Phillip Brownell - Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

Professor: Phillip Brownell

Department: Zoology

College: Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I had him for BI 212 and Z 430 (I dropped the latter course because it was so ridiculous.) He was better for the biology course but not much. He was an annoying personality and never really taught anything. During some of the lectures, it would take him 20-30 minutes before he'd even start talking about the topic we were supposed to cover.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: ZOO001
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Brownell does an extremely poor job relaying this material to people who have no background in the subject. This class has NO prereqs. He doesn't seem to realize this. I walked away from his class feeling as though I learned nothing. Yes, this is a hard subject. I took it again with a different instructor (Dr. Quick) and now I tutor the subject.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: ZOOL33X
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Wow I can't believe how many people have complained about him. No way is he the worst teacher at OSU and absolutely no way are his tests borderline impossible, I had tests harder in high school. It's true that he's not the best at presenting the material, but there's a book, wileyplus, and study groups. Blame yourself for doing poorly, not him.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: ZOO332
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Absolutely the WORST teacher I have had at OSU and probably ever. His lectures are terrible, boring and unorganized, and he completely fails at getting any kind of information to his students. His tests are borderline impossible unless you "really know your material" as some brownnosers claim. Not true. DO NOT TAKE HIS CLASS!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: Z33X
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Hah, I definitely agree with the reviewer below. I e-mailed him several times, and all I get were one-liners either saying "ask that in class tomorrow" or "ask someone else." I mean, seriously...why reply if you're no help at all? The point of a teacher is to provide feedback to students who want a caring and learning environment. Hum...

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: Z332
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Use to think he was a nice guy until I emailed him asking how many questions would be on the final since I wasn't sure. His response? "Ask another classmate, it is too detailed to repeat in email." It's too detailed to tell me how many questions will be on the exam? um,OK. Tests are ok, straight from textbook; lectures are BORING. Avoid if possible

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: Z33X
• 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 like him as a person & find his tests to be 50/50. Sometimes he can write very fair tests. Then other times, he writes ones that are indeed tricky. The bottom line is that it tests us really on if we *truly* know the material or not. I think it's fair, but sometimes it can be a hit or miss. I believe the majority don't like him. However, some do.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: Z332
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Granted, he is not the gratest professor, but what he writes on the notes is what is on the tests. Like any difficult class, you have to read and study the material to get a good grade. He mostly provides a vague outline of the chapters in class, the you need to take the responsibility and read the book! He is not going to spoon-feed it to you.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: ZOO332
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Brownell is the worst teacher I have ever had. His lectures ramble and I often come out of them more confused about a subject than I was coming in. He breezes over important information. We just finished a midterm with the class average being 64% but Brownell refuses to curve it saying that it's better than the last. Not so. Avoid this course!

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: Z33X
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He's not as bad as people make him out to be! It's a hard class - you have to study a lot. Going to his office hours is very helpful. Your grade reflects how hard you try...

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: ZOO331
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

He is the worst teacher I have had at OSU. His lectures cover very little material and he drones on about nothing. The book uses Wiley Plus (complimentary computer program) and I learned more from that program than I did from him. Tests are awful. If you can, take 331 during the summer with Scott MacDonald, he rocks (for 332 and 333 at least)

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: Z331
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

This old man should have retired when he had the chance. One of the worst teachers ever, tries to relate anatomy to random subjects. OSU should fire him, he is a waste of money.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: Z331
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Boring. Constantly uses storytelling and examples in class that is irrelevant to A&P material. Has a hard time being asked questions & always posts his lectures right before class starts. Always slow and behind schedule. Horrible socializer. Unfortunately, out of the zoology teachers, he is not much better than Warrick who is garbage for physio.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His lectures are boring and his tests are from hell. By the time your done reading the questions your falling asleep and kicking yourself because you don't know what the question is asking. He likes to rant on and on during his letures.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: Z350
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Test was quite easy if you knew certain key pieces of information but it was hard to judge what the test was going to be like beforehand. So much of the material was confusing and the detail that was presented tended to make things more difficult to understand rather than easier.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I was so disappointed in this class. He was a really nice guy and he tired hard to answer questions. Tests are random and pointless and he finished 2 or 3 chapters behind where he needed to be for students to move on too the next class in the series. He randomly rants for the first 20 min of class and never finishes a lecture.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Very interested in neurophysiology, so much so that we got way behind schedule. Loves to tell stories, makes the time go faster. Draws a lot of illegible diagrams and pictures on the board, so using the book is a must.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He's such a nice guy! and he's easy to go to for help. Things are much clearer if you take the time to talk to him. He's not the best lecturer and his multiple choice tests are a joke, they definately don't accurately show what you know.... if you're thinking of taking this as an optional class don't do it. It's not worth it if you don't have to!

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is a great guy and a fun teacher. His test's are difficult, mainly because they are multiple choice and encompass a vast array of material. However, they can be done succesfully if you study each process he goes through and just study the steps. His side stories to take up time, but they are interesting and demonstrate options in physiology.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: Z430
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Nice guy, worst professor I have ever had. He just tells stories the first thirty minutes of each class. He doesn't even attempt to follow the book, or his notes for that matter. If you are not a genius at taking notes this is not a class to take, and if you actually need to know phys for your future careers, better get studying on your own.