CHEM241 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2024	Honestly, I thought I wasn't going to be able to get an A in his class, but I ended up making it happen. His exams are pretty hard, especially compared to other professors so be prepared to spend a lot of time studying for them. He recommends reading the textbook and doing the practice problems, but I didn't always have the time to do that. My advice is, if you have the time, read the textbook and do the practice problems. Some must dos in my opinion are: review all of his lecture notes before his exams (he uses a lot of examples from lecture that are tricky- you think they make sense at the time but unless you review them you won't remember on the exam, and DO THE PRACTICE EXAMS. There was one midterm exam (the 2nd one) where he told us not to look at the old exams because all the material was different, and the average was like a 50% because he had pulled basically all the material from old exams :). The thing that locked me in for the final was redoing my classes midterms 1,2,3 over and over until I got 100's, I read the last chapters full of new content and did those practice problems, went through his final exam review guide and made sure I understood everything, and then did as many old midterm exams as I could. Throughout the semester, I also went to discussion at least once, sometimes 2 times a week and then went to his problem solving sessions on fridays. For midterms 1,2,3 I at least worked through the reaction summaries at the back of each chapter too, which was enough to get me to a grade that was above the average, but not an A. I didn't focus on doing old exams and I think that's what got me. Isaacs is funny and tries to make the class fun, especially towards the middle/end of the semester. I would definitely recommend taking Isaacs if you actually want to learn orgo 2 really well, but know that this class will take up a lot of your time. At the end of the day, orgo 2 isn't meant to be easy and now I'm glad I'll know it really well for when I take the MCAT. I don't regret taking him at all
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2024	alright this man gets a 10/10 for personality but like a 6/10 for his teaching. class is super enjoyable because he is an entertaining little grandpa who just wants you to enjoy. the first test was mad easy and then they got progressively harder and but little was done to prepare us for the difference in difficulty. Anyway though the discussion TAs are really clutch as they fill in all the missing information from lecture that he doesn't really explain or cover. The exams are definitely thinking based so you need to make sure to understand the content rather than just memorize reactions and mechanisms. Look at the end of the day being able to drop a test including the final marks it all worth it. I would take this man again 100 times over just for that even though he isn't the best lecturer, he makes up for it in other ways and you can still do well.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/16/2024	Someone also said this, and I agree: I feel slightly misled by past reviews. Coming off of an A in orgo 1 which I did not find difficult, orgo 2 was a whole different experience. I love Dr. Davis, he's such a sweet and good prof, but a lot of the time in lecture, he was kind of all over the place. I also feel like he took too many questions from students and it wasted a lot of time. Otherwise, the way the class is set up is pretty nice, 4 exams total, and your lowest is dropped including the final. The cutoffs are also rly nice, 80 is an A-. There were also 9 bonus points for completion of practice exams, def do them. However the final was incredibly difficult. All in all, be prepared to study a lot for this class. For someone who was taking PHYS161 at the same time, I needed to focus on passing that so I didn't have much time for orgo so just bear in mind that it requires a lot of time and work.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/16/2024	Live love davis. Coolest professor known to man. Would love to sit down get a beer and do endless mechanisms with him. Hard class, lectures are a bit disorganized, but reorganizing the content helps you study and actually figure out the material (which is hard in itself).
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2024	Be prepared to teach yourself the content. He has clicker questions which quiz you on the content that he just went over, so if you cannot learn on the spot, you are screwed. About half of the questions on exams come from previous/old midterms he has posted and the textbook additional problems. For some mechanisms he says not to refer to the textbook and his method, making it confusing to understand what he is looking for. His grading is nice where he guarantees an 80 is an A at the beginning of the semester, however, I took this when Davis was teaching and had a nice curve, dropped exams, did not give clicker questions, and gave extra credit which was infuriating knowing we had to work 10x harder with harder material. To succeed, I recommend Professor Dave explains or jOE Chem on Youtube for concepts you do not understand.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/06/2024	Just leaving another 5-star review here. Dr. Davis is such a gem, and I could not have survived Orgo 2 without him. As a person, he’s so kind and accommodating and has never taken more than 2 hours to respond to my emails. He makes Orgo exciting (yes, even those 75-minute 8 AM lectures) by bringing in real-life applications of the content, which I find very helpful when I learn. He teaches the class at a reasonable pace (not too fast) so that we can understand the material and puts a 5-minute break in the middle of the long lectures. The entire grade is exams - 3 midterms + 1 final, each worth 100 points, the lowest of the 4 is dropped. That said, you still have to study A LOT for this course, but getting an A- to A is not hard (80% is a guaranteed A-). Also, Nick is such an amazing TA, those discussions and long review sessions helped big time, shoutout to him!
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/27/2024	The class itself is honestly really slow. He spends way too much time going over really basic concepts in way too much detail, but if you have trouble understanding the basics, then it may be helpful. But because it's so slow, it's also really easy. An 80 is an A- while 90+ is an A, so the cutoffs are really generous. He never records, but he does post all his notes, so you can honestly teach yourself the content even if you don't show up. There are also 4 exams (3 midterms + 1 final), but he drops your lowest exam, so if you do well on the first three, you don't even have to take the final. The averages on the exams tend to be 60-70, but keep in mind there is a 10% curve built in the class, so it's really not that hard to do well. Davis himself is also so sweet and truly cares about his students. In my opinion, if you want the content more in-depth, take a different professor because respectfully, Davis is so slow with his teaching. If you just want to get the class over with and chill, then take Davis.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 11/27/2024	I'm going to be honest, I was misled. His reviews were so great, and coming off of a A in orgo I I figured this class would be a good time, and while I did enjoy his class and did well regardless, I found his lectures to be repetitive. He doesn't really cover the type of questions you will see on an exam, but his exams are really easy if you put in the work. I just did not like this class as I was used to orgo I with Dr.Hirschauer, who is a brilliant teacher and explained everything so clearly, so I was not prepared to self-study for orgo II. STILL TAKE HIM OVER ANY OTHER PROFESSOR THE MAN IS SO WHOLESOME AND HE IS A BLESSING. (there is also a godly curve (80% for an A-)!
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/25/2024	Dr. Davis is the best professor you can ask for for orgo 2. If you have friends in Issacs and whoever else teaches it you'll see firsthand how much those people struggle compared to Davis. He genuinely cares about his students and is extremely passionate towards organic chemistry, which makes even his 8 AMs bearable. He always tries to show applications of organic chemistry in real life, something which I appreciated a lot. His TA Nick was amazing and held 3 hour review sessions pre-exams, which helped organize the info in my brain super well. Do keep in mind that your only grades are exams, though. Overall, take Davis!!
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/21/2024	Difficult course, memorization heavy, fair tests. Dixon can be unorganized sometimes and unhelpful. Office hours are usually crowded.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/20/2024	As someone who never leaves reviews, I just felt like I had to for Davis. He is everything everyone says, a truly caring professor that wants his students to succeed. A very lenient curve that is transparent from the start of the semester. Love him and his TA Nick made the class so doable.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 08/15/2024	Any positive review was definitely paid by the school. This was the worst class i've ever taken and made my mental health so bad I had to get a licensed therapist to undo the PTSD i got from this class. Prof Wang expects you to fully master the content the day you learn it and thinks that you don't have a life outside of orgo. there are also those bothersome clickers that you need to unnecessarily need to buy (you will use it for this class and this class only, trust.) At least those clicker points total up and basically is weighed the same as an exam. there are lots of grade opportunities I will admit. I remember failing pretty much all the exams and I somehow passed the class. He says he isn't gonna curve, but he does because of how poorly everyone does on the exams and final- he can't fail us all. Then there is the office hours that was just Praha unhelpfully yapping for an hour. Office hours were very inconvenient because most people have class during that time. His lectures are all on a chalkboard so sit in the front. I put in the effort and time and this class was still very difficult. There are a lot of smart people in this class and they will belittle you. They say that you should just study more but it is just not that simple. If you have aphantasia, might as well drop the class now (this is an orgo thing though not on the professor at all.) There is also a huge language barrier that makes it difficult to understand and if you don't understand the first time, then he gets noticeably irritated. This class just sucks the life out of you. There is a reason that everyone switches major after taking this class. Overall, this is just a useless yap fest and unless you are truly devoted and love chem, you will not succeed despite all these grade opportunities.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 08/11/2024	Isaacs to me is definitely not one of the best lecturers for this course. He goes fast during lecture and his PowerPoint slides are somewhat useless, because he just draws and draws, sometimes it can be all over the place or not even complete. He is a textbook lecturer, so he pulls problems from the textbook for his exams, and he already expects you to have read the chapters for the lecture. There is no homework, only clickers and exams. Clickers can help if you pay attention to what he is doing. Also, please KNOW YOUR REACTIONS. He loves putting at least 10 or more reaction boxes on his exam, usually worth like 4 points for each reaction box. And also KNOW YOUR NOMENCLATURE, this man loves putting that on his exams. His curve is generous too, my 66.9% went to a B+, so not too bad. Overall, I would say his class is definitely durable, but you are going to have to teach yourself sometimes.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 08/07/2024	Dr. Davis is a super nice, chill guy, and he is clearly passionate about chemistry. Compared to Orgo 1, Orgo 2 was a breeze, and he went over material very thoroughly before it was tested. I definitely recommend Dr. Davis for this class. However, keep in mind: your entire grade is made up of tests (3 out of the 4 you take go towards your grade, and the lowest is dropped) so if you hate homework I especially recommend him, but if you get really nervous about tests maybe not as much.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B- Anonymous 05/28/2024	Isaacs is nice, and knows what he is talking about, but I found it nearly impossible to learn from attending lectures. He goes very fast, and while he does pause for questions, I feel the students (including me) are too lost to even formulate any. Generally, you have to have read through/be a little familiar with the chapter he is lecturing on to get anything out of lecture. Ideally, I would have done this, but never had enough time. One thing that was helpful was he hosted office hours in the room next door once a week to go over specific problems students had. He was very patient with everyone and seemed to break it down more simply in OH rather than in lecture. He also posts a ton of previous exams on ELMS for review. They are generally helpful and have similar content to the actual exams. There is no homework, only participation points (clickers), and exams. Which has it's pros and cons. You're not bogged down with busy work in this class. I taught myself from the textbook/solutions manual/internet the whole semester, with just using his posted lecture notes to figure out what to focus on. The curve was very generous, with anyone earning 50% or more of the points in the class earning a C.
Monique Koppel CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/23/2024	The first time I took Orgo 2 with her I ended up with a D, but this was partially due to my lack of effort. When I retook it, I ended up with an A-. I think that she listened to feedback from the previous semester as I found lectures, homeworks, and exams more doable. The TA, Donnie, had really helpful discussion sections, and I would recommend attending them if you can. Dr. Koppel's Late Night Shows and practice problems really helped me succeed this time around as well, as she went over a few problems that were similar / had similar steps to ones that ended up on the exams. If you attend lectures and ask questions in discussion, Orgo 2 won't be as hard as it seems.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/20/2024	Sweet man, who truly cares about students' learning. There are only four grades the total grade is made up of, three exams worth 100 points each, and one completion 15 points extra credit at the beginning of the semester. Will answer all the questions you have and encourages questions during lectures. Uploads all the notes after class but does not record. Grade assignments are already changed at the beginning of the semester, so a 55% is passing, though if the averages are low at the end of the semester he will curve, but this didn't happen my semester or previous.
Monique Koppel CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/18/2024	Despite what other reviews say, it is very possible to do well in Dr. Koppel's class. I had her for CHEM232 and 241. She does a thorough job of explaining everything that you need to know for the exams. She posts past exams which are very helpful as they give you a glimpse of her exam style. Usually, you'll get about 8 questions on the exam. 1 NMR (will be on every exam), 2 mechanisms, 1 road map, 2 syntheses, complete reactions, and a bonus question. Sometimes she'll throw a trick question on the exam, but it's doable. Make sure you attend every lecture as sometimes she'll give attendance points that count towards your final grade. This semester she gave a total of 6 attendance points. She posts all her class notes and does the Late Night Show, which is also very helpful (I would usually watch the recordings). I never attended GSS or office hours and rarely attended Discussions due to my schedule, but the TA sometimes went over similar questions that would be on the exam, those are all posted on ELMS. The first and third exam were really easy, the second and the final were the hardest. No worries though, if you get 50% or more you'll pass at least with a C- and she curves so that should be enough. I really enjoyed her class. Good luck!
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/18/2024	Amazing professor. Dr. Isaacs has a very structured ELMS page and is very clear about his expectations and what the students could expect in his course. Here is a more detailed breakdown of my experience: PERSONALITY: Dr. Isaacs clearly loves his jobs and I think that makes a huge difference in making the course more engaging for students. He is very receptive of questions and never responds in a condescending and/or passive aggressive manner. I've personally felt comfortable asking questions and I think many others have too. ORGANIZATION: Dr. Isaacs is extremely organized. His class has a clear structure and he tells students exactly what they're responsible for weeks before the exam. He posts his previous midterms WITH ANSWERS which is a huge help. He does truly provide you with everything you need to succeed in his course. EXAMS: Exams are well... difficult to say the least as is expected of an organic chemistry course. Although his exams require a lot of critical thinking and effort, I can't say he's ever included something that was not directly discussed in class. So in that sense, his exams are fair. TIPS: Definitely study the previous years' exams. Do as many of the old midterms as you can and you will be fine. Focus on doing problems rather than reading the textbook. The one complaint I have from Dr. Isaacs approach is his emphasis on the textbook. Louden is a horribly written textbook in my opinion and it only served to confuse me even more. Use Organic Chemistry as a Second Language instead. Once you've read the sub chapter and worked on the problems, review the slides from lecture and see if you can replicate Dr. Isaacs answers. Make sure you finish practicing the material in this manner about one week before the midterm. In the week leading up to the exam, practice old midterms and make sure you understand why you got certain problems wrong. DO NOT RELY ON THE LOUDEN TEXTBOOK. THE TEXTBOOK SHOULD BE YOUR LAST RESORT FOR PRACTICE PROBLEMS, NOT YOUR PRIMARY SOURCE OF LEARNING THE MATERIAL.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/15/2024	Before you take Isaacs' class, know that he is an old school prof. That means he believes his job is simply to lecture; his notes are there to guide you, they are NOT a tool to be used for studying. That is the textbook and you TA. While I only read organic chemistry as a second language and still did good, just know you either will be reading that or the textbook whichever you prefer. His class is set up where you just need to accrue as many points as you can get, i.e. there's nothing weighed a certain percentage. Just simply score as high as you get can to get the most total points at the end. There's 450 points from the 3 tests (each 150) and 100 points for clicker questions (for one clicker question, you get two points because 1 point is for participation and the other is for accuracy) and 300 points for the final. The trick to doing well is there is no trick, you need to continuously practice problems whether it be in the textbook or previous exams. He posts all past exams, make sure to do the past 5 years as you'll notice patterns. Exams are formatted the same way each time so no surprise. Curve is pretty generous too. Obvi recommend Davis but if you couldn't get him like the rest of us, take Isaacs. Also, don't cram you will fail.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/15/2024	Best professor! I genuinely enjoyed coming to class, interesting lectures related to how chemistry exists outside of an Orgo class and mechanisms, genuinely understood basic concepts that although other professors may seem harder, I value that the concepts in chemistry that Davis taught were more valuable as I now have a strong grasp.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting a B- Anonymous 05/13/2024	had her for chem241, she's a good teacher and she keeps the class organized but honestly really disrespectful person. she just undermines her students a lot and doesn't respond to emails or seem like she wants to help, even when i came to OH multiple times. i had a decent experience in her class (although tough), but i just don't like her attitude as a professor. wish she was just more approachable and open to helping rather than seeming like she hates her students :(
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/11/2024	Class is enjoyable and Dr Davis makes lectures fun and entertaining. Cool to see how Orgo plays out in pharmaceuticals, and to be able to apply more to the world that just mechanisms.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Anonymous 05/11/2024	Save yourself the struggle and take anyone else. Nice guy, but horrendously difficult exams. He tries to make it seem like they're simple just because he keeps the format the same, don't be fooled. A 50% on the exams was basically the average for his previous classes, that is why the curve is big. But I've literally learned nothing from this man. I go to class just because of the clicker questions otherwise leave with no new knowledge. He says he knows students like nomenclature so he always has nomenclature questions on the exam, that's a freaking lie. The nomenclature is in fact not IUPAC like we were actually taught but just random molecules he just picks from the textbook, and you have to basically memorize them or you're screwed (there's around 60 overall). He gives like 20 reaction boxes that have molecules pulled from god knows where with 3-4 steps. There's already so so so much content to remember I don't know in which world he thinks he's helping us. Don't take him!
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 03/07/2024	Dr. Stocker is far and away the best professor Ive had at UMD. Her practice tests are the exact same format as the actual exams, and as long as you attend each class and take notes, you will be just fine. She does not post notes, but do the practice problems/exams and attend her OH for help bc she's always there. Made one of the hardest classes easy and enjoyable, take her if possible.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/22/2023	Dixon is a good prof. Her cutoffs are great, and extra credit also boosts your grade a lot. Her exams are very tough, but she usually outlines major questions that will be directly on the exam the lecture before, so you know what to focus on while studying. Her homework is hell, but again good practice, and if you devote time to it and check with others, you should also be fine. Often her exam questions are pulled straight from the homework or her CAN (chemistry at night videos she does every week to go over practice problems). Her first exam stumped me, but the rest were easy As even without extra cred as you can figure out how her questions will be framed (she quite literally says them in class!! just don't skip lecture or have friends who go to lectures lol). If you do the homework diligently and don't copy off of others, and also redo her CAN worksheets, you can get away with good scores without doing a gazillion problem sets. She REALLY wants you to succeed in class, and pass it! She won't try to hurt you, curve down, or anything like that. I would take her again for BCHEM.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/22/2023	I think Dr. Dixon is a great professor. Her lectures are very clear and easy to understand. She does go in depth in every topic, however, but it ensures that you know it thoroughly. You can't get off on the notes she posts though, as her handwriting is quite messy; but if you go to most lectures you are golden. She also makes asynchronous videos, which are amazing and again easy to understand, and she does try her best!! Also her cutoffs are beautiful, and along with extra credit, you shouldn't worry too much about your overall grade. Her exams are usually a lot harder than other professors teaching the same subject (at least my semester), but again the extra credit gives you around a 10-12 point boost on each exam (the extra cred assignments are very hard and kinda messy, but if you have friends to work with, you should be fine). My only issue with her is her being kinda intimidating and not super open to questions. She will argue back with you in class if you are too inquisitive, but having her at 8 am may have exposed me to a different side of her. Still love her, and would take her again for BCHEM.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/22/2023	She's probably the better of options in regards to learning orgo, but it's hard to sit above the class curve since a lot of people do well. Take her if you want to learn orgo, take another professor if you'd prefer an easier shot at earning an A. I will also add in that Stocker tends to be more strict when defining her curves to the class, but might be a bit more generous than she lets on at the end of the semester when dealing out grades. Learn your reactions well and not the night before; it's safe to say that orgo2 carries a LOT more reactions than orgo 1, so really start studying earlier and pay attention to tricks on her exams.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ terpy2343 12/20/2023	The best chem professor at UMD easily! I was originally signed up for davis because I heard he was also good, but for some reason he decided to not teach fall over the summer, so I made the switch to Dr. Dixon. I am so glad I made this switch over stocker because I had stocker for orgo 1 and found her to be a bad teacher. Dr. Dixon provides you with all the resources you need to succeed in the class and perform well in the exams. The exams are difficult, but she gives you extra credit before every exam to earn up to 12 points. She provides plenty of practice and host chem review sessions every monday to go over topics. The final was very fair and was designed to help students succeed and boost their grade. Take Dr. Dixon you will 100% not regret your decision.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/19/2023	Stocker's more lenient on her curve cutoffs than what she says them to be. I wouldn't stress out too much if you're on the cusp of a grade because chances are she will curve you up. Decent lecturer, but I also agree with other reviews that she's a bit overrated. Went to several of her office hours and spent at least 30 minutes before getting 1-2 of my questions answered just because there were lots of other students there and she would spend time talking to previous students about stuff besides orgo.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A TB 12/18/2023	DR DIXON IS AN ICON! She makes so much time for students and gives you a ton of practice problems, extra credit, and a huge curve on tests. She's the reason i had a fantastic experience in Orgo II and I can't wait to take her for biochem. I genuinely looked forwards to class because she's engaging and hilarious and will always tell you the best stories in class. If you're interested in orgo from a biological point of view, i would highly recommend Dr. Dixon for an amazing class and a passionate professor.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/18/2023	TAKE DR. DIXON SHE IS AN AMAZING PROFESSOR. I was originally registered for davis, but for some reason he suddenly chose to not teach for the fall, so I switched to Dr. Dixon and it was the best decision I made. She teaches concepts very thoroughly and provides plenty of practice through her lecture sides and CAN sessions. She provides 3 exams that are difficult but are very fair. You also get extra credit assignments before each exam to earn up to 12 points on that exam. The final was very fair and was not that hard. Dr. Dixon prepared you very well to succeed in the class and as long as you put an effort to study, you will more than likely succeed. Take Dr. Dixon she is the absolute best in the CHEM department
Monique Koppel CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/18/2023	She's the best chem prof at UMD. I have had her for orgo one, orgo one lab, and orgo two. She's a great teacher and super nice. Her exams are always fair. She also adjusts the class based on the class's needs.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/15/2023	Lenea is an alright professor with a horrible attitude about teaching and a lack of respect for her students. Her only redeeming quality is that she makes this class very easy, much easier than the other professors. However, she actively encourages you to never email her, which is disregarding a huge part of her job. She has such a condescending attitude towards students and is very disrespectful. She also refuses to share notes with students if they are sick or miss class for excused absences which makes no sense. Take her for the easy A but not because she is a good professor or a good person.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Anonymous 12/13/2023	Stocker is a great lecturer and is great at showing mechanisms (except for when she skips over a bunch of the steps). She expects people to ask questions but breezes through concepts at a speed that makes you not even know what to ask. Her exams are foolishly difficult as they don't represent the one example of a concept she went over in class. You will have to teach yourself after studying her past exams. The TA sometimes posts a document with reactions all summarized, which helped to an immense degree. Without them, Stocker's scattered and information lacking notes would take ages to summarize on your own. As a bioengineer, I don't usually memorize concepts for my classes; we have to understand how to use them. Stocker insists that Orgo II is the same... it is not. This class is pure memorization. Sure, you have to understand how a proton transfer works or some mechanism patterns, but in the grand scheme, this is just a game of how long you prepare in advance to brute force memorize everything. The HW in her Orgo I class was harder than this class - it was fine in Orgo II. Her teaching style is just not for me and I felt dread when it was announced that she would be taking Davis's spot this semester. I got a B+ in Orgo I and my greatest complaint was Stocker's personality. It is irritating. I am not one of your "kids" and I am not your friend. Sorry to be rude but a year of her saying "WHAT'S MY FAVORITE RULE CLASS??? OCTET RULE RULESSS! ENOLS TAUTOMERIZE!!! AHAHAHAHAHA" has burned my soul into a dark patch of ash. Anyways, she is a good person but her style of teaching was shit imo. If you don't have friends taking this class with you, it will be harder - but ig that's for everything.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2023	the exams were basically the pervious ones, but in different words. The curve is also great. 75 was an A in the class that I took, and he guarantees 80 to be an A. No tricks, no gimmicks, just straight forward orgo 2.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/12/2023	She goes way too fast. I was lost many times during lecture. She skips through multiple things when teaching something for the first time and expects us to learn it on our own later. Exams are very difficult and are very much in depth which is ironic since the way she explains concepts are vague.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/09/2023	I originally wasn't supposed to take Dixon, I had signed up for Davis, but he ended up not teaching any Chem241 sections this fall and I instead got Dixon. I honestly LOVE her, I know some reviews may be mixed (I also haven't had her for biochem, so I can't speak on her teaching for that specific course). No doubt this class is going to be hard, especially if you don't have a solid Orgo I background, but as long as you put in the time and effort, you can definitely pull off getting a good grade in this class - coming from someone who got a B in Orgo I and is on track to getting an A in Orgo II. We have a problem set (pretty hard, questions are typically harder than what you see on the exam and they're graded for accuracy), and I HIGHLY recommend going to office hours or asking your discussion TA for feedback before submitting. I wasn't able to make office hours for one or two homework assignments, and my grade for those problem sets definitely reflected that. Dr. Dixon's office hours are typically very busy, but even if you don't get a chance to talk to her while attending, it's always a good place to collaborate with classmates and try and hear the advice she's giving to other students because most of the time I've found people have the same questions I do! I also highly recommend going to EVERY CAN session she holds, for my class, she held CAN every Monday night from 9-10 pm and went over relevant problems and answered any needed questions. Before exams, she would typically go over an old exam and allow 10-15 minutes at the end to answer any questions. Even if you don't have any particular questions about the topics she's going over, it's always good to attend and see her solve a few problems especially since she goes pretty fast during lectures (and class lectures aren't recorded). The 3 exams we had this semester were very fair, the averages typically fell around the high 50s-low 60s and went up a bit throughout the semester given that some people dropped the class. Dixon typically gives a 10-12 pt extra credit assignment due the Sunday before the exam, these problem sets are also pretty hard, but if you work with other students, you can get all if not a decent amount of the offered extra credit! Dixon's exams are pretty long, but even if you don't finish an exam she typically writes her exam to be out of 120 points (even though the max is 100) to allow you to go through and solve the problems you're more confident on. I've seen other reviewers complain about Dixon moving too fast or talking a lot about herself, which is true in part, but she always posts her whiteboard after class (so if you missed copying down something you can refer to it after class) and I find her little "side stories" always help give me a break from the overloading content because being so real Orgo II is ALOT and it's nice to take a break from hard material sometimes and talk about something a bit more light-hearted (I also had 75min lectures at 8 am which was pretty rough). You can't go wrong with taking Dixon for Chem241, and I highly recommend especially if you want a good background going into Biochem!
Monique Koppel CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/06/2023	She gives three midterms, three homework assignments, and a final. Her lecture is very straight forward. She starts every unit with a little bit of context, and then teaches reactions. It's on you to go home and practice them to learn them. All her exams have the same structure, so you know what to expect and can predict what she'll put on them. She does put two tricker questions on every exam, but they're doable. She provides a lot of extra practice and can answer any question you have during office hours. Ignore everyone saying she's bad, it's orgo, it takes a lot of work to learn no matter who you have.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/06/2023	She seems like a good lecturer (very helpful if people have questions and tries to engage the class) the few times I actually go to class. Other than that, her notes are organized and she has a lot of resources/videos to help people online. I never personally have tried to go to office hours, but I'm told it's pretty difficult to talk to her due to the amount of people there. Weekly homeworks aren't too bad if you understand what's going on in class and if you don't, you can figure out how to do them based on the notes she posts. In terms of the exams, there's an almost excessive amount of extra credit both before the exam and built into the actual exam and exams are pretty directly based on the HW, so if you understand how to do the reactions and what's actually going on chemically in the reactions, it isn't super difficult to get good grades. That being said, our class averages for exams are not great (usually in the 60s), as expected from any UMD chem class, which means there's a curve at the end as well. Honestly, I didn't really learn very much synthesis in Orgo I because my professor spent like 2 days on them so it was a little difficult for me to catch up at the beginning of Orgo II and Dixon does expect you to come in knowing quite a bit of synthesis, but with a little hard work, this class is not too bad. There's a lot of practice opportunities and Dixon herself seems sweet and wants to help students as much as possible. Definitely recommend her for Orgo!
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/05/2023	I had her for both orgo 1 and 2 and I am expecting an A/A+ in orgo 2 after getting an A+ in orgo 1. She is a great lecturer who can explain stuff and get you to actually understand it. Her tests are very fair and she has lots of past exams (no answer keys tho :( ) on ELMS. Use all of the problem sets, discussion worksheets, GSS worksheets, ANYTHING that she posts on ELMS that can help you to study. Something to consider though is that she goes really fast in lecture (perfect speed for me but not for everyone). Also, I think that the Thanksgiving break being extended and her getting COVID messed up her flow when it came to teaching because after all that happened, everything felt a lot more disorganized. She can sometimes use class time explaining a mechanism only to say "this mechanism will not be on the exam" which is a little annoying, but if you really like chemistry that's great for you. Overall, really great lecturer and I really understand orgo after taking her!.
Lee Friedman CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 07/05/2023	Dr. Friedman is a mixed bag. The negatives: His exams are hard, his homeworks are hard, his class is hard. He very much expects students to stay on top of the material by themselves, he is not the type to give out answers or help, he will ask you what you think and then kind of stare at you, which is probably the right thing to do from an education perspective. Overall, his reputation precedes him and he can come off as intimidating or heartless at times. The positives: He cares about your learning and brings an enjoyable enthusiasm (behind heavy sarcasm and dry humor) to lecture every morning. And yes, his lectures are always in the mornings because he thinks it will scare off the uncommitted students. While his exams are hard, it is all about the curve, so as long as you can consistently perform as well or better than the rest of the class, you can comfortably achieve your desired grade. Also, with 3 homeworks and 3 exams, the workload is at a minimum, but that also makes it easy to fall behind. All in all, Dr. Friedman is a tough love type of professor. Hard work and hard play, if you can keep up, you will do fine.
Lenea Stocker CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/27/2023	I got A with a ending grade of 82% highly reccomend stocker Tuesday/Thursday
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/26/2023	Dr.Wang is honestly a pretty solid professor. One of my only gripes was that I felt his lectures were hard to follow at times and did not get a lot out of them until I was able to return to the slides later. I also did not like that he allocated 150 points to clicker questions, which equalled an exam. If you do really well on them they are definitely a grade booster and most people did do well, but I didn't really like them because he quizzed you on the content that you just learned, and I thought the questions were quite difficult. Since I didn't absorb a lot from his lectures, it was hard to do well but luckily I had smart friends around me who helped out. With that being said, I am taking him over the other professors because his exams are very straightforward and they are easy to do well on if you complete the homework. He doesn't grade the homework but you must do it to perform well in the class because it is definitely difficult content to follow without practice. Also, he is very kind and welcoming and wants to see you succeed so go to him if you need help understanding concepts.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/20/2023	A sweet guy who is willing to help, but honestly one of the worst science professors I've had. The language barrier made it difficult to understand him (didn't understand any lectures, only went for the clicker points), and the homeworks (not graded) were difficult and did not relate to the exam as they looked like they were copied out of a random textbook, slides looked busy and were very difficult to interpret for me. The only reason I did well was because I had a tutor- I barely looked at his slides and never did homework. His exams are very fair and your grade is based on 3 midterms, the final, and clickers. Wang was not receptive to students' concerns with using in-class handheld clickers not connecting (instead of the free app?) and not posting slides before class. He is VERY old school- writing on the chalkboard sometimes and busy slides with images that look like they are from a textbook and didn't seem the best with technology/canvas. He does grade fast and is willing to answer any questions, but didn't always understand people's questions correctly. Some of the grading on exams seemed unfair (took off a lot of points for something that didn't seem like it deserved it), and he basically never gave points back unless it was a tallying points mistake. He seems too smart to be teaching this or assumes that students understand more than we actually do. Usually, if you can get above a 50%, you pass because of the curve. My class's averages were alwasy around 70%. Overall If you are someone who can understand busy, textbook-type slides and his accent you can probably do well, but of course, it's a lot of information regardless of the professor. Learning the material from someone else, I would never have been able to understand it from Dr. wang.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/18/2023	Dr. Wang is one of the only good professors on campus. He truly cares about our success and ability to perform. He spends half of the lecture following the midterms to go over some the main questions, and then conclude with a motivational talk on having a positive attitude towards life and chem241. His slides are very easy to follow, expect many reactions, but all the mechanisms you need to know are on there. He also spends the whole lecture the lecture before the midterm to review. He lists all the mechanisms that will show up so you only need to study for those,~3-5. His exams are by far the most straightforward exams which a few questions directly from the practice exam and homework. The exam structure is the same including the final exam, consisting of multiple choices for basic properties(nomenclature, mp/bp, acidity/basicity), reactions, mechanisms, and synthesis. I really enjoyed his class since I sit in the front row, he always comes and talks to me about my weekend/summer plans before class starts. I wish my professors are all like him. I've had many friends who taken other chem 2 professors, and I truly believe Dr. Wang will be the right choice; do expect a ridiculous waitlist though.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Anonymous 05/18/2023	Do not take him if you do not read textbooks. You will fail if you do not read the textbook. You will be required to go to each and every class because there are clicker questions. HE GOES FAST. His teaching style in lectures is that he already has the slides pre-made with bunches of chemical structures. If you do not have a digital writing device that can take pictures of his slides it will be hard to follow along. (Though he does post lecture notes online, it is not helpful if you just stare at them after class.) I hated this and can never learn like that. Overall lectures were not engaging. Tests are straightforward and sometimes from the books but sometimes are obnoxiously hard.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/17/2023	Having taken this course, I feel like most of these reviews are relatively true. If you are coming from stocker, this is your warning: He does not provide as in depth lectures as she does and you will have to self study the crap out of this class. He gives out non-graded homeworks which you definitely NEED to do in order to do well on the exams. He also provides everything you need to know on slides but he runs through them and only draws a couple of mechanisms on a chalk board. I accidentally relied solely on the single practice exam he provides prior to the exam and this isn't sufficient if you want to get a good grade. Be diligent about your time and understand your syntheses. He is a great teacher and he won't throw anything particularly crazy at you but you have to be very proactive. I personally found he was great in office hours but again, you have to do way more work to understand things outside of class rather than just sitting in the lecture. I was a little upset we had to purchase clickers for our mandatory clickers since I had other professors who let us use the free app instead. TLDR; Overall, a great person, not the best lecturer, DO YOUR HOMEWORKS, and review the lecture slides!
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Anonymous 05/16/2023	Professor Wang was great, his lectures are all given on PowerPoints but emphasizes some important mechanisms or concepts by writing them on the board. Everything you need for the exams are on the PowerPoints and you just need to practice/remember the things on the PowerPoints. He has clicker (participation points) that really helps your grade (pretty much acts as an extra exam) but also means you have to get them right/go to class. His exams are very fair, although not easy or impossible, he has multiple choice questions, typical reaction/mechanism questions to write out. However all the reactions and mechanisms are fair and he usually gives you what mechanisms to know for the exam. He also has optional homework’s that don’t count towards your grade but usually he has one or two homework problems on the exams. No dropped exams. Professor Wang’s lecture style is pretty easy to follow and isn’t for everyone but if you’re really concerned about not doing well, Wang is your best option. You might not learn as much detail as other professors but you still learn a lot while the exams not being from hell.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/12/2023	Dr. Wang is by far the best professor I have ever met. Not just the professor, but the best dude in general. He is so caring about his students and all he really wants is for us to succeed and love organic chemistry (while not being so obnoxious about it as other professors). In regards to the class, the other reviews are completely accurate. He teaches basically only what’s on the exam, and he never tries to throw curveballs. Everything is straightforward and structured in the best way possible. Take Dr. Wang
Lee Friedman CHEM241 Anonymous 05/12/2023	This course is hard which is why some people really end up hating this class. Besides the difficulty of organic chemistry, Dr.Friedman is a funny guy who actually cares a lot about his students. I really recommend going to his office hours and asking him about material you are struggling on or need some extra clarification, he is always willing to help you out. He most importantly is a fantastic teacher. He doesn't just point out things you should know and memorize but actually explains the how and why in depth. The exams are difficult but if you are a hard working and determined, you will do pretty well. I 100% recommend attending discussion and going to his office hours if you want to do really well. He also gives a lot of extra resources for your disposal. Even if you don't get an amazing grade, this class will immensely improve your studying habits and techniques as well as show you how to persevere.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting a B- Anonymous 05/11/2023	this class sucks but Professor Wang made it all worth the while. i love this dude and you will too
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/10/2023	I am not good at chemistry and performed quite bad on the first exam and average on the second exam. I am barely keeping up a C and this is the first C I will ever receive. Despite this, I think Dr. Dixon is an excellent professor. She prepares you very well for exams and literally gives you a list of what will be on the tests/final. She also assigns homework, which is a bit of a pain. However, they really help you prepare for the final. Her office is open almost every morning/afternoon for questions and discussion. She is a really approachable and intelligent professor. She is also a really great person. She teaches very difficult classes, which makes many students resent her. I recognize my grade is due to my own inability to understand chemistry rather than her inability to teach. She also prepares you very well the for MCAT and BCHM if you are interested in taking those in the future.
Lee Friedman CHEM241 Expecting a B- sramsl 05/08/2023	I don't know about other orgo 2 professors but friedman was a really good lecturer. As somebody who hates teaching myself from a textbook, that was really helpful for me. There were only 3 homeworks which was good and bad because I felt like I didn't have a lot of practice but it was less work. The practice exams are essential to doing well because he has very specific ways of writing exam questions. He's reachable during office hours, over email, and also in class. He has a bit of a sarcastic sense of humor which made the 9 am lectures a little more bearable. He has a VERY generous curve at the end of the class depending on the averages of exams. The thing that was a bit annoying was the excess lectures on sugar proofs that weren't really relevant to the course or in the textbook, I'd rather have done more practice problems in class than learning metabolism pathways. Overall though this is a really hard class with very tough exams.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 04/12/2023	He is the sweetest professor ever. I had Tue/Thurs 8 AMs with him. 8 AMs. And he made it bearable and entertaining. Take Davis!!!!
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/29/2022	Amazing professor. Stocker, Koppel, Friedman and the other dude straight up need to take a page out of his book. From the very first day of class I could tell he really cared about his students and wanted us to pass..no other chem professor gave off this vibe. He even thoroughly explains practice exams. The lowest exam grade is dropped and theres an extra credit opportunity. The extra credit at the beginning of the semester saved me. The content is not easy, but Professor Davis is an angel and it's a shame he doesn't teach every semester. However, grades are only based on exams. Literally if you take anyone else for orgo 2 you're stupid.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A IfCourseEvalsWereHones 12/19/2022	Just leaving another 5-star here... nothing much more I can add to the other reviews. Best professor I have ever had hands down. Super thoughtful, understanding, and caring. Dr. Jeffery Davis must be protected at all costs.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/18/2022	Dr. Davis makes orgo 2 enjoyable. The exams are the only thing that contributes to your grade, but he gives you plenty of resources to study from and he makes lectures entertaining. Study the practice exams in advance of the midterms and you will be fine. He drops one midterm, but his 3rd midterm in particular tends to be more difficult than the others. He explains concepts very well in office hours, and he isn't condescending towards students. Overall best orgo professor there is.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2022	Davis is one of the kindest and caring professors. If you put effort into this class, you will get an A. His lectures are fun and he puts breaks in. His curve is also great, which is that if you get 80 or above, it’s a guaranteed A or A-, and he drops the lowest exam score. His tests are very fair and he prepares you for an A in the class. Study the notes in and out and PRACTICE. He’s an amazing professor— would definitely recommend him over any of the other ones.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/16/2022	Davis is an amazing professor, especially for the chem department lol. He's so chill, kind, and caring. One thing I love about his classes is that he gives 5 minute breaks. He also gives a lot of real life examples that make orgo so much more interesting. He gives 4 exams including the final and even allows you to drop the final (since its not cumulative) if your grade is good enough. I took Freidman for orgo 1 and he would rush everything so much if we were not on track. With Davis, he never rushes anything and is really organized. There's no homework or anything so you have to study to do well on the exams.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/12/2022	END OF AN ERA REST IN PEACE KING
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/07/2022	This man is one of the best people ever. He cares for your education and it's so sad to see he is retiring.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a B ReakatheGOAT 12/06/2022	Dr. M-S is a good lecturer and fair professor. He ensures students who put in work succeed in the class. I worked pretty hard for my B but I have had to in every single chemistry course I have taken. Students are given ample resources to succeed in this course such as the GSS and discussions. If I were a professor, I personally would add in a few “buffer points” for either participation or homework but generally I didn’t think bombing one exam led to a failing grade in Dr. Montague-Smith’s class. I had some friends who did it and got Cs and Bs as their final grade. If you’re reading this Dr. M-S, have a great retirement!
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A 57K9 07/08/2022	Some of you may not like Dr. Dixon. However, this will depend on your own attitude as a student. Organic Chemistry 1 and 2 will be a challenge no matter what teacher you have. In my opinion, I was able to excel in this class due to her teaching style and her character. Dr. Dixon cares about her students. She demands that you work hard through weekly homework assignments, but these homework assignments force you to study for her exams. She directly writes the exams based off of the hw. Additionally, Dr. Dixon hosts two chemistry at night zooms that go over lecture material from that week. Put your best effort into the homework, go to the C.A.N. zooms, and go to office hours when you’re struggling. If you’re willing to work hard, in my opinion, you will have the best chance of achieving a higher grade in her class than in other orgo teachers’ classes. There are no shortcuts through orgo. With Dr. Dixon, you earn the grade you work for. This is an advantage to taking her compared to some other orgo professors.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 06/27/2022	She was a good professor but her homeworks were extremely hard for no reason. She also gave extra credits that were nearly impossible to do unless you got lucky with your guessing. I felt that they just took time away from studying right before exams. However, she does give you lots of good resources and practice sessions that were helpful. I'd strongly recommend finding a good study group to do well in the class.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/24/2022	I had Dr. Dixon for both orgo 1 and orgo 2. Overall, she will give you a lot of material to succeed in her class. There are a ton of practice problems, office hours, and supplementary videos. She also does extra credit quizzes (that are often unreasonably hard, but doable if you find a good group to work in). I always thought that the exams were easy, but the homeworks were insanely hard. A lot of her homework assignments are based on weird tricks and rules to whatever functional group you're working on, not necessarily how they actually work. It seems like there is never a middle ground between easy and hard problems. She has frequent office hours that are semi-helpful, mainly because you'll be able to find students who are also working on the homeworks. You should definitely be aware that Dr. Dixon has a huge attitude problem. I think a lot of other reviews give a good idea about what kind of person she is, but to sum it up, she will be condescending and short-tempered. Go to your TA for help before you go to her. She also does not cover all of the material on a homework until the day it is due. It's really frustrating. Personally, I think that all of the materials that she gives like extra credit quizzes and videos make up for her attitude, but if you are worried that you may need a lot of help in chemistry, you should try to find a different professor.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/19/2022	Had her for 231, then for 241. Pretty much the same review I would for 231. Outstanding professor. If you are taking 241, you likely need it for your degree or future courses, so Dixon is the right choice.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/15/2022	Love her
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/09/2022	Rapid Fire Pros: Pretty funny guy, gives a 5 min break, teaching is good and above average, good stories also give you a mental break, the material he teaches is exactly what on the test, tons of old test material, tells you exactly the format and what to expect Cons: lotta memorization, hates regrades, you'll prob lose points if you try, No HW, only test points (good-sized curve though), HANDWRITING is pretty bad but you get used to it IMO, can feel like you're lost in all the material but you eventually get it after doing practice and realizing you're wrong. The course is hard, it's Orgo 2 so...but deff the lesser of two evils between him and Dixon. P.S. get Edward as a TA if possible, he's the best.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 01/23/2022	MS seems like a great guy and has really funny stories during lecture, but beware--you have to put work in in order to do well in this class. He didn't record lectures, but he did post his written notes on ELMS; his handwriting is pretty messy, so I would suggest just going to lecture to ask if you're confused about any words he wrote. In terms of studying, honestly discussion was kinda a waste of time (not saying you shouldn't go, but while you're there ask any questions that you have to make the most out of your time), GSS can be pretty helpful, and he posts old exams. I would say the old exams are the best practice materials you have for the midterms: he reused some of the questions from the old exams, and it's a great way to anticipate how he might ask questions on the midterms. Like the review before me said, he only has 3 midterms and a final--no homework, no buffer points. I'd say honestly that if you want an easier time in Orgo 2 and have a higher chance of getting a good grade, Dr. Davis is the prof to go with. Otherwise, MS is a hard but good teacher.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 01/08/2022	MS was very enthusiastic and engaging during class so I do appreciate that. Although I could follow what he was saying during class for the most part it was hard to understand on my own as he didn't write explanations, only reactions. I tried attending GSS but couldn't go as often as when it was online due to conflicts with time (physics and orgo labs) plus not living on campus made it hard. (I strongly recommend GSS!) With our grade only based on 3 exams + a final it is very stressful. I would appreciate if he assigned homework to practice and help our grade. On exams he barely assigned partial credit. He wouldn't always respond to emails and if he did they were dry and he seemed bothered. Although he is a funny guy I don't feel he really cared about his students.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/22/2021	Dr. MS is super passionate about teaching and even cracks some funny stories and jokes in lecture. He keeps his lectures engaging and his exams are straightforward and are very relevant to what he teaches. The biggest downside is that there’s only 4 grades and nothing gets dropped (3 midterms and a final). Overall, he’s a great professor and I highly recommend
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2021	honestly, best professor I have ever had. His practice exams are extremely helpful, but make sure you truly mastered each question on the exam to be able to apply the material to a similar problem. He gives optional homework which may help your understanding of the material. Carefully review his lecture slides, because he may give a hint to topics that are important. His curve was generous and the TA's discussion is very important. Mechanisms are also important to take note of, they are not on the slides. TAKE HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but remember, this is organic chemistry two, it requires a LOT of work. So if you don't put in that work, the professor does not matter, it is up to you to practice and master the material. there is usually free orgo 2 tutoring from AXS 2x/wk, so take advantage!
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A+ florm 12/18/2021	Dr. Wang is a fantastic professor who is very willing to help us. His lectures are exactly as straightforward and packed with information as you could expect for such a dense course. He does occasionally speed through lecture slides, but he always posts them after class so you can go back through and take notes on what you missed. That being said, the mechanisms are usually not in the lecture slides, he'll just draw them on the chalkboard so make sure you always copy them down. He also will post a couple pages of homework problems from the textbook after each lecture; these aren't graded but they're very helpful. GSS practice problems were also super helpful (and sometimes were almost identical to what was on the exams). Your grade is entirely based on exams: 3 midterms and the final, that's it. That definitely puts a lot more pressure on the exams, but I felt that they weren't excessively difficult, and they never had any surprises. They were graded insanely fast too, usually by the end of the day, and the averages were typically in the high 60s/low 70s. Dr. Wang also gives us practice exams for the midterms, and always lets you know beforehand which mechanisms you should focus on. One big tip: don't think that certain things won't be on the exam because they seem trivial or random. Chances are, there will be one question about it. There is a lot of memorization in orgo, regardless of what professor you have. So be prepared for that.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/08/2021	Most flexible orgo professor. Extremely kind and understanding. Although there are ONLY 4 exams that contribute to your grades, no hw or anything he really ensures that you do well. He award a lot of partial credit and bonuses. One exam gets dropped. He’s very well organized and cares about his students.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Anonymous 12/02/2021	Davis is the first teacher I met that actually cared if you understood the material and did not rush the material. If we were behind in the topics in the syllabus he didn't rush he wanted to make sure we understood it. He also dropped one exam and curved so if you had an 80 or higher you had a guaranteed A.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/01/2021	Honestly, despite my grade, Davis is a great professor. It is not his fault that I did not understand the concepts. Lots of resources are provided to do well, and the only reason I even passed is because of his more-than-generous curve on the class. If you understand orgo, he is great. The only thing I can complain about is the fact that there are no homeworks or assignments, so your grade is purely exam based which is what hurt my grade so badly. He is passionate and an extremely nice guy, so take him if you can!
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A- blue_footed_booby 05/15/2021	Ditto that one anonymous guy who gave an IN-DEPTH review of Dr. Isaacs on 5/14/21. Definitely take good notes and do problems from the book, he sometimes pull straight from there (at least when we were online).
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2021	TEACHING: He's a decent/good professor. He teaches straight from the book, and has similar exam questions to the practice problems. He has structure to his lectures. He usually introduces a topic, goes over general concepts, then reactions with mechanisms and a bunch of examples - a simple lecture format. His handwriting and drawings are good. He gives clicker questions at the end of every lecture, so attend and be prepared. PERSONALITY: He's very passionate about chemistry, and this shows when he speaks with excitement in lecture, which can be refreshing. He's very receptive of questions, and always takes time to answer after class and during office hours. He makes a lot of jokes. Whether or not you find them funny, they lighten the mood and make you feel a bit less miserable. He loves hemiacetals and daydreaming about being a nucleophile. Nice guy in general. EXAMS: Some problems are straight from the book (but it's not worth trying to memorize). The format is usually as follows: 3-5 nomenclature, 3-5 concepts, 1-2 spectroscopy (must remember NMR and IR from orgo 1), 2-4 synthesis, 2-3 mechanisms, and 10+ reaction boxes (fill-in-the-blank with reactant or product formed), and maybe some other questions. Be prepared for this format. He makes an announcement on the exam format as well, so if this ever changes then don't worry - he'll update you. STRATEGY: I did very well on his exams. My strategy may not work for everyone, but what worked for me was just taking notes during lecture - every example problem, every detail in a mechanism, all concepts. Organize your notes well. A week before exam time, I reviewed my notes hardcore. I took the time to understand, and not just memorize (although memory is very important). I didn't take practice exams, read the book, or go to GSS, but I do recommend this if you're not a great note taker. Book (for missed lectures) + practice exams will help the most.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 05/07/2021	Dr. MS is a terrific professor. Although the material and the exams are difficult, he is such a nice guy and a is very compassionate towards his students and his job as a professor. I would HIGHLY recommend taking his class for Orgo 2, he is one of the most genuine and passionate professors out there. (p.s. He tells some of the best stories and shares some of the coolest information throughout the semester)
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 12/25/2020	I thought his online lectures were very boring and monotone. He was not sympathetic to student concerns. Online exams are entirely multiple choice, so there's no chance of getting partial credit. Maybe he's better for live class, but I would not recommend him for online class.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 01/03/2020	Approachable professor who wants to help his students succeed. Dr. Wang's lectures are a little dry but very thorough and closely follow the textbook. Exams are very predictable and consist of nomenclature, reactions, mechanisms, synthesis and a few questions on general concepts. His exams are almost the exact same as the practice exams he gives out. Take his class if you wanna coast and get a good grade, but he doesn't teach as much content or as in depth as Stocker/MS.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Anonymous 05/19/2019	Great professor. Also, Delaney is a great TA!
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 05/19/2019	Love him. The key to success is his practice exams. Accidentally YOLOed last night and missed class? No worries, just go through his old exams. Super animated professor and tells funny stories and jokes too.
Lai-Xi Wang CHEM241 Expecting an A bnketia 12/18/2018	For starters, Dr. Wang is a very nice professor and clearly cares for his students which I appreciated throughout this semester. However, I will say that his class was challenging especially given the language barrier that exists. Over time, it got easier to understand what he was saying but with a subject like orgo, communication is essential. Nevertheless, I appreciated how he gave us homework assignments (granted the textbook questions are difficult) and had clicker questions. I would say his exams are harder than average for 241 but he keeps the format for each exam the same so you know what types of problems to anticipate. If you do the homework problems (in Dr. Wang's words) and use Orgo as a Second Language, you will be able to succeed if the subject does not come naturally to you. The TA Steven is very knowledgeable and discussion is typically helpful so I would advise attending. The curve is always dependent on the semester but I had an 82% with the class average being a ~61%.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/15/2018	Fantastic orgo professor. My favorite teacher at the university yet. Love this guy. Hilarious, and tells everything that you need to know about what you’ll be tested on. he doesn’t keep you in the dark and he is very transparent about what he expects from you, which I appreciated. He tells stories before and during class, with a molecule of the day in the beginning. He’s got some great stories. The man is one of the most interesting guys out there. You have to work hard of course, but I believe that anyone can succeed in MS’s class if you put the time in. that’s the key to orgo 2: time. If you’re not willing to give time, then you will not get the grade you want. He is very systematic in the way that he tests, meaning the format of his tests have not changed a bit since 2011. That’s the other great thing about this semester: he posted all of his old exams since 2011! So all I did was practice those and then got A’s on the test. Sounds easy now, but doing ALL those tests takes time and perseverance . There’s also no answer keys for them so you have to check with friends. TA andrea was amazing and I loved her commentary during discussion…”we’ll just jones up this bad boy.” Stuff like that. really classic and genuine person. He’s definitely your best bet for orgo 2 and I would be so down to take bchm with him in the future if he ever teaches it. I came from having Dixon for orgo 1, so I was used to the office hours ‘fun’. It’s not like that with MS. He likes his space and sees students one at a time at office hours, so you don’t really get to know him on that personal level like you would if you took Dixon and were hardworking enough to be part of her squad. Overall, highly recommend MS. You’ll have to work hard, but remember that most pre med kids know to take him, so getting around 85% of the total points in his class usually serves to get you an A-. this means the curve is quite small. it’ll be a competitive group, but you can do it. goodluck
David King CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/20/2018	Best orgo TA ever! Really knows his stuff and really goes out of his way to help students!
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/20/2018	Very boring lectures but his exams are very predictable and fair. Doing lots of practice is the only way to do well. I would suggest him for orgo because it is easy to do well if you can recognize the patterns in his exams. Typical professor type that just lectures the whole entire time.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/02/2018	He's my favorite! Pros: Lectures are structured and include a break in the middle, expectations/exams are straightforward, and he's passionate and so delightful. Cons: You'll get used to his handwriting it's not that bad; some say he's intimidating but it's not his fault he's super tall. Verdict: Take him you will love him.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 03/22/2018	He is my favorite professor ever!!!
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 04/05/2016	I had to drop the course, what does this mean? nothing but, I just couldn't learn with him. The other reviews say he is funny, yes. He has lots of Dad jokes. Energetic, yes, he is certainly passionate and very smart in the subject. Good teacher? To each his own. he was not for me, I did try and I had to drop after the second exam. He is straightforward on his exam, they are long but I thought they were difficult. Not unfair but difficult. He told the class if you do not have X amount of points by now on the exams, drop the class. So I did. I now have to take it over the summer. I do not resent Dr. MS or anything like that. Just be aware that his lectures are fast, there is a lot of material in REALLY BAD handwriting. Do not close your eyes for even a second. I wish I took a different professor but, he is not bad, he is not scary but he is intimidating. I felt like I could not go to office hours without being judged, so I did not go. Other Chem prof have open office hours which are extremely helpful. He is not personable which is a shame, he does not want to make friends with his students and that's fine but, it's not my style. Be prepared to work and practice, he is not going to hold your hand. He dies not help out by giving you practice problems or anything like that and of course no answer keys to his old exams. The old exams are truly the only way to study and without an answer key I find them very difficult even when studying with others. The bottom line is this, take this prof if you know you work hard because those who do not will not take him. If you are below average on exams, drop the class because people will only get smarter as the class goes on and odds are you are already behind. The exams are long but they are fair. they are complex reaction problems that warrants basically no partial credit. The NMR on the first exam was so easy but the second exam impossible, if I had gotten those right I would have stayed in the class. Just an honest opinion her, great guy, ok teacher but the fact of the matter is he does not care about his students, he does not care how you feel about him and he does not care if you fail or succeed. He would rater see you leave than fail and he tells you that. So listen to him. I thought I could get a C in his class and chalk it up as I did ok but, honestly I did not have a chance.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting a B jesss 01/04/2016	Often heard very harsh things about Professor Deshong but it is not always true. I like to think that negative feedback most times come from lazy students. So I enjoyed his class. He is as many have said a great lecturer. He knows what he is talking about, you will def learn a great deal about Orgo 2. He does expect his students to have a solid background in Orgo 1. So make sure that you know your SN1, SN2, E1,E2 Concepts very well. His test often did caught me off guard but I didn't think that they were impossible.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting an A sfrail 01/02/2016	DeShong is great! All I ever want from professors is for them to be clear and teach what they test and DeShong meets that perfectly. His lectures are well organized and he has central concepts that he holds through the whole class, which really gives you an understanding of orgo and not just a random set of mechanisms to memorize. I also just want to stress how great his test set up is. The first page always has exactly the same kind of material so you know exactly what to study and know and exactly what to work on. The weighting is fair, and the questions are always things that you would expect based on how much time he spend on it in lecture. There were a few confusing issues with grading done by other graders but they were at least consistent, and he has very clear instructions and reminders for submitting regrades if you need it. He includes biochem in his lectures and other cool stories and facts about chemistry which is super fun! If you're someone who hates all of it you'll probably find it less interesting but it definitely kept lecture engaging and kept the class interesting, which is especially important for an 8am class. tl;dr TAKE DESHONG!! You'll learn orgo, it'll be interesting, and you won't get screwed over
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting a B grapes 12/16/2015	Unlike in the math department, professors in the chem department are allowed to write their own finals emphasizing whatever they think is important, so regardless of how the professor is themselves it's important to consider what sort of test taker you are. In De Shong's case, there is less emphasis on procedural thinking (synthesis isn't as present as it was on my Orgo I prof's tests) and more on memorization of biochemical processes and structures. That's not to say things like mechanisms aren't the meat and potatoes of the course because that's gonna be the case with ANY professor, but you'll probably prefer De Shong if you are a pre-med memorization machine or biochem major because it'll give you an edge over the other students. Also, if you don't learn through lecture and just skip it, I wouldn't recommend taking De Shong because participation points via clicker questions can make a pretty big difference. He doesn't care if you stay after the first 5 minutes, but showing up in the first place can be a pain. As for the man himself, he was alright. Has a funny rude sort of humor and sometimes tells cool anecdotes related to that day's lecture. I thought he spent too much time focusing on biochem, but that's something that comes down to your preference. Overall, I personally would have chosen another professor for this course because I'm not biochem but he is not bad to have by any means. (And that comment by that other reviewer about orgo as a second is spot on. USE THAT BOOK.)
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting an A helpmeimdiene 02/26/2015	DeShong is absolutely hilarious and is the best lecturer I have ever had at UMD. His exams are soooooooo fair and there are no synthesis problems! Also, his NMR problems are soooo simple compared to other orgo professors. He mainly cares about mechanisms and reagents. HOWEVER, this class is inherently difficult no matter who you take it with. To do well in Dr.DeShong's class, I had to put in a little bit of work almost every day and read the orgo 2 bible (a.k.a orgo as a second language). Take this class with him, put in the work, and you won't regret it!
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/13/2015	How to get an A in Orgo II: do the practice exams. All of them. Do them. Especially for the final. I destroyed the final and it locked me in for an A (I was borderline B+/A-). GSS isn’t really helpful for orgo II, because Isaacs teaches DIRECTLY out of the book. His problems are almost all exactly the same from the book. Accidently YOLO’d too hard the night before and missed class the next morning? No worries, just read the book. (But don’t skip class a lot, you’ll get behind and screw yourself over) If you have questions go to his problem sessions, he’s really nice and receptive during them. This entire class is weighted on exams, so don’t slack on those. No homework, no extra credit. There are clicker questions, which help a tiny bit. But you have to do well on the exams, that’s the key!! Orgo II is just mechanisms and practice, so focus on that. Isaacs is a little dry as a professor, but better than Doyle, and not as good as M.S. but he tries to make jokes sometimes, and he’s excited about chemistry, which helps. (I've heard he's not the best for orgo I so avoid him for that course)
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A milk 07/02/2014	I had MS for CHEM231 and CHEM241, so this review is for both. Love him. I would take an orgo III with him if I could. Pros: - Straightforward exams - Lecture style (easy to follow) - Generally humorous - Very predictable - Clicker questions to boost your grade (for attendance, not correctness) - Practice exams from the chem frat are very similar to his current exams - HUGE curve Cons: - Terrible handwriting (you'll get over it) - No matter who you take, orgo is based solely on your ability to rote memorize so try not to suck at it MS's best feature is his predictability. I'll give you the full story on how your experience in his class is going to go: You sign up for the class. You get a mass email from him welcoming you to CHEM2X1 (which he reuses every year, and just changes a few numbers). First day of class, he attempts to butter you up so that you either think you've scored the golden professor by the end of it, or you hate him because you like more serious professors. Second day of class and onward, you'll have 1-3 clicker questions (you don't have to get it right, they're attendance points). You'll be astounded by how bad his handwriting is, but quickly get over it. The difference between whether you like MS or not lies in how much you like his lecture style. MS keeps his energy up, whether it's 9 AM or 2 PM. He tells personal life stories to make you laugh (predictably, he reuses those too). It won't seem like it, but he's actually a very straightforward lecturer, especially in 241 - he literally just gives you the reactions and mechanisms you need to know, in addition to clear-cut reasons why they run the way they do. He had what I considered to be a fairly organized and simple system, which is why studying for exams wasn't too bad (by the time an exam rolls around and you start studying, you see the method to his madness). He also makes sure to emphasize nuances that appear on the test (like acetals don't react in base). Your grade consists of 1 quiz (multiple choice test on either gen chem I material or CHEM231 material, depending on which class you're in), 3 exams, 1 final, and clickers. The format of exams is generally always the same. For CHEM231, there's some funky stuff (chair conformation, Newman projection, etc.), some reactions, a mechanism or 2, and multiple choice. For CHEM241, he gets even more predictable: 3-4 pages of reactions, 1-2 mechanisms, 1-2 synthesis, 1-2 NMR. He sends out a list on what you'll be tested on, so there's no surprises. As long as you know every reaction he ever gave and all the mechanisms on the list, you should be fine. He even picks from a set stock of NMRs. There's no surprises/tricks on his exams. The curve is massive as well, like 20-25% (although he'll maintain that it's around 15-20%, don't be fooled). Top 25% of the class gets an A/A-. Also I went to his office hours a couple of times, he was quite nice to me so I don't know why other people had bad experiences but let's be real, it doesn't even matter. He always gets the best TAs (Liz or David) so you can ask them questions instead anyway. This review is getting too long, but save yourself the trouble of taking Dixon or any other teacher and just take him, you'll live. He makes orgo super doable.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A+ krychik 05/19/2014	You have to take Orgo 2 with MS. He's funny, always tells interesting stories when he was in grad school, and has molecule of the day section that relates orgo to our everyday lives. His tests are very hard and the avg is usually in the high 50's but they're very straight forward. Its just all reactions. Everyone knows whats a going to be on his test. Its just a matter of knowing how to do it. Definitely take MS for orgo 2, i guarantee you won't regret it. Theres a reason his sections always fill up fastest
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting an A sheena 01/07/2014	This man. omg. Phillip is my homeboy and if you don't take him, you are making a big mistake! He is great at teaching, always keeps things interesting, and loves to touch on biochem at least once each lecture, which is nice because you see it in your later bio classes and it's mindblowing because you first saw it from DeShong. I have no idea why, but our 8 am sections scored like 50% averages on the tests. The tests were honestly not that hard. They were very fair, and after the first exam, you know EXACTLY what to expect on future exams - format is always consistent. If you want ridiculous tests, and synth problems, see Dixon. DeShong is very approachable, super friendly, and is HILARIOUS. Seriously, I couldn't have had a better 8 am. Clicker questions were kinda annoying because of glitches with setup and losing credit for stuff like that...but DeShong's attitude totally made up for it. He has great handwriting!! Also he is the sassiest man to have roamed the chem building and genuinely wants his students to do well, even if some dudes on here are saying that he's impossible or whatever. Honestly, it is okay. Just practice problems on your own time and you are A-ok! DeShong 4 eva.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Turtle 01/05/2014	Dixon is an excellent professor due to her constant attention to students outside of class. You will never again have a professor that has his or her office hours open every day for up to 5 hours!! Do not be intimidated by her. A friend had to eventually drop the class but she was very supportive of them because she knew that they cared about the course. Personally, I learned more in this course than any other this semester. Her exams are very difficult but if you review the material a little each day and then kill it at Club Mckeldin the weekend before, you will be fine. Your effort will be reflected in your grade. Lots of partial credit on exams so do not leave blank answers! Overall, if you are interested in Medical School or graduate school TAKE HER CLASS. If you are looking for a job after undergraduate years, avoid or take for fun. I walked out happy I took her and I had little background in orgo I before.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting a B rzipper 12/23/2013	Dr. DeShong is the best Chem lecturer I have had so far. I really looked forward to his lectures. But his test are a real challenge and the grading on his tests is unforgiving. But there is the curve. My only complaints: I wish he gave a list of all the reactions he expected us to know from day one. The department needs to find a better textbook. Orgo II is a VERY time consuming course. Tons of reactions to memorize and many challenging concepts. You need to do lots of problems. So I would highly recommend that you do not have any other classes which are time consuming when taking this course.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting an F funboy 11/18/2013	Class sucks some serious b*tt. Do not EVER take this man. Averages on each exam was about 45-49% range. UMD is probably putting his @$$ on probation after this semester. He teaches too much biochem in a organic course and he also does not care about student concerns. Don't believe me? Well take the class, get a 49% and screw yourself over. Goodbye. If I could give this troll 0 stars I would.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 11/14/2013	I have had Dr. Dixon for Gen Chem 1, Orgo 1, and now Orgo 2. I would highly highly recommend her. She is tough. But you learn your stuff really well. And if you go to her office hours, she is more than willing to help you. And even if you don't want to talk to her, there is always like 10 other kids in there who also want to help you out and will think through things with you. Orgo 2 is also better than orgo 1- and she goes a little slower in that class it seems. She is one of the only professors at this school who remembers what it was like to be a student, so she really cares about her kids. If you can- take her. If you can't- just go to her office hours- she is a wonderful woman on top of everything else. really someone to be admired
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 reviewzfoyou 06/06/2013	Here's the low-down on 241 with Montag. He's hilarious and extremely entertaining, even at 8AM in the morning. He gives you the reactions straight up, and only what he gives you is on the exam. Plus, if you pay attention in class he often emphasizes what he will and will not put on exams (very helpful). You do not need to use your book (looked at it only when I missed lecture). His TA Liz is the bomb dot com. She helps with labs if you ask for it, explains things very well, is merciful, and responds to all inquiries, e-mailed, in class, or in person. Clickers are 100 points... The final is a joke and a half (for an orgo exam). Don't worry about the grading distribution...he said an 85 was an A- but I ended with an 82 and got an A. If you get a 60 I'm pretty sure that'll still be a B-. THE CURVE IS HUGE PEOPLE. You will be okay. I recommend him. Only problem is his chicken scratch handwriting. I'd write things down in my notebook wrong all the time. Just check with friends and you'll be fine.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 04/01/2013	Teaching ability: I had him for organic 2 which, as everyone knows, is not an easy class to teach. I ended up getting a B. I felt he was easy to follow, and provided clear explanations as far as reaction mechanisms and such. However, he rarely provides a comprehensive view of how all of the reactions relate in the grand scheme. You could say he paints the trees rather than the woods. I think it's unlikely you will get a B or higher in this class if you don't attend GSS (a weekly meeting where a previous student provides practice problems and clarifications) Testing: Tests are extremely long and difficult, so time management is key! Do not underestimate this. His tests strictly adhere the material covered in class. If the book has a section that he just glossed over, then it's not going to play a huge role in the exam. Personality: In one word, BIPOLAR. I have emailed him questions before and he was very rude in reply. Seriously talks to you like you are a piece of crap. Really really awful. He also was my advisor for some time, and was extremely hot and cold. The majority of time, he is so personable in class, but is randomly very grumpy. I also find him to be a little arrogant. I started out loving him, but over time his true colors have emerged. A note about Organic Chemistry 2: This subject has some inherent properties that can't be blamed on the instructor. For example, the heavy reliance on memorizing, the almost impossible to master infinite number of details, etc etc. Please know what you're getting into before you take this class. It is not easy for some people.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/09/2012	hard course (duh its orgo II) but prof davis was a great professor. exam averages got higher over the course of the semester, first was low 60s, 2nd was high 60s and 3rd was 77. lecture is long but he has small breaks throughout it. discussions were VERY helpful (my ta was Kim). look at old tests and practice mechanisms and concepts over and over again.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 11/06/2012	He is a very good professor and makes the material relatable to real life. He always started class with a molecule/substance that we use in everyday life that also relates to what we are leaning that day. He doesn't expect you to memorize the 240 or so reactions that you will know by the end of the semester.. rather he actually teaches you the chemistry behind everything. I am in higher level chem classes right now and i still look back at his old notes. Overall he is an amazing teacher... one of the best on campus. I try to convince all my friends to take his class because it is truly worth it. * his class also goes hand in hand with the laboratory. you learn the same things at the same time.. unlike alot of other orgo II teachers. His exams are hard but fair. He will never put anything on an exam that he has not gone over in class. His final is also very VERY fair. I would recommend buying the "orgo II as a second language" book because it goes hand in hand with his class (better than the actual text book)
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 07/10/2012	Dr. Dixon has been one of the most difficult professors I've had at UMD... however, she will most definitely prepare me well for the MCAT. I will say that I worked incredibly hard and found the final exam to be way out of my scope, but theoretically if I did more problems/was more familiar with the material, I could have been well within the A range. Her curve is generous but don't take that as a reason to slack off. If you stick to the motto of spending time in this class every day, going to her office hours, REALLY understanding her homework problems, finding OUTside resources to do problems, there is no reason you shouldn't do well. However, any less and you'll be gambling your chance to get an A. Generally, her rule is if you get more than 50% of the total points in the semester, you will get a C. Some, however, find that hard to do so by not putting in the time. Others will earn that A and prove that it's far from impossible.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 06/08/2012	definitely take orgo II with falvey. he gives you practice problems before the exam that are exactly on the exam. you need to go to class for extra credit clickers which can boost you from say a b to a b+ if you get enough points. he even curves the clickers! he also discusses some real life problems in class and 1 usually shows up on each exam. if you just memorize the practice problems he gives you before the exam you are good to go
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A haqrab123 05/31/2012	Dan Falvey is a legend. If you have the opportunity to take him, TAKE HIM. The guy is amazing for orgo II. Exam Format: -Two pages of straight-up reactions. One is usually not straightforward, the rest are easy. -Two mechanisms, pulled directly from the practice problems, or very similar to the practice problems. One is usually a simple one that he's shown in class, and the other is usually a complicated one from his practice problems. -Two syntheses. Pulled straight from the notes or the practice problems. Instead of copying exactly what he gave you in the practice test, he might just include the "tricks" in the problem but not the exact same molecule or something. -A short answer. This is what separates the men from the boys. Half the time, you have no idea what he's going to ask. Look at old tests. He loves asking questions about acidity, and for the second test its almost always about Oxygen18 labeling The tricks to get an A: 1 Know absolutely EVERYTHING on his practice test he puts online. Seriously, look at other reviews, what they're saying is true. He pulls so much from the practice test, and the rest is variations of the stuff he has on there. There is maybe one question that won't be on his practice tests that are pulled from the book, but if you understand the concepts behind what you're being tested on, you'll be fine and you really don't need to do the book problems unless you want more practice 2 Keep a few separate pieces of paper at the end of your notes dedicated to copying down the synthesis problems he shows you in class. Almost always, at least one will appear on the test (he usually shows about 4 or 5 per exam). 3 Keep another couple pieces of paper for the mechanisms he shows you in class. He'll probably ask about an easy one that he showed you in class. 4 Make sure you look over the emails he sends out. They're really annoying, but I know in previous years he's pulled short answer problems from the stuff he sent out. This year, he didn't really pull anything from his emails for the tests, but they did make the stuff we were learning seem less dull. In class, he goes over a LOT of theory that's pretty much unnecessary to do well in the course. Just copy down the syntheses and know the mechanisms of the reactions he goes over. Mainly focus as much as you can on the practice tests, and start reviewing for the tests a week in advance. He usually hosts a review session the Friday or Thursday before his exam, make sure you've attempted all his practice problems before then, so that you can get the answers for the ones you don't know at that time. ^^ Do that stuff, which seems like a lot written out but isn't all that much to do well in an Orgo course, and you'll get an A guaranteed. Clicker questions aren't worth studying for in my opinion, when you can just do the four things listed and get a easy grade. To do well on clickers would require a lot of studying before class and constant review and doing the book problems and staying up to speed in the book with respect to lecture, and its just not worth it. I didn't do any book problems the entire semester. I only used my book to go over mechanisms that he drew kind of confusing in class. I don't recommend studying from the book, you'll go over a lot of material you don't need to know. So, the man basically gives you everything you need to do well on a silver platter. All you need to do is review the practice sheet about eight times and understand everything on it and you already are guaranteed a high C without the curve. Do everything else and you have an A. Dan Falvey is the man. He's always joking in class and points people out by name. He teases everyone and makes fun of himself, and is a downright genius when it comes to Orgo. He eats paper and makes sure no one feels stupid. Great teacher, great guy. Take him.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/28/2012	Dr. Falvey is an energetic and knowledgeable teacher. I highly recommend taking Organic Chemistry II with him. He sure makes the topic interesting! Tests consisted of matching structures with names for interesting compounds, identifying reagents/reactants/products, mechanism problems, synthesis, and qualitative problems. To get an A in his class, you have to go to lecture, take good notes, read ahead, and demolish those clicker quizzes. He has a straightforward grading policy and he grades the exams VERY quickly. Dr. Falvey is certainly a good teacher to take if you have Organic Anxiety and need someone who can make this otherwise tasteless subject somewhat palatable.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 jcp5383 05/20/2012	Falvey is definitely the man to take for Organic II. He is relatively easier than MS, who has NMR on every exam. Falvey teaches you interesting drug molecules, and such. His tests are almost identical to his practice exams. His averages for three exams were 70, 70, and 63. These are extremely high for Organic class. He also gives extra credit for doing well on clicker questions. The first top five grades are the basis for grade distributions.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/20/2012	He is Great. If you ever see him as an option to take for organic chemistry, DO IT. His exams were fair and decent grade doesn't even require reading the textbook. Just pay attention in class, and other online resources can really help. He has plenty or resources available and there is no shortage of review material posted. Don't think he's going to let you BS the class though, any organic chemistry class requires effort, with Prof. Falvey you just don't feel cheated after every exam.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/15/2012	Dr. Falvey is one of the best professors I have been taught by at UMD. He really cares about his students and he does whatever it takes to pass this course(or ace it, depending on your goals). He posts plenty of practice problems on ELMS which frequently show up on midterms and final exams. Falvey takes the time to learn a lot of people's names and will call on you in class. He is very funny and entertaining. Very knowledgeable which explains why he will go off on tangents from time to time because he is so passionate about organic chemistry. You must work hard in this class though. Organic II is not meant to be easy but it is certainly doable. There are 3 midterms (150 pts each), 1 final (300 pts), 1 diagnostic exam (assesses orgo 1 background), and clickers (extra credit). Overall, very enthusiastic and caring professor who will do whatever it takes to get you an A or B.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Anonymous 05/08/2012	Even a little preparation before class (skimming chapter) can go a long way. What makes exams difficult are: the difficulty of the material, if you have seen and attempted the questions before and if you know what topics will be tested on the most. Professor Issacs helps students by signaling what names of molecules will be tested and what mechanics are likely to show up on the exams. He also takes problems from assigned problems in the book and synthesis problems from the book and from examples in lecture. Professor rarely goes on tangents but when he does, they contain helpful advice. My biggest criticism of the 'course' book(Organic Chemistry by Loudon) is that in the solutions manual, molecules are not drawn using the skeletal formula. The book has very long chapters so it helps to have a book that will cover the material in only a few pages (Try Schaums Easy Outline of Organic Chemistry). For shorter and more coherent explanation of the topics, (Try Organic Chemistry as a Second Language II - Second Semester Topics). PDF versions of these can be found using google :)
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Anonymous 04/08/2012	Awesome! He is definitely the guy to take Orgo II with. Great lecturer, really funny and entertaining, and the lectures seem to move a lot faster than with other chem professors'. He really cares about his students. There is both an upside and downside to this. Be prepared for class, because by that, I mean he goes through the roster on the first day, tries to get to know everyone's name, and in class, he WILL call on you at least once. It doesn't matter that there are 200 other people in the class. You will be called on.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 02/02/2012	I dropped out middle of the semester. Before I continue, I just want to clarify that I am not bitter about the professor, just on his teaching style. Of course there are a lot of things I personally could have improved on to do better but I really believe the major influence of me dropping was Smith's teaching style. As another reviewer pointed out, Smith is shockingly childish but very enthusiastic about subject material. He went on unnecessary tangents or stories from his personal life that really took focus away from what we were learning at the time even though the stories were slightly related to the material. His illustrations are awful and there were many instances where students had to butt in and tell him they can't read what he is writing. I also found that his extremely high level of energy was ironically distracting. I also suggest you do not take this class at the 1 hour and 15 minute slots. At least for me, the amount of information given in that span of time is overwhelming and it is unbearable once 45 minutes goes by and the only thing you think about is when the class if finally over. Grades were curved and averages fell at the F/D/ or C cutoff for the exams. At the same time, there were many students who did well, like a student who got a 100% raw on one of the exams so don't be discouraged if you are a stellar student. For me, his teaching style didn't really mesh, As a result, I had little motivation for studying and fell back on material (which as anyone in Orgo can tell you is the point of no return on catching up on material), forcing me to drop out. Again, I could have taken initiative and done better, but I don't think I would ever do well or get an A in a Montague classroom.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/07/2012	This guy is very funny and a very good professor. By the end of the semester he had practically trained the whole class to boo and cheer on command. I didn't look at the book once during the semester and still did well. He has difficult exams but he will never put something on an exam he didn't cover before. His spectroscopy questions for the exam are usually much simpler than the ones you'll see in CHEM242. He wont give partial credit for some problems unless you clearly show your thought process. Also, as a side note you can get a synthesis entirely incorrect on the exam but still have it be correct. If you did it in a way that was not on the answer key you can still get full credit if you just explain your way to the professor. Your synthesis must be functionally correct though to receive credit.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/24/2011	great professor. He is a lot easier that any of the other ones. I took dixon for orgo 1 and when i took davis for II, i felt so smart and it seemed as he went really slowly in comparison. But he is a great lecturer and answers any and all questions. The average for the first test was i think a 65, then second was 72 then third was 79. The exams got easier and you started to understand what he also wanted. He is a really easy and good lecturer. We went a bit slow. But I highly recommend him if you can for any class.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A arorasub 12/20/2011	Davis is an excellent teacher. He tends to not cover many topics, but this works in your favor because the amount of material is bearable. I would say I didn't try amazingly hard in the course, which is why I ended up getting about 86% in the course(which is an A since 80 is the A cutoff). This is a course where getting above a 90% without a curve is very possible. Anyway, to do well in his course here are your tips: 1. Review the notes he gives in class. Many questions on the exam are easy multiple choice questions which you won't ever focus on if you don't go to class and take notes 2. Do every single GSS worksheet. Many questions are pulled straight off those. 3. Think about resonance structures for pKa and stability problems. 4. Look at old exams. 5. GO TO CLASS! His lectures will definitely pique your interests. Overall, he is swell guy, but don't get on his wrong side.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a B NeuroSciX 12/20/2011	Overall he's a very good professor, has a good sense of humor, practice tests are very similar to current tests, and overall approachable. However it's pretty difficult to get an A in his class, but that can be said about all organic 2 classes.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/17/2011	Davis is amazing! He obviously loves teaching and cares about the class. I only went to office hours once, but in that one time it helped me figure out how to think of exam problems so much better. He does reuse problems, or gives very similar problems. In 4 exams, there was only one straight synthesis problem. The rest were roadmaps. He loves to test you on the reasoning behind why things are the way they are in orgo, to test your understanding. Not a lot of memorizing, more understanding based as a class. Go over old exams that he posts and previous exams from the semester to study. He also gives you breaks in the 75 min lectures which is really nice. Overall, if you have the option you should take him.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/11/2011	Davis is a good teacher. Obviously orgo2 is going to be a hard class, but he does his best to make it interesting. 3 exams, and the final. 80 is an A, 70 is a B, and etc. You can use the book if you don't get whats going on in class.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Anonymous 09/16/2011	Davis is a great, engaging teacher. His lectures are all you really need (thank goodness) so the textbook is really supplementary at best. Just take really good notes and learn them, and you'll be set. Davis has fair exams, no curve balls, and gives out A's via a cut off (I forget how many points is the minimum). Overall definitely the best prof you can get for Orgo II. And if ever you're confused, ask! He is very open about taking questions and having students participate. I actually enjoyed the class and the content, which I never imagined I'd say about Orgo.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/22/2011	He teaches directly out of the textbook. His examples in class are just the examples from the book, occasionaly with a n example he made up. To do well, you just need to do all the practice problems in the book a few weeks ahead of the exam, then do them again a few days before. His lectures are pretty boring but you should still go to them. The TA was awful also.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 07/11/2011	Prof. Falvey is a great professor. He is funny, cares about his students, and extremely knowledgeable. Exams are fair and looking over previous exams really helps. The only thing that didnt work for me is the curving system. 10% below the 5th highest score will earn you an A. Unfortunately, the 5th highest score was somewhere around a 94% this semester. That means messing up on one exam will cost you. So Falvey's averages tend to be higher than other classes, but his curve is almost always lower. Very easy to get a B, the A cutoff will depend on that 5th score...
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 07/08/2011	Dr. Falvey is a great professor! He is funny, straight forward and teaches pretty clearly. The only thing is that his hand writing was not too good for me though. I recommend to read before going to lecture (even though I never did). Since there is not much time, not everything is covered clearly. The book is kinda helpful in explaining stuff that I didn't get in class. The books problems don't really help in my opinion but more practice is better. His exams were ok if you study. He gives out practice exams before each exam and about ~50~60% is from the practice exam! And sometimes he gets a bit lazy and steals the problems that our TA Derek(One of the best TAs ever!) made up and gave us for practice. For practice exams, I remember he gives them out 2 weeks before the exam and gives out hints via email. He gives out the answers 2 days or so before the exam. I recommend start doing the practice exams right after and make sure you understand each question instead of looking at the answers the night before. I think it's important to understand and know how to draw the mechanism for every reaction instead of memorizing them. I don't really remember the averages but I think they where around 65~70%. For me I got high Bs in all of them, got a A on the final and had a A without the curve. For the final, redo all his exams, practice exams, practice sheets that the TA gave. Go over notes and clicker quiz questions. It's a lot of work but as long as you understand all those. You will do fine. Dr. Falvey is a really nice professor, although I never went to his office hours (he calls on ppl in class if he remembers you from his office hours so be careful!) The shocking thing about him was once when we were talking about cellulose, he ripped a piece of paper and started chewing O___O
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Anonymous 06/14/2011	Coming from someone who is awful at organic, he's a very good professor. He is very nice and extremely enthusiastic He likes to go off tangents, but they normally relate to the topic. His exams are things we've seen before. Half the answers are already in the notes he gave in class. As long as you understand the topic and don't just try to memorize things you should do well. However, I hated his grading system. Top 5 grades gets an A+, next 10% gets an A and so on. Oh yeah, he has clicker questions that are considered extra credit at the end of the semester
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A zhangsta 05/26/2011	He was a very engaging professor who was very enthusiastic about teaching which made orgo a little more bearable for me. His lectures were taken out of the book for the most part, but he explained the concepts well enough that you prob don't even need the book. His exams were very fair and tended to place more emphasis on understanding material rather than memorizing reactions. Do the recommended problems and you should have no problems on any of the exams.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/26/2011	Dr. Isaacs is the classic textbook teacher. He literally puts problems from the notes and textbook into his exams. Lectures were alright, and the TA was also mediocre. In order to do well in this class, simply do all the book problems in the syllabus then do them again before exams. You pretty much teach yourself and gain a greater sense of independence in this class.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 05/22/2011	Good professor. Very nice, tends to ramble from time to time but gets the message across. Go to office hours, he's very helpful and he puts up old tests to study from. No matter who you take orgo with it's gonna be hard so study for it every day, no joke. Tests are fair.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Anonymous 04/28/2011	Dr. M-S is a great prof. He's funny, very nice and helpful in office hours, and does not have unrealistic expectations of his students as some other orgo profs do. My only criticism of him is that he does not give much partial credit. AT ALL. You have to have things pretty much close to perfect on his exams to get points. I highly recommend you copy his old exams - they are more helpful than the textbook.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 PossePrincess 02/23/2011	I love Dr. MS!!! He's the first entertaining chemistry professor I've ever had, and he teaches well. Every lecture we were all interested, even though it was at 8:00 in the morning. I feel like I'm actually learning chemistry this time around. (I dropped Khachick's class last semester because although I though I learned the material, the exam had nothing to do with what we covered in class). If you have the opportunity, definitely take Montague-Smith.
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Expecting an A premedkid123 12/25/2010	I agree that Dr. Khachik wants people to do well. That being said, he does not have official office hours nor can he convey the material well to the class. I basically taught myself everything from the book. My Ta was amazing and I used his office hours in addition to study groups to pass with an A. Some people like me, can rely on the book, but others need a professor that can teach well. You will not learn a lot of organic from this class but then again you won't need it ever again except for mcats and unless you want to be a chemist. Khachik does teach you the main concepts so don't fret for the mcats, but you want get any higher level understanding from this course. He tries, and he is very knowledgeable, but the guy simply cannot teach. People gave up and stopped coming to lecture. His tests are fair though and if you learn from the book+do practice problems, you should be fine. He also curves. I believe an 83 percent and up was an A for this semester.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/22/2010	Davis is awesome! I got the feeling that he really cares about his students and he loves answering questions. His teaching style is great and engaging. His exams have a lot of borrowed answers from previous exams and are doable. Going to class is super important because sometimes minor things show up on exams. I didn't use the book too much, but I thought it helped for the sections I did use it in. I honestly didn't think I could get an A in this class, but a lot of us improved drastically for the third test and final.
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2010	Professor Khachik is very different from most other Orgo 2 professors. After taking him for both Orgo 1 and 2, I got the impression that he really wants his students to do well and is in fact a really nice and funny guy. Some may say that his lectures are very disorganized (which holds some truth) but the thing is, all of his material is straight from the book. So it really didn't matter that my lecture notes were somewhat jumbled because I studied straight from the book for all my exams and hardly utilized my lecture notes. With that said, his exams are extremely straightforward and fair. He emphasizes important topics to know for the tests and never puts any tricky questions on them. However, you have to start studying for them at least a week in advance if you want to do well. The GSS Sessions and weekly discussions were also very helpful (if you can get discussion with Matt Hurley, he is the best Chem. TA I have ever had). So, if you're good at learning from the book, I would strongly suggest Khachik. His tests are known to be the easiest of all Orgo 2 classes and his end of the semester curve is very generous. I have no real complaints about this course and am glad I took it with Khachik.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A crazystudent 12/20/2010	Absolutely excellent teacher!!!! He explains things in such detail. He did go a little slow and we didn't get to a lot of chapters in the syllabus but that's in your favor! He's extremely personable and easy to approach. Just a great guy! The way I got an A in his course: I never missed lecture, I recorded his lectures and wrote down everything he explained. His exams are straight from lecture. I never once touched the book although that may not work for everyone. My notes were detailed enough because I recorded his lecures but if you don't record then you may need to use the book. I got a B in Dr. Dixon's orgo1 and was able to pull off an A in orgo2 with Dr. Davis. I high recommend him!
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/14/2010	He went a bit slow (we didn't even get to 5 of the chapters on the syllabus) but I found that this was very helpful in understanding the material, though I know it went too slow for people who understand Organic Chem well, and can learn it quickly. He makes the class interesting (as interesting as Orgo can be) by using real-life examples! Also, you will do VERY well on his exams if you study the problems he does in class AND in past exams (both previous exams during the semester and from past semesters). He always reuses exam questions, and half the final was questions we had seen before. Best bet to get a good grade! He also tests more on concept than memorizing reactions, which is really nice!
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 11/17/2010	His teaching style is extremely confusing. He tends to write down extensive reactions with different pkas and equilibrium constants, but then says we dont need to know numbers at all and leaves us not knowing what we need to understand about the problem. I don't attend lecture and solely stick to reading the book and going to discussion; so far I've gotten atleast 10% above the average exam scores. If you can take another professor I would recommend doing so.
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Expecting a W PossePrincess 11/08/2010	I had to drop this class in order to save my other classes. His style of teaching is too unorganized for my taste; his example problems all blend together on the board and he goes off on drawn tangents that you are never sure if you should copy down or not. For the first exam, much of what was on the exam was not really emphasized in class. He often says how he thinks the book is wrong about this or that, but it is still important to do those practice problems. I recommend Orgo II as a Second Language by Klein, a very small, extremely helpful, straight-forward book. It might just save you if you're struggling.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting a B+ samhallen 07/13/2010	Take Orgo with Dr. DeShong if you can. Dr. DeShong is extremely knowledgeable in organic chemistry. He explains everything very well, and really only tested us on stuff he taught in lecture; the book was only used as a guide and for practice problems. He also made the class interesting - even though I did better in orgo 1, I truly appreciated the subject matter and really understood what was going on. Dr. DeShong is also hilarious. His commentary and funny verbal musings made every lecture enjoyable. I rarely left class without laughing at least once. The curve wasn't amazing, but it wasn't bad either. I think a 75% was an A. Dr. DeShong's knowledge, fairness, humor, and overall ability to relay his chemical passion to his students makes him a fine professor. take him take him take him.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 06/03/2010	I absolutely loved Dr. Isaacs! In a big lecture hall it's really hard for professors to see individual students, but if you go to him and show that you're putting effort into the class, he will appreciate it and help you. His tests are challenging, but fair. Ask questions, make sure you understand the material. If you put enough effort and time into the course, you will prevail :)
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/19/2010	FANTASTIC lecturer. He is Santa Claus. (you'll get this on the first day if you take him). He's genuinely a nice person and teaches very well. There's definitely a reason why there was a 40 pt discrepancy in averages between Falvey and Issacs during this semester. Falvey does NOT throw in any low blows on his exam - he tests you on what he teaches and what he asks you to practice. I highly recommend him for Orgo II!
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/19/2010	I did not do so well in his class because I completely panicked on the final exam like a punk. Too bad the final exam was everything we had already been tested on. Go to every lecture, every discussion, and study the practice exam problems, synthesis, and mechanisms. He doesn't surprise you on exams, which is great. I would have gotten a B had I been a better student. Overall, he is a great professor!
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A UMDfutbol3 05/17/2010	Best orgo professor out there, really just makes the material easy to learn. Exams are variations of the practice exams, with a few curve balls here and there, but if you follow the logic of the practice problems, and understand them, you'll be fine. Similar to Dixon in that he really enjoys the material and enjoys teaching, unlike some of the other orgo professors here.
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A aralchen 05/15/2010	Phenomenal professor. He's clear, succinct, and extremely engaging. He emphasizes the WHY and the HOW of organic chemistry and less of the WHAT. Memorization in his class only takes you so far. Overall, I can't even count the times I completely lost track of time when listening to him. Coming out of the class I REALLY felt I knew organic chemistry. Let's put it this way: by popular standards Dixon is supposed to be a great teacher. She really isn't worth the chalk he writes with. His exams are not easy, as shown by the relatively low averages. However, they're very fair and will reward those who study for them. He likes to send out lots of practice problems. They're really not a waste of time, considering he pulls about 60% of the exam material directly from them. I really agree with the below review - Falvey actually tests you on what you learn in class. There are no surprises going into the exam. I did have one small issue with him - his curving system is really wacky. Basically, 10% below the 5th highest score in the class in an A. You can imagine just how problematic it can get when the 5th highest score is over 90%. Overall: I will take any possible class he'll teach in the future.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B+ yii520 04/18/2010	he is a GREAT teacher, he really knows his stuff. In organic chemistry it is all about reactions and mechanisms, so it is better if you do the work hands on. Isaac teaches the whole class by writing on the board which really helps me to stay focused, it feels like he is taking the notes with us. His exams are really tricky, but here are the keys to pass his class: 1. remember the names and structures of some really bazaar compounds, trust me he's gonna ask a few 2. Do almost all of the suggested problems. it even helps if you just look at the questions and the answers from the solution manual since most of questions 3. attend lecture and discussion. especially discussion... because it's really important although i felt like skipping a few times 4. spread the work out over period of several days, it is best if you stay on task but hey who gets on task all the time? if you wanna cram i suggest you start cramming 3 days before the exam because they usually cover a lot of materials, that way you won't be stressed out. i attend lectures and discussions, take notes and actually look over them later. did most of the suggested problems and i got an A, SOLID A
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B tallboyt 03/02/2010	No doubt he knows his stuff, but he's not that good at explaining it (or even finishing in-class examples). Quiet spoken with some jokes. Curve is based on top 5 grades and to pass w. only a C you need >50% on the final, regardless if you've failed every exam. Tests are medium/to okay-hard. Some problems come from lecture (which he'll tell you it'll be on the test) and some are based on lecture (not actually from lecture) but you'd have never expected it/or not even know how to do it. Very few clickers (he considers these EC)
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 02/07/2010	Very sweet professor. Approachable and fair. Take good notes during class and do the assigned problems/ reviews. Do any practice exams available. A very effective teacher, I could not have learned so much about ochem from anyone else.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/23/2009	I was initially not quite used to Dr. M-S's style of teaching, but in retrospect, I think he was an effective, straightforward teacher who was reasonable and most of all, very fun. His exams are challenging, yes, but definitely manageable with adequate studying. Also, he gives you a mechanism list to memorize. His test format is always the same, with 15-20 reactions, 1-2 mechanisms, 1-2 syntheses and 1-2 specs. He obviously knows a whole lot about orgo and biochem, and you can tell that he's really excited about this stuff. At the end of the semester he gives a very generous curve, with the high 70s being an A.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Semirhage666 12/23/2009	If you want to get through Orgo 2 and only worry about passing, and not learning the material too thoroughly, take him. If, however, you are concerned about actually learning the material well, do not take him. He speaks very quietly. SEVERAL times, students explained to him that the mic was not carrying his voice to the back. His reply was "Oh, I'm just a soft-spoken person." Oh, really? What are you doing teaching in a huge lecture hall, then? He really wasn't even making an attempt, he was speaking in a voice that is more suited to talking to someone 3 feet away. Combine that with his accent, and you're looking at having a difficult time following along with his lectures. He is very generous with grades, though, so if you want an easy C, by all means, take him.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/21/2009	If you want to learn organic chemistry take Dr. Sintim. He is the best teacher I have ever had. He is not really available at office hours but it's worth putting up with it for the education you get. He is strict and expects students to know the material well. Many of the students just expected his class to be easy, but orgo is not an easy topic. He also had a GIANT curve and gave 3% worth of bonus points. I you are a chemistry or biochemistry major, or just want to learn orgo, take him.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/21/2009	Sintim knows organic chemistry very well and teaches decently. I went to every lecture, but I still had to supplement lecture, by reading the book. The course can be challenging, and if you want an A, it might take a lot of studying. Here's the grade distribution for Fall 2009: 1) To get an A (A-, A or A+), your score should be equal to or higher than 81%. [36 students will get A] 2) To get a B (B-, B or B+), your score should be equal to or higher than 58%. [62 students will get B] 3) To get a C (C-, C or C+), your score should be equal to or greater than 41%. [56 students will get C] 4) To get a D, your score should be equal to or greater than 30% [25 students will get D] 5) If your score is less than 30%, then you will get an F grade. [8 students will get F] These grade boundaries change slightly every year, based on how the class is doing.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B- 800meters 12/19/2009	Dr. Sintim gave me a B- when my final grade was a 51.3%. I'm not sure how it happened. I scored a 36% on the final exam.... Anyways, his soft-spoken voice and accent are challenging to overcome, so I would recommend getting another professor if you want to actually learn the material. I essentially taught myself this semester. I gave little effort in the class compared to the other students though and ended up with a B-. I studied less than 3 hours for the final exam. I'm not a pre-med student.
Michael Montague-Smith CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/18/2009	Professor Montague-Smith is a fantastic professor for a difficult class. He gives you 5 minute breaks during the one hour and 15 minute class, tells jokes and anecdotes to help you remember reactions, and explains mechanisms thoroughly. Also, if you take the time out to meet with him, if you improve throughout the semester you will get a good grade. His tests are difficult but as long as you review your notes, he tells you exactly what to study for the exams. My only complaint is that he writes his notes on the overhead projector and sometimes it is difficult to read what he writes. However, if you ask what he just wrote, he will attempt to correct it so it is easier to read.
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Anonymous 12/18/2009	Khachik is a very nice professor. He does lecture straight from the book yes, but I think the book gets the point across pretty clearly so, it kinda worked for me really. I do agree that his exams were a little too simple and nothing like the shared final, but I actually did better on the final than some of my midterms. The problem is mentality. Don't be lulled by his teaching style. He knows what he's doing, he's just trying to help us by writing straight forward tests. Don't go to lecture just to ace tests, go and really sit down ready to learn.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/18/2009	Don't make the mistake I did and take Sintim for orgo 2 solely based on his grade distributions. This is his second semester teaching this class, and he made it a lot more difficult than his first semester of teaching. The grade distributions for this semester are: 19% A; 33% B; 30% C; 13% D; 4% F. These are the numbers he provided in his e-mail. Note the significant decrease in B and increase in C in comparison to his first semester. I also did not like his teaching style. He would write things on the board and while everyone is scurrying to copy down everything, he starts erasing the board. The students start complaining, and he just smiles and says "it's ok, it's in the book". He is soft spoken, so you need to get a seat in the front of the room to adequately hear him. He is also very unresponsive to students' concerns. Throughout the semester, I sent him probably 8 e-mails, trying to arrange a time to meet with him or with a question that I needed help on. He did not respond to a SINGLE email. He also has office hours once a week- it was on Friday from 3-5. I bet he picked those hours because he knew that no one would make use of his office hours. Keep in mind that Sintim is a researcher. He is in UMD to conduct research, and teaching is just a side job that he was forced to do. It shows that he does not really care much about how well his students do. I definitely recommend Dixon over him, but if you must take him, here is some advice: look over his old exams because he likes to use similar questions. Also, redo all the problems in your notes because one of them is bound to appear in your exam.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/17/2009	He's a very nice guy who love Orgo. But he can't teach for his life. His class is organized pretty horribly and to be honest, it doesn't seem like he puts much effort into planning his classes. He's pretty brilliant and I think that's how he gets away with having bad lectures. But he does want the class to succeed. if I had to take the class again, I'd go with Dixon or Khachik.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A- aberk 12/16/2009	Dont listen to what the negative comments written here, most of these people were the ones that never attended class - which could be why they failed and didnt list their grade. I also struggled in orgo 1, but Sintim made orgo 2 seem a lot easier. Sintim is a great prof if you go to class. Hes very nice and gives you a big heads up on whats going to be on the exam. Study what he went over and do his post tests. He loves to reask questions so if you know the answers to those, you're guaranteed to get at least one question correct on the exam. His curve is very nice as well...its pretty hard to not a C since all you have to do is get a 45% and whatever the class average is = a B. His A's are a little bit more difficult but definitely not as hard to obtain as an A in Dixons class. I would highly highly recommend Sintim for orgo 2. You might not exactly learn as much as you would in Dixons but youll definitely get a better grade.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/16/2009	previous post is not true. Class was very easy for an Orgo 2 Class. Lectures were easy to understand and everything on tests we went over in class. Discussion was very helpful with AB as a T.A. I Didnt put much time outside of class and expect an A. I struggled through Orgo 1 and this was a cake walk. Average was a 55% for the class but that is a B. Just look at the grade distribution. It is impossible to get anything less than a B. I got a 342/400 on the final by just studying the lectures for a couple of hours
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Anonymous 12/16/2009	He has made this course so much more difficult than compared to previous semesters... His lectures are interesting with life lessons inserted. However, it's really hard to hear him in lecture and his tests cover very complex material, far from what is taught in lecture. I learned more from the GSS than the lectures itself. A very time consuming class. Average for the class was a 55%....
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/15/2009	Disregard everyone/anyone who says that Dr. Dixon does not care about her students. Pros: 1) she's not here for research, she's here to teach, and she does a good damn job of it. 2) Her curve is immaculate. 3) She holds numerous review sessions; a weekly one, one before each exam, and multiple office hours. 4) She is personable. She called those students who actually came to class and went to her for help by their name. Cons: she is a VERY popular lady and sometimes its hard to get one-on-one time, but only because she is willing to help everyone. If you expected for some strange reason that Orgo II would not be hard or a lot of work, then you are in for a surprise, b/c it is, but this is true for every teacher. Dixon wants everyone to pass and makes it easy to do so if you care the slightest bit. I, personally, have a difficult time studying on my own time and learning from the book, but with Dixon, you learn anything you need from lecture and review sessions, and then just practice practice practice for the exams. If you want to learn organic chemistry and retain some of the information for the MCAT, take Dixon. If you are afraid of orgo, want easier test, etc, take Khachik. But remember, the easier the test, the less the curve, and their will always be geniuses in the class, so go for the better teacher if that's how you learn best. Grading: clickers (minimal) extra credit (minimal) 3 exams and a final final grade: 50% to pass, 80% is an automatic A but the curve usually is even more, like a 70-75% = A. **in my class, she promised anyone who got a A on the final an A in the class, period. best of luck!
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 10/05/2009	Falvey is a great professor! At times, the work does seem overwhelming, but he explains everything very well. As long as you do all the homework and practice problems, you should be fine. About 60% of the exam questions come directly from the practice problems, and the others are slight variations. Unlike other professors, he actually tests you on what you learn in class, and does not try to trick you.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 09/04/2009	I can already tell Sintim's going to be a good teacher. I must add, however, that after dealing with Ammon for a semester of Orgo 1, ANY other professor would seem like a frickin genius. LOL...but I must say, I enjoy his teaching style. He does a lot of writing on the chalkboard, explaining everything as he goes (as opposed to Ammon's powerpoint lectures, which did not show a logical flow of events, but rather a bunch of formulas and arrows going every direction). Take Sintim if you can! Negatives: only thing is sometimes his voice trails off and its hard to hear him if your not in the front. Try to get a good seat in class.
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A ljohanne 08/25/2009	Best teacher ever! She is amazingly enthusiastic and has a passion that is truly inspiring! More over she managed to make entirely obscure and difficult concepts understandable. Her tests can be rather difficult, but if you go to lecture and pay attention you should do fine. More over, she is very nice, so if you really don't understand something, she is more than willing to explain during office hours. She is the best!
Bonnie Dixon CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 06/11/2009	Dr. Dixon is a great teacher if you PUT THE EFFORT INTO HER CLASS. I read my lecture notes before class and made sure I understood them before I aksed her questions, and I got well above the average for each exam. People give her a hard time for being such a difficult professor, but honestly in comparison to other chemistry professors, I actually learned a LOT in her class. You honestly have to put in a lot of effort to do well, but you should expect to do that since it is Organic Chemistry. The people who don't do well are the ones that wait until 2 days before the exam to study and ask her a plethora of questions. She also makes 50% the cutoff for a C, and 1 standard deviation above the avg the cutoff for B, 2 std dev for an A. Entirely doable course, but again, effort and time are the keys to success.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting a B jwhite89 06/01/2009	Great teacher, has weekly reviews and is clear about whats going to be on the tests, curve is pretty good to.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/23/2009	He is one of the best professors for chemistry. His tests are extremely fair. He only tests you on stuff that he teaches in lecture. The book is just there for practice problems and to reinforce the information. He can be a little pretentious, but I thought he was kind of funny in that rude way. He is definitely helpful if you ask him for it. He is extremely knowledgeable in o-chem and definitely knows what he is talking about. He made the class really interesting.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 Anonymous 05/19/2009	I don't know who terpterp is referring to, since Dr. DeShong is the best chemistry teacher I've had yet. He really goes into depth with the material, and is fair (mostly) on the exams as well as with the grading curve. Highly recommend you take o-chem1 or 2 with him.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B jwong89 04/20/2009	I would take Sintim over any of the other organic chemistry professors based solely on the fact that his tests were easier than the other professors' tests. He doesn't try to trick you with the test questions; they are pretty straightforward and in lecture he teaches all the material you will need to know for the tests. The grade breakdown for the class was A-80%, B-60%, C-40%. In the end he even dropped the cutoffs a couple of percentage points based on how you did with clicker questions.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a C littleflower5 03/26/2009	Dr. Davis is the most animated science teacher I have every had. He really makes an effort to make organic chemistry as easy as anyone can. He is a little hard to follow in lecture because he doesn't write on the boards in a very organized fashion, and most of the important points to take away from the lecture are only verbal and no notes are provided. Remember to do all the readings and problems even though they are not for a grade! They make loads of difference!
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A rbterp 03/08/2009	I thought Dr. Davis was a great professor. I agree with previous reviews - definitely review class notes and previous notes b/c I didn't do so well on the first exam after doing tons of book problems. Dr. Davis wants you to learn reasons behind reactions, and doesn't emphasize nomenclature or cover some of the reactions in the book (which is good during the class, but you'll have to learn that stuff eventually if you plan on taking the MCAT). Dr. Davis is also very approachable if you ever go to office hours.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/28/2009	Take him if you can!! His teaching isn't amazing but he gets the major points across. His exams are not VERY difficult because he always tells you in advance what you should know and be able to do and emphasizes it when he says "POSSIBLE EXAM QUESTION". His final consisted of prior exam questions that gave most of the class trouble and a couple of brand new questions.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting a B+ sIckYNar-nar398 01/09/2009	Prof. Sintim loves to explain complex organic material with his "life lessons" in which he tries to get a laugh out of the class...and he is usually sucessful in doing so. As a professor, he teaches at a steady pace and tries to answer questions to the best of his ability. Most of the time his exams were str8 up copy and pasted from previous years...having said that, focus on what he wants you to know! You do this, and ur well on ur way to doing well in his class
Daniel Falvey CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/18/2008	Very enthusiastic BUT he can be TOO much sometimes and unorganized. Tests are okay. Make sure you study for them.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting an A UMDmonkey 09/02/2008	Dr. Isaacs is a very good teacher. He knows what he is talking about and explains things clearly. I really like the way he talks, it is obvious that he tries to make it easy for people to understand a hard subject. You need to work very hard to get an A in this class, but it is definitely possible, because a lot of people do bad simply because they do not show up to class and/or they despair b/c they've heard stories about orgo. This is a very good teacher, and a good class, but you will have to practice problems every night. I recommend Isaacs over any other Orgo 2 professor, because even though his exams are hard, he prepares you well for MCATs, med school, or whatever else you need orgo for. The averages on our exams were right about 50% each time, maybe a little below that. His signature problem type is a "box problem," where he will give you one of the three following pieces of information and you have to fill in the rest: reactants, products, reagants. Other problems on exams are mechanisms (easy), synthesis (more complicated, but fun), ad nomenclature. He always puts at least on mechanism/ synthesis from the book problems on the exam. That is a really easy way to gain/lose 20 points out of 200, which is 10% of your grade. The key is showing up to class, starring problems that he hints at, and doing ALL of the recommended problems before his weekly help session. Ask him your questions at the help session, and you will do fine. And DON'T leave anything for the last minute: learn things as he is teaching them, never take a break.
Frederick Khachik CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous Terp 04/30/2008	So here's the deal. Dr. Khachik teaches straight from the book. I just bring my book to class and follow along. He goes through almost every example. The pros are that the class goes through the material slowly, so not much information (compared to other orgo teachers) is covered on each test. However, class can get really boring. There are three exams throughout the semester (150 points each), and then a final (300 points). No quizzes or bonus points. Because he only tests on reactions and synthesis problems, there are a good chunk of students that do well every exam. That translates into no curve at the end of the semester. However, he doesn't test on mechanisms in CHEM241 even though he goes over them in class. Overall, it's a doable class if you memorize the reactions at the end of the chapter and do the problems in the book. If not, you won't have a prayer, especially when it comes to carbonyl compounds. Also, he's very lenient when it comes to regrades. He's a very nice guy and really does know his organic chemistry. He is almost always available to go over questions or problems. I wasn't sure how well his teaching style would prepare me for the MCAT, but was pleasantly surprised that he had covered what I needed to know.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A vdawg 12/31/2007	A really, really good teacher. He goes out of his way to clear up any doubts and really cares that you understand the material. Almost all his exam questions are from old exams posted online. The key to doing well is reviewing the lecture notes. For the first exam I studied all the sections in the book, did all the book problems, memorized all 20 mechanisms, and got a 56. For the next 2 exams I did the book readings, but concentrated a lot more on reviewing lecture notes and problems from old exams and got As.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/29/2007	Curves the class at the beginning with 80 and up is A, 70 and up is B, etc. Very nice, always willing to answer questions during lecture. His exams are not too hard but they are not very indicative of his lectures. He loves resonance, pka, explaining why a product is faster or more stable on exams. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW HIS OLD EXAMS. he repeats a lot of his questions from old exams. Also, he'll put q's from exam I on exam II and so on.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Anonymous 12/27/2007	Dr. Davis is a really good professor because he doesn't strictly stick to the syllabus- he goes at his own pace. On our syllabus we were supposed to get through 9 chapters over the semester and we only got through 6. At the beginning of each class he puts up the assigned readings and homework problems for the next lecture on the board in addition to what he plans to cover in lecture that day; I found that doing the readings beforehand really makes what he teaches in lecture easier to understand. He had a built-in curve from the beginning as 80% and above is an A so he doesn't curve individual exams. It is possible to get an A. I bombed the first exam and then got Bs on the other 2 exams and the final and I got an A. The way I improved on the rest of teh exams after the first one was going over LECTURE NOTES and his old exams. He recycles questions from his old exams from previous years as well as the exams he gives that year. And some of the problems come DIRECTLY from lecture notes. He's very approachable and a really good professor because his main concern is how his students tackle the course and learn. He's not concerned about completing x amount of material in the semester.
Herman Sintim CHEM241 Expecting an A- accwow 12/26/2007	A mediocre professor. I had him while he was a new professor and in the beginning, he was completely clueless, but he got better as the semester progressed. Very easy to get a B, because the cutoff was a 60, and impossible to fail, because the cutoff for a C was a 40. Tests were pretty fair, but I felt I learned nothing from this class.
Jeffery Davis CHEM241 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/17/2007	He's a really nice guy. Very willing to listen and answer any questions you might have. It took a while to get used to his teaching style. He focuses on understanding reactions, mechanisms, etc. as opposed to just remembering reactants/products which can make his tests extra painful. He curves pretty well, I had a 66.8% by the end of the semester and it curved up to a B (I was ecstatic). There is automatically a 10% curve built into the class (80%=A, 70%=B, etc.) so that helps alot. All in all, good class, but unfortunately our TA was terrible so it kind of brought the class down.
Philip DeShong CHEM241 terpterp 12/10/2007	He is an AWFUL professor and person. He only seems to care about himself and could care less about his students.
Lyle Isaacs CHEM241 Expecting a B cjsph88 12/03/2007	Dr. Issacs is a decent, but very simple professor. His lectues are boring because he doesnt use powerpoints, clicker questions, etc. I feel like the class would have been much harder had it not been for my TA (Bryan) However, with the help of a good TA you can expect a B, or if you work extremly hard an A in the class. Otherwise Dr. Issacs isnt very clear on what you can expect to appear on the exam. Class grades are based on a bell curve, so as long as you do better than the average you have a B.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/20/2024

Honestly, I thought I wasn't going to be able to get an A in his class, but I ended up making it happen. His exams are pretty hard, especially compared to other professors so be prepared to spend a lot of time studying for them. He recommends reading the textbook and doing the practice problems, but I didn't always have the time to do that. My advice is, if you have the time, read the textbook and do the practice problems. Some must dos in my opinion are: review all of his lecture notes before his exams (he uses a lot of examples from lecture that are tricky- you think they make sense at the time but unless you review them you won't remember on the exam, and DO THE PRACTICE EXAMS. There was one midterm exam (the 2nd one) where he told us not to look at the old exams because all the material was different, and the average was like a 50% because he had pulled basically all the material from old exams :). The thing that locked me in for the final was redoing my classes midterms 1,2,3 over and over until I got 100's, I read the last chapters full of new content and did those practice problems, went through his final exam review guide and made sure I understood everything, and then did as many old midterm exams as I could. Throughout the semester, I also went to discussion at least once, sometimes 2 times a week and then went to his problem solving sessions on fridays. For midterms 1,2,3 I at least worked through the reaction summaries at the back of each chapter too, which was enough to get me to a grade that was above the average, but not an A. I didn't focus on doing old exams and I think that's what got me. Isaacs is funny and tries to make the class fun, especially towards the middle/end of the semester. I would definitely recommend taking Isaacs if you actually want to learn orgo 2 really well, but know that this class will take up a lot of your time. At the end of the day, orgo 2 isn't meant to be easy and now I'm glad I'll know it really well for when I take the MCAT. I don't regret taking him at all

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/20/2024

alright this man gets a 10/10 for personality but like a 6/10 for his teaching. class is super enjoyable because he is an entertaining little grandpa who just wants you to enjoy. the first test was mad easy and then they got progressively harder and but little was done to prepare us for the difference in difficulty. Anyway though the discussion TAs are really clutch as they fill in all the missing information from lecture that he doesn't really explain or cover. The exams are definitely thinking based so you need to make sure to understand the content rather than just memorize reactions and mechanisms. Look at the end of the day being able to drop a test including the final marks it all worth it. I would take this man again 100 times over just for that even though he isn't the best lecturer, he makes up for it in other ways and you can still do well.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/16/2024

Someone also said this, and I agree: I feel slightly misled by past reviews. Coming off of an A in orgo 1 which I did not find difficult, orgo 2 was a whole different experience. I love Dr. Davis, he's such a sweet and good prof, but a lot of the time in lecture, he was kind of all over the place. I also feel like he took too many questions from students and it wasted a lot of time. Otherwise, the way the class is set up is pretty nice, 4 exams total, and your lowest is dropped including the final. The cutoffs are also rly nice, 80 is an A-. There were also 9 bonus points for completion of practice exams, def do them. However the final was incredibly difficult. All in all, be prepared to study a lot for this class. For someone who was taking PHYS161 at the same time, I needed to focus on passing that so I didn't have much time for orgo so just bear in mind that it requires a lot of time and work.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/16/2024

Live love davis. Coolest professor known to man. Would love to sit down get a beer and do endless mechanisms with him. Hard class, lectures are a bit disorganized, but reorganizing the content helps you study and actually figure out the material (which is hard in itself).

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2024

Be prepared to teach yourself the content. He has clicker questions which quiz you on the content that he just went over, so if you cannot learn on the spot, you are screwed. About half of the questions on exams come from previous/old midterms he has posted and the textbook additional problems. For some mechanisms he says not to refer to the textbook and his method, making it confusing to understand what he is looking for. His grading is nice where he guarantees an 80 is an A at the beginning of the semester, however, I took this when Davis was teaching and had a nice curve, dropped exams, did not give clicker questions, and gave extra credit which was infuriating knowing we had to work 10x harder with harder material. To succeed, I recommend Professor Dave explains or jOE Chem on Youtube for concepts you do not understand.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/06/2024

Just leaving another 5-star review here. Dr. Davis is such a gem, and I could not have survived Orgo 2 without him. As a person, he’s so kind and accommodating and has never taken more than 2 hours to respond to my emails. He makes Orgo exciting (yes, even those 75-minute 8 AM lectures) by bringing in real-life applications of the content, which I find very helpful when I learn. He teaches the class at a reasonable pace (not too fast) so that we can understand the material and puts a 5-minute break in the middle of the long lectures. The entire grade is exams - 3 midterms + 1 final, each worth 100 points, the lowest of the 4 is dropped. That said, you still have to study A LOT for this course, but getting an A- to A is not hard (80% is a guaranteed A-). Also, Nick is such an amazing TA, those discussions and long review sessions helped big time, shoutout to him!

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/27/2024

The class itself is honestly really slow. He spends way too much time going over really basic concepts in way too much detail, but if you have trouble understanding the basics, then it may be helpful. But because it's so slow, it's also really easy. An 80 is an A- while 90+ is an A, so the cutoffs are really generous. He never records, but he does post all his notes, so you can honestly teach yourself the content even if you don't show up. There are also 4 exams (3 midterms + 1 final), but he drops your lowest exam, so if you do well on the first three, you don't even have to take the final. The averages on the exams tend to be 60-70, but keep in mind there is a 10% curve built in the class, so it's really not that hard to do well. Davis himself is also so sweet and truly cares about his students. In my opinion, if you want the content more in-depth, take a different professor because respectfully, Davis is so slow with his teaching. If you just want to get the class over with and chill, then take Davis.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
11/27/2024

I'm going to be honest, I was misled. His reviews were so great, and coming off of a A in orgo I I figured this class would be a good time, and while I did enjoy his class and did well regardless, I found his lectures to be repetitive. He doesn't really cover the type of questions you will see on an exam, but his exams are really easy if you put in the work. I just did not like this class as I was used to orgo I with Dr.Hirschauer, who is a brilliant teacher and explained everything so clearly, so I was not prepared to self-study for orgo II. STILL TAKE HIM OVER ANY OTHER PROFESSOR THE MAN IS SO WHOLESOME AND HE IS A BLESSING. (there is also a godly curve (80% for an A-)!

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/25/2024

Dr. Davis is the best professor you can ask for for orgo 2. If you have friends in Issacs and whoever else teaches it you'll see firsthand how much those people struggle compared to Davis. He genuinely cares about his students and is extremely passionate towards organic chemistry, which makes even his 8 AMs bearable. He always tries to show applications of organic chemistry in real life, something which I appreciated a lot. His TA Nick was amazing and held 3 hour review sessions pre-exams, which helped organize the info in my brain super well. Do keep in mind that your only grades are exams, though. Overall, take Davis!!

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/21/2024

Difficult course, memorization heavy, fair tests. Dixon can be unorganized sometimes and unhelpful. Office hours are usually crowded.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/20/2024

As someone who never leaves reviews, I just felt like I had to for Davis. He is everything everyone says, a truly caring professor that wants his students to succeed. A very lenient curve that is transparent from the start of the semester. Love him and his TA Nick made the class so doable.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
08/15/2024

Any positive review was definitely paid by the school. This was the worst class i've ever taken and made my mental health so bad I had to get a licensed therapist to undo the PTSD i got from this class. Prof Wang expects you to fully master the content the day you learn it and thinks that you don't have a life outside of orgo. there are also those bothersome clickers that you need to unnecessarily need to buy (you will use it for this class and this class only, trust.) At least those clicker points total up and basically is weighed the same as an exam. there are lots of grade opportunities I will admit. I remember failing pretty much all the exams and I somehow passed the class. He says he isn't gonna curve, but he does because of how poorly everyone does on the exams and final- he can't fail us all. Then there is the office hours that was just Praha unhelpfully yapping for an hour. Office hours were very inconvenient because most people have class during that time. His lectures are all on a chalkboard so sit in the front. I put in the effort and time and this class was still very difficult. There are a lot of smart people in this class and they will belittle you. They say that you should just study more but it is just not that simple. If you have aphantasia, might as well drop the class now (this is an orgo thing though not on the professor at all.) There is also a huge language barrier that makes it difficult to understand and if you don't understand the first time, then he gets noticeably irritated. This class just sucks the life out of you. There is a reason that everyone switches major after taking this class. Overall, this is just a useless yap fest and unless you are truly devoted and love chem, you will not succeed despite all these grade opportunities.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
08/11/2024

Isaacs to me is definitely not one of the best lecturers for this course. He goes fast during lecture and his PowerPoint slides are somewhat useless, because he just draws and draws, sometimes it can be all over the place or not even complete. He is a textbook lecturer, so he pulls problems from the textbook for his exams, and he already expects you to have read the chapters for the lecture. There is no homework, only clickers and exams. Clickers can help if you pay attention to what he is doing. Also, please KNOW YOUR REACTIONS. He loves putting at least 10 or more reaction boxes on his exam, usually worth like 4 points for each reaction box. And also KNOW YOUR NOMENCLATURE, this man loves putting that on his exams. His curve is generous too, my 66.9% went to a B+, so not too bad. Overall, I would say his class is definitely durable, but you are going to have to teach yourself sometimes.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
08/07/2024

Dr. Davis is a super nice, chill guy, and he is clearly passionate about chemistry. Compared to Orgo 1, Orgo 2 was a breeze, and he went over material very thoroughly before it was tested. I definitely recommend Dr. Davis for this class. However, keep in mind: your entire grade is made up of tests (3 out of the 4 you take go towards your grade, and the lowest is dropped) so if you hate homework I especially recommend him, but if you get really nervous about tests maybe not as much.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
05/28/2024

Isaacs is nice, and knows what he is talking about, but I found it nearly impossible to learn from attending lectures. He goes very fast, and while he does pause for questions, I feel the students (including me) are too lost to even formulate any. Generally, you have to have read through/be a little familiar with the chapter he is lecturing on to get anything out of lecture. Ideally, I would have done this, but never had enough time. One thing that was helpful was he hosted office hours in the room next door once a week to go over specific problems students had. He was very patient with everyone and seemed to break it down more simply in OH rather than in lecture. He also posts a ton of previous exams on ELMS for review. They are generally helpful and have similar content to the actual exams. There is no homework, only participation points (clickers), and exams. Which has it's pros and cons. You're not bogged down with busy work in this class. I taught myself from the textbook/solutions manual/internet the whole semester, with just using his posted lecture notes to figure out what to focus on. The curve was very generous, with anyone earning 50% or more of the points in the class earning a C.

Monique Koppel
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/23/2024

The first time I took Orgo 2 with her I ended up with a D, but this was partially due to my lack of effort. When I retook it, I ended up with an A-. I think that she listened to feedback from the previous semester as I found lectures, homeworks, and exams more doable. The TA, Donnie, had really helpful discussion sections, and I would recommend attending them if you can. Dr. Koppel's Late Night Shows and practice problems really helped me succeed this time around as well, as she went over a few problems that were similar / had similar steps to ones that ended up on the exams. If you attend lectures and ask questions in discussion, Orgo 2 won't be as hard as it seems.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/20/2024

Sweet man, who truly cares about students' learning. There are only four grades the total grade is made up of, three exams worth 100 points each, and one completion 15 points extra credit at the beginning of the semester. Will answer all the questions you have and encourages questions during lectures. Uploads all the notes after class but does not record. Grade assignments are already changed at the beginning of the semester, so a 55% is passing, though if the averages are low at the end of the semester he will curve, but this didn't happen my semester or previous.

Monique Koppel
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/18/2024

Despite what other reviews say, it is very possible to do well in Dr. Koppel's class. I had her for CHEM232 and 241. She does a thorough job of explaining everything that you need to know for the exams. She posts past exams which are very helpful as they give you a glimpse of her exam style. Usually, you'll get about 8 questions on the exam. 1 NMR (will be on every exam), 2 mechanisms, 1 road map, 2 syntheses, complete reactions, and a bonus question. Sometimes she'll throw a trick question on the exam, but it's doable. Make sure you attend every lecture as sometimes she'll give attendance points that count towards your final grade. This semester she gave a total of 6 attendance points. She posts all her class notes and does the Late Night Show, which is also very helpful (I would usually watch the recordings). I never attended GSS or office hours and rarely attended Discussions due to my schedule, but the TA sometimes went over similar questions that would be on the exam, those are all posted on ELMS. The first and third exam were really easy, the second and the final were the hardest. No worries though, if you get 50% or more you'll pass at least with a C- and she curves so that should be enough. I really enjoyed her class. Good luck!

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/18/2024

Amazing professor. Dr. Isaacs has a very structured ELMS page and is very clear about his expectations and what the students could expect in his course. Here is a more detailed breakdown of my experience: PERSONALITY: Dr. Isaacs clearly loves his jobs and I think that makes a huge difference in making the course more engaging for students. He is very receptive of questions and never responds in a condescending and/or passive aggressive manner. I've personally felt comfortable asking questions and I think many others have too. ORGANIZATION: Dr. Isaacs is extremely organized. His class has a clear structure and he tells students exactly what they're responsible for weeks before the exam. He posts his previous midterms WITH ANSWERS which is a huge help. He does truly provide you with everything you need to succeed in his course. EXAMS: Exams are well... difficult to say the least as is expected of an organic chemistry course. Although his exams require a lot of critical thinking and effort, I can't say he's ever included something that was not directly discussed in class. So in that sense, his exams are fair. TIPS: Definitely study the previous years' exams. Do as many of the old midterms as you can and you will be fine. Focus on doing problems rather than reading the textbook. The one complaint I have from Dr. Isaacs approach is his emphasis on the textbook. Louden is a horribly written textbook in my opinion and it only served to confuse me even more. Use Organic Chemistry as a Second Language instead. Once you've read the sub chapter and worked on the problems, review the slides from lecture and see if you can replicate Dr. Isaacs answers. Make sure you finish practicing the material in this manner about one week before the midterm. In the week leading up to the exam, practice old midterms and make sure you understand why you got certain problems wrong. DO NOT RELY ON THE LOUDEN TEXTBOOK. THE TEXTBOOK SHOULD BE YOUR LAST RESORT FOR PRACTICE PROBLEMS, NOT YOUR PRIMARY SOURCE OF LEARNING THE MATERIAL.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/15/2024

Before you take Isaacs' class, know that he is an old school prof. That means he believes his job is simply to lecture; his notes are there to guide you, they are NOT a tool to be used for studying. That is the textbook and you TA. While I only read organic chemistry as a second language and still did good, just know you either will be reading that or the textbook whichever you prefer. His class is set up where you just need to accrue as many points as you can get, i.e. there's nothing weighed a certain percentage. Just simply score as high as you get can to get the most total points at the end. There's 450 points from the 3 tests (each 150) and 100 points for clicker questions (for one clicker question, you get two points because 1 point is for participation and the other is for accuracy) and 300 points for the final. The trick to doing well is there is no trick, you need to continuously practice problems whether it be in the textbook or previous exams. He posts all past exams, make sure to do the past 5 years as you'll notice patterns. Exams are formatted the same way each time so no surprise. Curve is pretty generous too. Obvi recommend Davis but if you couldn't get him like the rest of us, take Isaacs. Also, don't cram you will fail.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/15/2024

Best professor! I genuinely enjoyed coming to class, interesting lectures related to how chemistry exists outside of an Orgo class and mechanisms, genuinely understood basic concepts that although other professors may seem harder, I value that the concepts in chemistry that Davis taught were more valuable as I now have a strong grasp.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
05/13/2024

had her for chem241, she's a good teacher and she keeps the class organized but honestly really disrespectful person. she just undermines her students a lot and doesn't respond to emails or seem like she wants to help, even when i came to OH multiple times. i had a decent experience in her class (although tough), but i just don't like her attitude as a professor. wish she was just more approachable and open to helping rather than seeming like she hates her students :(

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/11/2024

Class is enjoyable and Dr Davis makes lectures fun and entertaining. Cool to see how Orgo plays out in pharmaceuticals, and to be able to apply more to the world that just mechanisms.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/11/2024

Save yourself the struggle and take anyone else. Nice guy, but horrendously difficult exams. He tries to make it seem like they're simple just because he keeps the format the same, don't be fooled. A 50% on the exams was basically the average for his previous classes, that is why the curve is big. But I've literally learned nothing from this man. I go to class just because of the clicker questions otherwise leave with no new knowledge. He says he knows students like nomenclature so he always has nomenclature questions on the exam, that's a freaking lie. The nomenclature is in fact not IUPAC like we were actually taught but just random molecules he just picks from the textbook, and you have to basically memorize them or you're screwed (there's around 60 overall). He gives like 20 reaction boxes that have molecules pulled from god knows where with 3-4 steps. There's already so so so much content to remember I don't know in which world he thinks he's helping us. Don't take him!

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
03/07/2024

Dr. Stocker is far and away the best professor Ive had at UMD. Her practice tests are the exact same format as the actual exams, and as long as you attend each class and take notes, you will be just fine. She does not post notes, but do the practice problems/exams and attend her OH for help bc she's always there. Made one of the hardest classes easy and enjoyable, take her if possible.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/22/2023

Dixon is a good prof. Her cutoffs are great, and extra credit also boosts your grade a lot. Her exams are very tough, but she usually outlines major questions that will be directly on the exam the lecture before, so you know what to focus on while studying. Her homework is hell, but again good practice, and if you devote time to it and check with others, you should also be fine. Often her exam questions are pulled straight from the homework or her CAN (chemistry at night videos she does every week to go over practice problems). Her first exam stumped me, but the rest were easy As even without extra cred as you can figure out how her questions will be framed (she quite literally says them in class!! just don't skip lecture or have friends who go to lectures lol). If you do the homework diligently and don't copy off of others, and also redo her CAN worksheets, you can get away with good scores without doing a gazillion problem sets. She REALLY wants you to succeed in class, and pass it! She won't try to hurt you, curve down, or anything like that. I would take her again for BCHEM.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/22/2023

I think Dr. Dixon is a great professor. Her lectures are very clear and easy to understand. She does go in depth in every topic, however, but it ensures that you know it thoroughly. You can't get off on the notes she posts though, as her handwriting is quite messy; but if you go to most lectures you are golden. She also makes asynchronous videos, which are amazing and again easy to understand, and she does try her best!! Also her cutoffs are beautiful, and along with extra credit, you shouldn't worry too much about your overall grade. Her exams are usually a lot harder than other professors teaching the same subject (at least my semester), but again the extra credit gives you around a 10-12 point boost on each exam (the extra cred assignments are very hard and kinda messy, but if you have friends to work with, you should be fine). My only issue with her is her being kinda intimidating and not super open to questions. She will argue back with you in class if you are too inquisitive, but having her at 8 am may have exposed me to a different side of her. Still love her, and would take her again for BCHEM.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/22/2023

She's probably the better of options in regards to learning orgo, but it's hard to sit above the class curve since a lot of people do well. Take her if you want to learn orgo, take another professor if you'd prefer an easier shot at earning an A. I will also add in that Stocker tends to be more strict when defining her curves to the class, but might be a bit more generous than she lets on at the end of the semester when dealing out grades. Learn your reactions well and not the night before; it's safe to say that orgo2 carries a LOT more reactions than orgo 1, so really start studying earlier and pay attention to tricks on her exams.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
terpy2343
12/20/2023

The best chem professor at UMD easily! I was originally signed up for davis because I heard he was also good, but for some reason he decided to not teach fall over the summer, so I made the switch to Dr. Dixon. I am so glad I made this switch over stocker because I had stocker for orgo 1 and found her to be a bad teacher. Dr. Dixon provides you with all the resources you need to succeed in the class and perform well in the exams. The exams are difficult, but she gives you extra credit before every exam to earn up to 12 points. She provides plenty of practice and host chem review sessions every monday to go over topics. The final was very fair and was designed to help students succeed and boost their grade. Take Dr. Dixon you will 100% not regret your decision.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/19/2023

Stocker's more lenient on her curve cutoffs than what she says them to be. I wouldn't stress out too much if you're on the cusp of a grade because chances are she will curve you up. Decent lecturer, but I also agree with other reviews that she's a bit overrated. Went to several of her office hours and spent at least 30 minutes before getting 1-2 of my questions answered just because there were lots of other students there and she would spend time talking to previous students about stuff besides orgo.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
TB
12/18/2023

DR DIXON IS AN ICON! She makes so much time for students and gives you a ton of practice problems, extra credit, and a huge curve on tests. She's the reason i had a fantastic experience in Orgo II and I can't wait to take her for biochem. I genuinely looked forwards to class because she's engaging and hilarious and will always tell you the best stories in class. If you're interested in orgo from a biological point of view, i would highly recommend Dr. Dixon for an amazing class and a passionate professor.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/18/2023

TAKE DR. DIXON SHE IS AN AMAZING PROFESSOR. I was originally registered for davis, but for some reason he suddenly chose to not teach for the fall, so I switched to Dr. Dixon and it was the best decision I made. She teaches concepts very thoroughly and provides plenty of practice through her lecture sides and CAN sessions. She provides 3 exams that are difficult but are very fair. You also get extra credit assignments before each exam to earn up to 12 points on that exam. The final was very fair and was not that hard. Dr. Dixon prepared you very well to succeed in the class and as long as you put an effort to study, you will more than likely succeed. Take Dr. Dixon she is the absolute best in the CHEM department

Monique Koppel
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/18/2023

She's the best chem prof at UMD. I have had her for orgo one, orgo one lab, and orgo two. She's a great teacher and super nice. Her exams are always fair. She also adjusts the class based on the class's needs.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/15/2023

Lenea is an alright professor with a horrible attitude about teaching and a lack of respect for her students. Her only redeeming quality is that she makes this class very easy, much easier than the other professors. However, she actively encourages you to never email her, which is disregarding a huge part of her job. She has such a condescending attitude towards students and is very disrespectful. She also refuses to share notes with students if they are sick or miss class for excused absences which makes no sense. Take her for the easy A but not because she is a good professor or a good person.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/13/2023

Stocker is a great lecturer and is great at showing mechanisms (except for when she skips over a bunch of the steps). She expects people to ask questions but breezes through concepts at a speed that makes you not even know what to ask. Her exams are foolishly difficult as they don't represent the one example of a concept she went over in class. You will have to teach yourself after studying her past exams. The TA sometimes posts a document with reactions all summarized, which helped to an immense degree. Without them, Stocker's scattered and information lacking notes would take ages to summarize on your own. As a bioengineer, I don't usually memorize concepts for my classes; we have to understand how to use them. Stocker insists that Orgo II is the same... it is not. This class is pure memorization. Sure, you have to understand how a proton transfer works or some mechanism patterns, but in the grand scheme, this is just a game of how long you prepare in advance to brute force memorize everything. The HW in her Orgo I class was harder than this class - it was fine in Orgo II. Her teaching style is just not for me and I felt dread when it was announced that she would be taking Davis's spot this semester. I got a B+ in Orgo I and my greatest complaint was Stocker's personality. It is irritating. I am not one of your "kids" and I am not your friend. Sorry to be rude but a year of her saying "WHAT'S MY FAVORITE RULE CLASS??? OCTET RULE RULESSS! ENOLS TAUTOMERIZE!!! AHAHAHAHAHA" has burned my soul into a dark patch of ash. Anyways, she is a good person but her style of teaching was shit imo. If you don't have friends taking this class with you, it will be harder - but ig that's for everything.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/12/2023

the exams were basically the pervious ones, but in different words. The curve is also great. 75 was an A in the class that I took, and he guarantees 80 to be an A. No tricks, no gimmicks, just straight forward orgo 2.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/12/2023

She goes way too fast. I was lost many times during lecture. She skips through multiple things when teaching something for the first time and expects us to learn it on our own later. Exams are very difficult and are very much in depth which is ironic since the way she explains concepts are vague.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/09/2023

I originally wasn't supposed to take Dixon, I had signed up for Davis, but he ended up not teaching any Chem241 sections this fall and I instead got Dixon. I honestly LOVE her, I know some reviews may be mixed (I also haven't had her for biochem, so I can't speak on her teaching for that specific course). No doubt this class is going to be hard, especially if you don't have a solid Orgo I background, but as long as you put in the time and effort, you can definitely pull off getting a good grade in this class - coming from someone who got a B in Orgo I and is on track to getting an A in Orgo II. We have a problem set (pretty hard, questions are typically harder than what you see on the exam and they're graded for accuracy), and I HIGHLY recommend going to office hours or asking your discussion TA for feedback before submitting. I wasn't able to make office hours for one or two homework assignments, and my grade for those problem sets definitely reflected that. Dr. Dixon's office hours are typically very busy, but even if you don't get a chance to talk to her while attending, it's always a good place to collaborate with classmates and try and hear the advice she's giving to other students because most of the time I've found people have the same questions I do! I also highly recommend going to EVERY CAN session she holds, for my class, she held CAN every Monday night from 9-10 pm and went over relevant problems and answered any needed questions. Before exams, she would typically go over an old exam and allow 10-15 minutes at the end to answer any questions. Even if you don't have any particular questions about the topics she's going over, it's always good to attend and see her solve a few problems especially since she goes pretty fast during lectures (and class lectures aren't recorded). The 3 exams we had this semester were very fair, the averages typically fell around the high 50s-low 60s and went up a bit throughout the semester given that some people dropped the class. Dixon typically gives a 10-12 pt extra credit assignment due the Sunday before the exam, these problem sets are also pretty hard, but if you work with other students, you can get all if not a decent amount of the offered extra credit! Dixon's exams are pretty long, but even if you don't finish an exam she typically writes her exam to be out of 120 points (even though the max is 100) to allow you to go through and solve the problems you're more confident on. I've seen other reviewers complain about Dixon moving too fast or talking a lot about herself, which is true in part, but she always posts her whiteboard after class (so if you missed copying down something you can refer to it after class) and I find her little "side stories" always help give me a break from the overloading content because being so real Orgo II is ALOT and it's nice to take a break from hard material sometimes and talk about something a bit more light-hearted (I also had 75min lectures at 8 am which was pretty rough). You can't go wrong with taking Dixon for Chem241, and I highly recommend especially if you want a good background going into Biochem!

Monique Koppel
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/06/2023

She gives three midterms, three homework assignments, and a final. Her lecture is very straight forward. She starts every unit with a little bit of context, and then teaches reactions. It's on you to go home and practice them to learn them. All her exams have the same structure, so you know what to expect and can predict what she'll put on them. She does put two tricker questions on every exam, but they're doable. She provides a lot of extra practice and can answer any question you have during office hours. Ignore everyone saying she's bad, it's orgo, it takes a lot of work to learn no matter who you have.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/06/2023

She seems like a good lecturer (very helpful if people have questions and tries to engage the class) the few times I actually go to class. Other than that, her notes are organized and she has a lot of resources/videos to help people online. I never personally have tried to go to office hours, but I'm told it's pretty difficult to talk to her due to the amount of people there. Weekly homeworks aren't too bad if you understand what's going on in class and if you don't, you can figure out how to do them based on the notes she posts. In terms of the exams, there's an almost excessive amount of extra credit both before the exam and built into the actual exam and exams are pretty directly based on the HW, so if you understand how to do the reactions and what's actually going on chemically in the reactions, it isn't super difficult to get good grades. That being said, our class averages for exams are not great (usually in the 60s), as expected from any UMD chem class, which means there's a curve at the end as well. Honestly, I didn't really learn very much synthesis in Orgo I because my professor spent like 2 days on them so it was a little difficult for me to catch up at the beginning of Orgo II and Dixon does expect you to come in knowing quite a bit of synthesis, but with a little hard work, this class is not too bad. There's a lot of practice opportunities and Dixon herself seems sweet and wants to help students as much as possible. Definitely recommend her for Orgo!

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/05/2023

I had her for both orgo 1 and 2 and I am expecting an A/A+ in orgo 2 after getting an A+ in orgo 1. She is a great lecturer who can explain stuff and get you to actually understand it. Her tests are very fair and she has lots of past exams (no answer keys tho :( ) on ELMS. Use all of the problem sets, discussion worksheets, GSS worksheets, ANYTHING that she posts on ELMS that can help you to study. Something to consider though is that she goes really fast in lecture (perfect speed for me but not for everyone). Also, I think that the Thanksgiving break being extended and her getting COVID messed up her flow when it came to teaching because after all that happened, everything felt a lot more disorganized. She can sometimes use class time explaining a mechanism only to say "this mechanism will not be on the exam" which is a little annoying, but if you really like chemistry that's great for you. Overall, really great lecturer and I really understand orgo after taking her!.

Lee Friedman
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
07/05/2023

Dr. Friedman is a mixed bag. The negatives: His exams are hard, his homeworks are hard, his class is hard. He very much expects students to stay on top of the material by themselves, he is not the type to give out answers or help, he will ask you what you think and then kind of stare at you, which is probably the right thing to do from an education perspective. Overall, his reputation precedes him and he can come off as intimidating or heartless at times. The positives: He cares about your learning and brings an enjoyable enthusiasm (behind heavy sarcasm and dry humor) to lecture every morning. And yes, his lectures are always in the mornings because he thinks it will scare off the uncommitted students. While his exams are hard, it is all about the curve, so as long as you can consistently perform as well or better than the rest of the class, you can comfortably achieve your desired grade. Also, with 3 homeworks and 3 exams, the workload is at a minimum, but that also makes it easy to fall behind. All in all, Dr. Friedman is a tough love type of professor. Hard work and hard play, if you can keep up, you will do fine.

Lenea Stocker
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/27/2023

I got A with a ending grade of 82% highly reccomend stocker Tuesday/Thursday

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/26/2023

Dr.Wang is honestly a pretty solid professor. One of my only gripes was that I felt his lectures were hard to follow at times and did not get a lot out of them until I was able to return to the slides later. I also did not like that he allocated 150 points to clicker questions, which equalled an exam. If you do really well on them they are definitely a grade booster and most people did do well, but I didn't really like them because he quizzed you on the content that you just learned, and I thought the questions were quite difficult. Since I didn't absorb a lot from his lectures, it was hard to do well but luckily I had smart friends around me who helped out. With that being said, I am taking him over the other professors because his exams are very straightforward and they are easy to do well on if you complete the homework. He doesn't grade the homework but you must do it to perform well in the class because it is definitely difficult content to follow without practice. Also, he is very kind and welcoming and wants to see you succeed so go to him if you need help understanding concepts.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/20/2023

A sweet guy who is willing to help, but honestly one of the worst science professors I've had. The language barrier made it difficult to understand him (didn't understand any lectures, only went for the clicker points), and the homeworks (not graded) were difficult and did not relate to the exam as they looked like they were copied out of a random textbook, slides looked busy and were very difficult to interpret for me. The only reason I did well was because I had a tutor- I barely looked at his slides and never did homework. His exams are very fair and your grade is based on 3 midterms, the final, and clickers. Wang was not receptive to students' concerns with using in-class handheld clickers not connecting (instead of the free app?) and not posting slides before class. He is VERY old school- writing on the chalkboard sometimes and busy slides with images that look like they are from a textbook and didn't seem the best with technology/canvas. He does grade fast and is willing to answer any questions, but didn't always understand people's questions correctly. Some of the grading on exams seemed unfair (took off a lot of points for something that didn't seem like it deserved it), and he basically never gave points back unless it was a tallying points mistake. He seems too smart to be teaching this or assumes that students understand more than we actually do. Usually, if you can get above a 50%, you pass because of the curve. My class's averages were alwasy around 70%. Overall If you are someone who can understand busy, textbook-type slides and his accent you can probably do well, but of course, it's a lot of information regardless of the professor. Learning the material from someone else, I would never have been able to understand it from Dr. wang.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/18/2023

Dr. Wang is one of the only good professors on campus. He truly cares about our success and ability to perform. He spends half of the lecture following the midterms to go over some the main questions, and then conclude with a motivational talk on having a positive attitude towards life and chem241. His slides are very easy to follow, expect many reactions, but all the mechanisms you need to know are on there. He also spends the whole lecture the lecture before the midterm to review. He lists all the mechanisms that will show up so you only need to study for those,~3-5. His exams are by far the most straightforward exams which a few questions directly from the practice exam and homework. The exam structure is the same including the final exam, consisting of multiple choices for basic properties(nomenclature, mp/bp, acidity/basicity), reactions, mechanisms, and synthesis. I really enjoyed his class since I sit in the front row, he always comes and talks to me about my weekend/summer plans before class starts. I wish my professors are all like him. I've had many friends who taken other chem 2 professors, and I truly believe Dr. Wang will be the right choice; do expect a ridiculous waitlist though.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/18/2023

Do not take him if you do not read textbooks. You will fail if you do not read the textbook. You will be required to go to each and every class because there are clicker questions. HE GOES FAST. His teaching style in lectures is that he already has the slides pre-made with bunches of chemical structures. If you do not have a digital writing device that can take pictures of his slides it will be hard to follow along. (Though he does post lecture notes online, it is not helpful if you just stare at them after class.) I hated this and can never learn like that. Overall lectures were not engaging. Tests are straightforward and sometimes from the books but sometimes are obnoxiously hard.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/17/2023

Having taken this course, I feel like most of these reviews are relatively true. If you are coming from stocker, this is your warning: He does not provide as in depth lectures as she does and you will have to self study the crap out of this class. He gives out non-graded homeworks which you definitely NEED to do in order to do well on the exams. He also provides everything you need to know on slides but he runs through them and only draws a couple of mechanisms on a chalk board. I accidentally relied solely on the single practice exam he provides prior to the exam and this isn't sufficient if you want to get a good grade. Be diligent about your time and understand your syntheses. He is a great teacher and he won't throw anything particularly crazy at you but you have to be very proactive. I personally found he was great in office hours but again, you have to do way more work to understand things outside of class rather than just sitting in the lecture. I was a little upset we had to purchase clickers for our mandatory clickers since I had other professors who let us use the free app instead. TLDR; Overall, a great person, not the best lecturer, DO YOUR HOMEWORKS, and review the lecture slides!

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/16/2023

Professor Wang was great, his lectures are all given on PowerPoints but emphasizes some important mechanisms or concepts by writing them on the board. Everything you need for the exams are on the PowerPoints and you just need to practice/remember the things on the PowerPoints. He has clicker (participation points) that really helps your grade (pretty much acts as an extra exam) but also means you have to get them right/go to class. His exams are very fair, although not easy or impossible, he has multiple choice questions, typical reaction/mechanism questions to write out. However all the reactions and mechanisms are fair and he usually gives you what mechanisms to know for the exam. He also has optional homework’s that don’t count towards your grade but usually he has one or two homework problems on the exams. No dropped exams. Professor Wang’s lecture style is pretty easy to follow and isn’t for everyone but if you’re really concerned about not doing well, Wang is your best option. You might not learn as much detail as other professors but you still learn a lot while the exams not being from hell.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/12/2023

Dr. Wang is by far the best professor I have ever met. Not just the professor, but the best dude in general. He is so caring about his students and all he really wants is for us to succeed and love organic chemistry (while not being so obnoxious about it as other professors). In regards to the class, the other reviews are completely accurate. He teaches basically only what’s on the exam, and he never tries to throw curveballs. Everything is straightforward and structured in the best way possible. Take Dr. Wang

Lee Friedman
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/12/2023

This course is hard which is why some people really end up hating this class. Besides the difficulty of organic chemistry, Dr.Friedman is a funny guy who actually cares a lot about his students. I really recommend going to his office hours and asking him about material you are struggling on or need some extra clarification, he is always willing to help you out. He most importantly is a fantastic teacher. He doesn't just point out things you should know and memorize but actually explains the how and why in depth. The exams are difficult but if you are a hard working and determined, you will do pretty well. I 100% recommend attending discussion and going to his office hours if you want to do really well. He also gives a lot of extra resources for your disposal. Even if you don't get an amazing grade, this class will immensely improve your studying habits and techniques as well as show you how to persevere.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
05/11/2023

this class sucks but Professor Wang made it all worth the while. i love this dude and you will too

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/10/2023

I am not good at chemistry and performed quite bad on the first exam and average on the second exam. I am barely keeping up a C and this is the first C I will ever receive. Despite this, I think Dr. Dixon is an excellent professor. She prepares you very well for exams and literally gives you a list of what will be on the tests/final. She also assigns homework, which is a bit of a pain. However, they really help you prepare for the final. Her office is open almost every morning/afternoon for questions and discussion. She is a really approachable and intelligent professor. She is also a really great person. She teaches very difficult classes, which makes many students resent her. I recognize my grade is due to my own inability to understand chemistry rather than her inability to teach. She also prepares you very well the for MCAT and BCHM if you are interested in taking those in the future.

Lee Friedman
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
sramsl
05/08/2023

I don't know about other orgo 2 professors but friedman was a really good lecturer. As somebody who hates teaching myself from a textbook, that was really helpful for me. There were only 3 homeworks which was good and bad because I felt like I didn't have a lot of practice but it was less work. The practice exams are essential to doing well because he has very specific ways of writing exam questions. He's reachable during office hours, over email, and also in class. He has a bit of a sarcastic sense of humor which made the 9 am lectures a little more bearable. He has a VERY generous curve at the end of the class depending on the averages of exams. The thing that was a bit annoying was the excess lectures on sugar proofs that weren't really relevant to the course or in the textbook, I'd rather have done more practice problems in class than learning metabolism pathways. Overall though this is a really hard class with very tough exams.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
04/12/2023

He is the sweetest professor ever. I had Tue/Thurs 8 AMs with him. 8 AMs. And he made it bearable and entertaining. Take Davis!!!!

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/29/2022

Amazing professor. Stocker, Koppel, Friedman and the other dude straight up need to take a page out of his book. From the very first day of class I could tell he really cared about his students and wanted us to pass..no other chem professor gave off this vibe. He even thoroughly explains practice exams. The lowest exam grade is dropped and theres an extra credit opportunity. The extra credit at the beginning of the semester saved me. The content is not easy, but Professor Davis is an angel and it's a shame he doesn't teach every semester. However, grades are only based on exams. Literally if you take anyone else for orgo 2 you're stupid.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
IfCourseEvalsWereHones
12/19/2022

Just leaving another 5-star here... nothing much more I can add to the other reviews. Best professor I have ever had hands down. Super thoughtful, understanding, and caring. Dr. Jeffery Davis must be protected at all costs.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/18/2022

Dr. Davis makes orgo 2 enjoyable. The exams are the only thing that contributes to your grade, but he gives you plenty of resources to study from and he makes lectures entertaining. Study the practice exams in advance of the midterms and you will be fine. He drops one midterm, but his 3rd midterm in particular tends to be more difficult than the others. He explains concepts very well in office hours, and he isn't condescending towards students. Overall best orgo professor there is.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2022

Davis is one of the kindest and caring professors. If you put effort into this class, you will get an A. His lectures are fun and he puts breaks in. His curve is also great, which is that if you get 80 or above, it’s a guaranteed A or A-, and he drops the lowest exam score. His tests are very fair and he prepares you for an A in the class. Study the notes in and out and PRACTICE. He’s an amazing professor— would definitely recommend him over any of the other ones.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/16/2022

Davis is an amazing professor, especially for the chem department lol. He's so chill, kind, and caring. One thing I love about his classes is that he gives 5 minute breaks. He also gives a lot of real life examples that make orgo so much more interesting. He gives 4 exams including the final and even allows you to drop the final (since its not cumulative) if your grade is good enough. I took Freidman for orgo 1 and he would rush everything so much if we were not on track. With Davis, he never rushes anything and is really organized. There's no homework or anything so you have to study to do well on the exams.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/12/2022

END OF AN ERA REST IN PEACE KING

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/07/2022

This man is one of the best people ever. He cares for your education and it's so sad to see he is retiring.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a B
ReakatheGOAT
12/06/2022

Dr. M-S is a good lecturer and fair professor. He ensures students who put in work succeed in the class. I worked pretty hard for my B but I have had to in every single chemistry course I have taken. Students are given ample resources to succeed in this course such as the GSS and discussions. If I were a professor, I personally would add in a few “buffer points” for either participation or homework but generally I didn’t think bombing one exam led to a failing grade in Dr. Montague-Smith’s class. I had some friends who did it and got Cs and Bs as their final grade. If you’re reading this Dr. M-S, have a great retirement!

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
57K9
07/08/2022

Some of you may not like Dr. Dixon. However, this will depend on your own attitude as a student. Organic Chemistry 1 and 2 will be a challenge no matter what teacher you have. In my opinion, I was able to excel in this class due to her teaching style and her character. Dr. Dixon cares about her students. She demands that you work hard through weekly homework assignments, but these homework assignments force you to study for her exams. She directly writes the exams based off of the hw. Additionally, Dr. Dixon hosts two chemistry at night zooms that go over lecture material from that week. Put your best effort into the homework, go to the C.A.N. zooms, and go to office hours when you’re struggling. If you’re willing to work hard, in my opinion, you will have the best chance of achieving a higher grade in her class than in other orgo teachers’ classes. There are no shortcuts through orgo. With Dr. Dixon, you earn the grade you work for. This is an advantage to taking her compared to some other orgo professors.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
06/27/2022

She was a good professor but her homeworks were extremely hard for no reason. She also gave extra credits that were nearly impossible to do unless you got lucky with your guessing. I felt that they just took time away from studying right before exams. However, she does give you lots of good resources and practice sessions that were helpful. I'd strongly recommend finding a good study group to do well in the class.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/24/2022

I had Dr. Dixon for both orgo 1 and orgo 2. Overall, she will give you a lot of material to succeed in her class. There are a ton of practice problems, office hours, and supplementary videos. She also does extra credit quizzes (that are often unreasonably hard, but doable if you find a good group to work in). I always thought that the exams were easy, but the homeworks were insanely hard. A lot of her homework assignments are based on weird tricks and rules to whatever functional group you're working on, not necessarily how they actually work. It seems like there is never a middle ground between easy and hard problems. She has frequent office hours that are semi-helpful, mainly because you'll be able to find students who are also working on the homeworks. You should definitely be aware that Dr. Dixon has a huge attitude problem. I think a lot of other reviews give a good idea about what kind of person she is, but to sum it up, she will be condescending and short-tempered. Go to your TA for help before you go to her. She also does not cover all of the material on a homework until the day it is due. It's really frustrating. Personally, I think that all of the materials that she gives like extra credit quizzes and videos make up for her attitude, but if you are worried that you may need a lot of help in chemistry, you should try to find a different professor.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/19/2022

Had her for 231, then for 241. Pretty much the same review I would for 231. Outstanding professor. If you are taking 241, you likely need it for your degree or future courses, so Dixon is the right choice.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/15/2022

Love her

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/09/2022

Rapid Fire Pros: Pretty funny guy, gives a 5 min break, teaching is good and above average, good stories also give you a mental break, the material he teaches is exactly what on the test, tons of old test material, tells you exactly the format and what to expect Cons: lotta memorization, hates regrades, you'll prob lose points if you try, No HW, only test points (good-sized curve though), HANDWRITING is pretty bad but you get used to it IMO, can feel like you're lost in all the material but you eventually get it after doing practice and realizing you're wrong. The course is hard, it's Orgo 2 so...but deff the lesser of two evils between him and Dixon. P.S. get Edward as a TA if possible, he's the best.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
01/23/2022

MS seems like a great guy and has really funny stories during lecture, but beware--you have to put work in in order to do well in this class. He didn't record lectures, but he did post his written notes on ELMS; his handwriting is pretty messy, so I would suggest just going to lecture to ask if you're confused about any words he wrote. In terms of studying, honestly discussion was kinda a waste of time (not saying you shouldn't go, but while you're there ask any questions that you have to make the most out of your time), GSS can be pretty helpful, and he posts old exams. I would say the old exams are the best practice materials you have for the midterms: he reused some of the questions from the old exams, and it's a great way to anticipate how he might ask questions on the midterms. Like the review before me said, he only has 3 midterms and a final--no homework, no buffer points. I'd say honestly that if you want an easier time in Orgo 2 and have a higher chance of getting a good grade, Dr. Davis is the prof to go with. Otherwise, MS is a hard but good teacher.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
01/08/2022

MS was very enthusiastic and engaging during class so I do appreciate that. Although I could follow what he was saying during class for the most part it was hard to understand on my own as he didn't write explanations, only reactions. I tried attending GSS but couldn't go as often as when it was online due to conflicts with time (physics and orgo labs) plus not living on campus made it hard. (I strongly recommend GSS!) With our grade only based on 3 exams + a final it is very stressful. I would appreciate if he assigned homework to practice and help our grade. On exams he barely assigned partial credit. He wouldn't always respond to emails and if he did they were dry and he seemed bothered. Although he is a funny guy I don't feel he really cared about his students.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/22/2021

Dr. MS is super passionate about teaching and even cracks some funny stories and jokes in lecture. He keeps his lectures engaging and his exams are straightforward and are very relevant to what he teaches. The biggest downside is that there’s only 4 grades and nothing gets dropped (3 midterms and a final). Overall, he’s a great professor and I highly recommend

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2021

honestly, best professor I have ever had. His practice exams are extremely helpful, but make sure you truly mastered each question on the exam to be able to apply the material to a similar problem. He gives optional homework which may help your understanding of the material. Carefully review his lecture slides, because he may give a hint to topics that are important. His curve was generous and the TA's discussion is very important. Mechanisms are also important to take note of, they are not on the slides. TAKE HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but remember, this is organic chemistry two, it requires a LOT of work. So if you don't put in that work, the professor does not matter, it is up to you to practice and master the material. there is usually free orgo 2 tutoring from AXS 2x/wk, so take advantage!

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
florm
12/18/2021

Dr. Wang is a fantastic professor who is very willing to help us. His lectures are exactly as straightforward and packed with information as you could expect for such a dense course. He does occasionally speed through lecture slides, but he always posts them after class so you can go back through and take notes on what you missed. That being said, the mechanisms are usually not in the lecture slides, he'll just draw them on the chalkboard so make sure you always copy them down. He also will post a couple pages of homework problems from the textbook after each lecture; these aren't graded but they're very helpful. GSS practice problems were also super helpful (and sometimes were almost identical to what was on the exams). Your grade is entirely based on exams: 3 midterms and the final, that's it. That definitely puts a lot more pressure on the exams, but I felt that they weren't excessively difficult, and they never had any surprises. They were graded insanely fast too, usually by the end of the day, and the averages were typically in the high 60s/low 70s. Dr. Wang also gives us practice exams for the midterms, and always lets you know beforehand which mechanisms you should focus on. One big tip: don't think that certain things won't be on the exam because they seem trivial or random. Chances are, there will be one question about it. There is a lot of memorization in orgo, regardless of what professor you have. So be prepared for that.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/08/2021

Most flexible orgo professor. Extremely kind and understanding. Although there are ONLY 4 exams that contribute to your grades, no hw or anything he really ensures that you do well. He award a lot of partial credit and bonuses. One exam gets dropped. He’s very well organized and cares about his students.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/02/2021

Davis is the first teacher I met that actually cared if you understood the material and did not rush the material. If we were behind in the topics in the syllabus he didn't rush he wanted to make sure we understood it. He also dropped one exam and curved so if you had an 80 or higher you had a guaranteed A.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/01/2021

Honestly, despite my grade, Davis is a great professor. It is not his fault that I did not understand the concepts. Lots of resources are provided to do well, and the only reason I even passed is because of his more-than-generous curve on the class. If you understand orgo, he is great. The only thing I can complain about is the fact that there are no homeworks or assignments, so your grade is purely exam based which is what hurt my grade so badly. He is passionate and an extremely nice guy, so take him if you can!

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
blue_footed_booby
05/15/2021

Ditto that one anonymous guy who gave an IN-DEPTH review of Dr. Isaacs on 5/14/21. Definitely take good notes and do problems from the book, he sometimes pull straight from there (at least when we were online).

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2021

TEACHING: He's a decent/good professor. He teaches straight from the book, and has similar exam questions to the practice problems. He has structure to his lectures. He usually introduces a topic, goes over general concepts, then reactions with mechanisms and a bunch of examples - a simple lecture format. His handwriting and drawings are good. He gives clicker questions at the end of every lecture, so attend and be prepared. PERSONALITY: He's very passionate about chemistry, and this shows when he speaks with excitement in lecture, which can be refreshing. He's very receptive of questions, and always takes time to answer after class and during office hours. He makes a lot of jokes. Whether or not you find them funny, they lighten the mood and make you feel a bit less miserable. He loves hemiacetals and daydreaming about being a nucleophile. Nice guy in general. EXAMS: Some problems are straight from the book (but it's not worth trying to memorize). The format is usually as follows: 3-5 nomenclature, 3-5 concepts, 1-2 spectroscopy (must remember NMR and IR from orgo 1), 2-4 synthesis, 2-3 mechanisms, and 10+ reaction boxes (fill-in-the-blank with reactant or product formed), and maybe some other questions. Be prepared for this format. He makes an announcement on the exam format as well, so if this ever changes then don't worry - he'll update you. STRATEGY: I did very well on his exams. My strategy may not work for everyone, but what worked for me was just taking notes during lecture - every example problem, every detail in a mechanism, all concepts. Organize your notes well. A week before exam time, I reviewed my notes hardcore. I took the time to understand, and not just memorize (although memory is very important). I didn't take practice exams, read the book, or go to GSS, but I do recommend this if you're not a great note taker. Book (for missed lectures) + practice exams will help the most.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/07/2021

Dr. MS is a terrific professor. Although the material and the exams are difficult, he is such a nice guy and a is very compassionate towards his students and his job as a professor. I would HIGHLY recommend taking his class for Orgo 2, he is one of the most genuine and passionate professors out there. (p.s. He tells some of the best stories and shares some of the coolest information throughout the semester)

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/25/2020

I thought his online lectures were very boring and monotone. He was not sympathetic to student concerns. Online exams are entirely multiple choice, so there's no chance of getting partial credit. Maybe he's better for live class, but I would not recommend him for online class.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
01/03/2020

Approachable professor who wants to help his students succeed. Dr. Wang's lectures are a little dry but very thorough and closely follow the textbook. Exams are very predictable and consist of nomenclature, reactions, mechanisms, synthesis and a few questions on general concepts. His exams are almost the exact same as the practice exams he gives out. Take his class if you wanna coast and get a good grade, but he doesn't teach as much content or as in depth as Stocker/MS.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/19/2019

Great professor. Also, Delaney is a great TA!

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/19/2019

Love him. The key to success is his practice exams. Accidentally YOLOed last night and missed class? No worries, just go through his old exams. Super animated professor and tells funny stories and jokes too.

Lai-Xi Wang
CHEM241

Expecting an A
bnketia
12/18/2018

For starters, Dr. Wang is a very nice professor and clearly cares for his students which I appreciated throughout this semester. However, I will say that his class was challenging especially given the language barrier that exists. Over time, it got easier to understand what he was saying but with a subject like orgo, communication is essential. Nevertheless, I appreciated how he gave us homework assignments (granted the textbook questions are difficult) and had clicker questions. I would say his exams are harder than average for 241 but he keeps the format for each exam the same so you know what types of problems to anticipate. If you do the homework problems (in Dr. Wang's words) and use Orgo as a Second Language, you will be able to succeed if the subject does not come naturally to you. The TA Steven is very knowledgeable and discussion is typically helpful so I would advise attending. The curve is always dependent on the semester but I had an 82% with the class average being a ~61%.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/15/2018

Fantastic orgo professor. My favorite teacher at the university yet. Love this guy. Hilarious, and tells everything that you need to know about what you’ll be tested on. he doesn’t keep you in the dark and he is very transparent about what he expects from you, which I appreciated. He tells stories before and during class, with a molecule of the day in the beginning. He’s got some great stories. The man is one of the most interesting guys out there. You have to work hard of course, but I believe that anyone can succeed in MS’s class if you put the time in. that’s the key to orgo 2: time. If you’re not willing to give time, then you will not get the grade you want. He is very systematic in the way that he tests, meaning the format of his tests have not changed a bit since 2011. That’s the other great thing about this semester: he posted all of his old exams since 2011! So all I did was practice those and then got A’s on the test. Sounds easy now, but doing ALL those tests takes time and perseverance . There’s also no answer keys for them so you have to check with friends. TA andrea was amazing and I loved her commentary during discussion…”we’ll just jones up this bad boy.” Stuff like that. really classic and genuine person. He’s definitely your best bet for orgo 2 and I would be so down to take bchm with him in the future if he ever teaches it. I came from having Dixon for orgo 1, so I was used to the office hours ‘fun’. It’s not like that with MS. He likes his space and sees students one at a time at office hours, so you don’t really get to know him on that personal level like you would if you took Dixon and were hardworking enough to be part of her squad. Overall, highly recommend MS. You’ll have to work hard, but remember that most pre med kids know to take him, so getting around 85% of the total points in his class usually serves to get you an A-. this means the curve is quite small. it’ll be a competitive group, but you can do it. goodluck

David King
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/20/2018

Best orgo TA ever! Really knows his stuff and really goes out of his way to help students!

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/20/2018

Very boring lectures but his exams are very predictable and fair. Doing lots of practice is the only way to do well. I would suggest him for orgo because it is easy to do well if you can recognize the patterns in his exams. Typical professor type that just lectures the whole entire time.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/02/2018

He's my favorite! Pros: Lectures are structured and include a break in the middle, expectations/exams are straightforward, and he's passionate and so delightful. Cons: You'll get used to his handwriting it's not that bad; some say he's intimidating but it's not his fault he's super tall. Verdict: Take him you will love him.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
03/22/2018

He is my favorite professor ever!!!

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
04/05/2016

I had to drop the course, what does this mean? nothing but, I just couldn't learn with him. The other reviews say he is funny, yes. He has lots of Dad jokes. Energetic, yes, he is certainly passionate and very smart in the subject. Good teacher? To each his own. he was not for me, I did try and I had to drop after the second exam. He is straightforward on his exam, they are long but I thought they were difficult. Not unfair but difficult. He told the class if you do not have X amount of points by now on the exams, drop the class. So I did. I now have to take it over the summer. I do not resent Dr. MS or anything like that. Just be aware that his lectures are fast, there is a lot of material in REALLY BAD handwriting. Do not close your eyes for even a second. I wish I took a different professor but, he is not bad, he is not scary but he is intimidating. I felt like I could not go to office hours without being judged, so I did not go. Other Chem prof have open office hours which are extremely helpful. He is not personable which is a shame, he does not want to make friends with his students and that's fine but, it's not my style. Be prepared to work and practice, he is not going to hold your hand. He dies not help out by giving you practice problems or anything like that and of course no answer keys to his old exams. The old exams are truly the only way to study and without an answer key I find them very difficult even when studying with others. The bottom line is this, take this prof if you know you work hard because those who do not will not take him. If you are below average on exams, drop the class because people will only get smarter as the class goes on and odds are you are already behind. The exams are long but they are fair. they are complex reaction problems that warrants basically no partial credit. The NMR on the first exam was so easy but the second exam impossible, if I had gotten those right I would have stayed in the class. Just an honest opinion her, great guy, ok teacher but the fact of the matter is he does not care about his students, he does not care how you feel about him and he does not care if you fail or succeed. He would rater see you leave than fail and he tells you that. So listen to him. I thought I could get a C in his class and chalk it up as I did ok but, honestly I did not have a chance.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting a B
jesss
01/04/2016

Often heard very harsh things about Professor Deshong but it is not always true. I like to think that negative feedback most times come from lazy students. So I enjoyed his class. He is as many have said a great lecturer. He knows what he is talking about, you will def learn a great deal about Orgo 2. He does expect his students to have a solid background in Orgo 1. So make sure that you know your SN1, SN2, E1,E2 Concepts very well. His test often did caught me off guard but I didn't think that they were impossible.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting an A
sfrail
01/02/2016

DeShong is great! All I ever want from professors is for them to be clear and teach what they test and DeShong meets that perfectly. His lectures are well organized and he has central concepts that he holds through the whole class, which really gives you an understanding of orgo and not just a random set of mechanisms to memorize. I also just want to stress how great his test set up is. The first page always has exactly the same kind of material so you know exactly what to study and know and exactly what to work on. The weighting is fair, and the questions are always things that you would expect based on how much time he spend on it in lecture. There were a few confusing issues with grading done by other graders but they were at least consistent, and he has very clear instructions and reminders for submitting regrades if you need it. He includes biochem in his lectures and other cool stories and facts about chemistry which is super fun! If you're someone who hates all of it you'll probably find it less interesting but it definitely kept lecture engaging and kept the class interesting, which is especially important for an 8am class. tl;dr TAKE DESHONG!! You'll learn orgo, it'll be interesting, and you won't get screwed over

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting a B
grapes
12/16/2015

Unlike in the math department, professors in the chem department are allowed to write their own finals emphasizing whatever they think is important, so regardless of how the professor is themselves it's important to consider what sort of test taker you are. In De Shong's case, there is less emphasis on procedural thinking (synthesis isn't as present as it was on my Orgo I prof's tests) and more on memorization of biochemical processes and structures. That's not to say things like mechanisms aren't the meat and potatoes of the course because that's gonna be the case with ANY professor, but you'll probably prefer De Shong if you are a pre-med memorization machine or biochem major because it'll give you an edge over the other students. Also, if you don't learn through lecture and just skip it, I wouldn't recommend taking De Shong because participation points via clicker questions can make a pretty big difference. He doesn't care if you stay after the first 5 minutes, but showing up in the first place can be a pain. As for the man himself, he was alright. Has a funny rude sort of humor and sometimes tells cool anecdotes related to that day's lecture. I thought he spent too much time focusing on biochem, but that's something that comes down to your preference. Overall, I personally would have chosen another professor for this course because I'm not biochem but he is not bad to have by any means. (And that comment by that other reviewer about orgo as a second is spot on. USE THAT BOOK.)

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting an A
helpmeimdiene
02/26/2015

DeShong is absolutely hilarious and is the best lecturer I have ever had at UMD. His exams are soooooooo fair and there are no synthesis problems! Also, his NMR problems are soooo simple compared to other orgo professors. He mainly cares about mechanisms and reagents. HOWEVER, this class is inherently difficult no matter who you take it with. To do well in Dr.DeShong's class, I had to put in a little bit of work almost every day and read the orgo 2 bible (a.k.a orgo as a second language). Take this class with him, put in the work, and you won't regret it!

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/13/2015

How to get an A in Orgo II: do the practice exams. All of them. Do them. Especially for the final. I destroyed the final and it locked me in for an A (I was borderline B+/A-). GSS isn’t really helpful for orgo II, because Isaacs teaches DIRECTLY out of the book. His problems are almost all exactly the same from the book. Accidently YOLO’d too hard the night before and missed class the next morning? No worries, just read the book. (But don’t skip class a lot, you’ll get behind and screw yourself over) If you have questions go to his problem sessions, he’s really nice and receptive during them. This entire class is weighted on exams, so don’t slack on those. No homework, no extra credit. There are clicker questions, which help a tiny bit. But you have to do well on the exams, that’s the key!! Orgo II is just mechanisms and practice, so focus on that. Isaacs is a little dry as a professor, but better than Doyle, and not as good as M.S. but he tries to make jokes sometimes, and he’s excited about chemistry, which helps. (I've heard he's not the best for orgo I so avoid him for that course)

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
milk
07/02/2014

I had MS for CHEM231 and CHEM241, so this review is for both. Love him. I would take an orgo III with him if I could. Pros: - Straightforward exams - Lecture style (easy to follow) - Generally humorous - Very predictable - Clicker questions to boost your grade (for attendance, not correctness) - Practice exams from the chem frat are very similar to his current exams - HUGE curve Cons: - Terrible handwriting (you'll get over it) - No matter who you take, orgo is based solely on your ability to rote memorize so try not to suck at it MS's best feature is his predictability. I'll give you the full story on how your experience in his class is going to go: You sign up for the class. You get a mass email from him welcoming you to CHEM2X1 (which he reuses every year, and just changes a few numbers). First day of class, he attempts to butter you up so that you either think you've scored the golden professor by the end of it, or you hate him because you like more serious professors. Second day of class and onward, you'll have 1-3 clicker questions (you don't have to get it right, they're attendance points). You'll be astounded by how bad his handwriting is, but quickly get over it. The difference between whether you like MS or not lies in how much you like his lecture style. MS keeps his energy up, whether it's 9 AM or 2 PM. He tells personal life stories to make you laugh (predictably, he reuses those too). It won't seem like it, but he's actually a very straightforward lecturer, especially in 241 - he literally just gives you the reactions and mechanisms you need to know, in addition to clear-cut reasons why they run the way they do. He had what I considered to be a fairly organized and simple system, which is why studying for exams wasn't too bad (by the time an exam rolls around and you start studying, you see the method to his madness). He also makes sure to emphasize nuances that appear on the test (like acetals don't react in base). Your grade consists of 1 quiz (multiple choice test on either gen chem I material or CHEM231 material, depending on which class you're in), 3 exams, 1 final, and clickers. The format of exams is generally always the same. For CHEM231, there's some funky stuff (chair conformation, Newman projection, etc.), some reactions, a mechanism or 2, and multiple choice. For CHEM241, he gets even more predictable: 3-4 pages of reactions, 1-2 mechanisms, 1-2 synthesis, 1-2 NMR. He sends out a list on what you'll be tested on, so there's no surprises. As long as you know every reaction he ever gave and all the mechanisms on the list, you should be fine. He even picks from a set stock of NMRs. There's no surprises/tricks on his exams. The curve is massive as well, like 20-25% (although he'll maintain that it's around 15-20%, don't be fooled). Top 25% of the class gets an A/A-. Also I went to his office hours a couple of times, he was quite nice to me so I don't know why other people had bad experiences but let's be real, it doesn't even matter. He always gets the best TAs (Liz or David) so you can ask them questions instead anyway. This review is getting too long, but save yourself the trouble of taking Dixon or any other teacher and just take him, you'll live. He makes orgo super doable.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
krychik
05/19/2014

You have to take Orgo 2 with MS. He's funny, always tells interesting stories when he was in grad school, and has molecule of the day section that relates orgo to our everyday lives. His tests are very hard and the avg is usually in the high 50's but they're very straight forward. Its just all reactions. Everyone knows whats a going to be on his test. Its just a matter of knowing how to do it. Definitely take MS for orgo 2, i guarantee you won't regret it. Theres a reason his sections always fill up fastest

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting an A
sheena
01/07/2014

This man. omg. Phillip is my homeboy and if you don't take him, you are making a big mistake! He is great at teaching, always keeps things interesting, and loves to touch on biochem at least once each lecture, which is nice because you see it in your later bio classes and it's mindblowing because you first saw it from DeShong. I have no idea why, but our 8 am sections scored like 50% averages on the tests. The tests were honestly not that hard. They were very fair, and after the first exam, you know EXACTLY what to expect on future exams - format is always consistent. If you want ridiculous tests, and synth problems, see Dixon. DeShong is very approachable, super friendly, and is HILARIOUS. Seriously, I couldn't have had a better 8 am. Clicker questions were kinda annoying because of glitches with setup and losing credit for stuff like that...but DeShong's attitude totally made up for it. He has great handwriting!! Also he is the sassiest man to have roamed the chem building and genuinely wants his students to do well, even if some dudes on here are saying that he's impossible or whatever. Honestly, it is okay. Just practice problems on your own time and you are A-ok! DeShong 4 eva.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Turtle
01/05/2014

Dixon is an excellent professor due to her constant attention to students outside of class. You will never again have a professor that has his or her office hours open every day for up to 5 hours!! Do not be intimidated by her. A friend had to eventually drop the class but she was very supportive of them because she knew that they cared about the course. Personally, I learned more in this course than any other this semester. Her exams are very difficult but if you review the material a little each day and then kill it at Club Mckeldin the weekend before, you will be fine. Your effort will be reflected in your grade. Lots of partial credit on exams so do not leave blank answers! Overall, if you are interested in Medical School or graduate school TAKE HER CLASS. If you are looking for a job after undergraduate years, avoid or take for fun. I walked out happy I took her and I had little background in orgo I before.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting a B
rzipper
12/23/2013

Dr. DeShong is the best Chem lecturer I have had so far. I really looked forward to his lectures. But his test are a real challenge and the grading on his tests is unforgiving. But there is the curve. My only complaints: I wish he gave a list of all the reactions he expected us to know from day one. The department needs to find a better textbook. Orgo II is a VERY time consuming course. Tons of reactions to memorize and many challenging concepts. You need to do lots of problems. So I would highly recommend that you do not have any other classes which are time consuming when taking this course.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting an F
funboy
11/18/2013

Class sucks some serious b*tt. Do not EVER take this man. Averages on each exam was about 45-49% range. UMD is probably putting his @$$ on probation after this semester. He teaches too much biochem in a organic course and he also does not care about student concerns. Don't believe me? Well take the class, get a 49% and screw yourself over. Goodbye. If I could give this troll 0 stars I would.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
11/14/2013

I have had Dr. Dixon for Gen Chem 1, Orgo 1, and now Orgo 2. I would highly highly recommend her. She is tough. But you learn your stuff really well. And if you go to her office hours, she is more than willing to help you. And even if you don't want to talk to her, there is always like 10 other kids in there who also want to help you out and will think through things with you. Orgo 2 is also better than orgo 1- and she goes a little slower in that class it seems. She is one of the only professors at this school who remembers what it was like to be a student, so she really cares about her kids. If you can- take her. If you can't- just go to her office hours- she is a wonderful woman on top of everything else. really someone to be admired

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

reviewzfoyou
06/06/2013

Here's the low-down on 241 with Montag. He's hilarious and extremely entertaining, even at 8AM in the morning. He gives you the reactions straight up, and only what he gives you is on the exam. Plus, if you pay attention in class he often emphasizes what he will and will not put on exams (very helpful). You do not need to use your book (looked at it only when I missed lecture). His TA Liz is the bomb dot com. She helps with labs if you ask for it, explains things very well, is merciful, and responds to all inquiries, e-mailed, in class, or in person. Clickers are 100 points... The final is a joke and a half (for an orgo exam). Don't worry about the grading distribution...he said an 85 was an A- but I ended with an 82 and got an A. If you get a 60 I'm pretty sure that'll still be a B-. THE CURVE IS HUGE PEOPLE. You will be okay. I recommend him. Only problem is his chicken scratch handwriting. I'd write things down in my notebook wrong all the time. Just check with friends and you'll be fine.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
04/01/2013

Teaching ability: I had him for organic 2 which, as everyone knows, is not an easy class to teach. I ended up getting a B. I felt he was easy to follow, and provided clear explanations as far as reaction mechanisms and such. However, he rarely provides a comprehensive view of how all of the reactions relate in the grand scheme. You could say he paints the trees rather than the woods. I think it's unlikely you will get a B or higher in this class if you don't attend GSS (a weekly meeting where a previous student provides practice problems and clarifications) Testing: Tests are extremely long and difficult, so time management is key! Do not underestimate this. His tests strictly adhere the material covered in class. If the book has a section that he just glossed over, then it's not going to play a huge role in the exam. Personality: In one word, BIPOLAR. I have emailed him questions before and he was very rude in reply. Seriously talks to you like you are a piece of crap. Really really awful. He also was my advisor for some time, and was extremely hot and cold. The majority of time, he is so personable in class, but is randomly very grumpy. I also find him to be a little arrogant. I started out loving him, but over time his true colors have emerged. A note about Organic Chemistry 2: This subject has some inherent properties that can't be blamed on the instructor. For example, the heavy reliance on memorizing, the almost impossible to master infinite number of details, etc etc. Please know what you're getting into before you take this class. It is not easy for some people.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/09/2012

hard course (duh its orgo II) but prof davis was a great professor. exam averages got higher over the course of the semester, first was low 60s, 2nd was high 60s and 3rd was 77. lecture is long but he has small breaks throughout it. discussions were VERY helpful (my ta was Kim). look at old tests and practice mechanisms and concepts over and over again.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
11/06/2012

He is a very good professor and makes the material relatable to real life. He always started class with a molecule/substance that we use in everyday life that also relates to what we are leaning that day. He doesn't expect you to memorize the 240 or so reactions that you will know by the end of the semester.. rather he actually teaches you the chemistry behind everything. I am in higher level chem classes right now and i still look back at his old notes. Overall he is an amazing teacher... one of the best on campus. I try to convince all my friends to take his class because it is truly worth it. * his class also goes hand in hand with the laboratory. you learn the same things at the same time.. unlike alot of other orgo II teachers. His exams are hard but fair. He will never put anything on an exam that he has not gone over in class. His final is also very VERY fair. I would recommend buying the "orgo II as a second language" book because it goes hand in hand with his class (better than the actual text book)

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
07/10/2012

Dr. Dixon has been one of the most difficult professors I've had at UMD... however, she will most definitely prepare me well for the MCAT. I will say that I worked incredibly hard and found the final exam to be way out of my scope, but theoretically if I did more problems/was more familiar with the material, I could have been well within the A range. Her curve is generous but don't take that as a reason to slack off. If you stick to the motto of spending time in this class every day, going to her office hours, REALLY understanding her homework problems, finding OUTside resources to do problems, there is no reason you shouldn't do well. However, any less and you'll be gambling your chance to get an A. Generally, her rule is if you get more than 50% of the total points in the semester, you will get a C. Some, however, find that hard to do so by not putting in the time. Others will earn that A and prove that it's far from impossible.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
06/08/2012

definitely take orgo II with falvey. he gives you practice problems before the exam that are exactly on the exam. you need to go to class for extra credit clickers which can boost you from say a b to a b+ if you get enough points. he even curves the clickers! he also discusses some real life problems in class and 1 usually shows up on each exam. if you just memorize the practice problems he gives you before the exam you are good to go

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
haqrab123
05/31/2012

Dan Falvey is a legend. If you have the opportunity to take him, TAKE HIM. The guy is amazing for orgo II. Exam Format: -Two pages of straight-up reactions. One is usually not straightforward, the rest are easy. -Two mechanisms, pulled directly from the practice problems, or very similar to the practice problems. One is usually a simple one that he's shown in class, and the other is usually a complicated one from his practice problems. -Two syntheses. Pulled straight from the notes or the practice problems. Instead of copying exactly what he gave you in the practice test, he might just include the "tricks" in the problem but not the exact same molecule or something. -A short answer. This is what separates the men from the boys. Half the time, you have no idea what he's going to ask. Look at old tests. He loves asking questions about acidity, and for the second test its almost always about Oxygen18 labeling The tricks to get an A: 1 Know absolutely EVERYTHING on his practice test he puts online. Seriously, look at other reviews, what they're saying is true. He pulls so much from the practice test, and the rest is variations of the stuff he has on there. There is maybe one question that won't be on his practice tests that are pulled from the book, but if you understand the concepts behind what you're being tested on, you'll be fine and you really don't need to do the book problems unless you want more practice 2 Keep a few separate pieces of paper at the end of your notes dedicated to copying down the synthesis problems he shows you in class. Almost always, at least one will appear on the test (he usually shows about 4 or 5 per exam). 3 Keep another couple pieces of paper for the mechanisms he shows you in class. He'll probably ask about an easy one that he showed you in class. 4 Make sure you look over the emails he sends out. They're really annoying, but I know in previous years he's pulled short answer problems from the stuff he sent out. This year, he didn't really pull anything from his emails for the tests, but they did make the stuff we were learning seem less dull. In class, he goes over a LOT of theory that's pretty much unnecessary to do well in the course. Just copy down the syntheses and know the mechanisms of the reactions he goes over. Mainly focus as much as you can on the practice tests, and start reviewing for the tests a week in advance. He usually hosts a review session the Friday or Thursday before his exam, make sure you've attempted all his practice problems before then, so that you can get the answers for the ones you don't know at that time. ^^ Do that stuff, which seems like a lot written out but isn't all that much to do well in an Orgo course, and you'll get an A guaranteed. Clicker questions aren't worth studying for in my opinion, when you can just do the four things listed and get a easy grade. To do well on clickers would require a lot of studying before class and constant review and doing the book problems and staying up to speed in the book with respect to lecture, and its just not worth it. I didn't do any book problems the entire semester. I only used my book to go over mechanisms that he drew kind of confusing in class. I don't recommend studying from the book, you'll go over a lot of material you don't need to know. So, the man basically gives you everything you need to do well on a silver platter. All you need to do is review the practice sheet about eight times and understand everything on it and you already are guaranteed a high C without the curve. Do everything else and you have an A. Dan Falvey is the man. He's always joking in class and points people out by name. He teases everyone and makes fun of himself, and is a downright genius when it comes to Orgo. He eats paper and makes sure no one feels stupid. Great teacher, great guy. Take him.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/28/2012

Dr. Falvey is an energetic and knowledgeable teacher. I highly recommend taking Organic Chemistry II with him. He sure makes the topic interesting! Tests consisted of matching structures with names for interesting compounds, identifying reagents/reactants/products, mechanism problems, synthesis, and qualitative problems. To get an A in his class, you have to go to lecture, take good notes, read ahead, and demolish those clicker quizzes. He has a straightforward grading policy and he grades the exams VERY quickly. Dr. Falvey is certainly a good teacher to take if you have Organic Anxiety and need someone who can make this otherwise tasteless subject somewhat palatable.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

jcp5383
05/20/2012

Falvey is definitely the man to take for Organic II. He is relatively easier than MS, who has NMR on every exam. Falvey teaches you interesting drug molecules, and such. His tests are almost identical to his practice exams. His averages for three exams were 70, 70, and 63. These are extremely high for Organic class. He also gives extra credit for doing well on clicker questions. The first top five grades are the basis for grade distributions.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/20/2012

He is Great. If you ever see him as an option to take for organic chemistry, DO IT. His exams were fair and decent grade doesn't even require reading the textbook. Just pay attention in class, and other online resources can really help. He has plenty or resources available and there is no shortage of review material posted. Don't think he's going to let you BS the class though, any organic chemistry class requires effort, with Prof. Falvey you just don't feel cheated after every exam.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/15/2012

Dr. Falvey is one of the best professors I have been taught by at UMD. He really cares about his students and he does whatever it takes to pass this course(or ace it, depending on your goals). He posts plenty of practice problems on ELMS which frequently show up on midterms and final exams. Falvey takes the time to learn a lot of people's names and will call on you in class. He is very funny and entertaining. Very knowledgeable which explains why he will go off on tangents from time to time because he is so passionate about organic chemistry. You must work hard in this class though. Organic II is not meant to be easy but it is certainly doable. There are 3 midterms (150 pts each), 1 final (300 pts), 1 diagnostic exam (assesses orgo 1 background), and clickers (extra credit). Overall, very enthusiastic and caring professor who will do whatever it takes to get you an A or B.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/08/2012

Even a little preparation before class (skimming chapter) can go a long way. What makes exams difficult are: the difficulty of the material, if you have seen and attempted the questions before and if you know what topics will be tested on the most. Professor Issacs helps students by signaling what names of molecules will be tested and what mechanics are likely to show up on the exams. He also takes problems from assigned problems in the book and synthesis problems from the book and from examples in lecture. Professor rarely goes on tangents but when he does, they contain helpful advice. My biggest criticism of the 'course' book(Organic Chemistry by Loudon) is that in the solutions manual, molecules are not drawn using the skeletal formula. The book has very long chapters so it helps to have a book that will cover the material in only a few pages (Try Schaums Easy Outline of Organic Chemistry). For shorter and more coherent explanation of the topics, (Try Organic Chemistry as a Second Language II - Second Semester Topics). PDF versions of these can be found using google :)

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Anonymous
04/08/2012

Awesome! He is definitely the guy to take Orgo II with. Great lecturer, really funny and entertaining, and the lectures seem to move a lot faster than with other chem professors'. He really cares about his students. There is both an upside and downside to this. Be prepared for class, because by that, I mean he goes through the roster on the first day, tries to get to know everyone's name, and in class, he WILL call on you at least once. It doesn't matter that there are 200 other people in the class. You will be called on.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
02/02/2012

I dropped out middle of the semester. Before I continue, I just want to clarify that I am not bitter about the professor, just on his teaching style. Of course there are a lot of things I personally could have improved on to do better but I really believe the major influence of me dropping was Smith's teaching style. As another reviewer pointed out, Smith is shockingly childish but very enthusiastic about subject material. He went on unnecessary tangents or stories from his personal life that really took focus away from what we were learning at the time even though the stories were slightly related to the material. His illustrations are awful and there were many instances where students had to butt in and tell him they can't read what he is writing. I also found that his extremely high level of energy was ironically distracting. I also suggest you do not take this class at the 1 hour and 15 minute slots. At least for me, the amount of information given in that span of time is overwhelming and it is unbearable once 45 minutes goes by and the only thing you think about is when the class if finally over. Grades were curved and averages fell at the F/D/ or C cutoff for the exams. At the same time, there were many students who did well, like a student who got a 100% raw on one of the exams so don't be discouraged if you are a stellar student. For me, his teaching style didn't really mesh, As a result, I had little motivation for studying and fell back on material (which as anyone in Orgo can tell you is the point of no return on catching up on material), forcing me to drop out. Again, I could have taken initiative and done better, but I don't think I would ever do well or get an A in a Montague classroom.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/07/2012

This guy is very funny and a very good professor. By the end of the semester he had practically trained the whole class to boo and cheer on command. I didn't look at the book once during the semester and still did well. He has difficult exams but he will never put something on an exam he didn't cover before. His spectroscopy questions for the exam are usually much simpler than the ones you'll see in CHEM242. He wont give partial credit for some problems unless you clearly show your thought process. Also, as a side note you can get a synthesis entirely incorrect on the exam but still have it be correct. If you did it in a way that was not on the answer key you can still get full credit if you just explain your way to the professor. Your synthesis must be functionally correct though to receive credit.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/24/2011

great professor. He is a lot easier that any of the other ones. I took dixon for orgo 1 and when i took davis for II, i felt so smart and it seemed as he went really slowly in comparison. But he is a great lecturer and answers any and all questions. The average for the first test was i think a 65, then second was 72 then third was 79. The exams got easier and you started to understand what he also wanted. He is a really easy and good lecturer. We went a bit slow. But I highly recommend him if you can for any class.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
arorasub
12/20/2011

Davis is an excellent teacher. He tends to not cover many topics, but this works in your favor because the amount of material is bearable. I would say I didn't try amazingly hard in the course, which is why I ended up getting about 86% in the course(which is an A since 80 is the A cutoff). This is a course where getting above a 90% without a curve is very possible. Anyway, to do well in his course here are your tips: 1. Review the notes he gives in class. Many questions on the exam are easy multiple choice questions which you won't ever focus on if you don't go to class and take notes 2. Do every single GSS worksheet. Many questions are pulled straight off those. 3. Think about resonance structures for pKa and stability problems. 4. Look at old exams. 5. GO TO CLASS! His lectures will definitely pique your interests. Overall, he is swell guy, but don't get on his wrong side.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a B
NeuroSciX
12/20/2011

Overall he's a very good professor, has a good sense of humor, practice tests are very similar to current tests, and overall approachable. However it's pretty difficult to get an A in his class, but that can be said about all organic 2 classes.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/17/2011

Davis is amazing! He obviously loves teaching and cares about the class. I only went to office hours once, but in that one time it helped me figure out how to think of exam problems so much better. He does reuse problems, or gives very similar problems. In 4 exams, there was only one straight synthesis problem. The rest were roadmaps. He loves to test you on the reasoning behind why things are the way they are in orgo, to test your understanding. Not a lot of memorizing, more understanding based as a class. Go over old exams that he posts and previous exams from the semester to study. He also gives you breaks in the 75 min lectures which is really nice. Overall, if you have the option you should take him.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/11/2011

Davis is a good teacher. Obviously orgo2 is going to be a hard class, but he does his best to make it interesting. 3 exams, and the final. 80 is an A, 70 is a B, and etc. You can use the book if you don't get whats going on in class.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Anonymous
09/16/2011

Davis is a great, engaging teacher. His lectures are all you really need (thank goodness) so the textbook is really supplementary at best. Just take really good notes and learn them, and you'll be set. Davis has fair exams, no curve balls, and gives out A's via a cut off (I forget how many points is the minimum). Overall definitely the best prof you can get for Orgo II. And if ever you're confused, ask! He is very open about taking questions and having students participate. I actually enjoyed the class and the content, which I never imagined I'd say about Orgo.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/22/2011

He teaches directly out of the textbook. His examples in class are just the examples from the book, occasionaly with a n example he made up. To do well, you just need to do all the practice problems in the book a few weeks ahead of the exam, then do them again a few days before. His lectures are pretty boring but you should still go to them. The TA was awful also.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
07/11/2011

Prof. Falvey is a great professor. He is funny, cares about his students, and extremely knowledgeable. Exams are fair and looking over previous exams really helps. The only thing that didnt work for me is the curving system. 10% below the 5th highest score will earn you an A. Unfortunately, the 5th highest score was somewhere around a 94% this semester. That means messing up on one exam will cost you. So Falvey's averages tend to be higher than other classes, but his curve is almost always lower. Very easy to get a B, the A cutoff will depend on that 5th score...

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
07/08/2011

Dr. Falvey is a great professor! He is funny, straight forward and teaches pretty clearly. The only thing is that his hand writing was not too good for me though. I recommend to read before going to lecture (even though I never did). Since there is not much time, not everything is covered clearly. The book is kinda helpful in explaining stuff that I didn't get in class. The books problems don't really help in my opinion but more practice is better. His exams were ok if you study. He gives out practice exams before each exam and about ~50~60% is from the practice exam! And sometimes he gets a bit lazy and steals the problems that our TA Derek(One of the best TAs ever!) made up and gave us for practice. For practice exams, I remember he gives them out 2 weeks before the exam and gives out hints via email. He gives out the answers 2 days or so before the exam. I recommend start doing the practice exams right after and make sure you understand each question instead of looking at the answers the night before. I think it's important to understand and know how to draw the mechanism for every reaction instead of memorizing them. I don't really remember the averages but I think they where around 65~70%. For me I got high Bs in all of them, got a A on the final and had a A without the curve. For the final, redo all his exams, practice exams, practice sheets that the TA gave. Go over notes and clicker quiz questions. It's a lot of work but as long as you understand all those. You will do fine. Dr. Falvey is a really nice professor, although I never went to his office hours (he calls on ppl in class if he remembers you from his office hours so be careful!) The shocking thing about him was once when we were talking about cellulose, he ripped a piece of paper and started chewing O___O

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Anonymous
06/14/2011

Coming from someone who is awful at organic, he's a very good professor. He is very nice and extremely enthusiastic He likes to go off tangents, but they normally relate to the topic. His exams are things we've seen before. Half the answers are already in the notes he gave in class. As long as you understand the topic and don't just try to memorize things you should do well. However, I hated his grading system. Top 5 grades gets an A+, next 10% gets an A and so on. Oh yeah, he has clicker questions that are considered extra credit at the end of the semester

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
zhangsta
05/26/2011

He was a very engaging professor who was very enthusiastic about teaching which made orgo a little more bearable for me. His lectures were taken out of the book for the most part, but he explained the concepts well enough that you prob don't even need the book. His exams were very fair and tended to place more emphasis on understanding material rather than memorizing reactions. Do the recommended problems and you should have no problems on any of the exams.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/26/2011

Dr. Isaacs is the classic textbook teacher. He literally puts problems from the notes and textbook into his exams. Lectures were alright, and the TA was also mediocre. In order to do well in this class, simply do all the book problems in the syllabus then do them again before exams. You pretty much teach yourself and gain a greater sense of independence in this class.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
05/22/2011

Good professor. Very nice, tends to ramble from time to time but gets the message across. Go to office hours, he's very helpful and he puts up old tests to study from. No matter who you take orgo with it's gonna be hard so study for it every day, no joke. Tests are fair.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Anonymous
04/28/2011

Dr. M-S is a great prof. He's funny, very nice and helpful in office hours, and does not have unrealistic expectations of his students as some other orgo profs do. My only criticism of him is that he does not give much partial credit. AT ALL. You have to have things pretty much close to perfect on his exams to get points. I highly recommend you copy his old exams - they are more helpful than the textbook.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

PossePrincess
02/23/2011

I love Dr. MS!!! He's the first entertaining chemistry professor I've ever had, and he teaches well. Every lecture we were all interested, even though it was at 8:00 in the morning. I feel like I'm actually learning chemistry this time around. (I dropped Khachick's class last semester because although I though I learned the material, the exam had nothing to do with what we covered in class). If you have the opportunity, definitely take Montague-Smith.

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Expecting an A
premedkid123
12/25/2010

I agree that Dr. Khachik wants people to do well. That being said, he does not have official office hours nor can he convey the material well to the class. I basically taught myself everything from the book. My Ta was amazing and I used his office hours in addition to study groups to pass with an A. Some people like me, can rely on the book, but others need a professor that can teach well. You will not learn a lot of organic from this class but then again you won't need it ever again except for mcats and unless you want to be a chemist. Khachik does teach you the main concepts so don't fret for the mcats, but you want get any higher level understanding from this course. He tries, and he is very knowledgeable, but the guy simply cannot teach. People gave up and stopped coming to lecture. His tests are fair though and if you learn from the book+do practice problems, you should be fine. He also curves. I believe an 83 percent and up was an A for this semester.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/22/2010

Davis is awesome! I got the feeling that he really cares about his students and he loves answering questions. His teaching style is great and engaging. His exams have a lot of borrowed answers from previous exams and are doable. Going to class is super important because sometimes minor things show up on exams. I didn't use the book too much, but I thought it helped for the sections I did use it in. I honestly didn't think I could get an A in this class, but a lot of us improved drastically for the third test and final.

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2010

Professor Khachik is very different from most other Orgo 2 professors. After taking him for both Orgo 1 and 2, I got the impression that he really wants his students to do well and is in fact a really nice and funny guy. Some may say that his lectures are very disorganized (which holds some truth) but the thing is, all of his material is straight from the book. So it really didn't matter that my lecture notes were somewhat jumbled because I studied straight from the book for all my exams and hardly utilized my lecture notes. With that said, his exams are extremely straightforward and fair. He emphasizes important topics to know for the tests and never puts any tricky questions on them. However, you have to start studying for them at least a week in advance if you want to do well. The GSS Sessions and weekly discussions were also very helpful (if you can get discussion with Matt Hurley, he is the best Chem. TA I have ever had). So, if you're good at learning from the book, I would strongly suggest Khachik. His tests are known to be the easiest of all Orgo 2 classes and his end of the semester curve is very generous. I have no real complaints about this course and am glad I took it with Khachik.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
crazystudent
12/20/2010

Absolutely excellent teacher!!!! He explains things in such detail. He did go a little slow and we didn't get to a lot of chapters in the syllabus but that's in your favor! He's extremely personable and easy to approach. Just a great guy! The way I got an A in his course: I never missed lecture, I recorded his lectures and wrote down everything he explained. His exams are straight from lecture. I never once touched the book although that may not work for everyone. My notes were detailed enough because I recorded his lecures but if you don't record then you may need to use the book. I got a B in Dr. Dixon's orgo1 and was able to pull off an A in orgo2 with Dr. Davis. I high recommend him!

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/14/2010

He went a bit slow (we didn't even get to 5 of the chapters on the syllabus) but I found that this was very helpful in understanding the material, though I know it went too slow for people who understand Organic Chem well, and can learn it quickly. He makes the class interesting (as interesting as Orgo can be) by using real-life examples! Also, you will do VERY well on his exams if you study the problems he does in class AND in past exams (both previous exams during the semester and from past semesters). He always reuses exam questions, and half the final was questions we had seen before. Best bet to get a good grade! He also tests more on concept than memorizing reactions, which is really nice!

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
11/17/2010

His teaching style is extremely confusing. He tends to write down extensive reactions with different pkas and equilibrium constants, but then says we dont need to know numbers at all and leaves us not knowing what we need to understand about the problem. I don't attend lecture and solely stick to reading the book and going to discussion; so far I've gotten atleast 10% above the average exam scores. If you can take another professor I would recommend doing so.

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Expecting a W
PossePrincess
11/08/2010

I had to drop this class in order to save my other classes. His style of teaching is too unorganized for my taste; his example problems all blend together on the board and he goes off on drawn tangents that you are never sure if you should copy down or not. For the first exam, much of what was on the exam was not really emphasized in class. He often says how he thinks the book is wrong about this or that, but it is still important to do those practice problems. I recommend Orgo II as a Second Language by Klein, a very small, extremely helpful, straight-forward book. It might just save you if you're struggling.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
samhallen
07/13/2010

Take Orgo with Dr. DeShong if you can. Dr. DeShong is extremely knowledgeable in organic chemistry. He explains everything very well, and really only tested us on stuff he taught in lecture; the book was only used as a guide and for practice problems. He also made the class interesting - even though I did better in orgo 1, I truly appreciated the subject matter and really understood what was going on. Dr. DeShong is also hilarious. His commentary and funny verbal musings made every lecture enjoyable. I rarely left class without laughing at least once. The curve wasn't amazing, but it wasn't bad either. I think a 75% was an A. Dr. DeShong's knowledge, fairness, humor, and overall ability to relay his chemical passion to his students makes him a fine professor. take him take him take him.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
06/03/2010

I absolutely loved Dr. Isaacs! In a big lecture hall it's really hard for professors to see individual students, but if you go to him and show that you're putting effort into the class, he will appreciate it and help you. His tests are challenging, but fair. Ask questions, make sure you understand the material. If you put enough effort and time into the course, you will prevail :)

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/19/2010

FANTASTIC lecturer. He is Santa Claus. (you'll get this on the first day if you take him). He's genuinely a nice person and teaches very well. There's definitely a reason why there was a 40 pt discrepancy in averages between Falvey and Issacs during this semester. Falvey does NOT throw in any low blows on his exam - he tests you on what he teaches and what he asks you to practice. I highly recommend him for Orgo II!

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/19/2010

I did not do so well in his class because I completely panicked on the final exam like a punk. Too bad the final exam was everything we had already been tested on. Go to every lecture, every discussion, and study the practice exam problems, synthesis, and mechanisms. He doesn't surprise you on exams, which is great. I would have gotten a B had I been a better student. Overall, he is a great professor!

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
UMDfutbol3
05/17/2010

Best orgo professor out there, really just makes the material easy to learn. Exams are variations of the practice exams, with a few curve balls here and there, but if you follow the logic of the practice problems, and understand them, you'll be fine. Similar to Dixon in that he really enjoys the material and enjoys teaching, unlike some of the other orgo professors here.

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
aralchen
05/15/2010

Phenomenal professor. He's clear, succinct, and extremely engaging. He emphasizes the WHY and the HOW of organic chemistry and less of the WHAT. Memorization in his class only takes you so far. Overall, I can't even count the times I completely lost track of time when listening to him. Coming out of the class I REALLY felt I knew organic chemistry. Let's put it this way: by popular standards Dixon is supposed to be a great teacher. She really isn't worth the chalk he writes with. His exams are not easy, as shown by the relatively low averages. However, they're very fair and will reward those who study for them. He likes to send out lots of practice problems. They're really not a waste of time, considering he pulls about 60% of the exam material directly from them. I really agree with the below review - Falvey actually tests you on what you learn in class. There are no surprises going into the exam. I did have one small issue with him - his curving system is really wacky. Basically, 10% below the 5th highest score in the class in an A. You can imagine just how problematic it can get when the 5th highest score is over 90%. Overall: I will take any possible class he'll teach in the future.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
yii520
04/18/2010

he is a GREAT teacher, he really knows his stuff. In organic chemistry it is all about reactions and mechanisms, so it is better if you do the work hands on. Isaac teaches the whole class by writing on the board which really helps me to stay focused, it feels like he is taking the notes with us. His exams are really tricky, but here are the keys to pass his class: 1. remember the names and structures of some really bazaar compounds, trust me he's gonna ask a few 2. Do almost all of the suggested problems. it even helps if you just look at the questions and the answers from the solution manual since most of questions 3. attend lecture and discussion. especially discussion... because it's really important although i felt like skipping a few times 4. spread the work out over period of several days, it is best if you stay on task but hey who gets on task all the time? if you wanna cram i suggest you start cramming 3 days before the exam because they usually cover a lot of materials, that way you won't be stressed out. i attend lectures and discussions, take notes and actually look over them later. did most of the suggested problems and i got an A, SOLID A

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B
tallboyt
03/02/2010

No doubt he knows his stuff, but he's not that good at explaining it (or even finishing in-class examples). Quiet spoken with some jokes. Curve is based on top 5 grades and to pass w. only a C you need >50% on the final, regardless if you've failed every exam. Tests are medium/to okay-hard. Some problems come from lecture (which he'll tell you it'll be on the test) and some are based on lecture (not actually from lecture) but you'd have never expected it/or not even know how to do it. Very few clickers (he considers these EC)

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
02/07/2010

Very sweet professor. Approachable and fair. Take good notes during class and do the assigned problems/ reviews. Do any practice exams available. A very effective teacher, I could not have learned so much about ochem from anyone else.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/23/2009

I was initially not quite used to Dr. M-S's style of teaching, but in retrospect, I think he was an effective, straightforward teacher who was reasonable and most of all, very fun. His exams are challenging, yes, but definitely manageable with adequate studying. Also, he gives you a mechanism list to memorize. His test format is always the same, with 15-20 reactions, 1-2 mechanisms, 1-2 syntheses and 1-2 specs. He obviously knows a whole lot about orgo and biochem, and you can tell that he's really excited about this stuff. At the end of the semester he gives a very generous curve, with the high 70s being an A.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Semirhage666
12/23/2009

If you want to get through Orgo 2 and only worry about passing, and not learning the material too thoroughly, take him. If, however, you are concerned about actually learning the material well, do not take him. He speaks very quietly. SEVERAL times, students explained to him that the mic was not carrying his voice to the back. His reply was "Oh, I'm just a soft-spoken person." Oh, really? What are you doing teaching in a huge lecture hall, then? He really wasn't even making an attempt, he was speaking in a voice that is more suited to talking to someone 3 feet away. Combine that with his accent, and you're looking at having a difficult time following along with his lectures. He is very generous with grades, though, so if you want an easy C, by all means, take him.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/21/2009

If you want to learn organic chemistry take Dr. Sintim. He is the best teacher I have ever had. He is not really available at office hours but it's worth putting up with it for the education you get. He is strict and expects students to know the material well. Many of the students just expected his class to be easy, but orgo is not an easy topic. He also had a GIANT curve and gave 3% worth of bonus points. I you are a chemistry or biochemistry major, or just want to learn orgo, take him.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/21/2009

Sintim knows organic chemistry very well and teaches decently. I went to every lecture, but I still had to supplement lecture, by reading the book. The course can be challenging, and if you want an A, it might take a lot of studying. Here's the grade distribution for Fall 2009: 1) To get an A (A-, A or A+), your score should be equal to or higher than 81%. [36 students will get A] 2) To get a B (B-, B or B+), your score should be equal to or higher than 58%. [62 students will get B] 3) To get a C (C-, C or C+), your score should be equal to or greater than 41%. [56 students will get C] 4) To get a D, your score should be equal to or greater than 30% [25 students will get D] 5) If your score is less than 30%, then you will get an F grade. [8 students will get F] These grade boundaries change slightly every year, based on how the class is doing.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B-
800meters
12/19/2009

Dr. Sintim gave me a B- when my final grade was a 51.3%. I'm not sure how it happened. I scored a 36% on the final exam.... Anyways, his soft-spoken voice and accent are challenging to overcome, so I would recommend getting another professor if you want to actually learn the material. I essentially taught myself this semester. I gave little effort in the class compared to the other students though and ended up with a B-. I studied less than 3 hours for the final exam. I'm not a pre-med student.

Michael Montague-Smith
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/18/2009

Professor Montague-Smith is a fantastic professor for a difficult class. He gives you 5 minute breaks during the one hour and 15 minute class, tells jokes and anecdotes to help you remember reactions, and explains mechanisms thoroughly. Also, if you take the time out to meet with him, if you improve throughout the semester you will get a good grade. His tests are difficult but as long as you review your notes, he tells you exactly what to study for the exams. My only complaint is that he writes his notes on the overhead projector and sometimes it is difficult to read what he writes. However, if you ask what he just wrote, he will attempt to correct it so it is easier to read.

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/18/2009

Khachik is a very nice professor. He does lecture straight from the book yes, but I think the book gets the point across pretty clearly so, it kinda worked for me really. I do agree that his exams were a little too simple and nothing like the shared final, but I actually did better on the final than some of my midterms. The problem is mentality. Don't be lulled by his teaching style. He knows what he's doing, he's just trying to help us by writing straight forward tests. Don't go to lecture just to ace tests, go and really sit down ready to learn.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/18/2009

Don't make the mistake I did and take Sintim for orgo 2 solely based on his grade distributions. This is his second semester teaching this class, and he made it a lot more difficult than his first semester of teaching. The grade distributions for this semester are: 19% A; 33% B; 30% C; 13% D; 4% F. These are the numbers he provided in his e-mail. Note the significant decrease in B and increase in C in comparison to his first semester. I also did not like his teaching style. He would write things on the board and while everyone is scurrying to copy down everything, he starts erasing the board. The students start complaining, and he just smiles and says "it's ok, it's in the book". He is soft spoken, so you need to get a seat in the front of the room to adequately hear him. He is also very unresponsive to students' concerns. Throughout the semester, I sent him probably 8 e-mails, trying to arrange a time to meet with him or with a question that I needed help on. He did not respond to a SINGLE email. He also has office hours once a week- it was on Friday from 3-5. I bet he picked those hours because he knew that no one would make use of his office hours. Keep in mind that Sintim is a researcher. He is in UMD to conduct research, and teaching is just a side job that he was forced to do. It shows that he does not really care much about how well his students do. I definitely recommend Dixon over him, but if you must take him, here is some advice: look over his old exams because he likes to use similar questions. Also, redo all the problems in your notes because one of them is bound to appear in your exam.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/17/2009

He's a very nice guy who love Orgo. But he can't teach for his life. His class is organized pretty horribly and to be honest, it doesn't seem like he puts much effort into planning his classes. He's pretty brilliant and I think that's how he gets away with having bad lectures. But he does want the class to succeed. if I had to take the class again, I'd go with Dixon or Khachik.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
aberk
12/16/2009

Dont listen to what the negative comments written here, most of these people were the ones that never attended class - which could be why they failed and didnt list their grade. I also struggled in orgo 1, but Sintim made orgo 2 seem a lot easier. Sintim is a great prof if you go to class. Hes very nice and gives you a big heads up on whats going to be on the exam. Study what he went over and do his post tests. He loves to reask questions so if you know the answers to those, you're guaranteed to get at least one question correct on the exam. His curve is very nice as well...its pretty hard to not a C since all you have to do is get a 45% and whatever the class average is = a B. His A's are a little bit more difficult but definitely not as hard to obtain as an A in Dixons class. I would highly highly recommend Sintim for orgo 2. You might not exactly learn as much as you would in Dixons but youll definitely get a better grade.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/16/2009

previous post is not true. Class was very easy for an Orgo 2 Class. Lectures were easy to understand and everything on tests we went over in class. Discussion was very helpful with AB as a T.A. I Didnt put much time outside of class and expect an A. I struggled through Orgo 1 and this was a cake walk. Average was a 55% for the class but that is a B. Just look at the grade distribution. It is impossible to get anything less than a B. I got a 342/400 on the final by just studying the lectures for a couple of hours

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/16/2009

He has made this course so much more difficult than compared to previous semesters... His lectures are interesting with life lessons inserted. However, it's really hard to hear him in lecture and his tests cover very complex material, far from what is taught in lecture. I learned more from the GSS than the lectures itself. A very time consuming class. Average for the class was a 55%....

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/15/2009

Disregard everyone/anyone who says that Dr. Dixon does not care about her students. Pros: 1) she's not here for research, she's here to teach, and she does a good damn job of it. 2) Her curve is immaculate. 3) She holds numerous review sessions; a weekly one, one before each exam, and multiple office hours. 4) She is personable. She called those students who actually came to class and went to her for help by their name. Cons: she is a VERY popular lady and sometimes its hard to get one-on-one time, but only because she is willing to help everyone. If you expected for some strange reason that Orgo II would not be hard or a lot of work, then you are in for a surprise, b/c it is, but this is true for every teacher. Dixon wants everyone to pass and makes it easy to do so if you care the slightest bit. I, personally, have a difficult time studying on my own time and learning from the book, but with Dixon, you learn anything you need from lecture and review sessions, and then just practice practice practice for the exams. If you want to learn organic chemistry and retain some of the information for the MCAT, take Dixon. If you are afraid of orgo, want easier test, etc, take Khachik. But remember, the easier the test, the less the curve, and their will always be geniuses in the class, so go for the better teacher if that's how you learn best. Grading: clickers (minimal) extra credit (minimal) 3 exams and a final final grade: 50% to pass, 80% is an automatic A but the curve usually is even more, like a 70-75% = A. **in my class, she promised anyone who got a A on the final an A in the class, period. best of luck!

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
10/05/2009

Falvey is a great professor! At times, the work does seem overwhelming, but he explains everything very well. As long as you do all the homework and practice problems, you should be fine. About 60% of the exam questions come directly from the practice problems, and the others are slight variations. Unlike other professors, he actually tests you on what you learn in class, and does not try to trick you.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
09/04/2009

I can already tell Sintim's going to be a good teacher. I must add, however, that after dealing with Ammon for a semester of Orgo 1, ANY other professor would seem like a frickin genius. LOL...but I must say, I enjoy his teaching style. He does a lot of writing on the chalkboard, explaining everything as he goes (as opposed to Ammon's powerpoint lectures, which did not show a logical flow of events, but rather a bunch of formulas and arrows going every direction). Take Sintim if you can! Negatives: only thing is sometimes his voice trails off and its hard to hear him if your not in the front. Try to get a good seat in class.

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
ljohanne
08/25/2009

Best teacher ever! She is amazingly enthusiastic and has a passion that is truly inspiring! More over she managed to make entirely obscure and difficult concepts understandable. Her tests can be rather difficult, but if you go to lecture and pay attention you should do fine. More over, she is very nice, so if you really don't understand something, she is more than willing to explain during office hours. She is the best!

Bonnie Dixon
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
06/11/2009

Dr. Dixon is a great teacher if you PUT THE EFFORT INTO HER CLASS. I read my lecture notes before class and made sure I understood them before I aksed her questions, and I got well above the average for each exam. People give her a hard time for being such a difficult professor, but honestly in comparison to other chemistry professors, I actually learned a LOT in her class. You honestly have to put in a lot of effort to do well, but you should expect to do that since it is Organic Chemistry. The people who don't do well are the ones that wait until 2 days before the exam to study and ask her a plethora of questions. She also makes 50% the cutoff for a C, and 1 standard deviation above the avg the cutoff for B, 2 std dev for an A. Entirely doable course, but again, effort and time are the keys to success.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting a B
jwhite89
06/01/2009

Great teacher, has weekly reviews and is clear about whats going to be on the tests, curve is pretty good to.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/23/2009

He is one of the best professors for chemistry. His tests are extremely fair. He only tests you on stuff that he teaches in lecture. The book is just there for practice problems and to reinforce the information. He can be a little pretentious, but I thought he was kind of funny in that rude way. He is definitely helpful if you ask him for it. He is extremely knowledgeable in o-chem and definitely knows what he is talking about. He made the class really interesting.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

Anonymous
05/19/2009

I don't know who terpterp is referring to, since Dr. DeShong is the best chemistry teacher I've had yet. He really goes into depth with the material, and is fair (mostly) on the exams as well as with the grading curve. Highly recommend you take o-chem1 or 2 with him.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B
jwong89
04/20/2009

I would take Sintim over any of the other organic chemistry professors based solely on the fact that his tests were easier than the other professors' tests. He doesn't try to trick you with the test questions; they are pretty straightforward and in lecture he teaches all the material you will need to know for the tests. The grade breakdown for the class was A-80%, B-60%, C-40%. In the end he even dropped the cutoffs a couple of percentage points based on how you did with clicker questions.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a C
littleflower5
03/26/2009

Dr. Davis is the most animated science teacher I have every had. He really makes an effort to make organic chemistry as easy as anyone can. He is a little hard to follow in lecture because he doesn't write on the boards in a very organized fashion, and most of the important points to take away from the lecture are only verbal and no notes are provided. Remember to do all the readings and problems even though they are not for a grade! They make loads of difference!

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
rbterp
03/08/2009

I thought Dr. Davis was a great professor. I agree with previous reviews - definitely review class notes and previous notes b/c I didn't do so well on the first exam after doing tons of book problems. Dr. Davis wants you to learn reasons behind reactions, and doesn't emphasize nomenclature or cover some of the reactions in the book (which is good during the class, but you'll have to learn that stuff eventually if you plan on taking the MCAT). Dr. Davis is also very approachable if you ever go to office hours.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/28/2009

Take him if you can!! His teaching isn't amazing but he gets the major points across. His exams are not VERY difficult because he always tells you in advance what you should know and be able to do and emphasizes it when he says "POSSIBLE EXAM QUESTION". His final consisted of prior exam questions that gave most of the class trouble and a couple of brand new questions.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting a B+
sIckYNar-nar398
01/09/2009

Prof. Sintim loves to explain complex organic material with his "life lessons" in which he tries to get a laugh out of the class...and he is usually sucessful in doing so. As a professor, he teaches at a steady pace and tries to answer questions to the best of his ability. Most of the time his exams were str8 up copy and pasted from previous years...having said that, focus on what he wants you to know! You do this, and ur well on ur way to doing well in his class

Daniel Falvey
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/18/2008

Very enthusiastic BUT he can be TOO much sometimes and unorganized. Tests are okay. Make sure you study for them.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting an A
UMDmonkey
09/02/2008

Dr. Isaacs is a very good teacher. He knows what he is talking about and explains things clearly. I really like the way he talks, it is obvious that he tries to make it easy for people to understand a hard subject. You need to work very hard to get an A in this class, but it is definitely possible, because a lot of people do bad simply because they do not show up to class and/or they despair b/c they've heard stories about orgo. This is a very good teacher, and a good class, but you will have to practice problems every night. I recommend Isaacs over any other Orgo 2 professor, because even though his exams are hard, he prepares you well for MCATs, med school, or whatever else you need orgo for. The averages on our exams were right about 50% each time, maybe a little below that. His signature problem type is a "box problem," where he will give you one of the three following pieces of information and you have to fill in the rest: reactants, products, reagants. Other problems on exams are mechanisms (easy), synthesis (more complicated, but fun), ad nomenclature. He always puts at least on mechanism/ synthesis from the book problems on the exam. That is a really easy way to gain/lose 20 points out of 200, which is 10% of your grade. The key is showing up to class, starring problems that he hints at, and doing ALL of the recommended problems before his weekly help session. Ask him your questions at the help session, and you will do fine. And DON'T leave anything for the last minute: learn things as he is teaching them, never take a break.

Frederick Khachik
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous Terp
04/30/2008

So here's the deal. Dr. Khachik teaches straight from the book. I just bring my book to class and follow along. He goes through almost every example. The pros are that the class goes through the material slowly, so not much information (compared to other orgo teachers) is covered on each test. However, class can get really boring. There are three exams throughout the semester (150 points each), and then a final (300 points). No quizzes or bonus points. Because he only tests on reactions and synthesis problems, there are a good chunk of students that do well every exam. That translates into no curve at the end of the semester. However, he doesn't test on mechanisms in CHEM241 even though he goes over them in class. Overall, it's a doable class if you memorize the reactions at the end of the chapter and do the problems in the book. If not, you won't have a prayer, especially when it comes to carbonyl compounds. Also, he's very lenient when it comes to regrades. He's a very nice guy and really does know his organic chemistry. He is almost always available to go over questions or problems. I wasn't sure how well his teaching style would prepare me for the MCAT, but was pleasantly surprised that he had covered what I needed to know.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
vdawg
12/31/2007

A really, really good teacher. He goes out of his way to clear up any doubts and really cares that you understand the material. Almost all his exam questions are from old exams posted online. The key to doing well is reviewing the lecture notes. For the first exam I studied all the sections in the book, did all the book problems, memorized all 20 mechanisms, and got a 56. For the next 2 exams I did the book readings, but concentrated a lot more on reviewing lecture notes and problems from old exams and got As.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/29/2007

Curves the class at the beginning with 80 and up is A, 70 and up is B, etc. Very nice, always willing to answer questions during lecture. His exams are not too hard but they are not very indicative of his lectures. He loves resonance, pka, explaining why a product is faster or more stable on exams. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW HIS OLD EXAMS. he repeats a lot of his questions from old exams. Also, he'll put q's from exam I on exam II and so on.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Anonymous
12/27/2007

Dr. Davis is a really good professor because he doesn't strictly stick to the syllabus- he goes at his own pace. On our syllabus we were supposed to get through 9 chapters over the semester and we only got through 6. At the beginning of each class he puts up the assigned readings and homework problems for the next lecture on the board in addition to what he plans to cover in lecture that day; I found that doing the readings beforehand really makes what he teaches in lecture easier to understand. He had a built-in curve from the beginning as 80% and above is an A so he doesn't curve individual exams. It is possible to get an A. I bombed the first exam and then got Bs on the other 2 exams and the final and I got an A. The way I improved on the rest of teh exams after the first one was going over LECTURE NOTES and his old exams. He recycles questions from his old exams from previous years as well as the exams he gives that year. And some of the problems come DIRECTLY from lecture notes. He's very approachable and a really good professor because his main concern is how his students tackle the course and learn. He's not concerned about completing x amount of material in the semester.

Herman Sintim
CHEM241

Expecting an A-
accwow
12/26/2007

A mediocre professor. I had him while he was a new professor and in the beginning, he was completely clueless, but he got better as the semester progressed. Very easy to get a B, because the cutoff was a 60, and impossible to fail, because the cutoff for a C was a 40. Tests were pretty fair, but I felt I learned nothing from this class.

Jeffery Davis
CHEM241

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/17/2007

He's a really nice guy. Very willing to listen and answer any questions you might have. It took a while to get used to his teaching style. He focuses on understanding reactions, mechanisms, etc. as opposed to just remembering reactants/products which can make his tests extra painful. He curves pretty well, I had a 66.8% by the end of the semester and it curved up to a B (I was ecstatic). There is automatically a 10% curve built into the class (80%=A, 70%=B, etc.) so that helps alot. All in all, good class, but unfortunately our TA was terrible so it kind of brought the class down.

Philip DeShong
CHEM241

terpterp
12/10/2007

He is an AWFUL professor and person. He only seems to care about himself and could care less about his students.

Lyle Isaacs
CHEM241

Expecting a B
cjsph88
12/03/2007

Dr. Issacs is a decent, but very simple professor. His lectues are boring because he doesnt use powerpoints, clicker questions, etc. I feel like the class would have been much harder had it not been for my TA (Bryan) However, with the help of a good TA you can expect a B, or if you work extremly hard an A in the class. Otherwise Dr. Issacs isnt very clear on what you can expect to appear on the exam. Class grades are based on a bell curve, so as long as you do better than the average you have a B.

Reviews for CHEM241