Below, please give feedback on the course, on the TAs, on the professor, or anything else on your mind concerning BIMM 101, Recombinant DNA Techniques.
Course information
CAPE
100% CAPE participation.
Thank you for your valuable feedback: your comments make UCSD a better school, BIMM101 a better course, and Professor Clark a better professor, for all students who take this class after you.
»Current CAPE response %
»Past BIMM 101 CAPEs
Thank you for your valuable feedback: your comments make UCSD a better school, BIMM101 a better course, and Professor Clark a better professor, for all students who take this class after you.
»Current CAPE response %
»Past BIMM 101 CAPEs
Ho-Yin is a great TA, he did a great job in leading class discussions and helping us through calculations
I agree. I had a good time in lab. The lectures were also helpful and to the point; I feel that Dan covered the important concepts very well.
Ho-Yinh was great. Always willing to help and instruct. Summer camp was fun!
I feel that practice problems during lecture or lab helped to reinforce the concepts. I liked how everyone works together in the lab.
Ho-Yinh was a wonderful, helpful, and knowledgeable TA. Anything I had trouble with he made very clear. Dan has been my favorite instructor thus far. He made the class interesting and is a terrific motivator. I really enjoyed his personalization with the students as well, he knew my name before the 1st week of class, no professor has ever been that quick. It was a great class to take!
Dan is the man. I’m appreciative of the way he conducted the course in that he made an effort to not waste our time.
Dan’s lectures were easy to follow, informative and he made taking a lab in the summer as fun as possible.
Marie was an awesome TA. She took the extra time to make sure everyone knew what they were doing and was easy to talk to.
Thank you both for making this class enjoyable!
This was a great class to take during the summer, and definitely a good note to go out on at UCSD. Dan is honestly the coolest prof I’ve met on campus, and the TAs were no exception either and incredibly knowledgeable. Great experience all around.
Ho-Yin was a fantastic TA! He always made sure you understood the concepts behind what we did in lab. He was patient with all the students and an overall awesome TA.
Dan made this class really enjoyable. His website was way better than webct. (please use something like this in the future for all your classes). Dan was also very approachable and friendly to all the students!
Marie is a great TA, and she made sure that everyone understood what we were doing for that day. She’s very approachable and helpful, always willing to answer my questions even if they seemed quite silly.
Dan is a great instructor, and I loved how he always went over the purpose of each lab. He’s always willing to help his students understand the material better.
Thanks guys!
This class was way less intimidating than I expected. Dan and Marie explained everything well and the lab manual was easy to follow. I also appreciated how it felt like a small class. It was always easy to find help with whatever we needed in lab. Thanks for an enjoyable summer session.
Great professor and TAs, all very helpful, and I liked how we got points for attendance which always got us started on time.
I was a little nervous to be doing lab over summer school since its twice as fast, but Dan and Ho-Yin did an awesome job at explaining everything we were doing, and made it actually enjoyable. I’m glad that Dan actually made us think about the overall picture for what we were doing in lab each day, because that helped tie the overall project together and makes you think about the lab project as a whole, instead of going through the motions of every small step.
This class was definitely amazing. The concept of taking out a gene and putting it in another organism just seems so difficult, but Dan and the TAs really did a good job of explaining ever step we needed to take that made everything much simpler and very enjoyable. I’m very thankful to Marie for just being so detailed and careful with every buffer and reagent we had to use, decreasing the likelihood of us making a mistake. Marie was also nice and approachable, so I felt comfortable asking questions. This class was really fun, even though we had to go to lab everyday. I do not regret taking this.
I thought this class was going to be pretty intimidating judging from the opinions I’ve gotten from friends who have taken the class before. Totally wrong. Dan explained the concepts very well in lecture and made it interesting to learn. Marie is a wonderful TA! She was really helpful in answering questions and making sure we all understood what we were doing before we started the experiments. I like that Marie is always very cautious of all the reagents and “hides” them so that we don’t end up using the wrong ones. Dan and the TAs made this class really fun and I’m glad to have taken it as my last class.
everything was explained fairly well, each lab was explained before and after it was completed to help us understand the concepts behind it, which was very helpful. this was a great class, the TA’s and the prof. took the time to explain the techniques and how they worked, not to mention that class always ended super early, cant hate that!
Dan was a great professor, and he made the concepts very simple and easy to understand. The way he ran the lectures were easy to follow.
Marie was a great TA, she was always ready to help and knew the answers to our questions.
Thank You
Marie showed sincere concern for her students and made sure that each important point was re-emphasized and understood. I appreciated that she made her rounds as we worked to make sure that we knew what was going on and to prevent us from making common mistakes. It was also great that Dan spent a lot of time in lab along with us, aiding in answering the barrage of questions (which is much different from my previous lab courses where the professor would make a weekly visit only).
I enjoyed the pace of this lab as there wasn’t excessive downtime but it also didn’t keep us pressured till 3pm.
Ho-Yin was a great TA. He went over what we do in lab and made sure we understood. Dan’s lectures were nice too! He went over concepts and reviewed the previous lecture/lab. I actually didn’t sleep through the whole lecture like I usually do for labs… I like how we get out early. Most of the classes I’ve had finished just on time or we got out like 5 minutes later or so.
Ho-Yin has been an awesome TA. He does a lot of work before and during class for us to have everything run smoothly and to be able to get out early. His discussions were clear and never had a problem repeating it all if someone did not understand. Review today was helpful as well. thanks to marie for that as well. Dan’s lectures are very straight forward. makes molecular biology seem much easier. i was worried about this class before, since i don’t need to take a tough class as an elective, but i was interested in the topic and getting the lab experience. i feel like i got what i wanted out of this class. so thanks guys.
Marie is a great TA. She makes every lab very interesting and exciting. She would go over important steps and concepts in the beginning or during the lab, which clarified a lot of confusing concepts, and she makes sure that everyone understands. She was patient and understanding in answering questions and correcting mistakes. She is funny and nice. Also, my lab partner thinks she is cute.
Dan is a wonderful professor. I cannot believe that he didn’t teach for many years, because his lectures were very well organized and understandable. The way he uses figures, pictures, and technology is outstanding and modern! Also, he would spend time with students, watching over experiments and answering questions. He was friendly to students, and he even drew a little picture on the board to make it funny for us!!!!!! I really enjoyed his lectures and the course.
Thank you!
Thought this class was seemingly difficult based on the theories of manipulating genes. After taking this class, not only the concepts and theories were easy, I was amazed on how subcloning genes worked. Thanks to Dan and the TA’s Marie and Ho-Yin to take the extra time in assisting and giving us the opportunity to understand the material in such a short session!
Marie: Great TA! She was always so helpful whenever I made mistakes in lab! On a technical note, it was very helpful when she wrote the bare bone protocol+pictures on the board. I caught half of my mistakes by looking at the board and realizing I wasn’t following the instructions!
Dan: There is not much more I can say that hasn’t been said. You were a great professor academically, and you were also very approachable and helpful.
The Course:
1. I liked that there was more of a reward incentive structure rather than a punishment incentive structure…
i.e. bonus points for turning in the report early, rather than negative points for turning in the report late.
i.e. “Points needed to get an A” in the “grade section” makes one think about the addition of points, rather than the subtraction of points.
2. I think the administration needs to be better at publicizing how the course waitlist and enrollment process has been changed.
Oh! Additionally 3. Like the website +twitter… and the random poll/texting feedback at the beginning of class… it was very engaging/interesting to see what people answered.
I really enjoyed class. Dan made every lectures simple, easy to understand and interesting. Also he included extra tips to further improve our lives. I gained a lot more than I expected out of this class.
I thought I would be overwhelmed by amount of work we have to do in such a short time but thanks to Dan, Marie and my lab partner, I was able to understand concepts without any difficulties, and learn basic techniques.
Marie was really nice, she would come around asking if we need any help and she always did what she can to help and make our lab stress free. It was fun talking to her.
Additionally, the website was easy to read and very organized which saved alot of time
thank you !!
Best summer class I’ve taken. Marie was a great TA! She really helped out during the lab and didnt make you feel dumb if you didnt understand how things were working.
The website is very unique and a way better then WebCT.
Dan is a great professor, and even though I couldnt attend lectures (sadly) he always made up for it by helping me understand in lab what I missed in lecture. Thanks for a great quarter!
Ho-Yin was such an amazing TA. He made sure that we understood all the concepts before and after lab. He was really helpful and always walked around to make sure that we were on the right track. Thank you!
Dan was a great professor. His lectures were very clear and organized. Marie was a very helpful TA. Her discussions before each and notes on the board, made the experiments so much easier for us. I enjoyed this class.
This was one of my favorite labs, Marie and Dan were so approachable, and the students were fun and helpful. I loved how Dan would always refer back to the big-picture of things, it really helped in organizing everything we learned in an easy and memorable way. Lastly, I thought this website was great; besides looking good, it was easy and organized, with little to no problems when compared to the alternative, WebCT, and the best was that it was updated frequently.
By far the best run and most interesting lab I’ve taken.
Marie was always patient and willing to help. She was a great TA!
Dan was also very helpful and willing to explain anything we asked.him.
Great TA, great professor, great class!!
Ho-Yin was one of the best TA’s I have had during my stay at UCSD. He’s very knowledgeable of all of the course material, extremely patient, and overall a very friendly TA. He has made this summer course undoubtedly less stressful and more enjoyable than anticipated.
Dan was also a very helpful and knowledgeable professor. As a new prof, he was very organized in both lecture and the course website. His powerpoint lecture slides were concise and easy to follow and the reiteration of how a specific lab day’s work fit in to the overall ‘big picture’ was very helpful. It was very apparent, unlike other professors, that he is truly dedicated to teaching and helping students understand the material for future use. He is friendly and approachable and will be a great professor for future BIMM101 students.
Many thanks to you both!!!
If someone had not told me this was the first time Dan taught this course, I would have assumed he had taught this course at least 10 times. I admire how well Dan conducted every lecture and was always present during lab and available for any pressing questions. I’ve experienced in past lab courses, the professor does not frequently monitor the students in lab, whereas our exceptional BIMM101 professor, Dan, cannot be found absent a single day of this summer session. It speaks volumes about his dedication and willingness to educate the his students. As for my TA, Ho-Yin, i have nothing but praise for this individual. He has a bright future ahead of him, and i wish him the best of luck in dental school. Overall, this class has made my first experience with UCSD summer school, a memorable one because of the people I have met, worked with, and learned from. Thank you all.
This summer lab class has been a great experience. Prof. Clark has been extremely helpful, approachable and my image of what a lab professor should be like. Ho-Yin has been a great TA, always willing to lend a helping hand or listen to any question one might have and his presence made this lab much easier and more enjoyable. Thanks for everything guys!
Bimm101 coursework does a great job of dissecting the theoretical lessons and giving me the practical understanding in recombinant DNA techniques. And by far, this lab class has the most dedicated and awesome TA I have ever had at UCSD. I’m glad I took this class.
I really enjoyed all the input the TA’s would give us and the course load wasn’t overwhelming for a summer class
Course and Ho-Yin were great. The site was very easy to navigate and much better than WebCT. Ho-yin knew his material and taught it extremely well.
This was one of my favorite lab classes at UCSD and it was a very good experience. I would recommend this class to my fellow classmates.
Dan was really friendly, helpful, and approachable. The website was very helpful as well since everything was posted in a very organized manner.
Marie was very patient, organized, and would help us out a lot with any questions we would have. The drawings she put on the board was also very helpful because I was able to catch a lot of my mistakes before doing the experiments.
I really enjoyed all the experiments we did, how ever i thought the courseload wasnot enough, we could have added more experiments, or we could have expanded some of the experimetns, for example instead of using CASE IT program to figure out which fragment, we could have done the digestions and hyperdisations on our own…..and figure out which fragments is the right fragment.
I very much enjoyed this course and being dans guinea pigs! I will never forget this opportunity of having such a great professor who really
cares for his students. Marie was thee best and sweetest TA ever. Best last lab, hands down.
Going into this class I did not know what to expect because I had previously heard that the material of the course was somewhat monotonous. But after attending Dan’s lectures I have decided on the complete opposite. Dan presented the lecture material not only in a methodical but also a very engaging manner. I am not a morning person and the fact that I actually went to class shows that I did in fact enjoy it. To top it all off Ho-Yin was one of the most organized TA’s I’ve ever had and because of him I was never lost in lab. I give this class a two thumbs up!
Considering this is the last class I need to complete my undergraduate studies, I came into the course expecting to simply want it to be over with. However, I now consider this course one of the most enjoyable and fulfilling courses I’ve taken at UCSD. Dr. Clark did a phenomenal job at providing me with excellent strategies that allowed me to visualize everything that we were required to do in lab, rather than blindly following protocol. He was always very prompt with email responses and went far beyond my expectations when answering my questions. In comparison to all the professors I’ve had throughout the years, he’s quite the most approachable and friendliest of them all. Type of guy you want to have a beer with while discussing biology! =D
Marie has proven to be one of the most informative and helpful TA’s I’ve come across. She always remained patient with all the students and was incredibly helpful whenever a student needed help. It’s obvious that she enjoys what she does, and I wish her the best in her upcoming graduate school studies.
Oh yea, and Dr. Clark likes lolcatz. Best sense of humor ever, imo.
I think this class was just the perfect end to my four years in UCSD (I’m sure that’s the case for many of you). Dan was a great professor who with his down-to-earth attitude made it very easy to approach him. His lectures were very concise and easy to follow through which helped me from getting lost during lab. It’s professors like him who genuinely care for how their students do, that motivate you to work even harder in their class.
Ho-Yin was a very helpful TA who was always very prompt in replying back to emails. I really appreciate the way he summarized the procedures and concepts before starting the lab so we knew exactly what we were doing.
Thank you Dan, Marie and Ho-Yin!
I feel that i was very fortunate to procrastinate enough to take this lab during the summer where i was able to learn from a very helpful professor and TAs. But most importantly got to enjoy the company of good people.
I really liked how in touch with modern technology Professor Clark was. Having this website specifically for the class was far more useful than anything I’ve seen on WebCT. It was also refreshing how easy it was to talk to both Professor Clark and Ho-Yin about a question in lab. Finally, I especially enjoyed how we were always focused on the overall picture in Labs 2-13. This made understanding the individual steps easier.
Ho-yin is great as a TA, I really appreciated the approachability of professor Clark and the TAs, it really makes a difference.
Dan’s up to date technological savvy and ability to relate to the students also made the whole course much more enjoyable and accessible.
all in all a good experience for the last class of my undergraduate lab. the class itself was useful. the other biology lab i opted to take was mammalian physiology lab, which provides a skill set very specific to macro biology labs. on the other hand, this lab provides skills that are very useful in general biology, as they pertain to biology on the microscopic level.
the TAs were both helpful and friendly, and made staying in school for the summer pass by smoothly. professor clark was a great professor as well. he was very helpful and down to earth, and didn’t mind getting “into the lab” with the students. he was also tech savvy as well, which helped a lot in terms making everything readily assessable.