So very unclear and not helpful. Tricky quizzes for no reason and unnecessary stressfulness

He has no standardization across his TA's so that's a mess. More importantly though he is one of the most condescending person I've ever met. He makes it abundantly clear that he doesn't care about his students because he's a research professor and this is just a requirement he wants to get out of the way.

Professor McDaniel definetly loves the subject ; however, he is not affective at teaching it. The lectures are dry, and there are too many tangents. I never knew what the main goal of each lecture was. Also, exam expectations were very unclear and the exams were very difficult. If you ask a simple question, some answers are condescending.

If you see Professor Mcdaniel's name, run the other direction and never look back. This has been the most impossible thing I've ever done in college. He posts lecture slides that are ILLEGIBLE and he goes off on tangents and attempts to humor the class so listening to his recordings are also USELESS. You'll be better off learning the text w osmosis

Worst professor ever. Got an A in orgo 1 but was struggling in this class. First exam average was around a 50. Second exam 60s. His problem sets are a waste of time. He doesnt favor practice exams, ignores emails and seems to not care about his students. Worst of all: no partial credit on E-exam open response even if you made the slightest mistake

Got an A in Orgo I no problem but his class was just way too hard, avoid if possible. He's a really great guy, a good lecturer, and cares a lot about the subject. He just doesn't seem to be interested in student success, lectures were impossible to follow and the material was much more difficult than what other classes covered.

He was terrible at teaching, the class was incredibly boring and repetitive. The exams were crazy hard and he refused to scale when the class average was 67 just because 10 people (out of 200!) got over a 90. He didn't offer any extra credit and exams made up 65% of the final grade and there were only 2 + the final

He clearly has a strong understanding of the material and a passion for it. That said he is an ATROCIOUS professor, largely due to the fact that he expects you to come to class already knowing the material. Answers are condescending, slides are illegible, and tests are disproportionately more difficult than OWLs/lectures/iClickers. RUN AWAY!!!!!!!!

I did not understand anything in his class. I had to teach myself everything. The exams were very hard.

This class is quite possibly the hardest thing I've ever done. Clicker questions are based on correctness for full points, exams are ridiculously hard and include structure drawing and typed questions. Exams do not correspond to the homework. Condescending, REFUSES to curve, says its grade inflation. Meanwhile, the exam average is always an F.

By far the worst professor I have had at UMass. His lectures are not helpful, he grades iClicker on correctness, and his tests are impossible (averages in the 50s). If you send him an email, he will not respond to it and he is not willing to work with students. If you have to take Orgo 2, DO NOT TAKE IT WITH HIM. Wait for a better professor. Awful.

Some of the positive reviews, especially the recent review, are false. Mcdaniel is by far the worst professor in UMass! He does not care for his students and not a very good professor.

McDaniel's actual criteria for grading is incomprehensible. He seems to grade more on whether or not your method is similar to his and wants you to follow his every move, simultaneously expecting you to already know the material and punishing you for doing it differently. If you diverge, expect a C- on a test you got every Q right for. Awful.

Massive jerk. Didn't even make an attempt to make accommodations for students nervous about Covid. He actually said that if you got covid and missed two labs that you would not pass. This man is an awful professor and a mean person.

This professor is by far the worst ever I had. He is extremely rude & not understanding. If I could rate him -1, I would do that without a doubt. All the other professors that I have came across care about the actual knowledge and not just making the class hard. I feel like he gets a satisfaction by seeing student suffer. Worst is an understatement

Underprepares all his students, the exam averages were in order, C-, C-, F+. Completely unreasonable, nitpicky and just in general mean. He doesn't care at all for his students, help sessions are essentially mandatory as the TA's carry the class by doing his damn job for him. Avoid at all costs.

Never care his students. Worst professor. Run away!!!

Don't bother reaching out to this man regarding basically anything, his response will most likely be something snarky, rude, and entirely unhelpful, followed by "sent from iPhone" (not accommodating whatsoever)

This class solely depends on your TA. Reach out to your TA and find out EXACTLY how they expect the lab reports to be!! Grading is extremely picky, its easy to lose points over things that you didnt even know you had to include/have. If you reach out to Professor McDaniel dont expect any help, just an unreasonable and unhelpful response!

You don't deal with Chris much in lab, but grading is inconsistent and based your TA. (Good luck if you have Ben Adams). Even if you read and followed all the directions, some will choose to take off points for crazy nit-picky things. Hard work doesn't pay off here. It's all luck. Read everything through and maybe you'll get a B. If they like you.

He genuinely does not care if his students succeed or not. He is absolutely insane about the syllabus and does not like to make any exceptions or accommodations. I came to leave this review after an email exchange with him. I have never had a professor at UMass that cares less about his students than this man.

Chris is one of the worst professors I've ever had. He doesn't care about students whatsoever. His handwriting matches the quality of a ten-year-old, so his Inked Lectures are useless. His lab reports and exams are impossible, the grading is so particular and nit-picky that full credit is unreachable. To top it all off, he reminds me of Ben Shapiro

The man is absolutely merciless. Don't, and I can't stress this enough, expect empathy. He does not care at all, and it feels like he wants people to flunk out. Hope to whatever you believe in that your TA is decent. You'd best make sure that you read EVERYTHING this man puts on the course page, because if you don't you will be absolutely screwed.

The most condescending person I have ever met. Professor McDaniel was not accommodating at all & had not granted me any extensions to help while off campus with a personal issue. His exams were very difficult & had no problem punishing an entire class due to the mistakes of few students. His labs were fair but I do not recommend lecture w/ him

Professor McDaniel is a terrible professor and I do not recommend ever taking a class with him. He is a very unfair grader and is not accessible at all. He is the worst professor at UMass and should be treated as such.

Yeah, he sucks. Don't expect any help from him. For the amount of work and hours I slaved for this class, it should be 3 or 4 credits. Your grade does matter on how lenient your TA is. Make sure to do those lab reports ASAP. Like literally ASAP, have your TA review it, and figure out their grading style so you get fewer points taken off. Good luck

The three words I would use to describe Chris McDaniel is incompetent, immature, and definitely disrespectful. I'm irate at the lack of respect he has for the students wellbeing. If his job is not terminated due to his condescending and nitpicky behavior, theres a major problem.

Chem 269 is the single worst class I have taken at this school. It's unreal how useless the prelab outlines are, and his writing is poor. It's like reading something that went through google translate. In general, he is just not a very nice person. This class has 3-4 credits of work for 2 credits, and why is there a final exam?

the worst adult "THIS WHOLE NATION" has ever seen. The three words I would use to describe Chris as is aggressive, hostile, and definitely difficult.

Horrible professor. So passive aggressive, obviously doesn’t care, and shows no remorse for his extremely rude personality, condescending talking, and poor communication with students. Chris McDaniel deserves an influx of 1-star reviews, and his rate my professor will be burnt to hell.

He is Hans Mentzen Version 2.

Most disrespectful chem professor to exist along with Hans Mentzen.

Chris McDaniel is the embodiment of a no-good, selfish, horrible professor who deserves to get review bombed online as he is a literal villain and bully who has a huge ego and thinks he’s better than his students. Get this poor excuse of a human being terminated from UMass as he doesn’t belong in any teaching environment.

CRIMINALLY terrible professor!! Chris sucks at communication, and his lectures are dry and a genuine waste of time. Don't expect any help from him. He's awful. Awful awful awful. The people who say he’s good are the ones who enjoy being tortured by unfair midterm and final exams.

Chris sucks at communication and class management, and he means nothing in the end. Even Dr. Surampudi is a better professor.

Extremely poor communication with students alongside with a cocky/condescending/impatient attitude towards helping students during office hours should make any Chris McDaniel class one to stay away from at all costs.

If you want a sane semester, DO NOT take two Chris classes in one semester. Chris straight up spits out useless terminology in lectures like a machine without providing any intuition behind difficult concepts. He also grades iClicker on correctness, and his attitude, character, and teaching style is fully detrimental to a positive work environment.

UMass needs to terminate jobs of rude professors like Chris McDaniel. Orgo is a fun subject, but Chris takes away the fun and joy of it by doing everything he can to damage the reputations of students who ask important questions, which can prevent people from learning. He's egoistic and prioritizes his research over his students.

I’ve never been treated with such blatant disrespect by a professor. Chris clearly has no regard for his students’ well-being or success. I was surprised to see all of the other reviews from the week, but they’re completely deserved. I love orgo, but having to deal with such a condescending and inconsiderate man makes the class unbearable.

If I could give Chris McDaniel a 0/5, I would do that. The most disrespectful faculty member in the chemistry department. Very condescending and inconsiderate, rude to women, poor communication with students, and will do everything he can to slander students. It’s unacceptable that a sexist professor like Chris Mcdaniel hasn’t been fired yet.

If you have to take ORGO261, there’s definitely an option to take it in the summer with Sravan Surampudi, and he is a 1000000x more competent than Chris McDaniel.

Taking Orgo with Chris McDaniel is a genuine waste of time. If you can, take it when Sravan Surampudi teaches it. Sravan Surampudi is kind and encourages students to ask questions. Chris McDaniel, on the other hand, is straight-up mean and will tear students with new questions and go out of his way to slander students who ask for extra help.

Teachers who make chemistry boring are criminals. Chris McDaniel is one of these teachers and deserves to be arrested as he would always go out of his way to destroy the sanity of students through his lack of kindness and sympathy.

Mean, vindictive, and indifferent to student struggles. Stay far away from this chem professor and find someone who is interested in teaching, not in poor communication with students while doing very little work.

I can rant as to why Chris is bad, but you can see the reviews below (1 flagged, but everything else are valid complaints). TLDR: you will notice Chris is getting an lot of bad RMP reviews for 11 semesters in a row because he has no sympathy and does everything he can to make students drop the chemistry major through his poor communication.

TLDR: you will notice Chris McDaniel is getting an lot of formal yet valid RMP complaints for 11 semesters in a row because he does everything he can to make students drop the chemistry major through his poor class management, encouragement of a hostile learning environment, lack of empathy, and a condescending view towards helping students.

Chris McDaniel is truly a pathetic loser, both as a professor and a person.

Chris McDaniel sucks at managing a chemistry class, and he means nothing in the end. Even Sravan Surampudi can do a better job managing a class.

He’s a disorganized mess. If you can avoid him, please do.

Chris McDaniel deserves a termination of employment for how mean he has been.

Most backwards logic thinking professor out there. Decides to make everything harder after the class did poorly on the first exam.

This professor is the worst professor I have ever met throughout my 4 years at UMass. He has unreasonable strict rules and zero sympathy/understanding for any students; he shows no care towards his students and is very harsh/mean through his emails. I would suggest anyone to avoid his class as he’s going to ruin your GPA.

To the person who thought that all these reviews were written by one person, you couldn't be further from being wrong. As a singular student in his organic chemistry class right now, the strong consensus is that he is a tough professor who comes across as disrespectful and rude to his students.

Chris has an extravagant superiority complex that is quite evident in the way he takes pleasure in talking down to students, he was most definitely the stereotypical STEM major who looked down on other fields of study back in the day.

I don't believe in orgo professors who poorly manage classes through brash communication and general lack of empathy, and Chris McDaniel is one of these professors who is recently getting a bad reputation for needlessly losing patience with students who don't understand what his poor handwriting means and setting them up for automatic failure.

Dr. McDaniel is simply the worst at his job. Orgo is supposed to be difficult, but that doesn’t mean it’s a valid excuse for him to repeat mistakes of being defensive and mean. Having to deal with an egoistic fellow like him makes orgo worse, and the chem department need to be fully aware of the situation with Chris.

Chris McDaniel legitimately the worst of all time at teaching. Everyone should avoid Chris as he will do anything he can to hurt your GPA through always discouraging curiosity through giving condescending non-answers and refusing to scale poor exam and quiz grades.

Chris McDaniel is a useless fellow when it comes to teaching orgo. Poor management of TAs, condescending, refuses to scale low exam grades, expects students to understand his poor handwriting, and clearly thinks he can get away with berating students who ask questions. Stay away from Chris unless you want to learn how to destroy your sanity.

I think I'm ready for therapy after taking a class with McDaniel.

Taking a McDaniel class shaved a decade off of my already short life.

This guy is NOT a human being. Chris McDaniel blames his students for the bad days he's been going through and prevents them from learning by berating those who ask rudimentary questions in his office hours and his brash leadership tactics. Apart from that, he's intolerant, overbearing, and mean, and it was a disappointment to take his orgo class.

It's a crime that rude chem professors like Chris McDaniel still teach the orgo lab classes today. As someone who loves organic chemistry, Chris McDaniel takes the fun out of it by promoting a hostile work environment where curiosity is discouraged and gives no slack to people struggling with COVID. Get this joke of a person terminated from UMass.

He doesn't help you. After all, Chris McDaniel was downright mean, critical, and close-minded, and he made it clear that he has unreasonable hate towards women and doesn't care because he's a research professor. Just because someone's a big name in the research field doesn't mean they're allowed to teach. He knew how he handled COVID.

I typically try to avoid writing nasty reviews, but the lack of respect Chris McDaniel seems to have for our sanity and success is disappointing. Stay away from him at all costs and wait for better professors like Surampudi as McDaniel was flat-out mean and clearly hated students who asked him reasonable clarification questions in his office hours.

He doesn't tell you all you need to do well in the class. In an email he told me that he would not give me the full rubric that they use to grade your lab reports on because "I have 80% of the criteria I need, and giving you more would be redundant." Also the dif TA's have dif grading difficulties and are incredibly inconsistent. He can't run lab.

RMP for McDaniel deserved to get lambasted with a sea of formal complaints because simply put, Chris is incapable of writing a reasonable exam and answering student questions with respect.

Chris Mcdaniel is by far the most misogynistic, egotistical human being I have ever met. His disrespect towards those with medical disabilities and extreme circumstances creates an environment thats not suitable for learning. Multiple students are filing charges with the school for the amount of laws broken under his tutelage with orgo lab.

McDaniel is the embodiment of an inconsiderate and rude orgo professor who deserves to get lambasted with a series of reasonable complaints regarding his lack of kindness and empathy as he's a literal jerk and bully who puts zero effort to help students learn the material so that he can inflate his superiority complex and ego.

I hope McDaniel gets his reputation as a professor ruined permanently because he's a literal fraud and rude villain, and his sexual harassment towards women in orgo labs and disrespect towards students with medical difficulties and reasonable extenuating circumstances promotes a dangerous work environment that is unsuitable for learning.

I hate McDaniel. He's useless and has a big ego.

McDaniel was extremely rude in our first lecture, and his top priority is for students to learn nothing.

Anyone, EVEN Surampudi, can do a better job running a class than Chris McDaniel.

I really wish I avoided intolerant, overbearing, and mean professors like McDaniel for any class.

Most useless orgo professor to ever exist.

I hope McDaniel quits his job for good because the way he treats women in orgo labs is NOT OK!!!

McDaniel is an absolute villain who is misogynistic and has a big ego. Wait to take orgo with Sravan Surampudi.

If you have McDaniel for any class, prepare to file valid complaints on his lack of empathy and learn nothing.

Avoid at all costs for orgo 261 and 262. Unfortunately it sucks that people have to take orgo lab with him.

McDaniel sucks.

McDaniel is really good at taking the fun out of interesting classes like orgo 261 through his dry and formal teaching style and condescending view towards helping students.

I just heard the exam averages for orgo classes taught by McDaniel is always an F. Awful. Awful awful awful.

Dr. Surampudi is a better choice for an orgo professor.

McDaniel is a professor to avoid if you really want to learn orgo without worrying too much about your well-being.

Expect to learn nothing as Chris will do anything he can to not help you.

McDaniel deserved to be review bombed as orgo classes under him are really poorly managed.

The fact that he doesn't round grades, even if people are about 0.005 away from the nearest threshold, is proof that McDaniel is very unforgiving.

Chris has an unforgiving grading policy and ridiculous expectations for orgo classes because he's extremely rude and clearly thinks he's better than his students. I don't support male professors who are disrespectful towards women or people with extreme circumstances. Please run!! His classes are not good for your learning or your sanity.

Chris McDaniel was awful for CHEM261. He was a poor facilitator of student learning and showed no remorse for his mean and inconsiderate behavior, bad communication, and encouraging a toxic environment. Most of the grade is weighted towards exams, where the exam average is always an F. Do NOT take McDaniel for orgo when you can wait for Surampudi.

Surampudi would be a better overseer for orgo labs.

This guy sucks. If McDaniel was patient and respectful to students who asked questions, he would be a better professor.

McDaniel is a charismatic lecturer who delivers good orgo lectures, but the course structure sucks. He is also inaccessible outside office hours.

McDaniel sucks. Sure he's knowledgeable and qualified as a chemist, but he's arrogant and rude and makes orgo labs seem like a real sweat shop.

What a jerk. I ask McDaniel about technique and feedback for orgo labs so that I can learn orgo, but all he does is scoff and demonstrate a "don't talk to me attitude". Extremely rude. No sympathy.

McDaniel is such a mean and condescending professor. His exams allow no partial credit, and he will do everything he can to set students up for failure.

He doesn't care about his students. His management of required orgo classes is awful. Just generally a mean person.

Unreasonable grading policies. Belittles students for asking questions or answering questions wrong. Intentionally takes points away from students unfairly. Extremely rude. No sympathy. He is knowledgeable and qualified, that's the only respect McDaniel will get.

Will do everything in power to make chem majors avoid him. Tries to leverage poor exam grades to force students to voice complaints against the chem department. Just a horrible person.

Chris is super disorganized and not helpful at all in his office hours. He likes call out random people during lectures to make class uncomfortable.

Never had such a disrespectful professor in my life. McDaniel will not help you. I went to his office hours, and he just wants you to memorize the materials. This is not the right way to learn. Please avoid.

McDaniel is a real bully. Anytime you question anything about his classes, he will cold call and gaslight you. Pretty brutal professor. Avoid if you can.

Dense content and lectures are difficult to follow. Not a good teacher, would recommend taking orgo with Nathan or Surampudi instead

Unforgiving grading policy and dangerous course structure. Stay away from his classes if possible.

While Sravan Surampudi and Nathan Schnarr are total fam when it comes to orgo professors, Chris McDaniel is a completely reprehensible brainless bag of skin and bones who has a big ego and clearly thinks he's better than his students.

McDaniel is an absolute villain of a professor, the most disrespectful chemistry professor you'll ever meet. He was overbearing and rude, he didn't listen to students when they were feeling burnt out, and orgo lab under him was not handled well at all. Worst of all, he structures classes in a way where full credit cannot be attained.

I really do not like giving bad reviews, but I feel like I have to for him. I'm not sure if he hated me or not, but I never seemed to do well in his lab. Even when I got help from my parents (who are orgo chemists), the best I could do was a B on a postlab. Entire time I thought I'd have to P/F the course, but got sprung a B.

Chris McDaniel is the worst professor at UMass. He's egoistic, inconsiderate, and mean. Other professors told me I have an exceptional work ethic. Chris, however, HATED any question I had to ask. He definitely WILL give an F, because I got it. If you ask for help or get to know him, HE WILL FAIL YOU. Chris, if you're reading this, PLEASE do better.

McDaniel is the embodiment of a no-good, selfish, horrible professor who deserves to get review bombed as he is an absolute villain and bully who cannot manage orgo labs properly, is very disrespectful to women, and shows no signs of kindness, empathy, or warmth for students during tough times like COVID. Get this egoistic jerk fired from UMass.

I hope McDaniel gets his job terminated forever because his unrivaled inflexibility (even during COVID), immaturity (unwillingness to accept valid constructive feedback from students), and disrespect (misogynistic, extremely rude, and shows no sympathy towards struggling students) creates a dangerous work environment unsuitable for learning.

If I see McDaniel in hell, I won't even say hi. Many students (especially the ladies) have classified Chris as an absolute villain for these 3 reasons: disrespect towards people with medical disabilities and reasonable extenuating circumstances, general lack of kindness and empathy, and haphazard handling of orgo lab.

McDaniel has a big ego. He would probably be a great professor and even better person if he could admit to his own mistakes, listen to students who are feeling burnt out, check his ego at the door, and encourage a more accepting and diverse work environment.

McDaniel is the worst person I've ever met in my life. He's unforgiving, useless, and has a terrible attitude towards helping students. He encourages gaslighting and disrespect. I don't recommend this professor. I wish professors like him didn't teach here anymore, UMass would be a better place.

Many students are avoiding McDaniel for orgo because he is unprofessional and straight-up mean for no reason, and there's a serious disconnect between him and his students.

McDaniel is very intimidating and unapproachable. He is not calm or patient and seems to have a harsh attitude toward his students.

Never take orgo with McDaniel when Surampudi is an option. Hard work and effort don't pay off because McDaniel grades on how much he likes you. Very unforgiving and brutal man who clearly thinks he's better than women and crushes their positive spirit into pieces. I hope he gets arrested because his sexual harassment towards women is NOT OK.

So much complaints about how rude and disrespectful this professor is that there's no way I could fit it into 350 characters. Bottom line is: if you can avoid him, AVOID HIM.

McDaniel is an absolute villain of a professor, the least helpful chem professor you'll ever have. Always gives non-answers, not a particularly nice or helpful human, doesn't care about students, incompetent overseer of orgo lab, and his grading policy is more on how much he likes students than the amount of effort they put in.

TBH McDaniel is disorganized and doesn't know how to be a proper overseer of orgo lab. While he's clearly enthusiastic and knowledgeable about organic chemistry, the workload for his classes is insane and depressing.

The Hans Johnston of the chemistry department. NEVER take a class with that man.

McDaniel was not empathetic at all in my first class with him, and his priority is to see students suffer.

Be careful with what you have to say about his classes because McDaniel WILL NOT accept any form of constructive criticism, no matter how reasonable it is.

Chris McDaniel doesn't help resolve your doubts. He makes you doubt yourself through repeatedly engaging in public shaming and forcing you into toxic situations. Don't even bother with that fellow. He's just awful.

Surampudi > McDaniel

It is better to take Chem 261 with Surampudi instead of McDaniel if your orgo background is rudimentary.

Inconsistent grader! Grades do not reflect your effort if you have a professor like him or Bob Dow.

Just an incredibly rude person. Threatened to call the cops on me for walking into the lab on the first day early.

I had submitted my lab ahead of time but accidentally on the wrong lab portal as they are all next to each other. I realized this the following week and emailed my TA and she said that should be no problem but she would check with Chris. Chris said he would let it be graded but took the most late points that can be taken. Just a hardo

No extensions. No understanding for emergencies or difficult situations. Went to the dean did not help. Need a doctors note if you want to even make up a lab but still you get no extension.

His orgo lab TAs deserved to get berated harshly for caring more about massaging their ego by treating orgo lab as a common sense course and talking down on students who ask reasonable questions than helping students succeed and thrive.

Very unforgiving professor who has no problem holding grudges against those who make the simplest of mistakes. Wants everyone to follow his methods and doesn't leave much room for creativity. If you don't get on his good side by adhering to common sense in orgo lab, your grade WILL SUFFER. Oh, and good luck asking him for an explanation or help.

He is like Joffrey from Game of Thrones. He doesn't accept anyone else's opinion but his own, the lectures are completely one sided and he won't guide you to say what he wants to hear. Boring and he can be very belittling when it comes to questions. His grading process is old-fashioned and unclear. Your effort is never good enough for him.

Rude and hateful.

He is always out there to fail students. You have to actively try to pass.

Chris McDaniel is probably the biggest sore loser when it comes to professors in the orgo field of the chemistry department.

Honestly the guy is very clearly a research professor and I frankly don't blame hime for making this class a pain. However good lord this is simple chemistry but you would think it's some kind of a divinchi code. He completely lacks any understanding whatsoever and just has absolutely no real social skills.

This guy made me have too many all nighters while I would cry myself to sleep on the weekends studying for this course. For just an organic chemistry lab he treats it like it's a PhD course. I lost 15 pounds because of this professor and I'm still recovering. If you can take this lab with another professor please do for your own sake.

Chris is a dangerous and creepy character who is avoided by everyone if they can. Even students who publicly "claim" to have not been treated badly by Chris do concede privately that the kind of hostile environment Chris has created in orgo lab hinders completion of the academic objectives of their degree programs.

Orgo lab managed by Chris McDaniel is an awful class to exist. It's full of conflicts of interest, hazing rituals, harsh grading, toxic sweat-shop culture for female students, and lack of departmental oversight. He probably has some serious personality disorders and seems to transmit negativity and guilt to whichever student he 'mentors'.

You can have a functional relationship with Chris McDaniel. However, he lacks empathy, social skills, and common sense. So, that relationship is not very healthy. And to top it off, he reminds me of Walter White from the final season of Breaking Bad.

The class is like any chemistry class in terms of work/difficulty, however, Chris makes it a nightmare. I genuinely have not ever come across someone, nonetheless a teacher, who acts the way he does. Kindness or compassion are two words I don't think Chris understands. Arrogance and megalomaniac match better. If I could rate him lower, I would.

The orgo lab requires far more work than a 2 credit course. Be ready for about 9 hours of work per week (4-hour labs, required LUH times, pre-labs that can take about 2 hours, and lab reports that take about 2 hours as well). The grading outlines are not clear and little formatting mistakes significantly impact your grade.

Previous review clearly comes from an orgo lab TA with a big ego. This class destroyed my mental health and social life and is the most unorganized class I've taken because simply put, Chris doesn't seem to care about the success and learning of students, and he is lazy, making it impossible to schedule 1-on-1 appointments with outside class.

Pretentious chemistry instructor who is sarcastic (not in a good way), rude, and short-fused and doesn't really care about students.

Yeah just don't take his lab. This guy has no tolerance for missing lab due to illness. I missed out on the lab and filled out the make-up lab form but was denied because I didn't read his email. For god's sake, how am I supposed to read the email while I'm lying on the bed suffering from illness?

This professor has no respect for his students and provides no support. It is truly despicable how he treats his students and is unwilling to provide make-ups or extensions for legitimate reasons. I have always loved chemistry, but now he has made me never want to take another chemistry class, truly disappointing.

Worst professor in the chem department. He does not care about his students at all. Doesn't give any extensions even if ur grandma is dying, he doesn't care. All labs were graded at the same time even though he said we would receive them back every week to fix what we did wrong on the next report so you lose the same points on all of them.

It was something.

Chris McDaniel is completely inaccessible outside of class. In fact, despite taking this class with him I have never even seen him. He's just not there, at all. He talks through all of the lab TA's like a omnipotent God of the lab. Your grandma died? Too bad. No extensions. No humanity. If you are late, you're basically dead to him.

This is a lab with a assigned time yet you are expected to show up outside your session for "LUH" whether the available times fit your schedule or not. Our attendance is mandatory, I have not seen this man once, yet he has the audacity to give a 30 minute, cumulative practicum with 20 questions. 2 credits. Need a makeup lab? Too bad. Good TAs tho.

I don't think I ever had a professor who I have never. once. seen. He has never participated in my lab section, which is completely run by the TAs who do the professor's work and are the only reason the experiments don't fall apart.

The amount of work given is disproportionate for a 2-credit class, and is graded quite harshly. The lab would run better if someone else were running it. Quite literally anyone else. The lab in and of itself isn't bad, depending on the TA you get. You mainly interact with your TA, and Chris McDaniel doesn't really show up.

Chem lab was the biggest waste of my time. The experiments themselves were fine, however the lab reports along with prelab work, OWLs, post lab OWLs, and LUH hours is too much for a 2 credit course, oh and the unnecessary final. Extremely strict attendance rules, you cannot be late or submit any late work past 3 days. My TA made the lab bearable.

A review for his winter class: McDaniel sometimes straight up glosses over content that shows up later in tests. He also doesn't address underlying concepts, the understanding of which is crucial to your success. Resorting to memorization will never work. Do NOT take this class unless you have experience self-studying and a good grip on gen. chem.

He gave a final exam where the average was a 35. With how bad everyone did he turns around and says "that's on you(the students) and not curving the exam". You didn't teach us anything and give us a final exam with no preparation and a loose "what you did in lab will be on it" and expect us to pass! BS get off your fn high horse and quit teaching.

Stingy with how he grades his students and will not admit that he is wrong. You might get a grade lower than you deserve in this class.

Rudest professor I've had at Umass so far

A straight up bully, never admits he's wrong, looks down on everyone, and thinks he's superior to everyone else. Will never give an extension even if you're on your deathbed. Doesn't explain anything and expects you to "know it". He would rather stomp on a malnourished child than admit that he's wrong. He needs to be fired.

Be prepared to be set up for failure. You would expect that once you hit rock bottom, there is no way to go down even further, but trust me, McDaniel will find a way to make that happen. Not an example of what reasonable professors are supposed to do. Poor sportsmanship in so many aspects.

He is not present at all. This course depends fully on your TA. It is a 2 credit course that should take a total of 6 hours per week, but it ends up taking much more. 4 hours for the lab itself, minimum 2-3 hours for post-lab, minimum 1 hour for pre-lab, 1 hour for owls, and 1 hour for LUH hours adding up to 9 hours, which is a big understatement.

Orgo Lab is a big leap from the typical GenChem labs. The writing criteria is not clear, but the grading is very tough. The only easy way to do OWLs is if you understand the 6+ page handout sheet. I spent 4+ hours on the non-formal reports. No deadline extension. Have not finish the course, but overall knows it is a big stress on my GPA.

all the other reviews already cover how terrible he is

Surampudi is pretty much everything McDaniel couldn't be

I had a heart attack and asked for an extension as I was in the emergency room. Chris McDaniel was unwilling to grant an extension. Take surampudi, take Schnarr, take anyone else.

Worst professor I have ever had at Umass.He is very stingy with extra credit and my lecture grade was graded incorrectly due to glitching and he wouldn't change the grade. Had to go to the head of the department

I've never seen someone with a bigger superiority complex than Chris McDaniel. It's obvious his blatant textbook narcissism resulted in him being the most reviled chem instructor on the planet. Rachid Skouta, on the other hand, is a fantastic stand-up guy. Down to earth, humble, kind, and charismatic. All attributes McDaniel sadly does not possess.

Well, well, well...it would appear Chris McDaniel's cocky and disrespectful behavior towards students led karma to bite back at him by making him the most reviled chem faculty member. I'd love to see Sravan Surampudi and Nathan Schnarr get promoted to Professor positions and hopefully for McDaniel to get laid off from the chemistry department.

Surampudi cares about student learning, puts in effort to make sure his expectations are clear, and is approachable. McDaniel, on the other hand, can't do any of these things. Orgo with McDaniel is a chaotic mess of unclear, fuzzy instructions with befuddling grading criteria. Assignments are bad and you don't learn much. Worst class I've taken.

This isn't even about the difficulty of orgo lab, moreso that you never see McDaniel and when you need to communicate with him, he replies to you with in a rude and egotistical way. He is not kind or caring. Make sure to do your work before deadlines; he will never give you an extension or make-up.

He does not deserve to run such an important lab course at a university like UMass. He thinks all the criticism he receives is the fault of others. Such a person must be avoided at all costs in college and life.

Really hates his students. Created a 30 minute final with 20 questions because it was too difficult for him to schedule a make-up final exam. Making a 30 minute final be 15% of our final grade is crazy.

He is horrible. I have no words. The best way to describe him is if you added up all the bad reviews of his and combined them into a list. Its terrible that he doesn't even try to change his teaching style/methods, despite almost everybody having a negative experience in his class. The homework assigned is way too much for it to only be worth 15%.

Truly a bully. Dealt with a difficult TA who was a bit inexperienced. I spoke to McDaniels about the situation he dismissed my concerns saying that the TA and I had a "cultural difference". Accused several students of cheating and when they were able to prove they weren't he changed the lab handout to support his side.

The course is very unforgiving. Small mistakes in even the spacing of your lab report will get you points off. Your lab report grades depend on your TA's generosity. There are no plausible excuses for lab reports being late so be aware of due dates. The moment you call him out for being unfair in his grading or decisions, you're getting ghosted.

he's just mean, the TA's teach the labs but just avoid McDaniel at all costs and don't be late he will make you feel bad. Lab reports are graded very harshly.

Everything you've heard is true. Avoid at all costs. Does not respect disability accommodations. Try not to have any problems because if you do communicating with him will be your worst nightmare.

Every bad thing you heard about him is completely true. You have to do a full lab report every week with the most bare bones rubric you've ever seen in your academic career. But, even if it's not on the rubric, they will still take points off because you're just suppose to read his mind and know what he wants. Mistakes are heavily punished.

This course is an utter failure. The very illogical grading criteria is what is worst. If you capitalize a chemical name by mistake, forget to put a space before the unit, and similar meaningless details, they'll deduct so many points. I don't know why UMass won't hire another professor to teach it and just restructure the whole thing.

McDaniel was probably the most inconsiderate person when it came to grading and did not care about understanding his students. He was not there during lab and was absent during instruction periods. I would avoid him at all costs.

In the 2 month winter course, I had to complete over 130 homework problems for it to only be worth a minuscule part of my grade. Most of it came down to how you did on the three exams and five quizzes he also assigned. 10% of your grade was based on watching the lectures, but you weren't allowed to skip a single second of it, or you would get a 0.

Super unlikable and unwilling to help. Accused me of plagiarizing when I didn't and refused to meet to talk about it or help at all.

He really does not care about a single student. It is very clear that he is not compassionate or even kind. Very unfortunate that he is the only orgo lab instructor at UMass. They need to hire a new one asap!

Genuinely not a good person. I do not think he should be teaching and working with students because he does not care about their wellbeing. He goes above and beyond to put students down and even to tell me personally I did not put my academics first because I missed a lab due to a competition. I have a 4.0 btw and I am doing GREAT. not a fan.

Hope u read this cause ur my most hated professor karma will get u

STOP MAKING FAKE ACCOUNTS MCDANIEL! I KNOW THERES NO STUDENTS WHO ACTUALLY ARE GIVING U ANYTHING OTHER THAN A 1/5

The class itself is fine, like all labs just hope you get a good TA (there are thankfully many for this course). Pray you never have to interact with this man. Thinks he can get out of giving people their due accommodations by putting *no exceptions even for people with accommodations.* Even the TAs don't really like him. Lab is kinda fun tho

Read the rest of the reviews, they are accurate! You better hope your sweet cheeks gets a good TA, or the class is hell. The grading criteria is posted for reports, but they'll get you for not including nuances that they have never described to you. Actual lab is enjoyable to be in, NEVER forget to do your OWLs, or youll pay his wrath.Condescending

He's one of the worst and least caring people on this campus.I had the displeasure of taking this lab, and unfortunately,got to experience why he gets these bad reviews. The TAs that teach you are lovely-I loved mine, but Chris, that's a different story.20q+30 min final with math and ChemDraw is absurd. Grading rubric's worse. Don't take the class.

Far and away the worst and least caring professor I've ever had to the misfortune of meeting. This guy could not care less about his students. His labs are unreasonably hard with an impossible final and without a good TA you will fail. He is rude in person and worse over email, I would give him a zero if I could.

This guy runs the orgo labs like the third reich. He is the single least caring person I've come across at umass and it's a terrible misfortune that he is the only orgo lab leader. Your TA can make the labs tolerable if you are lucky but pray you don't ever have to so much as email Mcdaniel becuase he will go out of his way to ruin your day.

Very badly run class. Your grade is almost entirely dependent on your TA's grading skills. If they grade poorly, you will not get a good grade. The actual professor never shows up and I have heard that if you have issues he is not very lenient.

Just like the reviews say, the guy is cold and shows no care for student success. Even if he is your only option, consider putting the class on hold until the next semester or be prepared to fight for your GPA.

Hard work doesn't guarantee success in Orgo Lab with Chris McDaniel. Lab and exam grades often depend on TA discretion or his personal preferences. Small errors are penalized harshly, and content not covered in lecture appears on exams. He shows little regard for student learning, support, or fairness.

Communication with McDaniel is nearly impossible. He rarely responds to questions and is rude to students for no reason. Lab management is not consistent among TAs, and grading can feel random. His attitude prioritizes control over learning, and students often feel ignored, unfairly evaluated, and unsupported.

The class environment under McDaniel is stressful and unsupportive. He dismisses student inquiries, enforces rigid policies, and seems more interested in abusing power than helping students learn. If you have him, expect artificially hard workload (not actually content based hard) and a generally hostile atmosphere even with careful preparation.

Expect minimal to no support in this course. Chris is largely MIA outside of lectures and labs, leaving students to rely entirely on TAs. He rarely addresses questions adequately and is quick to penalize mistakes, making consistent success dependent more on luck than dedicated effort.

His attitude has already been discussed so let's change the topic. McDaniel's approach to exams and assignments is inconsistent. He introduces material not taught in class and applies arbitrary grading. Students can follow all instructions perfectly and still lose points. This lack of transparency undermines trust and makes orgo with him brutal.

McDaniel prioritizes control over teaching. He micromanages TAs to enforce strict, arbitrary rules and rarely explains the grading policy for orgo lab. Students, particularly the ladies, are often penalized for minor deviations, and more importantly there is no transparency or fairness. The class feels more like punishment than learning.

Female students report feeling particularly targeted and demoralized. McDaniel's comments and grading often weaken their confidence, creating a hostile environment. This behavior crosses professional boundaries and makes orgo lab feel unsafe, and it's unacceptable how a chem prof with a reputation for misogyny is allowed to run this class.

McDaniel seems more focused on catching students making mistakes than helping them learn from mistakes. Points are deducted for trivial errors, and TAs are instructed to enforce strict, nit-picky rules. The environment feels punitive, discouraging learning and creative experimentation.

If you're a female student hoping for a job reference or letter of recommendation based on your hard work in Orgo Lab, expect McDaniel to pass on your request as it's clear he doesn't care about students at all. This is a guy whose misogyny and indifference toward student effort/learning all overshadow how knowledgeable he is.

Chris McDaniel never shows concern for student well-being or learning. Extensions and accommodations are almost always rejected, even with legitimate, thorough documentation. Personal emergencies and health issues are treated with inflexibility, adding stress and demonstrating a lack of professional responsibility.

Lab management is inconsistent. Some TAs are strict, others lenient, and McDaniel exerts control in unpredictable ways. Students can't rely on clear standards, and even correct work can receive arbitrary penalties, making the grading process feel unfair and stressful.

Mistakes are harshly punished, and deviation from his preferred methods can result in significant point loss. Questions are often met with sarcastic comments or condescension. The focus is on catching errors rather than teaching, which discourages learning, undermines student confidence, and fails to prepare them for the organic chemistry industry.

There is no sense of fairness in this course. Grades often reflect arbitrary judgment rather than the actual quality of work and effort students put in. Female students in particular are penalized harshly for minor formatting mistakes, while larger academic efforts are overlooked. The lack of consistency is disappointing.

Professionalism is severely lacking. Chris McDaniel's communication is often curt or unhelpful, leaving students without clarity. When problems arise, he tends to deflect responsibility rather than working toward solutions, which reflects poorly on his pedagogical commitment. Students leave orgo lab with McDaniel demoralized instead of inspired.

Chris McDaniel runs the course with little regard for fairness. Communication is curt, grading feels arbitrary, and policies are inflexible. Students often feel like they're walking on eggshells rather than learning. The lab itself isn't unmanageable, but his leadership makes it unnecessarily harsh.

Instead of serving as a mentor, McDaniel acts like a gatekeeper. Expect no flexibility in this class. Even with valid reasons, late work is not accepted, and accommodations are often disregarded. The rigid approach makes the course inaccessible to students who need support, and his dismissive attitude only adds to the frustration.

Even though the subject matter is important, McDaniel's handling of the course drains motivation. Artificially strict deadlines, unyielding policies, and inconsistent grading overshadow any learning. Students leave feeling undervalued, and the sleep deprivation caused by his style far outweighs any lessons learned.

McDaniel's teaching is overshadowed by arrogance. Instead of creating an open learning environment, he exudes superiority, which discourages students from asking questions. Paired with rigid grading, the course feels more like a demoralizing and demotivating test of endurance than an academic experience.

Deadlines are absolute, with zero tolerance for flexibility, even in legitimate emergencies. The powerhouses like Sravan Surampudi and Nathan Schnarr show empathy, but Chris McDaniel refuses to adapt. It gives the impression he values rules and appearances more than the actual well-being and learning of his students.

Chris McDaniel doesn't hide his disdain for students, and female students especially report being talked down to or dismissed. This kind of treatment fosters a toxic atmosphere where people feel singled out or devalued based on gender, which is honestly unacceptable in any classroom.

The course could be manageable if not for his hostility. Students already know orgo is tough, but McDaniel adds unwanted stress by being curt, unhelpful, and dismissive. It feels less like teaching and more like policing. The negativity overshadows the content. Rather than feeling like you're working with a mentor, you feel like a burden to him.

McDaniel runs orgo lab like a punishment rather than a learning opportunity. Minor errors are treated as major failures, and students are never given the benefit of the doubt. Instead of guidance, you're met with coldness and rigidity that crush motivation. He then gets defensive and would clap back at anyone who questions how he ran lab.

Students need professors who encourage them, but McDaniel clearly does the opposite. His dismissive and short-tempered responses discourage participation. It's not just about difficulty, it's also about a total lack of respect for students' time and effort. The lack of compassion and consistency in grading makes the entire experience unbearable.

McDaniel seems to take pride in being inflexible. Extensions, accommodations, or even basic empathy are off the table. This rigid approach isn't about high standards, it's about micromanagement, control and the classic power trip. By prioritizing harsh rules over actual teaching, he strips away any enthusiasm students might have for chemistry.

This class feels like being at a Korean reform school from the start. McDaniel sets a tone of condescension and makes even simple interactions unpleasant. It's difficult to respect a professor who belittles students rather than supporting them. For a demanding class like orgo, students deserve far more patience and respect in communication.

This class is more about surviving an unlikable version of Hopper from Stranger Things than learning chemistry. McDaniel's inaccessibility, strict enforcement of minor rules, and lack of meaningful feedback create an environment where students are stressed, anxious, and often feel powerless.

McDaniel's behavior shows clear misogyny. Female students often feel demeaned, dismissed, and undervalued in both labs and lectures. Combined with harsh grading and lack of accommodations, this creates a hostile and inequitable environment that discourages learning and participation.

McDaniel's behavior toward female students is deeply concerning. Misogyny is evident in his condescending tone and dismissive treatment, which discourages participation and undermines confidence. Combined with harsh grading, this creates an unfair and hostile learning environment.

McDaniel treats students like burdens rather than freshers. He rarely acknowledges effort, and constructive questions are met with unhelpful, demeaning responses. The course feels like navigating a minefield where understanding the material does not protect you from losing points or facing hostility.

Orgo's difficulty DOES NOT excuse being on a high horse. It's easy to claim “it's just orgo,” but McDaniel actively worsens the experience. He's dismissive, controlling, and unapproachable. Hard chemistry does not require hostility or condescension, yet his behavior makes this a toxic, unnecessarily stressful endeavor.

Blaming difficulty is a smokescreen. McDaniel's impatience, sarcasm, and rigidity are what make students dread class. Even competent, hardworking students face hostility and unpredictable penalties, proving the challenge comes from him, not just orgo itself. Hard work alone does not equate to fair evaluation here.

Orgo lab doesn't need to be cruel, but McDaniel makes it one of the worst experiences. TAs have different grading standards, he rejects ALL accommodation requests, and interactions can be hostile. Hard work isn't good enough, students are intentionally set up to fail by his arbitrary methods.

The “hard class” excuse doesn't cut it at all. Chris McDaniel's lack of consistency, poor communication, and refusal to provide grounded guidance are what make McDaniel orgo brutal. Students fail or lose points for reasons unrelated to chemistry, proving that the struggle is his fault, not the subject's.

Hard work and effort should matter, but under McDaniel, it never does. Students lose points for minor errors, TAs grade inconsistently, and accommodations are always denied. Let's be honest: the course feels impossible not because organic chemistry is hard, but because Chris McDaniel turns a rigorous subject into an unfair ordeal of abuse.

Never take a class with McDaniel when you can take it with Surampudi. Orgo is naturally challenging, yet McDaniel exacerbates the difficulty with inconsistent expectations and dismissive responses. Students lose points despite following directions perfectly. The real struggle is surviving his unreasonable grading and patterns of rude behavior.

McDaniel knows orgo really well, but his treatment of students is seriously concerning. I think we all are mature enough to know professors can't coddle students, but many reports of him denying legally mandated accommodations are troubling. If these allegations are true, it's unacceptable that he is getting away with it whenever he runs orgo lab.

This instructor was artificially rude to us whenever we questioned him, wish I could give him 0 stars.

Genuinely just a bad person who thinks his lab class is more important than individuals.

Simply awful. Was so stressed that I had to enter the hypobaric chamber after every class. Do not take.

The lab reports were graded by an unforgiving rubric. It's not necessarily conceptually difficult, but it is really easy to lose points for small errors like capitalizing a compound in your report. The labs themselves are pretty fun though.

Organic chemistry lab is something I really enjoyed. However, the method of teaching and the grading is making the class an unbearable hurdle to jump. I think it is very telling as a educator if students come in expressing love for the subject and leave hating the class not because of the content, but because of the pedagogy.