Stuart Feinstein - University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Professor: Stuart Feinstein

Department: Biology

College: University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Probably the best of the three professors teaching the intro series. He usually summarizes the lecture before in the first 10 minutes so its a good review to explain any confusing things. He writes on the lecture slides which is surprisingly helpful. Definitely take CLAS. I recommend Amy Liest. Her packets and review sessions help a lot.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• 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:

Great professor for the intro series. Material is not too hard compared to the rest of intro bio, but he takes time and explains things in detail. Coll guy.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Feinstein is alright. He is not amazing by any means but he gets the job done and teaches the material in a straightforward way. The tests are also pretty easy and predictable as long as you study. He teaches the first third of MCDB 1A (the biochem section). Goes over material slowly so you can understand everything. Honors section was kinda boring

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Teaches the biochemistry portion of MCDB1A. Really good at teaching the material. He goes over material twice so that helps with any loose ends you had trouble with when he first explained it. Midterm was actually very easy (this is coming from someone who sucks at chem). Never went to lecture (watch them online). CLAS is very helpful.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MCDB153
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Amazing class and very interesting. He grades tough, but fair and the test are very concept based. If you try to simply memorize everything without understanding it you wont pass. Really interesting class and he wants you to learn.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Great professor and interesting lectures. He's also a sweet and funny guy. Make sure to read the book, take notes, and review his lectures before the exam (and do the practice exam)!

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Stu is the greatest professor I have ever had. Truly inspirational. Very captivating lectures and super interesting information. He's the best at lecturing, not to mention how adorable he is! Would love to take more classes with him in the future! . Material is very straight forward and interesting.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

Don't try to write every little detail down, but instead, try to pay attention and really understand the material and the processes. The midterm was super easy, although I've heard that some people found it pretty hard. Go to CLAS. It helped me a lot, ended up getting a 97 on the midterm without reading the book lol. About as easy as AP Bio for me.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

The first third of MCDB 1A is a breeze thanks to Stu. He is really clear in lecture and shows a lot of diagrams that help explain things. Doesn't use the iClicker because he doesn't know how, and all lectures are recorded and posted online if you miss. DO THE OLD MIDTERMS POSTED ONLINE he literally takes those exact questions for his midterm.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Professor Feinstein is an awesome and approachable professor. His tests are pretty tough. He teaches the Biochem section of MCDB 1A. He is super responsive to students through email, and great at office hours. I would definitely recommend him. He asks iclicker questions, so go to class. His tests are based mostly on just his lectures.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Best lecturer of this series. He draws on his slides a lot to explain in more detail and clarify things, so don't just use the slides, watch the lectures online if you skip class. Last few lectures are the hardest so don't burn out before then. Study the slides and it will do able. Also don't let low test scores get you down, the curve helps a lot

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

I didn't think I was a big fan of biochemistry, but Stu definitely changed that! He's not hard to pay attention to during an 8am and is very straightforward with the information. Favorite lecturer at UCSB so far.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MCDB 153
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Really good professor and makes it easy to listen and pay attention in class. Tests are pretty hard, you definitely have to know your stuff and be concise in your answers. He tells you the book is optional which is really nice because you don't need to worry about doing the reading on top of studying lecture slides.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: MCDB153
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Stu is one of the best professors here. He cares about the material and his students, and gets really into lecture. Grading on tests can be tough, and they're all short answer so be specific and get to the point. 2 midterms + final, no papers.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

His lectures are moderately clear. His midterm is difficult, but the class is curved. He seems willing to help.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Feinstein is a great and worthwhile professor; his lectures are concise and easy to follow (except cellular respiration, so I would advise Khan Academy and some self-help books) and his tests are a bit challenging. REVIEW LECTURE SLIDES FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! Book isn't necessary for his portion at all. He rarely uses iClickers as well.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is a great person and a solid professor, but his tests are pretty challenging. He really does test you on the small details, so going to class and going over lecture notes every day is essential. Make sure you know everything really well, he will test whether you really know the subject or not. on test day.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Meh. Uninspiring and mediocre. Goes over unimportant facts rather than teaching about biochemistry on a more conceptual level, and does not test on mastery of subject matter so much as rote memorization.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Stu is a great guy, cracks jokes all the time, makes class entertaining. Communicates information clearly and is extremely responsive to requests for help. Don't really need the book, mostly everything is lecture based.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: MCDB1A
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

the first 10 minutes of every class is just review of the previous lecture, so we actually go over all the material twice, which is quite nice. Test is very detail oriented, so study the details!!! He's a pretty good lecturer though, not monotone.