This was actually the hardest class I've ever taken. Lectures are unorganized so I found I did better taking notes straight from the slides before/after lectures. Tests are written to confuse you and even with four pages of notes that are allowed during the final, it was still impossible.

ts guy is friggin buns yo😭🙏

This was one of the most frustrating and disappointing classes I have ever taken. Do not even think about asking for a recommendation letter. He will not help you, he will not engage with you, and he does not care about students' academic growth. This course was a complete waste of time and energy.

Worst experience of my life!!!!!He makes everything confusing and freaking hard but NEVER reply a single email.

If any course has to be graded purely on a curve because students have a failing average, that professor should not be teaching, regardless of how kind or respected they are. Maybe it's time to change your pedagogical approach because reading off the slides and expecting students to come up with "correlative study" questions isn't working. 0/10

Genuinely the hardest class I've taken in my undergrad so far. Content is EXTREMELY dense and his lectures are not clear at all (slides jump everywhere and are not coherent). The only thing you are graded on is one midterm and one final, both of which are extremely difficult. Exams are all application of knowledge and are worded very confusing

Personally I would never subject anyone to this misery. Do not take this class if you don't have to. Even if it's a requirement for grad school don't do it. It's not worth your misery or sadness because it's not gonna go well either way.

THIS CLASS IS ABSOLUTE HELL!!!!! Thats all!!! Good luck

I know that Professor Ma is a nice guy and tries his best to be helpful but his class is absolutely insane. The only way to perform decently in this class is to dedicate your entire soul and being to this class, which I personally am not willing to do as I have other commitments and CLASSES. I think the level of depth is so unrealistic/unfair.

Dr. Ma is interested in his student's successful learning. He will challenge you and force you to learn in ways you may never have been exposed to in a lecture setting, but if you put in the mental effort to follow the material, it is manageable. Go to lecture, and pay attention to the types of questions he focuses on.

Professor Ma was one of the best biology professors I have had at UCSB. He cares about his students and wants them to succeed. He emphasizes correlating similar concepts vs memorization which is nice. Go to every lecture! No iclicker but very important because he emphasizes the important topics. Exams were tough and requires you to apply concepts

Prof. Ma really engages you to the material and encouraged us to apply and connect concepts during the lectures and into the exams instead of purely memorizing. That said, the latter is still very important and hence makes 103 a very challenging class. The drawback is that your entire grade essentially rests on only a single midterm and the final.