Kevin Ahern - Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

Professor: Kevin Ahern

Department: Biochemistry

College: Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Dr. Ahern is knowledgeable of the material he presents. Though the class was hard, it is manageable if you read and watch the videos. There are few assignments and 3 tests amounting 95% of the grade. He does not grade on a basic 100/90/80, so there is curving. If you ask questions that are covered in his lectures or syllabus, he will not respond.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I would not recommend this professor. When it comes to teaching, it is clear that he has great knowledge about the topics. However, when it comes to asking questions through email, his responses tend to be VERY ignorant and ultimately useless. He comes across as a very arrogant individual. Not an enjoyable person to be influenced by.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Kevin was by far the best prof I had in my undergrad. He absolutely lives for biochemsitry and you can tell. He puts so much detail and effort into all his lectures. As difficult as the topic was, he made it enjoyable and relatable. A lot of people dislike him because his tests are extremely hard, but that's how you retain the info. 10/10 professor

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Took the online class, lets just say with any other biochemistry professor an A is a C in this class. Worked extremely hard, read the books, read the book, re watched lecture videos, and with the difficult exam with a class average of 55% it was hard to get up anywhere close to a B let alone an A

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

I took the online course, so much of this review is based on that. He's a great lecturer about the topic and you will learn a lot about biochemistry, however his exams on the other hand are simply just confusing and vague. There's a large disconnect between his lectures and the multiple choice exams that's extremely frustrating.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

I took 450 online and worked my tail off. Very tough tests that are not specific, tough to interpret and will mislead you. Lectures were posted on Youtube. Average test scores were around 60% with grades solely dependent on tests. Had a tutor for the final and still did poorly.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: No
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

awful professor, all exams were multiple choice and vague.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: BB451
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Phenomenal instructor! I had him for BB451, it was a very tough course but I have never learned more in my entire academic career! Tests are challenging, keep up with the material and ALWAYS look at the highlights and provided readings if you care about your overall success! He loves to teach, you just have to be willing to learn.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• 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:

I appreciate his style, although many find lectures and tests to be challenging. He genuinely cares to deliver material that is understandable and by making his lectures, text, and other course materials all free and open he should deserve credit for accessibility of education. I had him for BB350 and am currently taking 450/451 online.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Very hard grader. Very lecture based. only thing this class consist of is exams, NO extra assignments for points.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: BB451
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Course graded completely on memorization of enzymes and molecules. Tests cover your ability to interpret vague questions and recall the exact molecule. First term of Biochem with a different prof I got a B+, with Ahern I was lucky to pass.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I took the online class. As long as you keep up with the lectures, you'll be fine. The lectures move really fast so make sure you pay attention. All the resources you could possibly need are on his page (which also means he isn't very receptive to questions). Specific tests but it's all information he directly covered in the lectures and highlights

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

You have to be a master of time management or this class will be impossible. Grades are solely based on exams, so if you do poorly on one, you have to REALLY study to make up for it. Incredibly rude in emails. Only study the highlights, trust me. This is the hardest I've ever worked for a C. Tests are entirely MC but are VERY specific. Good luck.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: BB350
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I took the online 4 week summer version. It was definitely intense & you have to manage your time well. Not an easy class, but if you work hard, it is doable! Kevin was a great lecturer - he even has songs for many of the topics that help you learn things. I thought he made most things relatively easy to grasp considering the difficult topics.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: BB350
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Hard class! Ahern is pretty disorganized and hard to follow.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

I wish to know how Dr Kevin Ahern does grading for BB 450. I am taking online class and gave my first exam today. He shows the lowest marks, highest marks and mean value. How does that relate to actual marks??

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: BB450
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Great lecturer. Very knowledgeable and presents material thoroughly and clearly. Course is made very accessible. Terrible person. Very arrogant and assumes that the intension of students is to cheat and "fish for points." Doesn't handle feedback well. Very discouraging personal interactions. Prioritizes favorite students in office hours.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Kevin is an incredibly exhausting professor to have for biochemistry. Lectures are really disorganized and basically cover a range of special topics. The lecture slides are atrocious, error-prone, and so are his lecture summaries (highlights). His exam questions are the definition of ambiguous. Take BB 450 and BB 451 with a different professor...

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: BB350
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Kevin is a great professor and is incredibly intelligent. He may have heavy lectures, but he has to give us the material and I'd be hard pressed to find someone who can do it better and more enjoyably. My god does he have a lot of students sucking up to him though. Makes class go by a lot slower than it needs to.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: BB450451
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

It's hard to tell what he really wants you to know. Doesn't provide practice questions or anything useful to study with besides a list which is pretty much what he went over in lecture. He spent 3 days going over the citric acid cycle when a 5 minute youtube video explained it much better than he was able to. Not sympathetic towards students at all