3.7
Quality3.9
Difficulty80%
Would Retake135
Reviews80%
Would Retake
135
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
50
4
42
3
25
2
10
1
8
What Students Say
“He makes a very tough subject seem a little more manageable”
CHEM3570 - 4.0 rating“Or he will be pretty mean to you”
CHEM3570 - 5.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
22%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.18 avg changeRatings by Course
CHM3570
5.0
(1)357
4.7
(3)CHEM359
4.5
(4)ORGO
4.5
(2)CHEM3590
4.5
(4)Difficulty by Course
CHEM106
5.0
CHEM208
5.0
CHEMCHEM
5.0
357
4.0
CHM3570
4.0
Reviews (135)
Challenging, but wants students to succeed. Likes trick questions on exams.
No Comments
hard class...hard tests... but very helpful with questions and in office hours
Tests are real tough, Don't mess up the first one, it's the easiest of the smstr
First test is the kicker; decent overall; weird sense of humor
No Comments
No Comments
Devoted professor and chemist. A jerk in office hours, I hear, though.
He is a hot bald man who looks like a troll, likes to give motivational speeches, hard but very fair tests, excellent lecturer
Hates students, wants to them fail, or seems that way, encourages questions, then gives you lectures about being an adult when you ask them, discourages all who are pre-med, but is a very good lecturer
Ganem was an awesome prof it you weren't smart enough to figure out his tests that's your problem.
Tests seem real hard when you take them but the simple after you know the answers. He likes concepts, not memorization so that's cool. And considering the low fun factor of organic chemistry, his lectures are pretty bearable as he is so energetic
Good teacher. Actually made Orgo easy.
Good teacher. Some students think he's a jerk, but I never got that impression. Lectures are very clear. Responds quickly to emails, and helpful at office hours.
dr. gamen is hands down the best organic chem. prof. that i have ever heard of, and that is coming from someone who got rolled out of o-chem b/c it was just too hard for me
hard tests, but fair i guess
Bruce Ganem is the greatest professor that chemistry has ever seen.
Dr. Ganem is brilliant, and gives very clear, organized lectures, but his attitude is poor. He brought a box of kleenex to the final exam, and passed it around before the exam itself was distributed, saying we would need them since the exam is so hard.
Good Lectures, Clear, Structured. Tests are fair and if you know your material, you can ace orgo. :-)
Very good lecturer. Also has a nice balding pattern.
He is the man Cornell hired to crush the aspirations of dreamy pre-meds. Even outside the characterization of a tyrannical orgo professor, he is malicious and harbors a massive amount resentment. As per lectures and exams, he is deadly clear. Give him
Businesslike air during lectures. He'll try to crush you with his exams.
you spoiled fall 03 fools don't know anything, wait til you see prelim 3
helpful lecture notes but he will but he will definitely run you over on the exam. he will also make you inferior for asking questions
This class is impossible. But we're not taking it because we want to...so I guess we have to stick with it. Dr. Ganem is a really good lecturer though.
Wonderful teacher. Explains concepts very clearly, but is condescending when you ask questions in office hours.
he made the exams ridiculously hard, and they were unfair since there is no partial credit. i do not like this man at all.
he was a great lecturer...although i was not a fan of orgo, he made it as fun as possible and made sure i learned a lot. very helpful whe ni went to his office hours.
Excellent lectures - great speaker. His tests are clearly written and fair. There's a good balance of material so that you can do fine if you don't get it, but you're still challenged if you do.
I took the class nearly 15 years ago. I still consider it one of the best taught classes I ever took at Cornell. I am a professor now and still admire the clarity of his lectures.
he is a great lecturer, but I've heard he can be a jerk in office hours. stick to the tas if you have questions. it's a hard class, but he does a good job.
Not very interesting
No Comments
His lectures are outlines of the book-- completely unnecessary. I don't even know what the guy looks like because you don't need to go to class. Just read the book.
He was extremely unhelpful in office hours and was derogatory to students not only in the office but in class as well, often making comments such as, "what, are you dumb?" Also, the problem sets were in no way related to the prelims and wer
Lectures are completely useless. I went to 0.5 lectures, yes, i left halfway during the first lecture, just read the book and pulled off an A+ in the class. But i did read the book and knew my stuff. Anything in lecture is vague and must read the book to do any of the problems on the prelim. overrat
Orgo is a terrible experience.
His lectures are quite useless, and his pre-lims don't cover what he says they will. He's a jerk in office hours.
bruce dominates; i think he might be the smartest prof. at the university. like his attitude or no (you probably won't), but i think it's hot when a prof. knows his**** forwards and backwards...that is bruce. the hardest "c" i ever worked for, and i'm damn proud of it
Not a hard class, but it's helpful if you go. Prelim wasn't hard, but it woulda helped if I didnt cram last second. Study maybe a week in advance, and you'll be okay. Orgo's not as bad as its rep.
best chemistry teacher i've ever had. go ganem
not a great professor..lectures are unclear/boring, you'll learn it from the book or not at all. i didn't like him in office hours, he was just a jerk. there is no need to be an ass when someone comes to you for help. cornell's seen better, in my opinion...
If you keep up with the readings the lectures will be a clear and useful summary of what's in the textbook. Otherwise, they won't teach you everything you need to know. The textbook is excellent, and I found myself learning all of the material from it. Ganem obviously knows his stuff, but it's impossible for him to go over every detail in 50 min
Read the book before you go to lectures and before you you the prelim! Exams are not that hard if you have read the book and understood his lectures. This course uses one of the best organic chemisty books. Go Ganem and Loudon!
Organic Chemistry. The material is not easy, but the book is very clear. I learned all the material from the book. I didn't really use the lectures. I now realize that if I read everything before going to lectures I would have done a lot better. So prepare for lectures. Also go to the "00" class, or maybe just their office hours - very helpful!
Lectures are pretty clear though you do have to concentrate to follow them by the end of the semester. Book is very good, but definitely a class where you need to keep up and study hard- you really get out what you put in, grade-wise. It's quite possible to do well- you just have to work hard for it.
His lectures are pretty clear but I hated his multiple choice tests. It's hard to know what he wants to focus on for the tests so I suggest studying everything well. Try doing the problems in the book; it's a lot of work, but worth it.
best chemistry class i have taken at cornell.the lectures are very clear and follow the book. read the book before going to class. ALOT of material to take in. Do the problem sets and go to "00" office hours. exams are not hard if you have read the stuff and done the problems.very clear lecturer and well organized. never gives doubtful answers.
This professor is very cool, tests are exactly what you expect/prepare for. Somehow makes this mind-numbing subject interesting.
one of the most organized and clearest leactureers i have come accross. I learned ALOT from his class. tests are harder than chem 358, but not inmpossible. regualar work is needed. go to his office hours. never gives doubtful answers. if you ask hinm what needs to be focused on, he is very clear on telling you YES or NO.
The tests were wayyy too difficult. He is pretty fake. At first he seems friendly, but he really isn't. Lectures are okay. Unfair sometimes.
He is an okay professor. Seems friendly, but watch out he can get pretty mean during office hours. His prelims had too many questions that had no partial credit. Much more harder than general chem.
He is an excellent lecturer. Overall his class was good, but I would not go to his office hours. He was slightly mean, but other than that great course.
He seems friendly enough, a good lecturer. His first test is not too difficult at all, but watch out for the 2nd and 3rd. He did nothing for my interest in the subject, I still dislike orgo, though. I've been to office hours, he hasn't been a jerk to me, but he does expect us to be geniuses.
Ganem's an excellent lecturer, but he's a pretty fake guy. He gives off the impression in class of being nice and caring, but if you get to know him in office hours you'll see hes pretty much a creep. He makes you feel like an idiot when you ask a question and like you're wasting his time. Go to TA office hours instead and you'll be fine.
Lectures are pointless...All the material comes from the textbook. First and second prelims are not bad. Third is rediculous. Does not believe in partial credit-thus either get everything right, or get a bad grade. Not allowed to make mistakes on tests, expects you to be a genius.
Horrible professor. Was snide and clever during the first day of class which made me dislike him instantly. His fake personality and the mean stories i heard about him just made me do even worse in the subject. If you can get over his stupid personality and find SOME interest in the subject, then you'll do fine. Absolutely hated the class.
i never really do reviews, but ganem deserves one. Took 357 with him, made organic chem 100x better than what it's known to be. brilliant lecturer, clearer than the light of day, and engaging. Went to office hours before prelims...never made people feel like an idiot. He was always trying to help.
Not bad. I didn't find Ganem to be as cold and heartless as people paintt him, but the material of the course is hard, although he does try to make it easier in some ways. Not easy, but not how the rumors paint him (although the averages of the class ARE pretty low sometimes).
Anyone who talks bad about Ganem probably got a bad grade in his class and is blaming him for their mistakes. Ganem is a stellar teacher. You really must put the time in if you want to do well though. I MISS BRUCE IN 358!
He has dry humor and is boring! His lectures do not follow the book and he is obessesed with solvents! Made me hate orgo and the only thing useful I learned was the IR, NMR material.
don't have to go to class. got a+, went less than a dozen times all semester.
Boring. He's a nice guy though
Good professor, despite the rumors. Very well-organized lectures with reasonable exams. Seems like a rather nice gentleman, as well. May have a thing for Movados.
I decided the rumors aren't true. Orgo is a fascinating subject and not THAT difficult if you keep up with the reading and do the P.S. However, the prelims are annoying. This guy doesn't really believe in partial credit. And you are better off going to TA hrs, or asking friends. I went to his OH, but he felt very uncomfortable and stiff.
His lecture is pretty straight forward but tough to follow if you haven't already read the book. Just read the text. You just have to learn it all on your own since you won't pick up enough from just the lecture to even get a passing grade. He's extremely cocky and degrading during office hours. Beware the Ganem.
Didn't go to class very often yet got an A+. For the times that I went, he wasn't bad at lecturing.
Class wasn't hard. Not to be boasting but I managed a great grade. Most of the material came directly out of the textbook and the tests weren't too bad. He speaks with a businessman-like air so beware...you might fall asleep like I did!
Very clear, engaging lecturer. Makes orgo interesting and understandable. Can be a bit cocky, but overall a very good professor.
Ganem is an excellent lecturer, very organized and poised. Orgo is tough; you have to really work for it if you want to do well. I've been to a couple of his office hours. He's a nice guy but a bit cocky. I don't blame him. He's a Harvard alum. The prelims are fair but he doesn't award partial credit so there's little room for error.
This class was ph'nol-menol. The best part of the class was when he says the word "ph'nol"(phenol) and "goash"(gauche). Be sure to check out my vocaloid ganem phenol remix. Oh yeah, he's a great lecturer btw.
Ganem is exceptionally clear. Practice test style mimics real tests. Ganem loves questions that ask you to apply your knowledge to a new problem, can be tricky but fair. Is warm and helpful, i suspect that some find him cocky because he tends not to answer directly but rather address your deeper understanding, which is more helpful in the end.
His lectures are crystal clear, and he goes through all the details he wants you to know. Go to lecture, pay attention and you'll do fine. He prepares you well for what he tests on.
A truly gifted lecturer who has a gift of conveying difficult material clearly and skillfully. A true whiz in his field, don't let his Harvard/Stanford/Columbia/MIT training make u intimidated. He's really down to earth and wants to know you in office hours. Def. one of the best profs at Cornell or academia period!
Amazing lecturer, extremely organized notes, makes lectures seem interesting, never monotonous. He gave great exam prep questions so you could be very prepared on his exams, no tricks.
Great prof. overall. Very clear lectures, fair tests. Made Orgo as decent as it can be.
Ganem is a great guy. Unbelievably rich, but still gives off the vibe that he wants to be there and enjoys teaching. Very good lecturer
Ganem is amazingly clear and extremely good at lecturing. Still, it's orgo, and it's going to be tough - Ganem just makes the course more pleasant than it normally would be. Do the problem sets, read the book, study the notes, go to office hours, and stay caught up and you'll do great.
The lecture are very clear and easy to follow, but he's very condescending in office hours and not very helpful.
He makes a very tough subject seem a little more manageable. He does an AWESOME job of pulling his lectures directly out of the textbook, so if you're lost or miss a lecture, all you need to do is look at that day's section in the book and you'll be fine. The tests were tough as to be expected, and he seems a little impatient at times. Good guy.
Ganem is decent. He moves pretty quickly in class, and his office hours weren't very helpful. He does follow the book pretty closely. Working in depth with the book and problem sets in addition to studying the notes is the best approach.
Ganem has an inflated ego; he thinks that he is a genius, on par with the likes of Linus Pauling. He also loves to name drop his Nobel Prize winning acquaintances. He is fairly obnoxious, but he does teach well and knows the material. The tests are definitely challenging and require a lot of patience and skill on the part of the student.
Ganem is great. Don't go to office hours to ask something that can be learned by you just reviewing your notes or reading the book. Or he will be pretty mean to you. Only go to office hours to ask hard questions!
You're on your own. He wastes a lot of time telling fictional stories of other scientists. His presentation skills are inadequate, and he mumbles a lot. Honestly, the textbook will be what saves you. He will punish you with unfair questions involving reagents he breezes over in class, so make sure to note every. single. reagent. mentioned.
Ganem is great. The tests are hard but fair, if you don't do well it's your own fault.
Go to office hours, and do all the problem sets! His exams are tough but fair.
His lectures were very clear and well prepared for a chem course at Cornell. I didn't do crazy well, yet I still really enjoyed his lectures, he made things interesting and simple; relating them to real life situations to help you remember or just be intrigued in general.
The person below probably hasn't taken chem here before because the averages are ALWAYS in the C/D range lol. Usually D. That being said this class is horrible. Starts out super slow and then progresses really fast. You need to do orgo everyday to do well
Ganem is an amazing professor. His tests were extremely reasonable, and tested critical thinking skills, which is crucial for scientific research. If you put in the work, and understand the mechanisms conceptually, you will be just fine. His office hours were also extremely helpful!
Lectures are dull but he's organized and clear. Nice guy. The type you'd go bowling with.
Was clear about his lectures. Exams are fair if you study.
Professor Ganem's lectures were always very clear and his exams corresponded exactly to what was taught in lecture. They were very fair if you listened and followed. Aside from that, Ganem was very accessible and helpful during office hours if there was ever something specific I didn't understand
A good lecturer but somewhat impatient if you go to him for easy questions. But he is really an expert and prepared for all hard questions that students have. So get the insight for orgo and go to his office hour. He will be very passionate and nice if you have good questions. However normally students still struggle.
He's a good lecturer despite the fact that he can breeze over topics sometimes. His tests are pretty straight forward and fair. He doesn't post the notes online either so go to lecture and skim the textbook.
Probably one of the most straight-forward teachers I have ever had! He teaches the information at a very comprehensible level, and he is a very nice teacher. His lectures follow very closely with the textbook, which helps with understanding. As long as you study, go to lectures, and read the textbook, tests are very fair!
One of the most intelligent and straight-forward professors in Cornell. His lectures are always at comprehensive level. His tests are very hard if you do not spend enough time on the orgo studying. Talking with Ganem will be your most interesting experience if you get closer with him. Dr. Ganem will make Chem 3570 interesting for you.
Very clear and easy to follow notes. Difficult class, but he makes it as bearable as possible. Look over his notes for the exam, they help simplify the book
OK guys I screwed up big time in his class. I got overconfident on the first exam since I got an A-, then was putting off studying, and fell behind immensely. I don't know how I didnt get an F honestly. He's a great teacher but I made huge mistakes.
Ganem is by far the best chemistry professor Cornell has to offer in my view after taking Gen Chem 1 and 2 and Orgo 1. Out of all chemistry professors I've taken he is the most innately brilliant and teaches in the most organized and understandable way , but is also very personable. I say this even after receiving a lower grade in the course.
Professor Ganem is, simply put, the best professor I've had at Cornell, period. The man is a genius, and he truly is passionate about Orgo and teaching. His lectures are crystal clear, but this is still a difficult course. Lots of studying is required to succeed. However, Professor Ganem makes it all an enjoyable experience. I recommend him fully
Bruce Ganem is a brilliant man who is enthusiastic about Orgo. I can appreciate him as a professor, but I truly hated this course. It's incredibly difficult and the pace is super quick. There is a very competitive nature in this class and once you stop understanding something, you get left behind.
Ganem is the worst professor I have had at Cornell. He is a rude and arrogant professor who only favors a select few. Very unfair and poor lecturer.
I struggled in chem2070/80. I was very worried about taking orgo due to everything that I had heard. Prof Ganem is THE man! Even though the material is HARD, his lectures are SO clear and he really wants you to succeed and understand WHY things are happening. If you stay up on your readings and go to lecture, you will be good! Exams are very fair.
Definitely attend lectures and do practice and assigned sapling, and you will do well. I always enjoyed his lectures (but less so towards the end of the semester with IR and NMR topics). CHEMM 1570 with Jane Walcott was also very helpful
Prof Ganem is very clear lecturer and genuinely cares about his students. Orgo is hard because of how it's graded but the subject matter itself is not very difficult and there were no surprises on prelims. Questions are very much taken from concepts learned in lecture so go and pay attention-- he doesn't upload notes online-- and you'll be fine.
Ganem is easily one of the best professors I've had at Cornell. He's caring, accommodating towards the demands of college, and an incredible lecturer. His lectures are easy to follow, clear, and organized. Study his lecture notes religiously and keep up with the material and you will do fine on his exams, they're fair and mostly straight-forward.
He's definitely a nice guy and tries to learn people's names. His tests are also very fair- he doesn't test you on what he doesn't teach. His lectures are also very straightforward and keeps you paying attention. Only downside is that he's not that clear when answering questions... more of the watch you until you figure it out type.
Interesting material, great delivery in lecture, tons of help from many sources out of class (himself, TAs, CHEM 1057, tutors). Make sure you do as many problems as you can get your hands on, both from the text and from the old prelims that he gives you to study from.
Great lecturer!
Okay, so Professor Ganem is like everyone says a great lecturer. He is honestly an interesting guy and tries hard in my opinion to please people, but personally, I found him to be very condescending. During office hours and problem solving sessions, he makes you seem dumb if you don't know something. Beware of some prelims and the final ...
Ganem is one of the best professors I've had at Cornell; he is a really good lecturer and super engaging. I've been to his office hours and he is very patient and helpful. His prelims become progressively tougher but he is not the type of teacher to ask trick questions. I really enjoyed learning orgo because of him!
Thank you Dr. Ganem!
Dr. Ganem is a great and organized lecturer. He took feedback into consideration during the semester about the course during the Covid-19 FA20 semester. Overall though, he was not very transparent about how he derived our grades and gave no practice questions/exams to the class to prepare for the exams.
Orgo is always hard, but it definitely felt like he made it harder. He also makes it hard to see him directly through office hours, and when you do see him, it's only for 10 minutes, which really doesn't help that much.
Professor Ganem definitely knows his stuff, but can sometimes fixate on certain topics that do not count towards much on the prelims. You definitely need to read the textbook and do practice problems outside of homework. Practice prelims are usually a good way to gauge how well you will perform & tend to be tougher than the actual exam.
Probably one of the worst professors I've ever had. His lectures are extremely hard to follow and I pretty much learned everything from reading the textbook. Even then, the course itself is very hard but he made it 10x harder. Also, the final exam was on stuff that we hardly learned. Don't take with Gamen if you can avoid it
If you want to learn Organic Chemistry don't take this class. I learned more from the Organic Chemistry Tutor. I got a B in Biochem and Orgo was way harder. Worst professor I have ever had. The average on the final was a 50 SD of 39 to give perspective on how ridiculous the class is. As a professor if your students are failing, it's your fault.
I've never had a more organized professor. He carries out lectures seamlessly. That did come with some bad parts he would often brush past details that he didn't feel were that important but left me confused. He's very passionate about what he does and he wants people to get into it which is nice. It doesn't seem like he wants people to fail.
Prof was very condescending and unapproachable, and his lectures were far below the rigor of the exams. The exams didn't allow for explanations or work to be shown, so there was no way to differentiate between an A and B scoring student. Get ready to study for this class more than your other classes combined, only for some wild guesswork on exams
The only hope you have is to guess on the test. Too much to memorize. Start early, like before the semester starts.
Yes this course is difficult- it will be no matter where and who is teaching. Prof. Ganem makes the best of it by presenting the material in a witty way and tries to keep your attention by explaining why it is important in everyday life. I highly recommend going to every lecture as it is easy to fall behind.
Orgo is a hard class in general, but the lectures were generally pretty clear. Exams were harder than lecture material. Take notes and READ THE TEXTBOOK! I found the textbook super helpful and did practice problems from the book after/in between lectures. It is easy to fall behind, so stay on top of studying bc it can be stressful to catch up.
Orgo is a tough class, but Professor Ganem makes it bearable with his witty lectures. Stay on top of the material and use resources like the textbook and Unstuck study - it really helps offset the difficulty.
Dr. Ganem is an amazing professor. Although his credentials can seem intimidating, he's actually quite caring and approachable. He is the only professor I know of who carves out time each week to meet with students. Although exams can be hard, the curve usually compensates. Pay attention in lecture, read the textbook, and you'll do just fine.
Best Professor at Cornell. I've never enjoyed any lectures at Cornell until Orgo with Dr. Ganem. He's a great professor and does a great job at explaning everything simply and nicely. If you pay attention in his lecture and understand and memorize everything he says during lecture you're going to do well on the exams. Fair exams
Orgo has a lot of information, but if you do the assigned text book reading, and go to a lecture, the tests shouldn't be too bad. The curve helps a lot too.
He explains things clearly and is very organized. gives good analogies
Very engaged in students success, and good lecturer
Dr. Ganem is easily one of the best professors at this university. His lectures are direct and inspiring, and he truly gives you all the tools you need to do well in the class, if you work hard. Weekly practice is your best friend in this course. Also, pay attention in lecture, and you will be able to predict what will be big on the exams.
Go to lecture, and go to the practice review sessions because the test questions are not like the lectures. Difficult class but good lecturer
I loved Dr. Ganem even though I didn't get the best grade in honors orgo. I learned so much and he is genuinely such a cool guy. Please go to office hours to learn more about him if you have the chance because he has super cool stories and a very effective one-on-one / small group teaching style as well that you don't get from lectures.
His lectures are good and cover everything you need for the test. His tests were generally fair. Curve is generous and better than gen chem. If you go for 1 on 1 office hours with Dr. Ganem, he's very condescending which doesn't help so it's best to learn what you can in lecture and use the TAs for outside help. Great teacher, meh person.
It's organic chemistry that makes u wish u were deead... not Ganem. His lectures are actually really helpful. However, they DO NOT ALWAYS cover everything on the exams -- anything from the assigned textbook chapters is fair game. On that note, don't expect the exams to be fair... expect them to be hard.
He is pretty good at teaching but the course itself is pretty difficult. It takes a lot of practice questions to succeed in the class. The optional sections were very helpful.
I personally didn't find Ganem's lectures to be very helpful. Most of my learning came from taking the support class (highly recommended!), going to the learning center, and using outside resources like the organic chemistry as a second language textbook. The exams are difficult, but the curve is very generous
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
22%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.18 avg changeRatings by Course
CHM3570
5.0
(1)357
4.7
(3)CHEM359
4.5
(4)ORGO
4.5
(2)CHEM3590
4.5
(4)Difficulty by Course
CHEM106
5.0
CHEM208
5.0
CHEMCHEM
5.0
357
4.0
CHM3570
4.0