AI Rate Professor

Biology

Mark Barnby

BIO130A · BIOL101A · BIOT110A · BIO130 · BIOL130 · BIOL101AB · 101A · BIO · BIO101A · BIOL102 · BIO101 · 158 lifetime ratings

AI rating
73/100
RMP rating
3.9/5
Take again
73.68%
Difficulty
3.7

The decision

if you will attend every lecture, read ahead, and study daily; do not expect an easy A.

Best fit · Hardcore LearnerHilarious lecturesTest-heavy biologyOpen-note weekly quizzesLittle or no homeworkTextbook and notes essential
  • Students love his humor, energy, and real expertise even when bio content is brutal.
  • ; quizzes/labs and note-taking are the survival path.
  • Online/remote periods if you can.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

HardWork

38/100

An A usually , and mastering quiz questions because exams are content-heavy and low-scoring.

Online terms look even harder for grades; most workable A .

Is the course easy?

Challenging

28/100

Biology volume is large, lectures are dense/fast, and and text.

Both formats call content hard; online amplifies the difficulty.

Is attendance flexible?

Recommended

42/100

Many say attendance is required or that .

In-person strongly rewards presence; .

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

74/100

Most would take him again for engagement and .

In-person recommendations are stronger; .

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Fair

42/100

, but exams stay hard and he rarely hands out mercy .

Format shift

Online graders feel tougher to several students; in-person is strict but transparent if you study lectures.

Workload

Light

58/100

; time instead goes into reading, note-taking, and .

Format shift

and in person; study load is still high.

Teaching experience

Good

78/100

Hilarious, expert lectures with strong student engagement; a minority dislike speed or storytelling style.

Format shift

In-person teaching reputation is high; online delivery suffers from speed and connectivity issues.

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

86/100

the grade, with weekly open-note quizzes and labs as buffers.

Format shift

Online sections also center exams; .

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

45 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

In person he is often called the best bio lecturer—funny, clear emphasis cues, hard but fair if you study lectures and the book.

Main concern

and last-minute cramming fails.

What students said

“Unironically the .”
BIO101A
“ though with an average of 60-75 across the majority of them.”
BIOL-102
“This is the hardest class I have ever taken. I study for 20-40 hours and barley manage a B.”
BIOL101A

Remote format

Online

5 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

fast talk, tech issues, and , though a few still praise engagement.

Main concern

far harder online.

What students said

“ , and .”
BIOL-102
“His online class is terrible. He speaks way too fast and .”
BIOL101A
“BIO-101A is a really hard class, but Dr Barnby is an excellent teacher!”
BIO101A

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Exams are content-heavy with modest averages; quizzes help but .

Hard multiple-choice examsOpen-note lecture quizzesLab practicalsPractice exams sometimes provided

Assessment risk

Strict

36/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

and quiz items; averages often 50–75 and practicals test structure ID.

50-question MC midtermsQuiz questions reappear on testsLab practicalsPractice exams useful
“Tests will have 50 questions, all multiple choice. and .”
BIOL-102
“ for the lab practicals that focused on structure identification.”
BIOL101AB

Online

Online and occasional in-person testing despite online lecture; proctoring software is not clearly named.

Harder online examsOpen-note quizzesIn-person tests reported in one term
“He made the being online which is unfair. His tests are the most difficult things I've done.”
BIOL101A
“ grade, but the labs and ”
BIOL-102

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“Unironically the . Biology is hard and Dr. Barnby's exams typically averaged in the 50s-70s.”

Voice snapshots generated from 50 reviews (5 online, 45 in , and study strategy. Credibility rating: High.

😂 Entertaining Expertise

78/100

“hilarious and smart, but still humble”

🧪 Brutal Exams

36/100

“ though with an average of 60-75 across the majority of them.”

📓 Lecture Notes Are Everything

42/100

“for this class you HAVE to pay attention to his lectures”

👍

74/100

“Professor Barnby is the best choice for BIO101A.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • Very engaging, MUST attend lectures, and
  • He also weaves in jokes and keeps the lectures interesting
  • He talks so fast Eminem could NEVER

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Not an easy A, but I learned so much!
  • , and
  • hard work does NOT pay off in this class

Theme 3

📚 About How to Pass

  • as that is what makes up a good chunk of the tests
  • Read over the textbook BEFORE lecture

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

50

Recent reviews read by the AI

158

Lifetime ratings

87/100

Evidence confidence

Fifty reviews over a long span agree on humor, lecture density, and split.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 576
4 out of 544
3 out of 517
2 out of 512
1 out of 510

Course coverage

BIOL101A12 reviews
BIO13011 reviews
BIOL101AB6 reviews
BIOL-1025 reviews
101A4 reviews
Show 6 more courses
BIO101A4 reviews
BIOT110A3 reviews
BIOL1302 reviews
BIO1 review
BIO1011 review
BIO130A1 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

44 reported outcomes

A range

22

A+ 3 · A 19

B range

12

B+ 2 · B 8 · B- 2

C range

2

C+ 1 · C 1

D range

1

D+ 1

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

7

Drop/Withdrawal 1 · Not sure yet 6