The contents aren't too difficult, but you should expect devoting a lot of time in homework assignments, which is like a small project each. Attend lectures definitely saves your time.
Dr. Kahn's classes are VERY HARD but his material is always interesting and he constantly pushes students towards harder concepts. If you really try and work hard you will succeed. Please go to his office hours if you need help. He is very kind and supportive, even if he may seem intimidating. DO NOT CHEAT OR SLACK OFF IN HIS CLASS
Don't take him, switch to biochem MCDB or take biochem at another UC. Always thinks someone is cheating, too much homework and assigns before midterms. Made us read a article on wikipedia to find the mistake when it wasn't there as a quiz question. Extremely condescending, started off with 44 students and about 16 were. Avoid him at all cost plzz
He will make you want to give up on college and/or life even though you are about to graduate.
He's passive-aggressive and doesn't grade fairly. Some students answered the same question essentially the same way and one got no points and the other got full credit. He will kick you out of class for using the solutions as other students cause he considers it cheating. His tests are on things he barely covers.
Get ready to do tons of self- study
If you're looking for an A but not willing to work day and night, avoid this man at all costs. Change to biochem in the bio dept if necessary. He is a great professor if you want to learn difficult concepts in great detail. His theory manuals sometimes get difficult to keep up with. Heard rumors that he's mean, but he's always been very kind to me.
Kahn is by far the worst professor Ive ever encountered. 3 quizzes/week on useless material. Intent on throwing students off, last minute updates to assignments, quizzes, exam structure. Abused his power to intimidate students. Hardest class Ive taken for only 3 units. AVOID AT ALL COSTS, THIS PLAGUE OF A HUMAN WILL RUIN YOUR SEMESTER AND BEYOND
the guy should be fired for abusing students, UCSB admin I hope you are reading this and this guy needs to go. There are plenty of good prof. out there except him, no direction in class, mood points, disorganized, and does not know the content but pretends that he does. A complete joke, who hired this guy, he needs a class in manners.
It's been a nightmare I wish I could wake up from. If you think about pre-med, DO NOT take his class! If you need biochem for graduation, I recommend taking it at another UC. You will thank me later.
Professor Kahn is a very difficult teacher. He's also the only teacher who will give you access to concise explanations of extremely complex and theoretical material. You are not disillusioned if your reason for taking his class is to have an opportunity to use your knowlege set to look deeply into chemistry. You are if you think A+ is ab initio.
I was enrolled in the biochem lab series with Dr. Kahn for the entire year (3 quarters). He is VERY TOUGH and my mental health was the lowest it has ever been. However, you do gain A LOT out of this series. He always challenges you and pushes you harder than any professors ever will.
I am not exaggerating when I say he is by far the worst professor I have ever had in 4 years of college, and probably one of the worst humans I have ever had to interact with in my entire life. There are hard professors sure, but he is more of a billeting jerk who tries to make students feel stupid compared to him.
Kahn makes you feel dumb. He gives a lot of HW that has almost nothing to do with the course material. Tests are really hard and he gives pop quizzes. Avoid him at all costs.
This guy is pure evil. He clearly does not want to be here and is taking it out on his students. He has a constant need to remind us of how dumb we are compared to him, even though this is our first time being exposed to the material. His classroom environment is abusive. I dont know how he gets away with this stuff. Dropped the course! NT!
Honestly, I enjoyed having Kahn as a professor. Yes, his courses are very challenging and yes, he'll push you to your limit but he cares about his students and about learning. Work hard as he likes this and is very approachable! Don't listen to the negative hype and be your own judge.
I was enrolled in Dr. Kalju Kahn's three-quarter lab seq. during the 2014-2015 (3 Qrts), and 2015-2016 (2 Qrts), academic year. I was brought to tears, and later disqualified from school. He took the time to walk with me, find the source of the adversity, and unexpected sponsored my readmission. Fixing sometimes requires being broken. Ty KK & MB.
He will make your life miserable. If you're a Biochemistry major I'd sooner suggest changing majors to Molec. Biology than taking his class. His method of "teaching" is to act flabbergasted whenever asked a question and wants you to read his poorly written (by him) teaching manuals. I tried my absolute hardest and went to his office several times.
He expects a lot from you. Hard as all get out, but he expects you to do well which is refreshing and inspiring. Put in the work, meet with him in his office, go to class and be prepared. One of my favorite professors even though he was tough. Half our class dropped by the midterm, but he teaches you how to learn, which is really why you're there.
Only take Kahn if you need to. He relies on online lecture videos from Gainer and other online sources to teach the class. He expects you to learn all of the information before coming to class. Quizzes and tests are hard. He gives you too many resources expecting you to use all of them. Upside is that an "A" starts in the 70s.
He enjoys torturing his students and making his students' life miserable. DO NOT TAKE if you are not going to be a professional chemist!! The quiz questions are something you CANNOT find in your textbook. And he expects you to have 100 hours every week to study for his class and it's IMPOSSIBLE.
Dr. Kahn is a brilliant professor, and is likely one of the smartest people you will ever be around. The secret to Kahn is making sure you know his material. Read the theory manual. It is written in a conversational manner,and contains the answer to every question he will ask in class. You need to prepare. Don't be afraid. He can see the effort.
He's very stimulating in lecture, and frequently asks the audience questions which enhances attention and learning (in my opinion). His homeworks can be quite long, and your research skills shouldwill be definitely sharpened, but the questions are very interesting. Tests are pretty fair.
He is obviously one of the most intelligent people I've ever met. He was relearning organic chemistry from the same textbook the students used, and he found a couple of errors in the book. His vitamin pop quizzes are nearly impossible. The exams are overwhelmingly difficult, thus my 54% turned out to be a B+.