Professor Sylvester is probably the best intro-chem series professor that the school offers (which is not saying alot). Her lectures are extremely well organized and she provides a lot of resources for you to succeed. The course is just extremely hard, so be prepared to log many hours studying.
Professor Sylvester is a great teacher and super kind. I'm not the best at chemistry, but I'm really grateful for all of the resources she provides to get help. The tests are challenging and cover lots of material, but thanks to the amazing curve I was able to pass this class. Sylvester is great and I definitely recommend taking her for Gen Chem!
Sylvester was the best chem professor I ever took. Writes things down on the whiteboard and doesn't post direct notes (she has videos) but I liked that because I'm a slow writer and learner. Content is difficult but she's an amazing prof and made it very easy for me. I like her way more than Anyika and Price even (sorry price ily)
Had Sylvester for first 2/3 of 1B then got switched with Anyika. Sylvester was straightforward and posted lecture videos that covered exactly what was on exams. Had very fair exams with Sylvester but after switching with Anyika, the final was much more difficult. Not as good as Price, but much more straightforward than Joseph.
Sylvester is terrible at explaining key concepts. If you ask questions, she's really no help at all. I often felt more confused after she explained things than if I learned things just out of the book and ALEKS. I strongly recommend taking a different professor for the gen chem series.
really be prepared to focus in her class. do the aleks and dedicate your time to self-learning and reviewing the content because it's hard to follow along through the way she teaches
That final was so out of pocket nothing could have prepared me for it. Previous exams were nothing like it. The examples in lecture are so different from what you are tested on. The final though was just unbelievable.
You may think you know what you are getting yourself into by taking Chem 1B with Bryanna Sylvester. You do not. The class average on the final was a 50 percent. 50% !!! All the practice and teaching she gives you could never reflect the difficulty of her exams. Would not recommend to a friend.
Fine up until the final. It did not relate whatsoever to any lecture, book problem, midterm or practice test. I honestly think she pulled the problems out of thin air. She also did not teach a single in person lecture, but still wrote the final.
I really am a nice person. But Im here crying because she cant be bothered to explain things thoroughly. This is the first review Ive literally ever done. She wasnt even in class all semester because she had COVID and never explains her examples well so the exams are impossible. This is my 2nd quarter with her so Ik Im not being harsh.
Sylvester doesn't give a dang about her students. I was OUT for a week with COVID and she didn't give a flying funk. I was battling all the demons. She made me take the midterm regardless. I got a 58. DUH. I wasn't about to pass with her terrible teaching and non-empathetic persona.
She teaches through examples but skips over steps which can be confusing for people learning the content for the first time. I personally don't get the sense that she actually cares about her students. When I was extremely sick during midterm season, I asked to take the exam just a few HOURS (not days) later and she said no.
I had her for 1B/C and her exams were fair. Do her practice exams, go to CLAS, and book problems. Book problems are very helpful for the tricky questions she usually uses towards her end of her exam! The curve for her class is small compared to the other gen chem classes. Her exams are also a time crunch.
All of her lectures are done on the chalkboard and aren't posted online, but are more informative than Prof. Joseph's lectures. Her quizzes and exams are almost identical to the ones posted on Gauchospace, but also use problems taken from ALEKS and the textbook. Would've gotten a higher grade if the final wasn't canceled due to COVID-19.
Her tests and quizzes are very similar, if not pulled off with different values, to the practice material she provides. She writes everything on the board, and you have to be there in order to learn the material, because she doesn't post it on Gauchospace. I like her teaching methods, though.
Quizzes and Tests are unfair and nothing like practice tests, impossible to study for no matter how much studying you do.
Her exams are fine if you studied the practice exams. She doesn't curve as much if the average is good! Just do book problems and practice exams. Also choose the graded ALEKS option since it's much helpful!
Kunkel makes the horrors of general chemistry seem bearable. She is super sweet and gives you many opportunities to pass the class with her grading style. You really have to pay attention in lecture (handwritten notes benefit you more) and I recommend choosing the graded ALEKS option because the extra points really do help in the end!
Best Professor!
Goes over all the easy stuff in class and gives super hard book problems which are never on the test. Both midterms have questions from the practice midterms on gauchospace. The final is super hard and has problems you've never seen before.
Kunkel does all her notes on the chalkboard and hardly uses the slides at all. This makes it pretty hard to get info if you miss class. However, if you're like me and learn really well from having someone walk you through the problem, Kunkel is the professor for you. As long as you don't skip class, all you really have to do are the practice exams.
She is a very nice lady but her tests are really hard. Do the book problems and as many practice exams as possible.
Kunkel is a firm believer in chalkboards, and doesn't post slides from lecture. So, if you miss class for whatever reason, you're screwed. That being said, she's a fantastic lecturer and walks through every step of the problems she does on the board. Also, DO PRACTICE QUIZZES AND EXAMS. Exams are tough only if you don't study.
Her tests are insanely harder than the other chem professors. Her lectures are deceiving because her tests are not covered by lecture. She does easy problems in class and at a very slow pace. Do book problems and practice tests. Tests are impossible to finish cause every single problem is calculation. My advice is to take someone else.