2.4
Quality3.9
DifficultyN/A
Would Retake99
ReviewsN/A
Would Retake
99
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
99 total ratings5
11
4
13
3
21
2
29
1
25
What Students Say
“0/10 would not recommend”
CHEM1040 - 2.0 rating“He puts clicker questions on them as well so make sure to write them down during class”
CHEM2030 - 5.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
43%
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.26 avg changeRatings by Course
CHEM000
5.0
(1)BIOCHEM602
5.0
(1)CHEM602
5.0
(1)BIO603
5.0
(1)CHEM206
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
CHEM000
5.0
CHEM104
5.0
CHEM106
5.0
CHEM111
5.0
CHEM1081
5.0
Reviews (98)
He doesn't teach. He just prattles on about how bad our American high school chemistry educations were. 90 minute class periods were filled with about 15 minutes of actual material and 75 minutes on what poor students we all are.
No Comments
I actually loved this guy. I didn't learn much from him, but he was so nice and cute.
Boring, and the tests are unbarable, some dull humor about how american colleges suck, and that he studied in the same place as some great chemists. Best quote "There is no partial credit because there cannot be partial DOCTORS" DONT TAKE HIM
NO PARTIAL CREDIT!!!!!!! However, he makes up for it with an extremely nice curve and pretty easy tests. However, his class talks can be on the boring side and the no partial credit will anger most.
These are exagerrations. He does claim our education system isn't the best, but then moves on. He has prewritten notes and a thick Swiss accent. No partial credit doesn't matter since the whole class is curved anyway, but it still hurts your confidence
No Comments
No Comments
Took him for 2 quarters and didn't have any problems. He doesn't do partial credit in 101, but that is to teach you discipline and to not make silly mistakes. I thought his tests were fair and his curve was extremely generous. With a decent amount of effort it was easy to get an A or a B.
Thick Swiss accent for sure, Grading scale is helpull. but TA's are HORRIBLE witha capital H!!! Lectures are kinda boring being at 8am
His grading curve is pretty awesome, he tries to give only 1 or 2 A's. So the tests are extremely hard, but are fairly graded. lectures are kinda boring and he spends a good deal of time asking students questions no one can answer, my advice is to spend your time checkin out hot classmates.
There is no partial credit! this guy is really stingy with A's.If you are a freshman and taking this class BEWARE for he will hurt your confidence in chemistry. His tests are really hard no matter how hard u study but def can learn something from it
Very charming, handsome older gentleman. Very interested in discussing current events and new scientific technologies going on in research. This guy deserves an A+ for interest and knowledge.
not a good professor. he doesn't speak very clearly and expects a lot from his students
No Comments
The worst professor I’ve ever had. You won’t have any idea what’s going to be on the exam even if you study hard, go to every lecture. His final is super hard. I guess he expects everyone to be a chemistry major graduate student. Avoid him if you can.
Really good teacher. Simplifies the massive amounts of material in the book. The tests are fair and cover a lot of material. If you study, you'll get a good grade.
Bobst is a really cool guy. He does not spoon feed material to you. Some may consider this a flaw, but its an honest introduction to college. You have to be patient with yourself if you have trouble, but know that you are the one responsible for succeeding in college classes. Wait til you take physics and you'll thank Bobst for helping you mature
He knows everything he is doing, but has trouble conveying it. The TAs were HORRIBLE. Maybe it was a combination of the two (prof and TA), but I don't think anyone had any clue what was going to be on the test. Very unorganized, but overall, he is not too bad. Beats Thayer.
Friend was told she was "wasting his time" out of a class of nearly 300 engineers and second class nearly the same size, there was ONE "A" 12 "B's and only a few C's an entire class was devoted to explaining how to fill out a drop sheet. Also, he never figured out how to use the projector (used the trancparency setting for papers)
DO NOT TAKE! I would take Thayer over him! He told me grad schol wouldn't take people like me when I was confused and went to him for help. Told me I was wasting his time as well. His writing is horrible and his accent is bad. I CAN'T STAND THIS MAN!
Powerpoints and written over head make up the majority of the class. Grading is difficult sometimes (sig figs and units). I really didn't think the exam was a great representation of the material covered over the quarter. TA was a help.
A difficult prof, but overall he's okay. It's all in the PowerPoint presentations and overheads, and his writing is hard to read. The grading is rough because one "little" mistake can cost you a large amount of points, but there's a pretty generous curve at the end which will help you out. Do the problems he assigns in the text and that will help.
No Comments
Excellent Upper Level Teacher. Focuses on newer technologies related to material. Sprinkles in complaining about making fun of how freshmen can't learn chemistry (which is true) making class a lot more enjoyable. Not his fault that people don't study like they should.
He is a terrible teacher. His tests are ridiculous and don't test your knowledge very well. I had to drop his class but I am now getting an A in Dr. Thayers class. If you are new to chemistry, take Thayer, avoid Bobst.
Pretty tough course, but if you study the material from the book and powerpoints you should be fine. Grading is harsh, but the curve is very generous. The TA's help out a lot. Powerpoints are useful, but the book material is better to understand to do well on test.
he talks to much about things not related to the test. its hard to understand his accent and his writing. the tests are beasts and the average is almost always an f
I would have to agree he lectures a lot with things not related to what you'll be tested on. His tests aren't easy, but the average is always a B-. TA Heather really helped out understanding, and you HAVE to read the book when he puts up his own hand-written notes. He goes too fast and can't read them. Powerpoints normall help a lot otherwise.
He was possibly the worst prof I've ever had. I had no idea what he was saying and his lectures were boring. I'm usually a very good student and I had no idea what was going on in this class. DO NO TAKE HIS CLASS!
Listen up all, here is what you need to know. If chem is you thing/passion he is the most intellingent/ knowledgeable chemist out there, with loads of publications. Take him and you will learn. If you are forced to take a lower level chem course by your academic program, and want to just sail, take someone else. If your stuck with him, STUDY!!
This man is crazy. I consider myself a very good student and REALLY struggled in this class. DONT TAKE IF YOU DONT HAVE TO. lectures are mandatory if you want him to give you a better grade, tests are ridiculous and are nothing like what he says, weekly quizzes arent like exams because he doesnt make the quizzes. to sum it up: his class = death.
Trivial, trivial, trivial.... if i HEAR THE WORD TRIVIAL ONE MORE TIME IM GONNA GO CRAZY! eVERYTHING IS EASY FOR HIM AND HIS TAS! He wears the same brown jacket everyday! His test are horrible (lowest grade on our first exam was a 4!) Quizzes are hard and class consists of Albert and Rudy talking about how things were in the old days (the 1920's).
Do the problems in the book and you should be fine. He checks attendance occasionally but it is not required. Many people do not like him but he is not as bad as many people say.
I do not think his class is as dull as you guys said. I think it is Ok and I can get almost 100 in the exam, and all my quizs was over 16. It is not hard at all if you do the exercises in the book, all the important things and notes are based on the book so you do not have to attend. The most serious problem is 8 AM!
Very knowledgeable about his field, unfortunately if you don't share his passion you're probably going to struggle. Stay far far away if you're a casual student just looking to score the easy grade, he will make you work for every last point.
bad...boring
You can tell most of the comments for this professor are from coddled freshmen who think they're still in high school. As a junior taking this course as a med school requirement, this prof knows his stuff and isn't afraid to have high standards.
not helpful when u have questions
he is very smart but not very good at teaching freshman chem. it is too basic for him
I felt that he was a good professor that was passionate about teaching chemistry. Though it was a hard class, he still gives you plenty of points to make up for bad grades. Very far and friendly.
The professor really knows his material. He is not very helpful if you ask questions but the T.A.'s can hopefully help. The exams are very straight forward however hard and but the curve is large.
I've heard horror stories about him and was freaked to take his class this quarter. But when it came down to it, I think it depends which course your taking of his. I took BIOCHEM with Bobst and he was a pretty ok teacher. Not the most interesting classes but by the end you understood the material and if you try, will come out with a decent grade.
Bottom line: chem 101 is just too basic for this guy. He spends about 10 seconds per slide, and flies through tough material with the word "trivial." Just do the problems in the book and talk to your TAs or SI leaders cause they can really help out and also help determine the curve you get at the end of the quarter, which is usually massive!
RUN!!! If you have to resort to scheduling a class with bobst, don't! Switch your major if you have to, just don't do it! It's not worth the pain!!!
I feel bad rating professors poorly, but I can't help it. May be the worst professor I've had. got A's in adv. chem class in high school, but he made easy chemistry so hard. He DID know his material very well, he just didn't explain anything. We basically had to figure everything out from reading the book and if you still didn't get it, good luck.
I agree with several of the reviews on here. Do not take this course with him if you can avoid it. Chemistry is already a hard enough subject, but him not teaching makes it even harder. You basically have to read the book and try to figure it out on your own.
I tink its what the students make it to be...i was sick and missed more class than i was able to show up too and because of beig sick i failed my first 2 exams and yet somehow made it out of the class with a C-! not my best grade but its passing and the reason i got that is because he curves like crazy at the end. he is great!!!
Avoid at all costs. Will just tell you to drop the class when you ask questions, and end up with a decent grade. You teach yourself from the book, and by putting in effort at SI sessions. He's difficult to understand. He thinks everyone has a good background in chemistry. AVOID AVOID AVOID.
If you can aviod taking him, do so at all cost. While he may know chemistry very well, it is of no help to you. He reads directly from the book and expects you to get everything on your own. His lecture is so boring and so mundane, but you have to go because you NEED the PRS points. He also makes you do ARIS homework for each chapter.
Material on test mostly is not covered in class. Everything basically is learn-on-your-own or dont learn at all. Expects students to fail..SAID IN CLASS. Then after the exam, stated we met his expectations, class average=50/100. Then everything is fine because a massive curve is given. Why not just test on material students know so they can learn?
Overall class was useless, teach yourself from the book. Tests are decent if you studied. Great curve at the end though. If you manage to get an old test studied straight from it, the only difference between your test and the old one are the numbers are different for the problems maybe.
He's very intelligent & loves chemistry, but isn't very good at passing it on. A lot of class time (at least 10 minutes/day) was wasted on him telling us not to procrastinate on online homework & such. You'll do well if you've already had high school chem, but if not, hope you have a good TA. Offers easy in-class points & a huge curve at the end.
This class is challenging in a good way, and a good grade is definitely possible. YOU HAVE TO WORK! He won't babysit you, but his grading is more than fair. GO TO CLASS! The PRS points make a huge difference and Dr. Bobst learns everyone's name. The curve will be huge, but it's not until the end of the quarter. Also, get to know your TA!!!
If your not interested in learning Chem don't take this class. He is tough but he forces you to learn the material to a level of expert. Very good class if your a chem major. He is hilarious. One thing I noticed is that people who did not do the ARIS on their own had trouble. Do the Aris on your own, it makes all the difference.
I feel bad writing a bad review of Dr. Bobst, because he is such a nice guy. However, I recommend that you avoid taking his class if at all possible. He does not go over topics very well. Instead, he flies through slides saying "whatever" or that the information is "trivial." He expects you to learn from the book, instead of from his lectures.
Lectures are useless, but he tells you what to focus on. ARIS IS EXTREMELY important! Get PRS points and make sure to try your best for recitation quizzes they are easy points.
Not always completely clear during class, but if you go to class, do your ARIS homework, go to recitation, and read over everything at least once a week then you should be fine. Also, Dr. Bobst is a pretty funny guy.
I have had Bobst now for a little over a years worth of classes. He is one of my favorite teachers. All of those giving negative reviews obviously do not try to read or memorize anything. An A is completely possible if you just TRY. He is much easier than other chemistry professors but you still have to learn. This is what you're in college for.
Great professor, enjoyed lectures. He gets a bad rap for making his tests hard and curving at the end, but I think it makes you learn the material.
he expects you to learn everything from reading the book. not very organized
I also had Bobst for Chem 101. I definitely prefer him in the smaller setting of Bio-Org. There's a lot of bookwork on your own. You have to kinda teach yourself. His lectures are very basic and he'll get sidetracked. But he's a really nice guy. He's interested in his students and talks to them a lot. He has a swiss accent, but you get used to it.
Pretty unhelpful. Swiss accent nearly incomprenhensible. Does little to motivate students or facilitate learning. Gets sidetracked easily, somehow randomly digressing to such topics as English tea when talking about solubility. TAs are not very helpful or particularly skilled in chem. To succeed, study on your own and have tremendous patience.
Took a couple weeks to understand his accent. The subject material honestly isn't hard if you study a bit; but you won't learn anything from Bobst. I got a B and I didn't really do much. Do the ARIS hw and come to class for PRS points. He'll put you to sleep for sure though. Recitation is worth a lot too, study for those quizzes.
He's a pretty bad lecturer, but if you tend to study independently you'll do well since the material is the same. On the plus side, he has a very generous grading scale with an 88 as an A and 82 as the minimum for A-. He also counts PRS clicker questions and ARIS online questions as a grade unlike other teachers, which are grade boosters.
terrible. does not care about his students whatsoever. don't expect to learn anything from him as he spends most of his lectures talking about doing homework and telling students to read the book.
Bobst is difficult to understand, dry, and is almost always off topic. He spends the first ten minutes of class talking about how we should be doing homework instead of teaching us the lecture, and usually ends up giving more of a history of chemistry lesson instead of a chem 102 lesson. His notes are often written in chicken scratch.
I enjoyed having Dr. Bobst as my professor. Although he didn't really teach the material he showed genuine interest in our learning it, and encouraged us to learn on our own as well. His accent isn't really problematic, and he has an extremely generous curve.
Must sit up front to hear in class. Plan on learning on your own. But cool guy.
Dr. Bobst is inspiring for how much he knows about biochemistry. Must attend lectures to earn PRS points. Allows you to drop your two lowest quiz scores. Exams are the PRS questions. Memorize those and you'll be fine. Overall, Bobst is a good guy, keeps you interested, and is very laid back.
He tells you how to cheat. But "if you cheat, you're cheating yourself"
Lecture of 500, overall not bad professor. Although much of the exam material is only covered in the supplemental instruction.
Horribe class! If you need to take Chemistry at uc I'd do it at a branch campus otherwise you will basically have teach yourself. He told us he doesn't really care what grades you get he's just there for research.
He is so funny when we are in class with his sidekick Rudy. They really do care if you learn so if you want to learn, you will, but if you play angry birds during class, you probably wont learn.
Lectures were irrelevant and unrelated. He insulted the class for doing poorly on the exams while he didn't actually teach anything. In class demonstrations were humorous. Learned everything in SI sessions and during Recitation. Prepare to learn from the book as well. Study those book problems, they really help with the exams.
gives notes really fast, has a thick swiss accent makes him hard to understand, says things make sense a lot without explaining why, READ THE BOOK
Don't take his class unless you have excellent hearing, and are willing to dedicate your life towards chemistry. Even though he uses a microphone, it's impossible to hear him with his accent. Attendance isn't mandatory, but I'd go to all of the lectures and pay attention if you want a chance at surviving this class.
Besides PRS points, lectures are completely useless, if you can pay attention that is. You're going to end up learning the material on your own (youtube is an amazing resource!). If you work hard you'll be fine, there is a very generous curve also.
be prepared to go to every SI possible in order to get a "decent" grade on exams. lectures do nearly nothing to help you understand the topics. most topics barely discussed at all and if they are in very little detail. be prepared to get a lot of outside help and a lot of extra time studying.
This guy cannot teach. He down talks engineers about 50 times during each lecture, brings a guy named Rudy in for experiments who can't work a simple iPad, and he says "NUMBER CRUNCHING!" way too much. Don't take this class with him, you learn nothing.
He was awful! He tells you not to read the book but expects you to know everything he is going to teach you. He also expects you to know organic chem even though you're a freshman. DON'T TAKE HIM!
Make sure you take a night class so you can play drinking games... anytime he hates on engineers, tells you "not to just do the memorization," says "number crunching!". If you ever miss an exam (I overslept once) email him RIGHT afterwards and he will probably let you make it up. Too late, and he won't.
Not the best professor by any means, but if you read the chapters and understand main concepts you will be just fine. He will babble on about random things, hard to understand and is not helpful at all. It's hard to stay focused in his class, but bring the text and try to be engaged. Good Luck!
I would not recommend Bobst for anybody. He usually rambles on about how he did science in the 70's for about the first 30 minutes of class asking the class questions that nobody born in the 80's or 90's would ever know and then test you over the smallest detail of chemistry.
The professor was not very clear during lectures, fortunately, the TAs and SIs for this class are extremely helpful.
He is truly not as bad as these comments... he rambles a lot about nothing, and asks you minor details about things that may not matter so much. If you go to class, take notes, do well on the clicker questions and quizes you will be more than fine. Biochem sucks no matter who is teaching it... an 83% is an A-. It's not impossible.
Bobst is passionate both about chemistry and his students. These passions come together to make a great professor! In a class of 300, Bobst knew my name and my exact score on our last exam FROM MEMORY. I don't think this was everyone's experience, however if you show that you're a serious student, it very possibly could be. Thought I should share.
Bobst is a very friendly teacher. I really enjoyed his enthusiasm for the course (even though is a biology lover). Kinda has a thick accent, but it isnt too hard to comprehend. He doesnt do so well teaching but its hard in a 300 class. Office hours are helpful, but RE is the best time to learn. Must put effort or have prior knowledge.
his tests are insanely hard. I took Chem in high school and it didn't help at all compared to this class.
Bad teacher, wouldn't recommend.
You basically had to already know anything and everything there is to know about chemistry or be willing to go to SI sessions and tutoring quite often. His lectures are slides of tablesfigures straight from the book so there really is no insight given. The only reason to go to lecture is for clicker points. At least for me, it was a ton of work.
Does not go into detail at all in lecture when going over problems in class. homeworks are hard and tedious. you practically teach yourself chemistry
It may seem like a lot of information thrown at you, but when it comes to exams you'll know exactly what to expect. He puts clicker questions on them as well so make sure to write them down during class. He's super laidbackfunny and doesn't try to trick you with hard questions. If you put in the work he's more likely to boost your grade at the end
Honestly if you pay attention in class you are in good shape. Be prepared for clicker questions daily, which make up a percentage of your grade. He might even give extra credit clicker points if you are lucky.
Can never understand him, ever. Going to class gets you nowhere except for clicker points.
Gives clicker questions but makes no effort to explain the correct answer when more than half the class misses them. Powerpoint in lecture comes straight from tables and definitions in the book so not helpful at all. 0/10 would not recommend.
He knows his stuff and can be funny, but he acts like we should have all taken AP chem and this is just a refresher course. Just reads straight through his notes. Homeworks are very timeconsuming but worth a minute amount of points. Has clicker questions but rarely explains the correct answer even when more than half the class gets them wrong.
My least favorite teacher ever.
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
43%
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.26 avg changeRatings by Course
CHEM000
5.0
(1)BIOCHEM602
5.0
(1)CHEM602
5.0
(1)BIO603
5.0
(1)CHEM206
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
CHEM000
5.0
CHEM104
5.0
CHEM106
5.0
CHEM111
5.0
CHEM1081
5.0