Margaret Saha - College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA

Professor: Margaret Saha

Department: Biology

College: College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

There is a lot to memorize in this class. I came in with a strong background in Biology and still had to try pretty hard to get solid grades on the exams. The homework was mostly graded based on effort. Professor Saha is caring and connected the different parts of the class together in a unique and interesting way.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Saha is so kind and genuinely wants her students to succeed. All tests are short answer with partial credit. Definitely go to office hours and review sessions, even if there isn't a midterm coming up and you don't have specific questions. Bio 203 isn't an easy class, but if you always go to class, work hard and use the resources you can do well.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Contrary to most of the comments, Professor Saha is a really good lecturer. While she can seem to get off topic sometimes, her tangents usually wrap into the topics to help students understand rather than memorize the content. She is very passionate about biology and cares about her students deeply. That said, this class is a beast, so be prepared.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

B+ aft curve. Great emphasis on research, but not enough lecture on Biology content. Final was a killer even after the 14 page study guide, reading and studying notes throughout the course I wouldn't say the class is impossible, but it's made so that getting a good grade requires you to be a good test taker. Good Notes will only get you up to an A-

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is such a lovely woman. Intro bio is tough and you have to work hard, but she truly cares about her students and puts in so much effort to help us do well. She gives many opportunities for help outside of class, there were review sessions each week and she and the TAs had so many office hours it was easy to get help if needed.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I was very excited to take an intro to biology course but I did not expect it to be so difficult. Saha was very helpful and considerate throughout the semester and had plenty extra credit opportunities. However, the teaching style was difficult to follow and the questions on exams were very obscure making it hard to perform well.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• 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:

Professor Saha is a spectacular teacher for bio 203. She genuinely wants every student to be successful and will be there to help make it happen. She is also a very enthusiastic lecturer and makes class engaging most of the time. Would absolutely recommend her for any bio course.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha hadn't taught intro biology for at least a decade before teaching my class, so there was a learning curve. She expects a lot from her students, however, she is willing to help! She cares about students who do the work and gave us chocolate during the final and on holidays. This class was hard, but she really loves the material.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• 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:

Professor Saha is absolutely wonderful. She is passionate about the material, and she wants you to succeed. However, this course was very challenging, and in order to do well, you MUST have a mastery of the material. The tests are made up of questions that require you to apply your knowledge. It's possible to do well, but you must work really hard.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is one of the sweetest people I have ever met, and she genuinely wants everyone to do well (extra credit/study tips/super accessible). However, the tests are extremely difficult even if you know the information. It might be worth it if you really love bio, but otherwise its too much, even if Saha is a super lovely and caring person.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Intro Bio was probably 80% of my entire freshman year workload. It is a hard class, and Saha is pretty good, but not exceptional. The class really is applying your knowledge and not regurgitating so you really have understand the material, and there is a LOT of material to know. It's a hard class but she really does try to let people do well

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: C-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is a very sweet woman. You can tell she genuinely loves biology, but her teaching skills are awful. She somehow made into bio 10x harder, and even with 10+ hours studying for every quiz, midterm, etc. I still got Cs & Ds. Avoid her class if you want to leave the library at all.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is amazing. She is so kind and caring. Between her reassurance with medical school and her extra credit opportunities she makes a difficult class doable and makes getting an A possible. She will always respond to your email right away even at 4 in the morning. She also matches all of her freshmen students with research projects.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: BIOL203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha has never taught intro level bio before, and it is clearly evident by the way she teaches. The exams are extremely difficult and are on information that isn't covered in class. The study guides for the exams and CAEs are not helpful and only cover a very basic level of about half of the information that will be on the exam.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

The tests are challenging, all short answer , and on 4-8 classes worth of material at a time, with each class having 20-30 pages of testable content. Required to memorize and imitate her sketches which are hard to understand and sketches are on all of her tests. Personally, not how I learn. Despite this, she does care about her students.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: BIO203
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

she will spend the first half of lecture rambling about non relevant info. can tell that she genuinely cares about her students but makes the quizzes and exams all difficult application questions that are not discussed in class.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: BIOL100
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is one of my favorite professors. She's so kind and always tries to help us succeed. She really looks out for us and makes sure that we do well. She gives clear guidelines and makes class fun. I really enjoyed her class.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: BIOL100
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Saha is a very kind, caring professor. She makes sure you know what you are doing, she is clear in what she wants, and is always willing to make you laugh.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: BIOL310
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Saha is a really cool and interesting person who cares deeply about her students and her class. She is trying out a new class format which requires a bit more work out of class and I'm not positive whether it is more effective. The plus side is we do a lot of reading but don't need to memorize anything because everything is open book.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: BIOL310
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Saha is an amazing professor. I never had her for intro bio, so I can only speak for 310. The structure of the class is engaging, although sometimes I can feel as if the expectations are too high for me. However, so far I am doing fine in the class and learning a lot. Professor Saha is also very approachable.