He aims to make the average on tests a 50% and he succeeds. His tests are hard, but if you study the concepts you can very easily get an A. He also offers more than enough extra credit. Homework is awesome too; the day before the exam you just turn in everything you did to study for the test. I loved his class.

His tests are extremely hard but he gives extra credits which may help a bit. Do not expect a good grade on his tests without a curve. Also he gives A LOT of homework. If you are the lazy type of person avoid this professor. Other than that this professor teaches well.

I really enjoyed his personality and how he approaches various math problems. So much that I'm switching 21C classes to be taught by him again next quarter. Very approachable and down to earth guy. Class is curved fairly but don't expect to slack off and get away with it. Lenient on homework. After the final I promised him a good review so YEAH. =D

When I first got into this class i thought it was going to be difficult, but it ended up being really easy. I barely studied for any of the tests and got an easy A on all of them. I would definitely recommend taking this class because it is not only easy, but the professor does a good job of teaching all the concepts. Btw extra credit helps a lot

Excellent calculus teacher. He explains his ideas very well. your grade really reflects upon your willingness to study. you can easily get an A, but you can also easily get a C or so.. just go to his lectures and discussions and you will be solid!

Dr. Cherney is the best teacher I've had here at Davis! He explains everything clearly, despite the difficult material. It's easy to connect with him unlike a lot of other profs so going to office hours for help is easy. He brings enthusiasm and personality to lecture, and it's contagious. I hope, hope, hope he teaches 21D!

This guy is one of the most amazing Calculus teachers I have EVER had. He made MAT21C something that anyone could understand! Yes, he does give written HW, but it is worth doing, and by turning in very little you will still get at least a B. If at all possible you WANT this professor

He's pretty interesting and young. Very clear on subject! Weekly quizzes and he gets question directly from that weeks homework problems. I enjoy coming to class, even though it's so early in the morning. He's very understanding and fair grader. I definitely would recommend his class!

Too hard for me personally. He is too excited about math so he treats it like everyone else knows as much as he does. However, he is very helpful and is always there for office hours. Expects too much out of homework.

Awesome teacher. Is very clear and presents his knowledge well.

He's way too excited about math to be sane, but his jokes make lecture a little more tolerable. He is INCREDIBLY anal about the details, but he's definitely the best calc teacher I've ever had. He's incredibly clear, and his enthusiasm means he's really helpful, too.

Very good professor! He is very clear and knows the material well, however, his tests are very hard. Best math professor i've had at Davis.

Cherney was an awesome teacher. super duper nice. You can definitely get an A if you make sure to do all the homework he assigns. Make sure you practice and know how to show work and definitions.

Dr. Cherney is an excellent lecturer. His explanations and examples are very clear. He is able to hold the attention of the class and cracks jokes every so often. His quiz questions are pulled straight from his list of suggested homework problems, so make sure you do them! His midterm and final are both very challenging but he curves everything.

He's a great guy and a great teacher. He's really clear and easy to understand in his lectures and he's really funny too. He's so helpful during office hours or whenever you need help with something. The grading on quizzes and tests is so anal it's extremely annoying. They're hard too, but the curve is always fair.

Cherney's lectures were extremely clear and he explained the material well, but he would just explain the very basics and expect you to teach yourself the rest unless you came into office hours and asked him for help. His midterm and final were EXTREMELY difficult. I definitely would not take his class again.

very good lectures straight forward notes. Quizzes and exams are very hard. aims to set curve to 50% and does.

Not the best teacher ever. Really jerky sometimes. AVOID IF YOU CAN.

He is a great lecturer, but his tests are quite difficult. He grades on a bell curve, which can be difficult competing against everyone else. The timing for the quizzes are too short, & the proximity of the cheaters at the beginning of the quarter unfair - due to the competitive nature of the bell curve. He loves proofs, & his jokes are adorable.

His lectures are clear but he sometimes uses lots of confusing math language and terminology. His Midterm and Final are extremely difficult, but he curves them fairly. He doesn't seem to trust the students at all. If you study, you will be fine in his class, but if you don't want to keep up with the work you will not do well.

Dr Cherney is 1 of the best math professors I had; He was the only professor who I could understand. Hes a great lecturer bc his lectures r organized &his quizzes come right from the hw. His midterm was NOT ez. It was super hard but the curve is fair. Hes overqualified 2 b teachin the 16 series, but u will definitely feel challenged & learn A LOT.

Every1 on here R such winers. His quizzes R not 2 bad & come strate from the HW. The midterm was not bad but the final was extremely hard. His curves & tests are extremely fair. He is very approachable and if u R struggling in the class it is ur fault if u dont seek help. Just pay attention & follow along w/ wat he is saying and u'll B fine.

Professor Cherney is a smart and an outstanding teacher. Unlike most math teachers, he is very clear when he teaches. There is a weekly quiz, but they are based from exercises from the textbook. His office hours are very useful. The class is difficult but if you put in enough effort and time you will do well. Curve is very generous (mean about 50%)

Cherney was my favorite professor at Davis to this point. Anyone who says he's too hard is a clown. Tests are completely fair. Tough, but fair. If you do practice problems from the book and go to class every day you should get a good grade. Cherney makes everything very clear in his notes and I wish more professors were like him!

Best math teacher I've ever had. The tests were hard but it was definitely worth it because you learn a lot. He's amazing at office hours and he really makes sure you understand. I really recommend this teacher.

Excellent teacher. Very challenging, explains things very well, is very approachable, and excited about his subject. Great at office hours. The homework you turn in is basically whatever you used to study for the class. I worked very hard, learned a lot, and would definitely take his class again!

Took his class fall 2011. He makes his exams devilishly difficult to make the average about 50%, and even though the curve may make up for the devastation, it was not particularly enjoyable. He is very picky with mathematical notation. Weekly quizzes were very hard to ace. DO THE HOMEWORK, be very familiar with the concepts and you should do fine!

Can be rude. MAKE sure you do not ask any questions. He'll put you on the spot and make you look dumb - very condescending. Tests are easy. Do all the 10,000 problems in the book and you will do fine. The quizzes were hard, but he curves to an A, so you'll rock the course.

As a non-mathematician, I really did not like the class emphasis on definitions and classifications of differential equations. Professor Cherney was very kind and helpful during office hours though, which I regret not going to more often.

Professor Cherney is my favorite math professors of all time. He's really personable and funny, even at 8 am. His tests and quizzes can be hard but if you study for them they're definitely fair. My biggest recommendation would be to GO TO OFFICE HOURS! First, of all he is nice and a very cool person to hang with. Second, he will make you like math!

He is a great teacher. sometimes he goes fast, but I always went after class and he would take his time to explain everything no matter how much time it took. Even in office hours, I enjoyed his enthusiasm in calculus. He made me want to learn more because I actually understood him. His tests are hard, but he helps you out personally. Loved HIM!

Loved HIM! He was very understanding. The only reason he would be considered hard is if one didn't study or attend his classes. I didn't really need to use the book other than for homework. He spent time out of class and office hours to help students. He is very clear and he explains the material to the point where you can teach someone else.

Nice guy! I did parkour with him for a while. Made math bearable and had witty jokes. Exams were hard, but he curves fairly. Get to know him at office hours!

He is very fair. Tests are extremely difficult usually class average is 50%. Final is impossible. BUT do tons of HW practice problems and you will be fine--the class is graded on a huge curve as well as curved HW category.

Great math teacher. Not easy but very helpful. Notes might not make complete sense the first time through but they are very clear when you look back over them. Teaches concepts very well which is awesome because he doesn't care if you can just compute calculations. Homework is whatever you want it to be, it's whatever you choose to do to study.

He is a good professor but the tests are very unfair. So think 10 times before u take him.

The only reason I liked this class was cause the teacher was smokin hot. He had a fun/sarcastic way of talking which added some humor to the dreadful lectures. You have to go to every class for the notes. You do EVERY SINGLE homework problem for each section in the book for 15% of your grade. His tests were pretty hard, but the curve made it better

His lecture is good, but the homework is terrible. Understanding every concept and definition on the notes and doing all problems on the practice exam is very important.

Very attractive. He lectures very well and made hard material understandable. However, his tests are extremely hard (even he says that - to separate the A's, etc) but if you study and do the homework (of your choosing) you'll be able to pass!

Really Hard

Grading is somewhat generous on exams due to his grading policies, however, everything must be in complete sentences. This applies to the weekly individual and group hw as well. Cherney can come across as condescending when you ask him a question and his lectures were sometimes unclear. Overall, would take again over any other 22A professor.

He will challenge you. Rather than just giving you problems to solve he tests your understanding of the mathematical concepts, requiring you to answer exam questions clearly and in sentences. Very unorthodox and can be quite difficult, but his methods will definitely help you to truly understand the math. Take him for a new learning experience.

By far my favorite math prof at UCD. The funniest prof I've ever had. Tests are difficult but he prepares you well for them and tells you what is expected. Lectures could be better but he makes them great. Cleary knows his stuff and wants students to succeed. He puts in a lot of extra time to help you succeed. I wish I could have him again! 1010

Great Professor. He is going to challenge you. He had us read sections and do the homework on our own, then would go over material and answer questions in class. Not sure how he is with lower division, but he really made me interested in the subject material. Not an easy A, but doable if you stay on top of your stuff.

He assigned homework on material before covering it in lecture and often based his lectures on the (for points) questions we wrote on our homework. Tests were fair, lectures were great because he didn't just go over the book. Stay on top of the work and you'll do well. Really funny, really helpful, highly recommended.

He prepares you for a career in science, meaning he doesn't expect you to be a human calculator and to compute everything. He wants us to understand the purpose of the math and be able to write about it. About 75% of your grade we be based on writing in full sentences and defining the concepts used in a problem, 25% is having the correct answer.

Cherney is a very good professor. All I can say is you need to study for his quizzes, and by that don't study steps, but also know how to explain the process of the mathematical reasoning. Yes, you must write sentences with your work. He gives one midterm, one final, and weekly quizzes. Do well on the quizzes because they reflect your understanding

Amazing professor! Great sense of humor and engaging lectures. He required us to write everything in sentences on quizzes and exams, which really forced us to understand the concepts instead of just memorizing procedures and churning out answers. I struggled with calc in high school, but Cherney made everything crystal clear.

Cherney is a great professor that forces you to write in sentences in order to fully understand the concepts. He's very funny during lectures however he might come off as rude to the not faint of heart. The only problem I've had was his grading. I got an A in the final, midterm and an A- average in my quizzes, but he curved my tot grade to a B.

I didn't take calc in high school, so I was honestly scared when I started this class. He scared me at first, but later I went to him for help. He is really helpful and passionate about math. I was doing as well as other students who had taken calc before and understanding. The only downside is that the class was down curved so my B+ went to a C+.

Weekly quizzes in discussion. Attend lecture to learn his way of calculating and how to write everything in sentences. Make yourself do homework problems and review notes. Grades curved so 93.9% and below was a B+.

Although he down curved the grades, he's a pretty good lecturer. His examples helped a lot. The weekly quizzes given during discussion were helpful. If you're taken AP Calc the class is extremely easy. I didn't study much for his class. I just looked over a couple examples and got A's on both the final and midterm. Writing in sentences wasn't bad.

If you want to learn how to write in complete sentences, he is the one to take. He didn't teach much math. I understood his logic behind all of the sentence writing and I agree with it, but you got a minimum of a C on tests if you wrote in compete sentences. Only 5/20 points per problem were based on your actually calculations and answers.

Too much of everything. Too much theory. Too many minor concepts he'll gloss over then force you to be able to essentially lecture on. Too much writing, feel like I should have gotten WE credit for writing dozens of pages of math literature on the mdtrms & HW & fnl for this *lower div*. Do not take unless you want a ton of self study for a 3 unit.

This class is a lot of theory and incredibly conceptual. Hardest math class I have taken simply because you have to learn a lot on your own. No feedback on homework and never gives solutions to practice problems so you have no idea if you are even doing the questions right. This 3 unit class felt like 8. I like math, and this class killed it.

Admirably, he makes sure you really understand Laplace transforms, one of the critical methods you will need solving ODEs. Take the class and discover an amazing connection between ODEs and linear algebra, but expect some annoying grading criteria. Nevertheless, if you want to do controls you'll thank me later (robots, autonomous cars guys)?

As others have stated, Cherney's teaching style is very different from other math professors. A lot of people probably won't like it, but I did. Often I would make small mistakes on an exam and get only 20% of the credit despite knowing the material. Cherney's style focuses more on knowing what you are doing rather than knowing the steps.

Professor Cherney is interesting teacher, making you write for most of the credit in the course. He is a good professor with fair grading (which is also very clear). There is just a lot of studying and homework that you need to do in order to pass the class. The writing can be hard but at the end I feel like I knew the material better because of it

Cherney has a much different style of teaching than other math professors. I found this style very helpful and understood the material much better than in previous quarters, but I also have friends who really struggled with his style. He grades mainly on you're understanding and ability to convey what you are thinking rather than the actual math.

Cherney teaches a little differently than other math profs. Try soundrecording his lectures as he can go fast. His powerpoints are clear and you should definitely take notes on the examples he did in lecture. PAY ATTENTION TO PRACTICE EXAMS as they're very similar to the real ones. He also gives very generous curves depends on the average.

Cherney doesn't even come close to bad math professors. He has clear examples, he post powerpoints so you dont waste time copying example problems. Furthermore, his practice tests are similar to the real thing with a few twist just to challenge the student. Generous curve, overall a good professor. Personality wise he is weird but he is tolerable.

He's a good teacher make sure to go to office hours every week he's very helpful.

Professor Cherney is an amazing professor. His lectures really help make the topic being taught more understandable. He likes to add humor into his lectures to help keep a light mood. He is willing to help his student after class and during office hours. The practice tests are very similar to the ones he actually gives. Great Professor.

Cannot emphasize the importance of going to office hours enough. Gives "quiz-like" questions at the end of lecture slides, quizzes are exactly like that. Office hours held on the day of the quiz, you're basically guaranteed an A on the quiz if you go. Lectures are interesting and tests are reasonable. Practice exam is exactly like the test.

Great teacher who makes everything clear for those w/o prior calc experience (me). Graded on 2 MTs, weekly quizzes, and final. Practice tests are very similar to the actual test! TAs do example problem before each quiz that is very similar to quiz, and quiz practice problems are posted. Tests/quizzes are straightforward and there's a decent curve.

He really tries to make the class engaging (especially since it was 8am) and heavily emphasizes conceptual understanding. Some people really hated his tests, but once you get the gist of how they're formatted, you can guess what the second midterm/final will be like. The weekly quizzes in discussion were very helpful (I never did the assigned hw).

Professor Cherney is really odd. That being said lectures are hardly ever boring. I can honestly say that he was the best MAT 17 series professor that I had out of the three. The class is a bit of a challenge especially if you're not confident with calculus, but attending the office hours can help a lot

Class has 2 midterms, 1 final, and weekly quizzes. Typical calculus textbook; he follows the book and goes over 3 lessons per week (fast). Lectures are solid but often feels like a bad comedy routine due to his bad jokes. The midterm was pretty tough but not terrible. Biggest criticism: NO HW! You have to get that practice in on your own terms.

Cherney singlehandedly turned around my opinion of calculus. It's clear he really cares about the subject and his students. Office hours are actually miraculous if you actually do the homework and have specific questions. Lectures are generally easy to follow and tests are fair. Not an easy A, but fair and are basically the quizzes.

David Cherney clearly cares about Calculus and your understanding of it. Sometimes he can be quite spastic and he is prone to sudden outbursts (which usually mean he wants you to listen). But overall he teaches in a clear and concise manner and I personally feel he has changed my opinion on math from a simple chore to something beautiful.

He has been my favorite Prof in the 21 series. He is passionate and breaks down the subject well between lectures and discussions. He essentially uses quizzes and practice midterms as extra learning material. His midterms and finals are big on partial credit so make sure you write something relevant down. He is arrogant, but its worth looking past.

If you can get over Cherney's huge ego he is not half bad. Only major qualm is that he pulled homework problems from various different textbooks so you have to go back and fourth on calcchat to see answers, and there are no answers for his made up questions. Massive curve on this class though because most students very confused/didn't show up.

Probably one of the few professors at this school who actually enjoys lecturing and teaching. I think he normally teaches in the 21 series so he expected a lot out of the class but I learned so much. One of the best calc teachers I've had. Tests are pretty hard but the grading is more than fair. Initially was afraid to take him but very glad I did

Dr. Cherney is a good lecturer, he explained the material really well. To succeed in his class you would have to keep up with the material and study his notes. I recommend this professor.

Best 21 series I had. Explains things in his own ways, but its easy to grasp. 1st midterm was hard but a good curve. 2nd midterm was easier. The final was the easiest, he skipped all the hard stuff in the final!

Great lecturer. His enthusiasm, energy, and humor keeps the class from being boring, and the concepts are explained very well. His tests are really hard though, so you'll need to work for your grade. Overall a great professor. Would recommend.

Class was very in depth and teaching of high quality. Be aware of weekly quizzes on Friday. MT and Final drop worst scored question from the final score. He cares a lot about the rules and understanding what a derivative is rather then just a calculation.

Explains the material very well and is very approachable if you have questions. However, beware the weekly quizzes.