Quarter Taken:
Winter 2018
Submitted March 25, 2018
Grade Received:
A
Developmental bio with Lin is extremely challenging, but also super rewarding. He's pretty monotone during lecture which makes it hard to follow, but you're really going to want to pay attention to everything he says. I found it most helpful to review the lecture notes and slides before class, go to lecture, and then review the slides and notes soon after class. It really helps you stay on top of the material, because there is no way you can cram before his tests and do well.
For the tests, make sure to be able to understand and explain EVERY SLIDE from every powerpoint he posts. Some really random and detailed questions will come up on the exams, so go to office hours if even the smallest detail from 1 slide doesn't make sense. The lecture notes are a good supplement for when you're first learning the material because they give more detail, but don't try to memorize everything in those for the exams - just refer back to them for review on the concepts he goes over in lecture. Our exam averages were MT 1 = 68, MT 2 = 74, Final = 65.
You also have to write a report for 6 scientific research papers throughout the quarter and take a review quiz on lecture material when it's a midterm week. These are pretty easy points, and the exams only have 1-2 questions about each paper so there's no need to understand them in extreme detail.
This class is a lot of work and requires a LOT of memorization and understanding, but it's extremely worth it in the end. I feel like I learned a lot of really valuable things in this class and would take it with Lin again.