Rachel Skvirsky - University of Massachusetts -Boston, Boston, MA

Professor: Rachel Skvirsky

Department: Biology

College: University of Massachusetts - Boston, Boston, MA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: BIOL252
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Skvirsky will be a very tough professor for most students. The class is very lecture and material heavy, with alot of textbook pages. Homework is relatively light, but she makes up for it with alot of textbook readings. Graded by only three exams and a final. Exams are very difficult and change year-to-year (don't trust old exams). Makes you work.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: BIOL252
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Rachel is a fair woman. Her TA's who grade the tests are not, but to rectify, she scales absolutely everything. Tests are long/open response. I could've done better, but I chose not to study. People are upset with her because they didn't study... You need to study, at least all of the slides, and you'll be okay. This is biology

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: BIO103
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

She's an okay professor, the lectures were painfully long and boring. Overall, it was an easy course but incredibly painful to sit through for an entire semester.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Lectures were very boring and dry, the slides weren't helpful, and the test were long and hard must be able to memorize a lot. Would not recommend unless you can handle long boring lectures.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Lectures are pretty dull, and she is super strict about where you sit. If you like repetition, she's your girl.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: 252
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Avoid this professor at all cost. Her method of teaching the material is extremely ineffective. Have to learn it on your own. Is not helpful or welcoming. Enphasizes that she will scale but does not give clear cut answers. Will not know where you stand. Lectures are not helpful but mandatory. Save your self the stress. Take it with somebody else.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Boring class.. if you can stay awake and pay attention, then you will do well, because the material is basically just the things she has on her slides. Do the homework too. She curves too.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: BIOL210
• 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:

Everyone on hear is saying she is a bad teacher and I disagree. She never throws a curveball and if you do what she says you will get an A. You are taking GENETICS. Its a confusing subject and I learned a lot from Professor Skvirsky.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: BIO210
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

take it with Kesseli. You're welcome.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: BIO209
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Skvirsky means well but needs some work on her teaching skills. She'll tell you she wants you to know the overall concepts and not the details but then ends up asking about details on the exam. Prepare to study a lot for her open response exams. Use her slides as a guide and then type out extra material on those topics and memorize them. It's tough

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: BIO209
• 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:

She is an absolutely horrible professor who has no idea how to teach the course! She tells you not to know details, but then asks them on the exam. She will read 4 chapters of powerpoints for an exam but only ask 17 questions, all of them being short answer. She says that attendance is mandatory but has never checked. STUDY EVERYTHING!!

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: BIOL254
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

You gain absolutely nothing from her lectures, she reads off her slides which she puts online. You are just better off reading the book and doing the problems from it. Her tests are hard, and the problems she will do in class are incredibly easy compared to the ones of the exams. If you can take genetics with someone else teaching you should.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: 252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Professor Skvirsky is by far one of the worst professors i have ever had. She reads off the slides which are exact copies of the pages in the textbook and gives no explanation what so ever. Also each exam has extremely hard problems however she never showed us how to solve any of them. Also study guides are way simpler than the actual exam. BEWARE!

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: BIO210
• 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:

this is also a hard class. be present in lectures because she explains everything during lecture. you also have to study from the book for other details. she is very opened when students come to her for help, and always willing to help her students. all the students that did poorly in her class didnt give it their all or enough effort.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: BIOL252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

THis was a very difficult class and i was told by friends to prepare yourself. i didn't pass any of my exams but went to her office hours and talked to her about how much work i put into this course and studied really hard for the final and she passed me. very understanding prof if you show effort to do well in class and actually talk to her.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: BIOL252
• 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:

The worst teacher I have had so far. The exams are really hard and not related to slides. You need to work hard, attend the FSG's. It's more like learning yourself than to be taught by her. It would have been helpful if she actually did some hard problems in the class rather than expecting us to do the Hw from the simple repeated materials in class

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• 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:

I read the lecture slides and did the homework and got >95 on all tests - I stopped going to class because it was useless. The woman is controlling of her classroom: she wouldn't allow students to sit in the back of the room (would interrupt class to make them move), ask why people weren't taking notes, started taking attendance 1/2 way through, et

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• 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 feel she needs to work at becoming a better teacher for reasons such as her lectures are dry, she should attend a public speaking class because if you want to teach you shouldn't be saying "umm" so often, she does not answer questions directly or seem to have the full knowledge to answer them. Not easy being a teacher, but should work on it.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: BIO01
• 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 prof is the horrible teacher at UMASS Boston I've ever seen in my life. She does not explain and she does not answer questions in the class. I would not take this class with her. She is not fair and does not care at All. I wonder how she got her PhD or any degree because she does not know genetics. I read the notes from other teachers

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: BIO252
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Prof Skvirsky is a little slow in explaining things and may "beat around the bush" for the entire lecture BUT she is very helpful and will explain something over and over until you get it. As long as you go to class and do the homework problems, you do not need to study for the exams. The lab is very coordinated with class and further explains it