BSCI103 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/14/2024	dude is super nice ! ! his lectures can b a bit boring n u don't really need to show up cuz all the exams r online but from what I've heard he's brought lots of interactive stuff to class (I think he brought some bugs one time cuz that's what he studies) . the main issue depend on ur TA, mine was super chill and overall a really cool guy.
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/10/2024	Honestly the Professor is not bad, you can see that he wants whats best for his students. There is a weekly group discussion on elms, where you answer a few questions based on 2-4 articles, and then lab. Your grade is mainly up to your TA, which can sometimes be hard, depending on your TA. Labs are super tedious and you have to show up to pass. Exams for this semester (SP24), were online, open note, multiple choice and true and false, 3 exams, 1 final. Lowest exam grade dropped. I did not put much effort into this class so super easy A. Especially since I don't like science nor it is near my major.
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 04/09/2024	This class is beyond easy. All of the tests (this semester at least) are open note and open internet which makes it completely unnecessary to go to lecture. As an education major, I would recommend this class to anyone as an easy gen ed or if you are required to take a bio class like I am. There is hardly any work besides an easy discussion once a week and the lab of course which is extremely easy and we always get let out early from. Make sure your lab TA is easy before you choose your section!! Some grade more harshly than others. Michael is a very nice guy and if you do happen to go to lectures he will not disappoint you and will always keep you entertained.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/16/2023	Professor Espindola has been one of my favorite professors at UMD. She cares deeply for her students and is accommodating. The entire course's material was on Elms before the semester started, and it was very organized. She understood that students have different learning styles and made lectures optional with all lecture videos and notes posted. All of the exams were open notes. The lab was a bit annoying at times. However, Professor Espindola offered many chances for extra credit and it was not hard to end the semester with an A. Definitely recommend taking BSCI103 with her for your gen-ed bio credit.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A Anonymous 07/26/2023	I only went to the first lecture. I never missed a lab though since those are mandatory and apart of your grade!! I also didn’t study for the lab practical because I didn’t know you needed to lol and still came out with an A. To me this class was really low effort and really easy especially since the midterms and finals are open note and open internet. I recommend this class if you want an easy gened lab out the way!
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/29/2023	She is super nice and wants her students to understand bio, it’s a good class to take to fill a GenEd need. It was some busy work but overall not a stressful course
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/23/2023	She is very sweet and very passionate about the subject she's teaching! Most of the assignments are discussion posts that are worth a few points and can really help your grade if you do them. One of the weekly discussions allows you to ask questions, and she responds to each one with a detailed answer. The labs weren't too difficult for non-majors and the TA's were very helpful. Online, open note, open internet exams, and she provides everything you need to do well in the modules! Her lecture notes were my best friends for the exams. If you need a lab credit and are looking for something engaging but not overly difficult, I definitely recommend this class.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/09/2023	She is a really nice prof if you need to take a lab for your gened I recommend her. She has 3 midterms but drops 1, whichever is the lowest score her exams are 75 questions in 75 minutes. She has discussion boards due right before class, they can get annoying but it's easy points and they are about 6 per week. She has this assignment called Story of Life, this is a group assignment and has 5 questions, pick carefully who you want in your group. The lab part of the class is kinda annoying but not hard. The TAs grade most of the stuff and they are so picky, but they are some good ones. At the end, there is a final exam and she does offer some extra credit which was really easy and does help.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/07/2023	Lectures are not mandatory, and you will still do well in the class if you don't go. The only slightly annoying bit about this class is that there is a significant amount of busy work. But, the exams are all open note open internet, and the labs are manageable as well. I would recommend this class to someone needing natural science and lab credit.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A- Anonymous 04/14/2022	She is super sweet and really wants everyone to do well! There are a lot of quick and easy discussion board assignments that have boosted my grade by sooo much! Other reviews are talking about in-class worksheets but we don't have those! The lab is also pretty easy and the TA's are really chill and helpful, and they usually respond pretty quickly. The class is in person but the exams are online. Exams are lowkey kind of hard but you have the internet on your side! My grade has not rally gone down from them though because of the other small assignment points, they really add up! I recommend this class to anyone that needs a lab and isn't a science major, especially with professor Espindola!
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/11/2020	Prof Espindola clearly cares about what she's lecturing, but her teaching style is ineffective. Additionally, the harshness of grading was surprising for an intro-level course for non-majors.
Anahi Espindola BSCI103 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/04/2020	really really sweet and so passionate about biology! she really wants you to learn about biology. She's very spunky and tries to make the class interesting. I will say though that she is a bit of a tough grader on the in-class worksheets which can actually hurt your grade and the questions on the test seem pretty arbitrary sometimes. Overall I liked her and I think she is a very very nice person who cares about her students.
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting a B Anonymous 09/26/2014	Professor Raupp was a great teacher but your grade is really up to your TA. His tests were not easy but were not terribly hard either. The final was easy and he lets you drop one of your older tests and take an optional exam after the final to replace it. Overall very nice guy but if you aren't into bio I would take another lab requirement instead
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/21/2011	ok idk what da heck the first person was talking about. THIS CLASS IS NOT (IS NOT) AN EASY !!!!! they lied. if ur not a science major of any type then don't take this class. lab was at 8 in the morning for 3 long hours!!!! wth!!?? and it's just really boring. it's not the professor's fault cuz raupp was actually cool. if you dnt hav any interest in bio then take another science course for non-science major in order to fulfill your core
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/23/2010	An awesome teacher, with a great amount of experience, knowledge, and wisdom. Some teachers that have tenure or have gotten old at Maryland have become decadent and unresponsive, but Raupp definitely cares about his students. His lectures are easy to follow, fun, and very interesting, and he often fills in with real-world stories and applications. He is a great talker, and he makes sure that he answers all questions during lecture. In addition, he has very easy 5 point quizzes in lecture on Thursdays that are a great way to boost your grade (he drops the lowest 2 which helps just in case you got a 4/5 one day). On Tuesdays, I stopped going to class, but luckily his lecture notes are so helpful that there is no need to stress in this class. Easy, easy, easy A, and easy, easy, easy way to get a CORE Lab Science taken care of in Life Sciences. Easiest BSCI lab class there is, by far, and I'm a Computer Science major, so I enjoy not having intense biology classes.
Joelle Presson BSCI103 Expecting an A Loquehart 06/08/2010	Great professor! Very knowledgeable of the subject, take this if you need a lab course. Exams were pretty easy. Just make sure you do the review guides. Book kind of helped, but you don't really need it.
Joelle Presson BSCI103 Expecting an A motariq1991 05/16/2010	This class is literally the most interesting and easiest lab class out there. Besides the class, Professor Presson is extremely knowledgeable and makes Bio really fun to learn. The best way to learn and study for this class is actually go to class. I can't say this better than anyone else but TAKE NOTES!!! if you wanna do good in this class. Yes, her powerpoints are on elms but she always teaches something extra which most likely is on the exams. If I can remember this well, there were 2 big exams, 2 short exams throughout the semester. And the final was optional. One big project that you have to present during your lab with a 6-8 pages research paper on it. I mean come on now. It is 4 credits. Overall, amazing professor and an amazing class.
Joelle Presson BSCI103 Expecting a B Anonymous 11/17/2009	This is the easiest boi class ever! She gives wordlists guides for all the test and quizes. This makes it 120% easier because it tells you what to study. Lectures are interesting. Some people thought it was boring, but i thought it was just fine and i HATE bio. she gives extra credit and class reflections are easssyy points. There are alot of ways to earn points. Its not just a class with 3 exams and a paper. I am a 2.0 student. And I have a B in her class. And yeah shes a great teacher.
Michael Raupp BSCI103 Anonymous 09/30/2009	Lectures are decently interesting, and he occasionally makes weird remarks to keep you awake. I took this class to fulfill a core requirement, and found that the exams were much more difficult than he seems to think. The exams are mostly multiple choice with a few short answer, and he tends to ask some nitpicky details. He puts his own notes online, but they are too comprehensive to just study before the test. Go to lecture and highlight them while he talks. He also gives in-lecture quizzes once a week for easy points, so go to class.
Joelle Presson BSCI103 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/19/2008	Best choice for the lab science if you are a non science major! Dr. Presson is helpful, and gives a bunch of extra credit. Take this class!

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/14/2024

dude is super nice ! ! his lectures can b a bit boring n u don't really need to show up cuz all the exams r online but from what I've heard he's brought lots of interactive stuff to class (I think he brought some bugs one time cuz that's what he studies) . the main issue depend on ur TA, mine was super chill and overall a really cool guy.

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/10/2024

Honestly the Professor is not bad, you can see that he wants whats best for his students. There is a weekly group discussion on elms, where you answer a few questions based on 2-4 articles, and then lab. Your grade is mainly up to your TA, which can sometimes be hard, depending on your TA. Labs are super tedious and you have to show up to pass. Exams for this semester (SP24), were online, open note, multiple choice and true and false, 3 exams, 1 final. Lowest exam grade dropped. I did not put much effort into this class so super easy A. Especially since I don't like science nor it is near my major.

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
04/09/2024

This class is beyond easy. All of the tests (this semester at least) are open note and open internet which makes it completely unnecessary to go to lecture. As an education major, I would recommend this class to anyone as an easy gen ed or if you are required to take a bio class like I am. There is hardly any work besides an easy discussion once a week and the lab of course which is extremely easy and we always get let out early from. Make sure your lab TA is easy before you choose your section!! Some grade more harshly than others. Michael is a very nice guy and if you do happen to go to lectures he will not disappoint you and will always keep you entertained.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/16/2023

Professor Espindola has been one of my favorite professors at UMD. She cares deeply for her students and is accommodating. The entire course's material was on Elms before the semester started, and it was very organized. She understood that students have different learning styles and made lectures optional with all lecture videos and notes posted. All of the exams were open notes. The lab was a bit annoying at times. However, Professor Espindola offered many chances for extra credit and it was not hard to end the semester with an A. Definitely recommend taking BSCI103 with her for your gen-ed bio credit.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Anonymous
07/26/2023

I only went to the first lecture. I never missed a lab though since those are mandatory and apart of your grade!! I also didn’t study for the lab practical because I didn’t know you needed to lol and still came out with an A. To me this class was really low effort and really easy especially since the midterms and finals are open note and open internet. I recommend this class if you want an easy gened lab out the way!

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/29/2023

She is super nice and wants her students to understand bio, it’s a good class to take to fill a GenEd need. It was some busy work but overall not a stressful course

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/23/2023

She is very sweet and very passionate about the subject she's teaching! Most of the assignments are discussion posts that are worth a few points and can really help your grade if you do them. One of the weekly discussions allows you to ask questions, and she responds to each one with a detailed answer. The labs weren't too difficult for non-majors and the TA's were very helpful. Online, open note, open internet exams, and she provides everything you need to do well in the modules! Her lecture notes were my best friends for the exams. If you need a lab credit and are looking for something engaging but not overly difficult, I definitely recommend this class.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/09/2023

She is a really nice prof if you need to take a lab for your gened I recommend her. She has 3 midterms but drops 1, whichever is the lowest score her exams are 75 questions in 75 minutes. She has discussion boards due right before class, they can get annoying but it's easy points and they are about 6 per week. She has this assignment called Story of Life, this is a group assignment and has 5 questions, pick carefully who you want in your group. The lab part of the class is kinda annoying but not hard. The TAs grade most of the stuff and they are so picky, but they are some good ones. At the end, there is a final exam and she does offer some extra credit which was really easy and does help.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/07/2023

Lectures are not mandatory, and you will still do well in the class if you don't go. The only slightly annoying bit about this class is that there is a significant amount of busy work. But, the exams are all open note open internet, and the labs are manageable as well. I would recommend this class to someone needing natural science and lab credit.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
04/14/2022

She is super sweet and really wants everyone to do well! There are a lot of quick and easy discussion board assignments that have boosted my grade by sooo much! Other reviews are talking about in-class worksheets but we don't have those! The lab is also pretty easy and the TA's are really chill and helpful, and they usually respond pretty quickly. The class is in person but the exams are online. Exams are lowkey kind of hard but you have the internet on your side! My grade has not rally gone down from them though because of the other small assignment points, they really add up! I recommend this class to anyone that needs a lab and isn't a science major, especially with professor Espindola!

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
05/11/2020

Prof Espindola clearly cares about what she's lecturing, but her teaching style is ineffective. Additionally, the harshness of grading was surprising for an intro-level course for non-majors.

Anahi Espindola
BSCI103

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/04/2020

really really sweet and so passionate about biology! she really wants you to learn about biology. She's very spunky and tries to make the class interesting. I will say though that she is a bit of a tough grader on the in-class worksheets which can actually hurt your grade and the questions on the test seem pretty arbitrary sometimes. Overall I liked her and I think she is a very very nice person who cares about her students.

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting a B
Anonymous
09/26/2014

Professor Raupp was a great teacher but your grade is really up to your TA. His tests were not easy but were not terribly hard either. The final was easy and he lets you drop one of your older tests and take an optional exam after the final to replace it. Overall very nice guy but if you aren't into bio I would take another lab requirement instead

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/21/2011

ok idk what da heck the first person was talking about. THIS CLASS IS NOT (IS NOT) AN EASY !!!!! they lied. if ur not a science major of any type then don't take this class. lab was at 8 in the morning for 3 long hours!!!! wth!!?? and it's just really boring. it's not the professor's fault cuz raupp was actually cool. if you dnt hav any interest in bio then take another science course for non-science major in order to fulfill your core

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/23/2010

An awesome teacher, with a great amount of experience, knowledge, and wisdom. Some teachers that have tenure or have gotten old at Maryland have become decadent and unresponsive, but Raupp definitely cares about his students. His lectures are easy to follow, fun, and very interesting, and he often fills in with real-world stories and applications. He is a great talker, and he makes sure that he answers all questions during lecture. In addition, he has very easy 5 point quizzes in lecture on Thursdays that are a great way to boost your grade (he drops the lowest 2 which helps just in case you got a 4/5 one day). On Tuesdays, I stopped going to class, but luckily his lecture notes are so helpful that there is no need to stress in this class. Easy, easy, easy A, and easy, easy, easy way to get a CORE Lab Science taken care of in Life Sciences. Easiest BSCI lab class there is, by far, and I'm a Computer Science major, so I enjoy not having intense biology classes.

Joelle Presson
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Loquehart
06/08/2010

Great professor! Very knowledgeable of the subject, take this if you need a lab course. Exams were pretty easy. Just make sure you do the review guides. Book kind of helped, but you don't really need it.

Joelle Presson
BSCI103

Expecting an A
motariq1991
05/16/2010

This class is literally the most interesting and easiest lab class out there. Besides the class, Professor Presson is extremely knowledgeable and makes Bio really fun to learn. The best way to learn and study for this class is actually go to class. I can't say this better than anyone else but TAKE NOTES!!! if you wanna do good in this class. Yes, her powerpoints are on elms but she always teaches something extra which most likely is on the exams. If I can remember this well, there were 2 big exams, 2 short exams throughout the semester. And the final was optional. One big project that you have to present during your lab with a 6-8 pages research paper on it. I mean come on now. It is 4 credits. Overall, amazing professor and an amazing class.

Joelle Presson
BSCI103

Expecting a B
Anonymous
11/17/2009

This is the easiest boi class ever! She gives wordlists guides for all the test and quizes. This makes it 120% easier because it tells you what to study. Lectures are interesting. Some people thought it was boring, but i thought it was just fine and i HATE bio. she gives extra credit and class reflections are easssyy points. There are alot of ways to earn points. Its not just a class with 3 exams and a paper. I am a 2.0 student. And I have a B in her class. And yeah shes a great teacher.

Michael Raupp
BSCI103

Anonymous
09/30/2009

Lectures are decently interesting, and he occasionally makes weird remarks to keep you awake. I took this class to fulfill a core requirement, and found that the exams were much more difficult than he seems to think. The exams are mostly multiple choice with a few short answer, and he tends to ask some nitpicky details. He puts his own notes online, but they are too comprehensive to just study before the test. Go to lecture and highlight them while he talks. He also gives in-lecture quizzes once a week for easy points, so go to class.

Joelle Presson
BSCI103

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/19/2008

Best choice for the lab science if you are a non science major! Dr. Presson is helpful, and gives a bunch of extra credit. Take this class!

Reviews for BSCI103