Zamir Punja - Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC

Professor: Zamir Punja

Department: Science

College: Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Zamir was a good prof. He writes notes on two ancient overhead projectors, and then the tests are based exactly off of those notes. Just memorize the notes and you will do well. He's a pretty funny guy, and tries hard to keep lectures engaging.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

You probably have to go to classes since he writes his notes and doesn't post them online. He is really funny and his tests are fair. He lets you know what to expect on them and writes figures from the text for you to look at. The notes are brief sometimes, so you should get info from online or the textbook to complete the notes & to do better!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

You can't miss Dr. Punja's class because it is too much fun! He is a really funny prof and exams are fair as long as you memorize the notes! He writes his notes so you can't miss lecture either since he doesn't post them. That however makes you catch up more easily because he writes as he talks. He even did a rap for us on the last day! Love him!!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: BISC326
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Make sure you attend his lectures because his powerpoints aren't detailed so it's good to be in class to take detailed notes. The fungus material is not difficult, and you get graded by a paper, lab exam, and final exam. The final exam is very fair and he may even give you the format if you ask nicely. All in all, definitely worth taking again.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: BISC326
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Good prof. Lectures are informative and tests are fair. Lots of writing.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Excellent prof that knows how to maintain lecture interest. You must attend lectures to get the notes you need to study for exams. I did not like how this class had three separate instructors though. It's a terrible approach and completely threw me off. Labs had zero guidance/instruction, although that has very little to do with Dr. Punja.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Punja is a likeable, funny guy. However, he seems to have a very narrow understanding of the material. I felt like he had just read the relevant chapters of the textbook and summarized the material instead of actually drawing on his own knowledge. He also makes a lot of errors in lecture. His exams are fairly easy and the questions predictable.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He's enthusiastic and friendly but he gets kind of lost when I ask him specific questions beyond the lecture. His notes are ALMOST all you need to study. I found them to be too brief at times but his notes alone should get you at least a B+. Test is just pure memory work . Textbook is only used for lab worksheet or as reference pictures. no scaling

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He was my prof when I was a first year student at SFU and he's one of those profs that you tend to remember long after you've finished the course! Totally knew how to handle 1st years, made the concepts interesting, and always went above and beyond to give the class a fun time! Exams are SO FAIR!! As long as you read the textbook you're good to go!

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: BIO101
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Absolutely amazing prof. Very clear in his notes and manages to make it entertaining as well. His poems aren't too bad either

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

By far the best prof I've ever had! The course isn't particularly easy, but Punja definitely makes lectures fun! He writes all his notes down, so make sure you attend all the lectures! The text book is helpful to have!

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: 101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Punja is one of the best profs I've had at SFU. His lectures are very clear and engaging, his exams are straight from his lecture notes. DO NOT MEMORIZE TEXTBOOK ONLY HIS NOTES WORD FOR WORD. If you do that then you will get good mark. Would definetly take a class again if he was teaching it, recommend 100%.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Zamir is a good pro. He makes lectures interesting, also he is a good poet since I can never write a poem about exams... However his handwriting is unclear. He doesn't use ppt or give out slides so if you miss a lecture you are screwed. Exams are difficult... you did the review and you came to the gym to take the test, then you found omg wth

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Hated his picky exams. He could make plants more interesting. I'd never take a plant course after this set of lectures.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Punja was ok with a few jokes and likeable but way too easy.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

My favourite prof at SFU so far. Sure he makes you memorize his lecture notes completely and is very picky as to what he will give you marks for on the exam, but his lecture notes are all you need and he is a very good lecturer. He makes the content interesting and adds in some fun stuff here and there. Be prepared to memorize though.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

So I had a midterm and he said if you study the notes you'll be fine. Guess what? I wasn't fine. Memorized all the notes word by word and still did not get anything as close as I had expected. Otherwise nice. funny guy. Really engaging lectures and worth coming too. Knows how to deal with first-years.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Punja is awesome! Super funny and entertaining. 1010 WOULD RECOMMEND.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

AMAZING prof! I adore his teaching style and he engages everyone in the class. 100% straightforward, makes jokes, and the material is handwritten by him in lecture, then put onto the exams. The textbook is an ESSENTIAL supplement if you want to understand everything and clarify specifics, but otherwise, would love to have him again! Just STUDY.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: BISC101
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Really Tough