details with not enough time to answer the questions. The manual is horrible, and there's no guidance on the research project. WAY too much work for 1 unit.

There is so much content for this class, and you really need to know the nitty gritty details or else you will get many questions on the exams wrong. Lectures are dull and hard to pay attention to. She is not really approachable and does not seem that interested or enthusiastic about teaching. Go to CLAS, rewatch lectures, organize your notes.