Neil Nicol - Laney College, Oakland, CA

Professor: Neil Nicol

Department: Physics

College: Laney College, Oakland, CA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: PHY4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Nicol is an amazing lecturer and teaches this course on a University level. That being said, practice midterms only brush the surface of actual midterms, and self studying is needed in order to pass this class with a decent grade. However, he is caring and comfortable to be in the presence of. Amazing person with knowledge to spread.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4C
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He is probably the best physics professor at Peralta. Showing up to lecture and doing practice tests would give you an A in this class.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: PHY3A
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

So far, I think Prof. Nicol is a good teacher. He is very helpful and willing to answer all your questions. No extra credit cause he's very generous in grading. Labs are easy. There're 4 midterm exam and 1 final, he allows us to bring 1 side of note. Recommend taking him!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: PHYS3A
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

60% midterm, 4 midterms. 20% lab, about 10 of those, and 20% on the final. You only need 50% to pass his class with a C, and in his midterms you can use 1 page of notes. With that being said, this is still a hard class. I feel like his lectures do not help and he does not emphasize the GENERAL ideas and goes too specific. Still a good class.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4C
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

great professor. definitely a better choice than any other physics professors at peralta

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Overall pretty good. Clear, direct, and helpful in office hours. I wish he would spend more time on concepts & a little less working through problems. Tests are challenging but he's generous with partial credit. Expect to work hard. Hes far from perfect, but hes the best of the bunch at Peralta.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: PHYS3A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Extremely good and helpful professor that has a lot of office hours to help students. He's patient and incredibly intelligent. Labs are easy. The average on exams is always low but he's generous with partial credit, probably because most students don't know what they're writing on the exams. Generous grading system; you can pass with a mere 50%.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS4C
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

The most rewarding experience ever. Nicol is a world class professor. Definitely prepared me for Berkeley. I transferred this Fall and have amazing professors here but he still takes the cake. This class is not meant to be torture. I failed the first test and ended up with an A because I stepped my game up; did all the homework/practice tests.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

His lectures are the best, extremely organized, very passionate about teaching. He streamlines the concepts and most importantly, makes the math and diagram strategy easier to setup. Lots of office hours and has a very good understanding of homework problems. Practice tests are helpful since your grade really just depends on test scores.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS3A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Dr. Nicol is very helpful and supportive, and is great at explanations. He's very approachable and I've spent hours studying in the physics lab asking him question after question. Not many people attended his lectures, but I found them helpful. His exams are pretty difficult - averages around 70, but he gives 85%+ an A, and is a very fair grader.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

One of those rare instructors who you can bother during office hours with questions for other subjects like calculus or differential equations, and not only will he be able to answer them expertly, he'll do so with the same enthusiasm as physics questions. Tests are tough but a lot of support is offered the week prior - no labs due, practice tests.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: PHYSIC3A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

-He's gud, for real. His lecture is fun and clarified. If u have to take 3A, you should go with him.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS4ABC
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

I have to admit that Laney has all the best science professors and I think Dr Nicol is best of the best, he is even suitable for UC systems. He is super smart and funny, telling stuffs that make us laugh but he doesn't. The materials is hard, not him. If you are going for an Engineering major, you would loved him, I promised.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Good.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: PHYSICS4B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He is quick and to the point. He does not try to trick you, he just asks you to work hard. Make sure to do all of the homework, try all of the practice tests that you can get your hands on. His class is tough, but it's primarily due to the material, not to his teaching style, which is extremely structured. His class is like clockwork. Recommended.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Super engaging lecturer! Makes class fun to attend, even at 740am. He expects LOTS of self-study. Lots of homework assigned but not graded. GET THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL FOR THE HOMEWORK. If you do twice the number of assigned homework problems, I bet you'll get an A. It's hard, like "50% class average on exams" hard. But he curves a little bit too.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Not a bad professor. The tests are pretty straightforward and doable if you do the homework. He grades pretty generously with partial credit if you have the problem set up in a way that shows some understanding of physics. Labs are easy. Very helpful during office hours. Often teaches many things that don't show up on the tests, like integration.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

4B was a lot harder than 4A. You need to know how to set up an integral for tests #2, #3, #4, and the final. Test #1 was easy. Labs are mandatory, but lectures are optional.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

I feel he is leaving things out of his lectures_He lectures as if you already know the material. He shows easy examples on the board, says a few things like x is in proportion to y, but doesn't explain what he means_Then he puts questions on the test that require more thought than can be done in the allotted time_He allows 1 sheet of notes on tests

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: PHYS4A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Hard course. Hard grader. He helps you only if you understand the material. If you fall behind in the class you're screwed.