Very nice and funny prof. You need to show up to lecture and lab. He will answer any questions you have and he is very passionate about biology and knows his stuff.You can't wait till the day before to study. Just work hard and study his notes and the book and you will do well!!

Nice prof, it was a pleasure to be in his class.

Loved this teacher, kind of hard to understand because of his accent, but he seriously helped me pass and is very willing to help. Would love to take him for all of my sciences if he was teaching all of them.

Lazy students will find his geology class difficult. The process for getting a good grade: read the material, turn in work, ask for clarification if you do not understand. He was ALWAYS responsive to any questions I had and would go out of his way to be helpful. He is straight forward and will let you know his expectations up front.

very easy professor, granted his lecture test are kinda hard but if you study for your Lab Practicals you'll do good, study, and ask questions

Really enjoyed the class.

He can be arrogant. From my experience he seems to think because he knows it well you already do too. He told me it was "Sad" that I did not know something from the previous class. It did not matter the rest of my group did not know it either. Also kicking students out of lab when he can print a lab they forgot is rediculous.

He's a great professor. this is an easy class for who study in this class. here is college, not kindergartener. feedback fast. I just use 1 night for learn and reading the book before the exam to got an A. lab is easy, you need to learn rocks. again hard working, good grade

Professor Yakushkin is a very nice guy and a really good teacher. He's really interested in geology and try's to get you interested as well. He's very helpful if you have any questions. I enjoyed his class.

Hard to understand at times.

Great prof, but you have to do your work, no freebies. Looking forward for Historical Geo with him.

Cool professor, really cares about students and know his subject. Flickr page HUGE help, thank you for great semester!

Absolutely fantastic!!! Science is not my strongest suit, he made it fun, immediate feedback during labs, easy to comprehend examples, Flickr page is a game changer for Lab Practicals. He is THE ONLY professor I had, who took his time on weekends to come to our study group before tests!!! I wish I could take ALL sciences with him.

Awesome and fun instructor

5-week summer class. Textbook: for clarifications. Attendance: taken on random days. 4 exams and a group project (field trip experiment+report & presentation). PowerPoints are very helpful and final exam test review helped to prepare for tests. Take notes. Professor was very humorous, but does go off on tangents and stories; he knows his stuff.

Great class with great professor!!! ;)

Over all the class was a GREAT, the subtle humor made lectures go quick, I never thought I would enjoy learning about rocks, but I DID!!! Dr. Y. Is a great professor and I have enjoyed having his classes for the past 2 semesters.

Took Dr. Y's class during the summer (5-week course) we had 3 field trips to the San Jacinto monument and a report at the end of the course with the water results. His test were reasonable & his bonus questions where very helpful to the grade. Highly recommended this professor he's funny with plenty of interesting facts and he's not a mean Russian!

Great professor, great class but you have to work to get good grade. Fridays open labs helps a lot we it lab practicals, and yes you have to know minerals and rocks to do well in class.

Took historical geology and environmental science with Dr. Y. I don't call anything perfect but his classes are very close to it. Amazing professor: knowledgeable, great sence of humor, flexible, generous and even tolerant of "annoying" students.

Historical geology was a blast, I did not expect science class to be so interesting. Lectures and labs are align with each other, test are mixes of lecture and lab practicals. You HAVE to study for the class, but Dr. Y. have all sample images from all labs posted on Flickr - tremendous help, also take advantage of open labs on Fridays. Thank you!

Hist Geo: Flickr account is very useful, enjoyed professor's teaching style, learned a lot.

I actually enjoyed this course! Now I don't look at the world the same due to this course which I think is awesome!

I believe the class was great! It was one of my favorite classes I've taken at San Jac. Group project could be challenging if you have bad lab mates. But overall it was a great class

Environmental Science was my favorite science class at San Jac and I took 4, it is the class where s ience is actually makes sence. Professor Y. is amazing, great real life examples during the lectures, funny stories (class related), neat labs, my group had blast making the presentation on San Jacinto monument water samples. Highly recommended.

Took Professor Yakushkin for Physical Geology and Historical Geology last semester for Spring and Fall. He is a great professor, and is helpful when anyone has questions. Class may seem long since theres lab and lecture, but it was fun.

I took Professor Yakushkin for Historical geology after taking Sadler for 2 other geologies. I recommend both teachers, Professor Yakushkin is very knowledgeable, funny and fair. He offers a lot of bonus options. I recommend reviewing past tests as the same questions can show up lots of times. You must attend class, and look at Flickr for lab!

Professor Y is awesome! Environmental Science was by far the easiest class that I took my last semester at SJC. The water quality project was fun and entertaining just be certain you have good group members. Lectures were very long and could be boring to tears at times labs were very short compared to other science classes. Great Professor overall.

Fascinating Professor and exciting class! Everything you need to study is available to you PPTs of lectures, Flickr for Labs, Fridays open Labs when you can have ask any questions F2F. The class was perfect, any issues people had where from ignoring the Professor and lack of studying. Thank you very much for great semester!!!

In my opinion this class was great, a challenging one -yes, but all information is available to you via BlackBoard, open labs and regular office hours. Stay awesome, Professor, your class was exciting to the very end!

The class is fun and educational, surprisingly I learn a lot of new things here and I thought I knew all there was to know. Dr. Y. is great PROFESSOR, provides you with very unique eye-opening points of view. Anyone thats not passing the class either does not care or is not trying hard. I really enjoyed the whole class and look forward for Bio1&2

Dr. Yakushkin is an excellent professor! He provides great lecture and lab material that is vital to our knowledge and success.

Dr. Y gives an excellent and informative lecture. He is very respectful, funny, easy going, and makes his expectations of students very clear. He's very helpful, never minds interrupting his lecture to answer questions or clarify information, and is frequently available and easy to get in contact with outside of class.

Dr. Y is a respectable professor. He makes learning fun and has a great sense of humor! He's passionate about the subject of biology and cares about student progress. There's a lot of homework, but it helps tremendously when taking the tests. Be sure to read and show up for class. Dr. Y appreciates proactivity.

Dr. Y. is a great prof. he is what made me get involved in the subject more and more as he made it more fun and exciting, I learned a lot of things I did not know before.

The class is HARD - tons of things to remember, however Dr. Y. made this class very interesting, showing evolutionary trends/adaptations among the groups and explaining why; also learn reaction of Photosynthesis and Cell. Resp from day 1. Open Labs and/or Flickr are really great to study for Lab Practicals.

The best professor I've ever had. I took two classes with him. Definitely the most insightful, entertaining and meaningful classes I've ever taken. He is very intelligent and has infinite stories to connect to the material, which helps lighten the mood and also help with memorization. It was a pleasure to be in his class. (Also he counts well)

He is very very nice and caring. If you show him you really care about learning and show up to open labs he will help you out. Ask questions when you're not sure he will be happy to answer. This class requires a lot of studying. Many nights I pulled all nighters but they were fun haha. Find yourself a Biology buddy it helps! Have fun.

Professor Yakushkin made biology an easy subject to interpret. What I like the most about Professor Yakushkin was that, he actually knew what he was talking about, he knows the subject, so when you ask questions, he will give an accurate and precise answer everytime.

I took 3 semesters with him and it was a real honor; he's one of those professors that make you wish you could attend lectures. I really enjoyed those!

Excellent professor, online classes could be challenging, Dr. Y. made it rather straight forward class calendar was posted from day 1, follow it and you should be just fine. Make sure that you group is active on the group project, I had to join to a different group with help of the professor, thank you very much for great semester.

Dr. Y was great! this was my second time taking bio2 because my first professor was horrible, in this class i learned it was not me who was the problem. Dr. Y is always willing to answer questions and help, he is a very good person and his students learned a lot from him.

It was a real pleasure and privilege to take Dr Y. He is very funny and hilarious. Lecture are amazing and contain a lot of needed information. He is passion about biology, and he is there to teach you. Tests are fair and straight from homework. Lab practical is very easy. However assignment are graded as any test, so be aware of that.

Dr. Y is a professor to take for an easy A. He honestly barely looks at lab practicals so you could get 45/60 right and get a 95. He gives out extra cred. If you follow guidelines almost religiously you can be exempt from final. His lectures are really boring but tests are easy. Just show up and youll be fine. Easy A but wouldnt take again.

Professor Y is one of the best in San Jac I had, I have learned a lot in the class and he helped me through this semester. I really appreciate his dedication to students - he is always in OpenLabs, created Flicker with all the images to help with Lab Practicals, online H/W usually a pain, in this case review for your upcoming test. Thank you!

Very happy with the professor, lots of materials to study, but he makes it funny and relevant. Lectures and labs are aligned so there is very smooth transition, between them. Fridays open labs are very helpful for one on one study, he is always there. Images of the specimens are posted on Flickr. Extra credit- pay attention during lectures.

He's by far the best professor i have had. His class is very easy and his lectures are very entertaining to listen to.

Very helpful, really cool, and above all else, his lectures are very interesting! He has many things to say regarding Bio, Geology, and history and that's always pretty awesome. I took three of his classes and so I would take him again if I could.

Online classes could be hard, this prof made it easy, always staying in touch with frequent but not overwhelming updates and fast responses to emails. I will recommend him to all my friends.

Full semester class in 10 weeks is expected to be fast paced, professor had schedule from day one, responded to emails same day, help me a lot when I had difficulties with few labs.

Excellent professor, worked with me and my working schedule, just b/c of that I was able to graduate! Thanks

Prof Y. is an AMAZING professor! He wants you to pass and will help you anyway possible. He breaks down complicated biological systems to such simple and understandable formats. Seriously, I have never had a professor explain things so well. If you're having trouble, just ask him! He'll take as long as you need in order to understand. Work and - A.

I took Igor in the summer of 2019 and he is AMAZING!! I loved taking his class online! Its super easy (yes its a lot of work) but you wont regret it! I promise! Hes amazing! :) take him itll be the easiest biology 2 class you ever take.

Really passionate professor who makes an effort to make his material relevant. His lectures can go fast at times, but he really tries to make all students understand. He is accessible in the lab and checking on students, just really going above and beyond.

Dr. Yakushkin is one of the best professors I have ever had. If you want to be treated like an adult and not a child and actually be successful in life, take his class. He honestly wants nothing but the best for his students. Plus you can call him Dr. Y. :

I really enjoyed his class this semester. Dr. Y. have been one of the best professors I have taken at San Jacinto. I wish this semester could have ended face-to-face but due to COVID-19 that was not possible. I still enjoyed online classes and learned a lot. Thanks for teaching me this semester.

And May 4th be with you as well professor : D One of the best San Jac has to offer, great sence of humor, funny stories on topics of Biology. I recommended him to all my friends. Made easy transition to full online due COVID19, very flexible schedule and you still can exempt Final if you worked diligently during the semester. Made my semester!!!

Took both Bio 1 and Bio 2 with him, great prof, too bad he is not teaching any other classes i need for my sci .major

Excellent instructor, very helpful.

Im recommend taking him because he does care about you and your success. Bio 2 was fairly easy if you put some work to it, he is straight forward, doesn't sugarcoat or take any nonsense which might upset some people.

I've taken him for a couple classes. Intelligent and funny professor. Unfortunately some of my classmates/friends did not feel the same way. I think they felt that way because they just didn't understand him or his sense of humor(being that he's Russian). I did very well in his class and learned a lot from him!

He is very clear about how he expects the assignments done if you read through everything (which everyone should do anyway, for any class), and I actually learned a lot by doing the research for the labs and projects. All of his lecture powerpoints are on blackboard for you to study with. An overall amazing professor!

Dr. Y is a great professor, he is always willing to help, goes the extra mile to teach you about his class and about life. He is always there to talk, and very flexible. I would gladly take him again. Great guy get to know, even if you don't have to take him.

This online class is solid: lectures, ppts, labs, lab guides everything is available. Dr. Y. easy to reach out and he is responding fast. My only wish that he would teach other than Bio2.

Dr. Y. is great! Lectures and labs are entertaining, recorded and posted. Major tests and lab practicals are graded in timely fashion, so there is no confusion about average.

Made my summer hands down!!!! Prof. Y. sure know his stuff, very knowledgeable, give advice on how to succeed in class. Encourage students to thrive better, Give extra credit and carry all student along both in lab and class. Teaches in depth and go slowly over materials. Gives hint for tests and exams from powerpoint. study the powerpoints

You made Bio II an interesting subject to study. Because of you, I switched my major to Natural sciences. I loved the stories you tell. I hope you will be teaching other but Bio II classes

Awesome prof, posted recordings of lectures and labs, tests and practicals reviews, superfast responses on emails. Do you work, ask questions if you have any and there is no way you will fail the class - he supports you every step of the way!

Awesome professor he will make sure to answer all your questions during Lab & Lecture. He makes sure his students understand the content he is teaching but of course the student has to be willing to learn.

This professor is great. Engaging and fun lectures help to maintain focus. Really enjoyed this class and hope I can take another class taught by Dr Y!!

Dr. Y was amazing! I am not a science person, but he made the course interesting and approachable. He is so knowledgable and intelligent; you can tell he has a passion for science. He's funny, understanding, and helpful. So long as you do the work and communicate with him you'll do fine.

A very understanding professor. Of course the class would be difficult given that Biol has so much you need to know. His exams uses questions from a test bank that he sends us to review. His homework are also super simple as well. He drops the lowest exam grade so that if you messed up on one then you don't need to worry too much. Take his class!

UGH, this professor is a GREAT professor, BUT i did not get an A, I tried so hard though, the exams I ALWAYS got a 70. no matter how much I STUDIED and everyone in my class felt the same WAY. He is a great professor, its just that the exams ARE SO hard for NO REASON, the labs are not tho. I would say if you are okay with a B take his class.

Dr. Y is an outstanding professor who consistently goes above and beyond to support his students. He's accessible, adaptable, and cares about each student's unique needs. Dr. Y has passion for teaching and genuine care for the well-being of his students, his class extends beyond the content, encompassing essential life skills and personal growth.

I loved this class! Prof is very caring and takes extra time to explain concepts if you don't understand. Good lecturer, and funny. He has a very easygoing personality and is easy to talk to. His accent is not difficult to understand. Lots of material to cover in class but not hard with this professor. Don't wait until the last min for online assgn

Amazing. Will work with you if you have an issue with your grade. Always ready to help. You just gotta make sure you pay attention in his class and dont look distracted, he is very big on respect. Gives "optional work", same thing as extra credit tbh. As long as you pay attention to his lectures you will do good.

He is a amazing professor and gives a lot of extra credit assigments which helped me a lot to get a A. Very nice and genuinely care about his students and their grades. Gives help on labs as well. Would definitely recommend taking him.

Favorite Professor of all time. He gives extra credit, is kind, caring, and wants his students to succeed. Helps on labs, very responsive through emails. In the Bio2 for Science Majors course there is a LOT of assignments and LOTS of extra credit so you need to stay organized and on top of things. If you do, you will love this class.

If u ask a question he won't give u the answer right away; he wants you to think to get to the answer. He gives LOTS of EC. My Lecture test grades were horrible, but for practicals I got 70s & over, & the additional credit helped me BIG time. He tries to work with u to achieve the grade u're looking for, but u need to talk to him & show him u care.

Truly one of the best professors you can take. He's kind, respectful, and genuinely invested in your success, always ready to help in labs, over email, or if there's an issue with your grade. The class has lots of work and “optional” assignments, but if you stay organized, pay attention in lecture, you'll do well and really enjoy it.

Because of him I graduated today. For an online class, he gives plenty of time to submit work, which was crucial this semester with my job, science courses, and personal life all competing for attention. If you communicate and put in the effort, he will absolutely work with you—just don't expect any freebies.

This professor is fantastic. His engaging, fun lectures and labs. He's truly invested in his students' success. Really enjoyed this class and I'm looking forward to taking Biology II with him.

I genuinely enjoyed this class. There's a lot of material in this class, but it's very manageable with this professor. He's approachable, genuinely cares, and explains things clearly—often with humor. Asking questions feels easy, not intimidating. One warning: don't wait until the last minute for online assignments… biology never forgets.

If you're willing to put in a smidge of effort, you will easily pass. If you put in 2-3 hours of consistent work every week, you will end off the class with an A+. Lots and LOTS of guidance and constant reminders, constant communication, many opportunities to increase your grades, and there are a lot of homeworks, but they're very doable.