2.8
Quality3.0
Difficulty51%
Would Retake95
Reviews51%
Would Retake
95
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
28
4
9
3
13
2
16
1
29
What Students Say
“Super nice and cool professor”
GENE352 - 3.0 rating“Took this class in the summer”
BIO201 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
26%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.32 avg changeRatings by Course
GENETICS
5.0
(1)GEN356
5.0
(1)PHYS530
5.0
(1)GENET01
5.0
(1)BIO301
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
MOLECBIO
5.0
FND201
5.0
MICRO201
5.0
MOLBI356
5.0
GENET352
5.0
Reviews (95)
he is the BEST biology professor at Rutgers. take any class he teaches.
HES GREAT! He really wants his students to do well (he even said so in class). He makes it so u dont even really have to read the book. He gives you powerpoints and reviews for the tests. Just go over all of these and you should make an A. He even let us retake on of our exams, regardless of the original grade. Hes the best!
HE IS THE ONE!I LOVE HIM!! HE IS A REAL PROFESSOR WHO IS HUMANIST AND REALLY CARES OF HIS STUDENT! NICE GUY!!
I took him for Genetics, and got an A. He makes the lectures interesting and goes over material carefully. Gives simple questions for the exam so stick to them. VERY NICE treats students with respect.
Wonderful Professor !!! Very helpful, intelligent !!! Must take him !!!
He's quite possibily the best biology teacher at Rutgers and in the top ten best professors here as well. He's very smart and very friendly and most of all he knows his stuff and is willing to go the extra mile to make sure that students learn and care for the material.
Very nice guy. Exams are straightforward. Read the book and go over his study guides and you'll be fine.
I had him for foundation in biology along with Frankel. Cervantes's practice questions are exact word for word on the actual exam. But the questions are not from lecture but from the text book. Just memorize prac exam questions and you will get an A. btw he is really nice and will help you, and loves Indian movies.
Took him for Foundations of Biology. He's extremely helpful. I've asked him tons of questions and he always answers without hesitation. Study his review questions and you'll ace his exams. One of the nicest professors ever.
I've had prof. for genetics as well as microbiology, he is a great professor. He really wants you to learn and succeed. Ask him anything you want, you won't look dumb, he'll really try to make you understand. By far one of the nicest guys you'll find, and has a good sense of humor too.
OMG!!!...this guy is so easy!!...Guaranteed A!!...DOn't have to read the textbook!!!....Just relaxand read the online notes that enough. PLUS he gives practice exam questions!!!!!!!....What more could u ask for!???....LOVE HIM!!!
HE USED TO BE A GREAT PROF FOR AN EASY A FOR ALL HIS CLASSES. ALTHOUGH BE WARNED! HE CHANGED HIS METHODS FOR EXAMS TOTALLY AND SCREWED OVER LARGE PORTIONS OF THE CLASS HIS EXAMS DON'T FOLLOW THE PRACTICE EXAM IF THERE IS EVEN 1 ISSUED. AS AS EVERYONE KNOWS HIS ACTUAL TEACHING SKILLS ARE RATHER POOR AND PEOPLE TAKE HIM ONLY FOR THE PRACTICE EXAMS
This class is a waste of ur tuition and money. you have to teach youself from the tb. HE CANNOT TEACH! the only way to get an A in this class is to memorize the tb (which is probably too detailed for even a grad student).he cant get anything across to his students, and does not cover 90% of the material that he tests you on.
Good professor, sometimes doesn't go into much details which hurts come test time. If you come to him with any questions he'll help you out. The class isn't hard but it's too much material.We covered all the chapters in the book which is unreasonable for this subject. Those coming straight from foundations to this class, good luck. You'll need it!
He uses to be easy, that is TRUE. But now he changed his style, and many screw up. Anyway, his teaching skill seems okay, but it so much that you can't learn...even when he has the powerpoint. The materials are A LOT and HARD!!! But he will use some question from the review, well, SOME. He is nice, but it not A gruadtee anymore.
If I could sum up my experience with him in one word, HORRIBLE.He had us do a 20 chapter cumulative exam on the final in molecular bio. His teaching is mediocre and that's being lenient. There is a reason about 15/100 kids show up to class...he is all over the place. His exams are ridiculously hard especially for a undergrad course. Avoid him!
His teaching skills are not that good.Biology is my world,and no offense but I think Cervantes needs to learn better teaching methods.He has a great knowledge about bio but he doesn't know how transmit it to the students.Some of his questions are hard.Even though I got a good grade,I think it's thanks to Dr. Frenkel(although people say he's harder)
This guy is a terrible teacher, he's the reason I'm switching out of a bio major. Takes up the entire period with a boring, useless lecture. Most of the questions on the exam are tough, and come from the book, 95% of which he never covers in class. Take him in the fall, so you see less of this professor. Terrible teacher, stay clear.
Stay Away that all I can say he is amess!!!! His test are horiable and he doesnt help solve the problems so the class was lost...
DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR..hes horrible, you cant understand a thing he says. he bores me to death, worst lecturer ever.. whatever he says in lecture is not important when it comes to the exam.. i heard he was easy before, not anymore though.. AVOID
He is horrible! There is a reason why 10/100 kids show up to his class. Horrible lecturer, and do not believe him as far as his syllabus and first day of class goes. He ensures you that only material covered in class will be on the exam, he covered roughly 40%-50% (or less!!) chapter of each chapter but the whole chapter will be on the exam!!!
I have to agree, this guy has no idea how to teach and absolutely everything on his exams comes from the book. The only thing his lectures are good for is to induce sleep in the restless insomniacs(such as myself). So i reccomend you read the book and understand the material. After that you're in for an easy A.
CANT TEACH!! he puts stuff on the exams that he doesnt even go over. So boring that i fall asleep most classes and dont find it useful to go to lecture. Despite his terrible teaching, he teaches soo many classes that he doesnt have time to answer questions via email or after class! terrible!
He is terrible. I would advise you to avoid him but that's nearly impossible because he teaches so many classes and you need to take those classes if you are a bio major. Plus don't try to ask him a question via e-mail, he will criticize every little word and will end up insulting you. Try aking him in person, you will be insulted less.
Hes TERRIBLE at teaching. Talks about topics in class that have nothing to do with the exam. YOU MUST TEACH YOURSELF. He is no longer that easy professor everyone wants to take. Also, he is extremely rude. Like the person below me said, you WILL be insulted. I went to talk to him in person and he has no sympathy or care in the world for his student
he is one of the worst professors i have ever encountered at Rutgers. He has absolutely no clue as to what is going on in the course let alone the class. He puts up the text book slides and just blabbers whatever comes into his head after he looks at them and is usually totally unrelated to the material. Just go by the text book for this one.
Honestly his class is easy all you have to do is read the book and study the online material he posts and its an instant A. I would study like 4 days before the exam and blow out the exam with mid 90's. His lectures are about application of the material in the real world, which doesnt help if you want to be spoon-fed in college, like most people
If you are RU-N or NJIT student taking bio courses then its your bad luck cz u have no option then taking this guy!! He is the worse professor I have ever encountered in my life! He has no interest teaching any of the course that he's given at Newark Rutgers.
PLEASE AVOID HIM IF YOU CAN!
cervantes is probably one of the worst professors i have ever encountered at rutgers newark. he is always goes off topic and very unprepared for lecture & lab. my advice: do the homework problems after each chapter and memorize study guide questions.
Cervantes only talks about things pertaining to his interests and research during class, which means it's not necessary to go to class. Read the book as much as possible (but still you'll run into questions you've never heard of). He does not teach at all. The best advice is do well on Frenkel's exams (he teaches one section)..or else ur doomed
Read the book and cram as much as you can. Exams aren't that bad. There are questions that weren't covered in lecture or book but it doesn't really matter because you can still score 90+. Also, he curves so it's like any other regular university class. Not too easy, but not too hard either
I will never acknowledge this man as a professor....he doesn't teach.
The book, the text book is your best friend, it is your bible. His lectures, coma inducing and do nothing for the exam. Questions seem arbitrary and random as if he pulls them out of the air. Nice guy but very average teacher.
I had a great time withnthsi professor, just read the book and youll be fine really, his class is all bark and no bite when it comes to difficulty.
Look, you have to come to the understanding that the courses he teaches are NOT easy. You need to focus regardless of the prof quality. He does a beautiful job, he cares, helps when he can, and he's a sweet heart. Use your textbook rely on it more than lecture, study for your exams and you can even manage a great recommendation letter from him.
I took this professor for basic lab science and found this professor to be sweet, approachable and very helpful. He provided great study guides for the exam. Great class for non-science majors
I took this class in fall 2011 and I would have to say that the only reason people pass his class is cause 1. There's a huge curve and 2. People have previous exams from other years. He's all over the place, very unorganized, but unfortunately he can not be avoided if your a bio major
Test material is heavily based on book. He tends to cover the larger topics in class but some of the test questions are a bit hard. Read the chapters, do the practice tests that he posts on blackboard. He holds office hours and is very helpful, just make sure you
pain in the .... but does give a huge curve.
worst professor ever! if you dont have to take him then dont. he is approachable at all!
avoid at all cost! he criticizes for every little thing. I wish Rutgers got rid of him. DO NOT TAKE IF YOU DONT HAVE TO!!
he does not know how to teach, and he makes parts of his tests on his own notes that are not related to the the material in the book
I always wondered where he gets the exam questions from, i went to every lecture and read each ch yet found 13 questions from the material and the remaining 37 questions from mars. He's a horrible teacher, i didnt learn anything in his class, he teaches in a boring and general way, missing on all the details of bio. He doesnt care abt students.
The textbook is YOUR LIFE! Read it and review any questions online. Practice the questions in the back of the chapters too and review the end chapter outlines. He does not teach in lecture at all! He'll give you which chapters to study but other than that you'll be pretty lost. Four multiple choice exams, each 25%, final is non-cumulative.
Great Prof and very approachable. His exams are tough but he picks them from the company's qbank. Therefore it might be a good idea to review their slides which goes over high yield stuff instead of strictly just reading the book. His lectures in class are also based on their slides. But if you need help...TALK TO HIM. Hes awesome!Took him in 2010.
Professor Cervantes is a very nice person. If you seek help, he will guide you. You can do well in the class if you read the book. He truly wants his students to succeed and be interested in bio. He's switched up his grading style, therefore it is easier to get a better grade now.
Dr. Cervantes is a great professor. He always thinks best of the students and wants to teach them to integrate book examples with real world examples. His recent change of classroom teaching is exceptional because it allows the students to learn in group studies. This is very beneficial!
He is amazing. I love how he switched into the group work. That is EXTREMELY helpful because I learned the material better than in a conventional setting (exams). There are groups of 4-5 students and there are iRATS and APEX's which are done with group effort. He is nice guy especially if he knows you. Take him.
Very nice and understands student's troubles. Switched to TBL a few years ago and it is now easier to do well in his classes. The lab was very tough (worse than chem lab), but the lecture balanced it out. lectures can be a bit boring so come to class well rested
Dr. Cervantes is one of the sweetest professors in all Rutgers campus; He will push you enough so you can learn. He loves people who participate and can engage in a conversation, especially if you do the readings. The readings are long, some short, every exam is based on the readings, so if you want a good grade DO THE READINGS. (class TBL system )
Super nice and cool professor. He gets to know everyones names, which is alot for a 100 person class. The grading is team based, and very easy to get an A, which the majority of the class probably gets.
He drops one of the three lecture exams. One in-class group assignment worth 4% of the final grade, but it's easy. Every test is the study guide he posts on Blackboard for review. Easy A in this class, you don't even need to show up to lecture.
Don't bother coming to class or talking to him. Read the textbook and memorize his study guides, they are the only things that matter. He's horrible in every way, unorganized and inconsistent. Just hope for luck, because nothing in the lecture is ever important in the exam and he might just drop a study guide the day before the exam.
I love this man, great professor, probably the best ive taken at rutgers. If you go to lecture he will remember your face and happily help you but he really dosent like when kids dont show up but then have no idea whats going on (understandable). For his exams focus primarily on the study guide and use the textbook to review the figures. 10/10
Took this class in the summer. Did not learn anything from the prof. His slides are just figures from the book and he adds his own notes to it during lecture. Goes off topic a lot. Very boring lectures. Had 3 exams and all were copy-pasted from the study guides. No quizzes. HW was extra credit. Did one group exam. Overall, doesn't teach but easy A.
GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN! THIS IS YOUR WARNING! DROP THE CLASS IF YOU WANT TO SAVE YOUR GPA! PLEASE!
Took his Biochem class in Spring of 2018. Hard class. Professor is pretty fair and cooperative and he'll walk an extra mile for his students. Attendance matters.
I took both cell molecular lecture and lab and Miguel Cervantes is one of the best professors that teach bio at rutgers newark. I got an A in both and His exams are literally an exact copy of the study guides he gives. I do however highly suggest you get the book and read because it will help you understand what he is talking about in class
Cervantes-Cervantes does a fine job at delivering the fundamentals of molecular & cell biology, even if in a rather abstract and elementary manner. Review exam study guides as the questions presented therein usually appear on the actual assessment verbatim. Take advantage of the textbook and office hours as well as stay abreast of course updates.
Took his Biochemistry class. Professor Cervantes is very caring, lets you retake one exam. I'm taking him again for another bio class.
Biochemistry class wasn't bad. I like this professor.
Great professor. Caring. Knows his students, and helps everyone.
Worst lecturer i've had yet an overall great and friendly person. Class is structured in a way where there are too many people for the professor to handle and as such the material is not conveyed properly. If you need to understand the material, go to his office hours and he'll be very helpful. He's better suited for upper level Bio Classes.
If you are looking for an easy A, take him. The exams consist of the homework coupled with a few definitions from his slidesliterally word-for-word. If you want to learn this material for your MCAT, do not waste your time/money. He is a poor lecturer, and you will not learn the material; you will only memorize answers.
He does not know how to teach. I did not learn anything new. 2/3 of the student skip his classes. He gives you a list of MC questions before exams. Just google them for answers but don't expect to understand a thing. If you ask him he will confuse you more. I wish if there is someone else to take his mandatory course. I complained but no one helps.
never went to class. practice questions are the exam. easy a.
Awesome professor. He is very caring, will work with every student. Took multiple classes with him, including biochem and genetics and loved them.
By far worst professor Ive had. I worked my ass off and did really well, but going to his class? Waste of time. Read! And go over his practice exams in depth. Theyre usually replicas of the real exam.
Worst professor I have ever had. He doesn't teach! Every time I go to class I think to myself why am I even here?! I get about 5 notes on my page every class and then once we get our test review it has a million things he's never even discussed in class. He hasn't even mentioned chem once and yet its all over this practice test. Thnx for nothing
Lectures are a waste of time, he barely covers anything that'll be on the exams. Study his practice exams and you'll pass his class relatively easily. If you were hoping to actually learn the material, you're better off reading the textbook instead of going to lecture. Seems like you can't avoid him though, he teaches just about every biology class
Great professor. Caring made lectures very interesting. One of the brightest minds i have ever cross paths with. Knows so much about it all its impressive. Loved this guy!
You can definitely tell that he is a very smart individual. However, just because he is knowledgeable, doesn't mean that he can teach. He's by far the worst professor I have had so far. He's a very poor lecturer. His lectures literally consist of him going over at most 1/2 slides with some scribbled notes. His study guides are not what he covers.
He cherry picks whats gonna be on the exams; like some stuff from different chapters and not necessarily what he goes over in lectures. 2 hw assignments and supposedly 1 group hw assignment, but that never happened cuz covid. Attendance not mandatory. a month into semester only half the class showed up. he says pop quizzes but those never happened.
As long as you find the answers to his study exam guides you and study those questions you'll pass with a good grade. Go to class bc he sometimes gives hw in class but aside from that lectures aren't necessarily gonna help you pass the course
It took 4 weeks to get through the first 3rd of the course... only 2 weeks left and theres so much we won't be able to go over. Waste of time - wish there was a way to get my money back.
Very knowledgeable, great professor. I recommend him 100%
He said Himself that he doesn't teach he's just there to guide you. I didn't go to class unless we had a test. You have to teach yourself, but the work isn't rocket science. It isn't an easy A but it's not horrible either. I'd take him if the other professor who's teaching the course is really bad.
He values students who show up to lecture and participate. Most test questions are straight from the study guide. If you love biology he's your guy. He teaches things in lectures that you wouldn't learn elsewhere but he expects you to learn course material mostly on your own. Funny, helpful, and accessible. Study guides prepare you well for exams.
He is not too bad. Participate in class and read the textbook. Pay attention in lecture because exams come directly from his lectures but reading the book would help with concepts he does not explain well.
Okay, so he is infamous for having his exams be the same as the study guide...not always the case. Make sure you study and understand the study guide rather than just memorize it. Sometimes he gives hints about the questions that will be there. You only have 3 exams (33% each).
If you like understanding and studying bio then he is not it because although he is knowledgeable, he cannot teach well. However, if you are taking him as a pre req to other courses then the course is based on legit 3 exams VERY similar to his study guides. Memorization is a key to this class.
He's not a bad professor. He just can't teach. I stopped going to his lectures once I saw that the study guides, he gives are the exact same questions from the exams. This class was mostly memorizing. He's rude but you will pass as long as you do the study guides.
Professor is funny but I would not take again. Graded by only 3 tests where he gets questions straight from the study guide.
This class was very nerve wrecking due to the fact that we were graded by a few exams. Long story short I was lucky. Circumstances happened that allowed me to pass. So yeah.. Would not take again because next time I might not be lucky.
This professor was a terrible teacher and didn't teach me anything. His exams were poorly written and nearly identical to the study guide. The class was a waste of time and money.
I would never recommend people take a class with this professor. You may pass the class but you will learn nothing.
The tests are just like the study guide- which in itself requires so much effort complete seeing as the questions are not answered by his lectures or really even the textbook. His lectures are not at all helpful and he got through maybe half of his syllabus. Honestly, I learned very little.
Amazing professor very helpful and fun makes sure that you pass the class
Take this class it's very easy. Cervantes gives a total of 3 exams with the 3rd exam considered as the final (not cumulative). After taking the first 2 exams he gives optional hw questions for bonus points. His exams are similar to past exams as well as his study guides. Make sure to memorize all the questions and answers from the study guide!
Super super easy class. Not good or helpful if you actually wish to learn but it's an easy A. His exams are so similar to the study guide and if you go to class he mentions some of the answers to the study guide so going once and a while is useful. Exams are heavy but overall doable. Just do the study guide!!
Cervantes is a knowledgeable professor, but his lectures can be hit-or-miss. The exams are heavily based on the study guides, so consistent studying is key. unstuck ai was a huge help for prep.
Professor will not give a study guide to help prepare for exam and their is tons of reading. Good luck if you take him.
worst professor I've EVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR taken. run. he was very rude with emails until he got reported by a bunch of students, he changes the syllabus because he falls behind a lot, lectures only cover like 15% of the exam, reviews are not useful, no hw/review questions, basically a complete self study of 3-5 chapters each exam.
This professor is very difficult. He is rude and condescending which makes it very difficult to ask questions. The workload is very excessive and he does not make it any better since his lectures are all over the place and he rarely covers all
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
26%
Textbook Required
33%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.32 avg changeRatings by Course
GENETICS
5.0
(1)GEN356
5.0
(1)PHYS530
5.0
(1)GENET01
5.0
(1)BIO301
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
MOLECBIO
5.0
FND201
5.0
MICRO201
5.0
MOLBI356
5.0
GENET352
5.0