PHYS115 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Arpita Upadhyaya PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/04/2025	Going into this class, I was a bit nervous to take it knowing that I am not exactly strong in the Science area and have not had a great experience with Science professors either. Overall, this professor proved to be even more unhelpful than I have every thought she'd be. If you're specifically and Elementary Education major I am telling you right now DO NOT take this course with this professor. If you think you're going to be okay, you're not. It's not even the course structure/material itself, it's the actual professor. She would constantly come to class unprepared often reading the labs for the first time ever as soon as she stepped foot into class. It left her confused to the point where she would confuse us students as well. And, it wouldn't be a big deal if the labs were smaller, but considering this course is about two hours long MWF, it's important to come in with an already established plan. Being an Elementary Education major, I am constantly watching teachers/professors strategies when teaching for good pointers I could carry on into my own classroom. I can say this with full confidence: through the entirety of this Physics class I am able to pinpoint things I will not be taking into my future classroom as did most of the students within this course. Her organization skills lacked completely and at times had use restart labs because they weren't set up in the correct way. If you enjoy disorganization and chaos this is the class for you!! Oh and don't even get me started on poor Isaac. Isaac was our TA during the semester who was genuinely doing the lords work trying to hold our class together. (Go check out his review I love that man) Anywho, there's a lot more that easily could be said, but if this isn't enough for you, take the class and trust you'll be here writing the same review as I am doing right now.
Isaac Alhuseini PHYS115 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/04/2025	I can't lie, he is the one doing most of the teaching in the class. I took it with Arpita Uphadaya and Isaac worked as her TA. Her organization skills aren't exactly up to par, and would often ask Isaac for pointers or what he thought was best overall. In my opinion, Isaac was honestly teaching most of the class and was always being worked to his last nerve. I can't speak as to how helpful he was in the other class sections, but he truly is a real one with this specific teacher. It's very noticeable how well he is able to grasp the concepts and reiterate them to us students. #teamisaac
Arpita Upadhyaya PHYS115 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/09/2024	This professor is super nice, but very unorganized and not super aware of the fact that everyone has different learning styles. I thought because it was meant for education majors that it would be easier, but really it’s not. The exams are open note, but that did not seem to help me on 2/3 exams we had. It’s not a bad class, just a hard one because of the circumstances and because as an early childhood education major I don’t use this and I never took physics in high school.
Laura Lising PHYS115 Anonymous 10/23/2024	This class is not difficult at all, but it is such a waste of time. The class is 2 hours long and 3 days a week and we spend most of every class sitting around doing nothing. The one time our TA taught the class because Professor Lising was not there, we got out in 40 minutes. The actual material from the class is very straightforward forward, but Professor Lising makes the class so slow pace that it becomes very frustrating and feels like a waste of time to be there. Especially when we have already completed the entire worksheet for the day in the first 10 minutes of class. Professor Lising is very understanding and accommodating, but she takes a very long time to explain simple concepts which makes the entire class feel pointless.
Arpita Upadhyaya PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/25/2024	Pros: reasonable expectations, easy-ish workload, open-notebook exams, pretty lenient grading Cons: sometimes disorganized and messy teaching style, not always patient Other notes: in every class you do a lab with your partner and submit a lab report (sometimes finished in class, sometimes not)
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A- ccampbell 01/10/2024	When I told people I was taking physics, they all thought I was crazy however I'm glad I did. This class is not super difficult because you know more than you think, and Professor Lising pulls out your own knowledge. In class there is a lot of partner activities with your lab partner. The experiments are not all boring, matter of fact one of the things we did in class was make ice cream with heavy cream, sugar, and liquid nitrogen. We also attempted to light a lightbulb with pickles. Professor Lising is so helpful if you need help. She will stay after class or come early to go over with you what you are confused about. She is also very good with on the spot questions. The best thing Professor Lising did was allow us to resubmit our final for a higher grade and that made all the difference for me. If you're an education major and looking for a physical lab science PHYS115 is a great option ONLY WITH Professor Lising!!!
Arpita Upadhyaya PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2023	PHYS115 was one of my required classes. At first, I was weary about taking this class, but it's not that bad or difficult. There is homework (basically lab reports) due after each class, three exams, and a final presentation, and your lab notebook gets graded. Professor Upadhyaya is a good professor, and she does want each of her students to succeed. That being said she is a bit unorganized, and demeaning at times. We didn't have a TA for half of the year, so the grading was VERY slow, and she would question you if you were confused. Overall this class and professor were not bad at all, and don't hesitate to take the class if you need to.
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2022	Professor Lising was a good teacher for this particular course. She spends lots of time going over each lesson and walks around to make sure everyone understands the lesson. I did think that sometimes her teaching methods were a little confusing, because she would be very hypothetical and would make us do a lot of work before actually explaining the concept. Class was 2 hours long so boring at times but overall not difficult, especially since exams were open note.
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A- Anonymous 10/07/2022	Laura Lising is a great professor! The other reviews are pretty accurate- she really cares about her students and will go above and beyond to help (as long as you ask, of course). The only (very small) drawback to this class is that it is 2 hours long so sometimes it drags on. Also, her exams are open note and she will do her best to help you if you need clarification on a question. And if you have accommodations, she is flexible and understanding!
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/14/2022	I love Prof Lising! She is a really great teacher and makes sure that all of her students understand what is being taught! She really likes to have fun with the class and is always circling the room helping people out with their work! Exams were open note and notes were based off of these packets she gave us. Everything was straightforward and she was great! i highly recommend Professor Lising! This class is only available in the fall so make sure you plan around that!
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/18/2021	She’s a great teacher. I loved her teaching style. She thoroughly explains things and makes sure you can understand the material while also giving you insight on the teaching side of it.
Laura Lising PHYS115 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/08/2021	An amazing professor who made the class seem very relevant and made sure you were actually learning the material.

Arpita Upadhyaya
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/04/2025

Going into this class, I was a bit nervous to take it knowing that I am not exactly strong in the Science area and have not had a great experience with Science professors either. Overall, this professor proved to be even more unhelpful than I have every thought she'd be. If you're specifically and Elementary Education major I am telling you right now DO NOT take this course with this professor. If you think you're going to be okay, you're not. It's not even the course structure/material itself, it's the actual professor. She would constantly come to class unprepared often reading the labs for the first time ever as soon as she stepped foot into class. It left her confused to the point where she would confuse us students as well. And, it wouldn't be a big deal if the labs were smaller, but considering this course is about two hours long MWF, it's important to come in with an already established plan. Being an Elementary Education major, I am constantly watching teachers/professors strategies when teaching for good pointers I could carry on into my own classroom. I can say this with full confidence: through the entirety of this Physics class I am able to pinpoint things I will not be taking into my future classroom as did most of the students within this course. Her organization skills lacked completely and at times had use restart labs because they weren't set up in the correct way. If you enjoy disorganization and chaos this is the class for you!! Oh and don't even get me started on poor Isaac. Isaac was our TA during the semester who was genuinely doing the lords work trying to hold our class together. (Go check out his review I love that man) Anywho, there's a lot more that easily could be said, but if this isn't enough for you, take the class and trust you'll be here writing the same review as I am doing right now.

Isaac Alhuseini
PHYS115

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/04/2025

I can't lie, he is the one doing most of the teaching in the class. I took it with Arpita Uphadaya and Isaac worked as her TA. Her organization skills aren't exactly up to par, and would often ask Isaac for pointers or what he thought was best overall. In my opinion, Isaac was honestly teaching most of the class and was always being worked to his last nerve. I can't speak as to how helpful he was in the other class sections, but he truly is a real one with this specific teacher. It's very noticeable how well he is able to grasp the concepts and reiterate them to us students. #teamisaac

Arpita Upadhyaya
PHYS115

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/09/2024

This professor is super nice, but very unorganized and not super aware of the fact that everyone has different learning styles. I thought because it was meant for education majors that it would be easier, but really it’s not. The exams are open note, but that did not seem to help me on 2/3 exams we had. It’s not a bad class, just a hard one because of the circumstances and because as an early childhood education major I don’t use this and I never took physics in high school.

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Anonymous
10/23/2024

This class is not difficult at all, but it is such a waste of time. The class is 2 hours long and 3 days a week and we spend most of every class sitting around doing nothing. The one time our TA taught the class because Professor Lising was not there, we got out in 40 minutes. The actual material from the class is very straightforward forward, but Professor Lising makes the class so slow pace that it becomes very frustrating and feels like a waste of time to be there. Especially when we have already completed the entire worksheet for the day in the first 10 minutes of class. Professor Lising is very understanding and accommodating, but she takes a very long time to explain simple concepts which makes the entire class feel pointless.

Arpita Upadhyaya
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/25/2024

Pros: reasonable expectations, easy-ish workload, open-notebook exams, pretty lenient grading Cons: sometimes disorganized and messy teaching style, not always patient Other notes: in every class you do a lab with your partner and submit a lab report (sometimes finished in class, sometimes not)

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A-
ccampbell
01/10/2024

When I told people I was taking physics, they all thought I was crazy however I'm glad I did. This class is not super difficult because you know more than you think, and Professor Lising pulls out your own knowledge. In class there is a lot of partner activities with your lab partner. The experiments are not all boring, matter of fact one of the things we did in class was make ice cream with heavy cream, sugar, and liquid nitrogen. We also attempted to light a lightbulb with pickles. Professor Lising is so helpful if you need help. She will stay after class or come early to go over with you what you are confused about. She is also very good with on the spot questions. The best thing Professor Lising did was allow us to resubmit our final for a higher grade and that made all the difference for me. If you're an education major and looking for a physical lab science PHYS115 is a great option ONLY WITH Professor Lising!!!

Arpita Upadhyaya
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/20/2023

PHYS115 was one of my required classes. At first, I was weary about taking this class, but it's not that bad or difficult. There is homework (basically lab reports) due after each class, three exams, and a final presentation, and your lab notebook gets graded. Professor Upadhyaya is a good professor, and she does want each of her students to succeed. That being said she is a bit unorganized, and demeaning at times. We didn't have a TA for half of the year, so the grading was VERY slow, and she would question you if you were confused. Overall this class and professor were not bad at all, and don't hesitate to take the class if you need to.

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2022

Professor Lising was a good teacher for this particular course. She spends lots of time going over each lesson and walks around to make sure everyone understands the lesson. I did think that sometimes her teaching methods were a little confusing, because she would be very hypothetical and would make us do a lot of work before actually explaining the concept. Class was 2 hours long so boring at times but overall not difficult, especially since exams were open note.

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
10/07/2022

Laura Lising is a great professor! The other reviews are pretty accurate- she really cares about her students and will go above and beyond to help (as long as you ask, of course). The only (very small) drawback to this class is that it is 2 hours long so sometimes it drags on. Also, her exams are open note and she will do her best to help you if you need clarification on a question. And if you have accommodations, she is flexible and understanding!

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/14/2022

I love Prof Lising! She is a really great teacher and makes sure that all of her students understand what is being taught! She really likes to have fun with the class and is always circling the room helping people out with their work! Exams were open note and notes were based off of these packets she gave us. Everything was straightforward and she was great! i highly recommend Professor Lising! This class is only available in the fall so make sure you plan around that!

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/18/2021

She’s a great teacher. I loved her teaching style. She thoroughly explains things and makes sure you can understand the material while also giving you insight on the teaching side of it.

Laura Lising
PHYS115

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/08/2021

An amazing professor who made the class seem very relevant and made sure you were actually learning the material.

Reviews for PHYS115