CHEM 1A
SYLVESTER B M
Bryanna Sylvester
3.6
346 reviews

347
3.6
CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

Took Feldwinn for 1A and Joseph for 1B (all online). Sylvester was pretty average and the lectures definitely were not as great or organized as Joseph but they were still fairly effective. There was a pretty big curve post final so that was also helpful. Not good, not bad either.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

Not great, not bad. Lectures are OK, exams are tough but of consistent difficulty, just study the recommended book problems a lot, and ALEKS. Not as good as Price but a solid choice nonetheless, she also didn't troll us on the final like Joseph did to his students. Sometimes she sucks at explaining stuff but most of the time it's good enough

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

Her lectures are straight and to the point. Understand the book problems and youll have no problem getting an A in the class.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

I took Joseph for Chem1A & 1B. I was TERRIFIED to take Sylvester at first, but she was by far the best and I wish I took her sooner. Her lectures were WAY more straight forward, there was actually a curve, she was available to Zoom anytime I had a question, and I spent significantly less time studying for her than for Joseph & I got a better grade.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

in-person may be different but her online class was really bad. took her in spring, retaking it just to see her reusing all lectures (which are terrible bc she is extremely bad at explaining). however, i find her exams a bit less tricky than the other profs. sign up for CLAS asap, they explain things 10x better!

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

All lectures were prerecorded bc of covid and besides doing ALEKS, watching lectures was pretty much the only assignment so the class is very manageable time-wise. She posts practice exams that are similar to the actual exam so if you study those you will be fine. I didn't enjoy the class simply because I don't like chemistry but she is a good prof

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

Terrible Chem professor. Her online lectures are so bland and vague. She does not elaborate. Her audio sucks and her handwriting does too. Her tests are nothing compared to the practice exams and she puts questions that she's never taught. They are very difficult and even with CLAS this class is tough.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

Compared to the other Gen chem lecturers, professor Sylvester is easily the worst. She NEVER elaborates on anything in lecture, doesn't connect topics well, and also doesn't explain things In a clear way. She gives a 20 question exam as opposed to other professors 15, but with the same amount of time given? Overall avoid if possible.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

literally the worst lecturer ever. For the first 6 weeks her audio was busted so it sounded like she was underwater and she never bothered to fix it. Doesn't ever elaborate, is super vague, sign up for CLAS if u want to succeed

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 3 Years Ago

retaking chem because I was in her first 1C class that moved to online, and didn't pass. hard class, +her lectures are just bad. This quarter I had to retake with her due to scheduling, and when I clicked on the lectures, I literally facepalmed because they are the same bad videos as lastyear. she is reading offa note pad and barely elaborates.

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CHEM1 . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

I dont usually rate professor, but I havent had a good experience with taking a class with her. Even though my midterm scores are way above average, I got a C. Yes, I screwed up the final exam. I expected there is a curve, but it didnt affect me some reasons. I believe that I still close to the class average.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

She's quite enthusiastic and gets so excited to do more problems it's pretty fun to see. If you do the practice quizzes/tests the midterms were super easy (some questions were almost literally copy-pasted). The final hit me like a train though, way harder than the midterms. Overall though pretty easy class and pretty good professor.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

She looks out for her students which shows that she cares unlike many professors. She puts in effort and therefore she wants you to show effort as well. The chem series is always going to be hard but at least with professor Sylvester it's going to be acknowledged.

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CHEM1BC . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

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.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

The online exams were very difficult with little to no multiple choice questions. The final had topics not covered in class

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

Took her for all of gen chem. I used to hate chem but now I love it. Always available outside of class during office hours or email. Really funny and really cares about her students. Tests are very similar to the practice tests which she posts a ton of, sometimes some book questions too. Writes everything out on the board w examples which I loved.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

The online structure of this class is very difficult. In my opinion, she glazes over topics and doesn't go enough in-depth with the subject. The online tests have gotten significantly harder compared to in-person tests (she pulls material from 1A and ties it in with 1C material). If you have never taken a chem class before, do. not. take. her.

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CHEM1B . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

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.

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D . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

She wrote all notes and examples on the board, but in my opinion did not spend enough time explaining and getting majority of class to understand. Tests and quizzes had surprise questions even though she posts lots of practices tests. I learned most things online through Aleks. If you have Chem. series to tale I reccomend Price or Joseph if you can

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CHEM1B . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

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.

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CHEM1B . Sylvester B M 4 Years Ago

Quizzes and Tests are unfair and nothing like practice tests, impossible to study for no matter how much studying you do.

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 5 Years Ago

She doesn't use lecture slides and abbreviates a lot when she writes on the chalkboard so you can get lost if you aren't constantly paying attention. If you go to her office hours she will help you. Make sure to do book problems and practice exams. Her tests sometimes have aleks type questions, so do aleks. She wasn't bad just not my style of teach

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CHEM1C . Sylvester B M 5 Years Ago

Great lecturer for Chem1C! Material covered in class is a solid intro, but practicing textbook problems and ALEKS are a must to do well. Uses the hardest/challenge problems from the textbook on tests. Practice tests and quizzes help a lot.

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CHEM1B . Sylvester B M 5 Years Ago

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!

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