2.8
Quality4.0
Difficulty44%
Would Retake88
Reviews44%
Would Retake
88
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
17
4
16
3
12
2
17
1
26
What Students Say
“My dude can't spell and focuses on some of the easy information rather than harder concepts”
CH171 - 2.0 rating“You get out of it what you put in”
CH171 - 4.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
85%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.08 avg changeRatings by Course
CH172
4.0
(13)CH171
3.5
(28)CH525
2.3
(3)CH373
2.1
(36)BI421
1.6
(8)Difficulty by Course
CH373
4.6
CH172
3.8
BI421
3.8
CH525
3.7
CH171
3.4
Reviews (88)
Students complained he's a bad lecturer, but these students were def not reading the book because that explained everything and he goes over it again in class. He does have a stutter/lisp and he would say the wrong thing and have to correct himself. He's really nice and understanding. Tests were hard but he didnt write them- I ran out of time
My dude can't spell and focuses on some of the easy information rather than harder concepts. For the final exam you will have to teach yourself the last couple of chapters or ask the TF to teach it to you.
I had Blair for Ch171, and while I took it lots of people complained about Blair, and I dont understand why. Blair is knowledgeable, quite caring, and gives very fair tests. If you read the book and attend the lectures, you shouldnt have trouble getting a decent grade. You get out of it what you put in. I got a B+ and I think I gave a B+ effort.
Definitely the chem for people who aren't crazy about chem. He does a good job teaching the material, just don't zone out during lecture and you'll be fine. He explains things well and seems like a nice guy who really cares if the class understands everything. Not the best at answering questions during lecture but small flaw. Great prof.
Blair is awkward, but he really is a nice guy. More importantly, he's a great lecturer. Clean, comprehensive, easy to follow, Blair made chemistry very bearable. I would highly recommend him. Cut him some slack if he seems uncomfortable or corny at first, he's trying his best.
Blair really cares about his students, and is very knowledgable about chemistry, but his lectures were not very easy to follow (he explained things in confusing ways) and there was A LOT of work in this class when you factor in time for discussion, pre lab, lab, and lecture. Doesn't give to much homework, but make sure you do it-helps with tests.
Blair is a nice guy but completely out of touch with reality. He assigns an insane amount of homework, sometimes due the day of exams. We also cover so much material in class. He insists you can't just memorize the material since his tests are application based, but he then gives you large volumes of material to memorize. Don't take this class
Blair is nice and lectures well, giving additional office hours before exams and stops during lecture just to catch questions. However, some material he lectures is not on the slide and you really have to go back and rewatch all the videos and catch every single phrase. He also gives out an insane amount of homework and vague test questions.
Blair is the worst professor I've ever had! Maybe he was ok at lower level chemistry but taking his 373 class is the worst experience of my life. Coming from someone who got A's in the pre-requisites for this class, do not take this class. The exams have nothing to do with lecture. If you have to take him, good luck Charlie.
Blair was a fun professor! He's sweet and kind if you talk to him in OH. I took his class over the summer and found it way easier than gen chem and orgo. However, I have friends who had him in the school year and said his class was very hard. Exams every 3 weeks and admittedly the class is a lot of memorization and studying but yknow it's biochem.
Professor Blair is a very kind person, but a bad professor. We had to skip material because we fell so far behind in the course. In addition, his lack of ability in understanding simple questions makes it difficult for students to understand and clarify concepts. Overall, don't take the course from him if you're interested in taking the MCAT.
I went into this semester excited for this course and boy was I wrong. Blair openly said this class was a competition, and you have 5 tests over the course of the semester, and a ton of homework. His tests are vague and the rubric is specific, and he will mislead you about what to study for the exam. This class also does not prepare you for MCAT.
He's really not as bad as some people are saying. Yes, he did run out of time but he's repeatedly been saying it's his first time teaching in the fall which is why he lost track. He's made it clear that he really wants to do better. The tests are fair if you've studied, unclear SOMETIMES but he's always there to clarify.
Dr. Blair's lectures are super fun but sometimes hard to follow. Be prepared to put in the extra work and you'll do fine.
The amount of work outside class that needs to be done to get a good grade in this class was insane. If you want to pass, make sure you're not taking anything else hard, because this class will consume your semester or you will get lost in the mess that was the class structure. Decent lecturer, but class was poorly structured and unorganized.
Decent lecturer but horrific test maker. Gives extremely vague test questions but grades with specific criteria. The instruction is often misleading and will lead you to believe you got full credit. Does not allow us to challenge his criteria. This class unfairly and intentionally takes away points that students deserve.
Professor Blair does a great job of making biochemistry understandable to his students and focuses on building the tools necessary to approach biochemistry questions and readings. People tend to criticize him because the class is difficult and he gives a lot of relevant assignments but truth is if you put in the time, the class is very manageable.
He's the worst. He's incompetent and cannot teach and even if he tries he explains wrong things so you have to teach yourself everything in the book because he goes over general material in class. the only reason why I got an A- was because I dependent on the book heavily.
Do not take this professor. He asks questions that make no sense on the exam. He will mislead you and his main goal is to make students struggle. He truly does not care about students and he doesn't know the material himself. the questions he asks on the exams are vague and you always get things wrong bc you won't know what exactly he's asking for.
Dr. Blair often comes to class noticeably unprepared and his lectures are very confusing. His tests are very long and confusing. The LAs try to do game nights to prepare for the tests, but Blair doesn't tell them much about the test so it isn't as helpful as it could be. Overall, Blair is a difficult and confusing teacher.
Professor Blair is a pretty average chemistry professor. Although his lectures are good, he often confuses himself which confuses the class. However, he is a genuinely kind professor who tried to help his students as much as possible by being accessible outside of class. Attendance is important as participation of tophat question is graded.
The class gets into a steady rhythm very quickly and you always know what to expect. There are TONS of office hours for him and the TFs and extra office hours for tests. Quizzes are weekly. Get ready to do a lot of homework. It's easy if you get into a rhythm but really hard to catch up. He can be boring, but he's really helpful if you ask for help
One of the worst professors in the Chemistry department. He is the least transparent and most deceiving professor I have ever had. Most people have to take his class but if there is any way to avoid it, do it.
Blair was all over the place this semester. It was super hard to follow and a very unpleasant experience. Get ready to put in waayyy more time than you have in order to understand and do well in this class.
While Blair seems to care about his students learning he is not the best professor in terms of clarity. He often makes mistakes in lecture or is unable to answer questions completely. His exams are always much harder than the practice exams and he might put in content that may seem irrelevant.
Blair makes me grateful for Dill
His class is hard but that's not why he is a terrible educator. Blair is clearly focused on his research, so teaching takes a back seat. In lecture he is condescending, unclear, and unprepared. By nature, CH373 requires tons of work but his assignments are confusing and time-intensive. Very unapproachable professor but does not represent BU chem.
This guy was an absolute nightmare to have as a professor. He was so goofy during class and no one ever laughed at his jokes. Reaching out for help when I was in a depressive episode he told me basically to read the syllabus for help. Not flexible, not understanding, and he gave us the absolute most work for a class being taken during a pandemic.
This man really released our grades on thanksgiving and is just so mean, not understanding and this was the cherry on top.
tone in lecture is extremely condescending and I'm terrified to speak up and ask a question if I have one because he talks down to students or even laughs at them. Not to mention the INSANE exams which are ridiculously long and have extremely specific concepts we have never once talked about in class; you must work at lightning speed just to finish
He can be very vague during lecture, but going to his office hours help. Chem is just a hard class, and he makes tests very difficult and not that similar to the practice test. Overall, if you go to lecture and discussion you should be fine. He is a really nice person and cares about his students.
The professor is super condescending, intimidating, and unapproachable. Exams are extremely difficult compared to the practice exams and what is taught in lecture. Blair is not empathetic or understanding at all even though students are learning biochemistry, an already complex subject, online in the middle of a pandemic
I rely more on the discussion TA's than I do Blair to understand anything in this class. The grading criteria is unnecessarily specific given the vague questions he asks on tests which by the way, look nothing like the practice exams. He doesn't use the full allotted time to take midterms and just seems to not care about how we're in a pandemic
Turns out the group consensus is right. Blair's jerk to students who ask questions. He seems to intentionally leave students underprepared for exams and asks trick questions at every chance (tophat, tests). Very hard to approach Blair because he speaks to students with massive superiority and a clear disdain for teaching in general. Steer clear.
I thought his lectures were great. Too bad no amount of studying lectures/textbook/hw/outside sources will prepare you for his insane exams!! I literally cried my way through the finalso many vague situational/application questions that make no sense, shows us long mechanisms weve never seen before... this class is a gpa wrecker
Blair is a tough professor because he does not enjoy teaching, nor does he do a good job at it. He only tests concepts that he understands himself really well. The only reason I'm giving him a 3 is bc he dropped our lowest exam and gave 7 free points on the final which was clutch af. I mainly studied only for this course and sacrificed others.
Class is hard. Exams are much more different then what you see in cell bio, ochem etc which is what makes the class hard. Lots of application and short answers. Best thing to do is to nail down the objectives and be able to discuss each concept thoroughly. Pace yourself because there's a lot to go through.
Horrible. No curve, very heartless. SPEEDS through slides and doesn't answer questions clearly. Class is graded on so many things that you have to keep up with. Really have to take the time outside of class to study on your own. Throws everything at you at once and expects you to regurgitate in little time. Tests are NOTHING like the practice exam.
i had a very good experience with Dr. Szymczyna. he is always ready to help students and usually gives extra credits for exams. he also dropped the lowest test for my batch. he is very helpful and answers questions. lectures are very good and informative.
The bottom line is that he's a good professor; but, be ready to put in some WORKkk! I spent countless hours doing practice problems and attending office hours. Truthfully, chem is a hard subject and this class covers orgo 1,2, and bio chem. Don't fall behind. After each lecture, do the practice problems and answer course objectives. I believe in u
He's a nice guy and approachable. Biggest thing to keep in mind: CH172 is a lot harder than 171.
Took it during Summer so could be different in fall, but he was not at all like the other 373 reviews are saying. Lectures will prob be more chill in a full sem, and the tests are not fun at all, but HE DOES CARE. Answered tons of questions in class and OH and was pretty chill overall. 373 is a bad course to take but he did make it somewhat easier.
Dr. Blair definitely cares about his students, but his lectures are confusing and tend to over complicate already difficult material. He gets flustered very easily and has a hard time answering basic questions. The tests are also incredibly difficult and the review sheets are practically useless. Dont take this class unless you have to.
OMG, one of the worst professors. He FLIES through slides during lecture and students are visibly stressing out while taking notes. He gets confused over basic questions. Exams are ridiculously difficult. He is a nice guy, but cannot teach. Even if you like chemistry, please don't take this class unless you absolutely must - CH373 is a nightmare.
It seems as though Blair himself doesn't understand the material half the time, and explains concepts much more complicated than they need to be. He is a caring person, and is available for office hours, but that's about his only redeeming quality. Only reason I passed is because I've taken AP Chem, otherwise I would have struggled a lot more.
Professor Blairs lectures were lightning fast, he teaches concepts in ways that he understands them that dont work for all students. His exams were nothing like the practice exams and they were extremely difficult. The grade cutoff ranges are not curved very well, and arent too different from a normal scale. Miserable, dont take unless need to.
Blair is great! although lecture can move fast, he always sets time aside for questions and has 3 office hours every week. he cares about his students. there are not many mandatory assignments, but reading the txtbk and doing txtbk Qs helped me understand the material. gives practice tests for each exam (4 & one final). a tough but rewarding class
As long as you do the practice tests and take decent notes during class you should be good. Blair is available for office hours often however make sure your question is concise for him to help you. Honestly the material was very similar to AP Chem.
Dr. Blair is super compassionate and really does care about his students. He provided generous extra credit and wiggle room with assignments and exams. He tries his best to cover a lot of hard content in general chemistry but sometimes he does rush. Overall a great professor but the class does require a lot of outside studying. Assignments are easy
This is the class nobody takes unless they have to. Blair is actually okay at teaching but speeds through slides in lecture and organizes concepts in kind of a confusing way. He's also terrible at answering questions during class. The tests are super hard and extra credit is hit or miss. Lots of homework but those are basically free points.
Blair is a great professor. 373 was difficult, but largely because of the subject matter being complicated. Blair did his best to simplify concepts and emphasize important ones. His exams were hard but not impossible if you study the slides in a lot of detail and make sure you clearly understand everything he covers in lecture.
I had a really good experience with Blair for both 171 and 172. He offers a lot of support regarding office hours. Super easy to talk to and get questions answered. Orgo is definitely different than regular Chem and a lot heavier on memorization rather than concept based. Blair was the professor I always enjoyed talking to about anything.
obviously cares about his students' success & has many office hours. class is difficult, but fair - he gives lots of practice tests/Qs. sometimes he rushes his slides, but always sets time for questions. he also made many connections from orgo/biochem to the world, which made it more engaging for me!
Blair is never available outside of class. His TAs often did not know what was going on or how to fix issues that arose during lab portions of the class. The night before our final Achieve went down and all the students lost access to the textbook. He did not care, respond to any of the emails from students, and acted as if it was normal/fine.
Literally the most awful professor. Completely unhelpful and useless in all things. Disrespectful to students and impatient
Blair was challenging, but I came out of it with a really strong foundation in biochemistry and it really helped with the MCAT. His exams are tough, but his lectures prepare you well and he gives a lot of partial credit. Once you get used to his exams, studying becomes easier and more natural.
Sometimes goes too fast during lectures and overcomplicates material. Some difficult content and lots of work. Tests are challenging, but quizzes are fairly easy. Stay on top of everything if you want to do well and take the practice exams. He really does want you to succeed and he gives you a strong foundation in chemistry though!
I like the way his classes are set up (sets up PPT and shares it) but poor at explanations when asking questions. Expensive class (have to buy Achieve, TopHat, lab wear, textbook [optional]). Time-consuming course (lecture, lab, discussion, pre-lab). Has a flexible grading system (if u get a C on all exams, u can still get a B in class). Exam heavy
This is actually for CH 525 (not listed). Hardest class I've ever taken by far. Class is poorly run and the exam questions are completely different from what's seen in class. Blair is a nice guy but this class needs a major rework.
CH525 - One of the hardest classes for BMB major. He expects quite a lot from students who probably won't be the best at math/physics. I actually think the exams difficulty are fine (especially couple last one) but they are often too long to be finished in 75 mins. Practice using calculator, keep calm during the exam, and the curve will save you.
Everything is blurry + he gives quizzes at the end of every discussion (1 hour long) and expects you to remember every little detail. I told him I'd be late because my class ends as the class begins and he told me to read the textbook (which is no help for the quizzes.) and still refused to post the discussion content before class. Bad experience
Clear slides shared with students, recorded lectures, clear grading scale, easy to calculate grades through semester. Expensive (Achieve, etc), mandatory Top Hat attendance, unclear lectures. Took chem in HS so class was easy but he overcomplicated stuff. Things like sig figs overexplained but conceptual topics reduced to memorizing rules/patterns
Writing this review for the 421 lab. It sucks. Labs are EXTREMELY unorganized and you WILL be confused on how to do the procedures and the postlabs, guaranteed. Prelab slides are decent at best, sometimes forgets a lot of important information about the experiments and postlabs. Also not the best at explaining in prelab. Go to office hours.
Disorganized and not helpful for students. His curve somehow lowered my grade. Day before our final our online textbook went down and he didn't answer any of the students. Have taken biochem in a masters program since, and it was taught much more effectively.
Dr. Blair is a great prof, especially if you don't have a lot of chem experience (didn't take ap chem in hs). Unfortunately chem as a subject is pretty hard but he does a good job teaching it. The course is very time consuming with the lab, prelab, lecture. It's also a bit expensive, but if you study the material from time to time you'll do fine.
Dr. Blair is a great professor and he encourages questions so that we can truly understand the content we are learning.
Professor Blair is truly the nicest Professor you will work with at BU. Even though his classes and the material in them are challenging and there is a good load of work, Blair genuinely wants all of his students to succeed. If you are struggling, talk to him and he will help you.
Blair is caring, wants everyone to succeed and loves hard-workers, talk to him he knows who attends and cares. Attendance is mandatory, exams are difficult and intellectually challenging because the concepts are difficult, do the worksheets, ask questions, make study groups, ask blair in OH, study the slides and understand the concepts.
Challenging class with tough exams. As seniors, we expect rigor, but Blair's approach seems pointless. Minimal homework graded for completion is ok but unhelpful for exam prep. Discussion worksheets were manageable but far easier than exams. Prefer graded homework for better test preparation. Dr.Tolan would likely teach this class more effectively.
Took the class during the summer, so the course was quite intensive, yet Dr. Blair took the time to answer questions and clarify concepts for both lab and lecture outside of the class times. The exams were straightforward and covered what we went over in class quite fairly. Hard class though.
Blair is a really nice guy with plenty of office hours for you to go to if you need extra help. He's better at answering questions one-on-one rather than in lecture. He curves the final grade and even dropped our lowest test score for both 171 and 172.
Since CH171 and 172 are both "principles" courses none of the content is too in depth, and he does a good job summarizing what you need to know. Exams are fairly frequent but aren't too difficult, and the homework is easy. Blair's lectures are structured well and make topics seem relatively simple. He is also very nice
CH171 really isn't that bad. Go to lectures and do the homework and you will do fine. Blair is a great lecturer and makes the topics much more digestible.
Dr.Blair is the sweetest lecturer, and I genuinely do not know why people give him bad reviews. Blair has his teaching style and provides the funniest "marriage cheating" analogies. He has his way of telling you to shush by asking, "Do we have a question here?" Anyways, I would recommend taking this class with Dr.Blair.
For 171, not as hard as people make him out to be. Teaches concepts in an easy to digest manner using humorous analogies and emphasizes conceptualizing the content through practice problems rather than relying on memorization. Honestly I didn't even use the textbook. I just did all the problems assigned through discussion and hw, and I was fine.
Go to office hours - this is hard course but going to office hours helped me better understand the material
awesome sweet dude! idk why his past reviews are mad evil- the material is inherently a bit difficult to understand in just one lecture so it's not really his fault. there's a lot of elbow room to boost your grade and u gotta pay attention the entire time while he teaches but i found him engaging! just study a lot and you'll pass #TeamBlair
He does not know what he is teaching and it shows in the lecture. I'm not sure if he understands the material, but the fact remains that he cannot explain physical biochemical concepts to save his life. I'm sure he is knowledgeable on other topics, but someone like Prof. Straub would be better at teaching this class. Feels like Gen Chem 2.0...
1. Quizzes are weekly. Do the discussion packets and review the answers and you'll be fine. 2. Actually go to class and do the TopHat questions. 3. Blair is actually really nice and cares about his students. Go to his office hours.
1. 172 is harder than 171. It's very memorization heavy, but there is basically no math. 2. Have a good Gen Chem background. Know your IMFs and hybridization REALLY well. 3. Go to office hours and review your discussion packets and Achieve HWs to study. You'll do fine.
I love Blair, he makes these topics generally digestable in lecture and if you don't understand something he is great and answering person based questions in office hours. I wish he could teach every one of my classes. one homework due every couple weeks and the many tophats for participation make it an easy good grade to get.
Unreasonably difficult.
Dr. Blair is disrespectful, condescending, and unhelpful. His grading rubrics have hidden items so you are bound to get points off on Labwork and he never supports a student but rather works against them. Do not take 421 if you don't have to.
Blair's lab procedures are hard for students understand, it was sometimes (at least not always) blur. He don't give TA answer key timely so that TA have to do office hours without answer keys, which makes answer from TA inconsistent!!!! So that different TA will you different answers. Furthermore, the gradescope grading was unfair...(word limited)
In-person he's great! He explains questions and pre-lab was v helpful for lab. BUT He's a tough grader on post-lab assignments and will take points off for sometimes random things not specified. Mistakes that could be fixed in following post-labs, but they aren't graded in a timely manner. (labs from October haven't been graded and it's the EOS.)
Doesn't provide a rubric, so we never know what he expects from each post-lab. Takes points off for small things that you wouldn't expect. He wants feedback on the course, but is never open to it and gets defensive. TAs are not on the same page about grading criteria, so even if they say it's right, it is usually not, so be aware during postlabs.
Absolutely awful lab course. Blair gives no real guidance and says “you should already know this.” He grades every tiny detail and will deduct in multiple sections for one mistake. I went to TA office hours constantly, but their advice was rarely helpful, and I still lost points for things they specifically told me to do. Ruined my biochem grade.
Extremely dull and unengaging personality, with constant yelling for no clear reason. Biochem post-labs lack real analysis, yet grades depend on guessing what he wants, making effort and understanding irrelevant. Feedback is vague, support is minimal, and it's interesting that both he and the TFs fail to meet basic expectations. Utter waste of time
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
85%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.08 avg changeRatings by Course
CH172
4.0
(13)CH171
3.5
(28)CH525
2.3
(3)CH373
2.1
(36)BI421
1.6
(8)Difficulty by Course
CH373
4.6
CH172
3.8
BI421
3.8
CH525
3.7
CH171
3.4