This is the worst prof I have ever taken! Avoid him at all cost!!! He is not only rude, he's mean too.

Oh my goodness!! This man is VERY HARD! He preaches his ways and basically tells you that if you don't believe these you will fail his class. His tests are LONG; you don't have time to finish them. I DO NOT recommend taking his class.

If u are a freshman do not take this class. Extremely hard. It doesn't matter if u think ur a great student... he will prove u wrong. Not evern 10% of the students passed his class when i took it. not approachable and his test should just be in another language cause they are WAY HARD. take Gabor but she isn't easy. but better

HARDEST CLASS EVER! Homework: easy-medium but not helpful for the test. Pop Quizzes: not enough time to take it, work with groups, grades super hard/picky, grade distribution is not equal, Exams: all lecture based, hard, tricky, long, not enough time. Final: hard, very long, not enough time, surprise essay! Avoid at all cost!!!

HE BASICALLY SPEAKS SPANISH

Does not allow students to see their exams. Gets upset if you arrive at his office 15 minutes earlier than office hours Be ready to be lectured like a kid if you have questions Willing to teach and answers questions 3 exams and no extra credit GR bas on high score Must grasp material to pass Interesting lecture Hard on students and himself RUN!

He seemed to think that our Organismal Biology class was his evolution class and nothing he lectured about lined up with what we were told to read. He allows no make up work so if you miss, you miss. He will also call you out if you try to get up and leave during lecture. He was funny at times but that did not help his teaching.

I went to Texas State in the fall of 2013 as a Biology major and this class literally made me change my major. EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. WEED OUT CLASS. He is extremely intelligent but to a freshman who isn't a Biologist, you will have no idea what he is saying. His overall pass rate on exams is very low and passing the class would be a miracle! RUN!!!

Words alone cannot describe how appalling this man is as a professor. Get out now.

The material was too much in depth for it to be an introductory course. His lectures are so long (94+ slides sometimes) that's its nearly impossible to memorize everything. This man was by far the worst professor I had. Do the online homework as it boosts your grade, and go to the SI Sessions! Be prepared to study as test are based on lectures!

RUN! 300 points 3 exams, 50 points assignments etc. Expects a LOT out of undergrads and yet does not explain well. Lectures are boring and only 10% make As and Bs and almost 50% Ds and Fs. Take someone else he will ruin your GPA. Will NOT allow to see exams so you don't know where you stand.

His class requires a LOT OF reading and his exams are VERY tricky. This one class is equal to 3 difficult classes. If you work butt off you may pass with a C or even B but forget about the A. He believes all students are at the same level. Not true since many were older and some may even be retaking.

Takes pride in failing students. Does not teach the material at the level he tests on his exams. You can't see your tests so you can't learn from your mistakes. Can be rude and condescending. Even if you are all in it is hard to pass this class. To get a C you work like you want 100%. The highest score sets the bar so no real curve.

His grading policy is unrealistic, all of which only four exams count towards credit and they aren't easy. Also, the class wasn't engaging to me because he just went over powerpoints posted on the TRACS website and went over them too fast and barely explained anything. If I were you, I'd drop the class before it's too late.

The lectures are repetitive and it seems like he's just telling you the same thing over and over again. He does not go into depth on topics, and quickly brushes over slides and makes his lecture slides so you cannot print them. Assigns a stupendous amount of out of class reading assignments that are not graded but are on the test. Unreasonable

If youre reading this learn from my mistake &save yourself the stress & anxiety by not taking anything that he teaches Has large expertise in bio alsothough is a dry, monotoned lecturer who lacks enthusiasm in teaching. Not engaging,dreaded coming to class, def a wd out class disgruntled old man who is angry about the world, & lashes out onstuddent

Not a good professor. Learn from my mistake. He is very confusing and it is hard to keep up with what he is saying. He gave no extra credit or homework or quizzes your grade is based off 4 exams and they're really tough. He gave a lot of readings that were irrelevant and he would ramble on all class and it was hard to ask questions.

DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR. Just dont. Will not teach, will not help, gives impossible tests, grade is divided into 3 tests, random quizzes, and the final which was nearly 150 questions. Questions are written in the most complicated way, professor is condescending and narcissistic and only 10% combined get As and Bs. Most students fail.

The work load wasn't the issue. He is a poor biology professor. He only teaches what he believes, by explaining to the students of why creationism is wrong to defend why evolution is right. If Ott didn't have creation to use as an example of why he is right, he wouldn't know how to teach the course. He is a professor I definitely say you pass on.

Do not even think about it. He sets his students up for failure.

Gives no feedback on homework that you are supposed to learn concepts from. Expects you to figure things out for yourself. Not sure how he expects students to do well when his test and lectures are very cryptic. They are beyond just knowing what the concepts are and thus do not really test knowledge but your ability to decipher what he is saying.

Don't walk, but run the other way. His classes are test heavy, & I feel didn't actually test your knowledge on the concepts but rather your reading & comprehension skills bc he purposely words his ?'s super trickily. You will second guess yourself all of the time, & good luck asking for clarification without being made to feel incompetent. Just, NO

I took Ott for evolution and it was the worst mistake I have ever made. He does not help you when you ask him questions about the material and will refer you to read the book instead. His test is so heavy and they make you feel dumb. I have never made a bad grade in my college career until I took his class. stay away and take someone else.

If I could give Ott 0 out of 5 stars I would. Claims he wanted us to learn the material but did not answer ANY questions on homeworks nor exams. I had the longest exams I have ever taken in my 4 years of college (135 question final) and he blamed the class for the poor performances. I recommend you find someone else before you end up regretting it.

This is the worst professor I have ever had at Texas State. The average on Exam 2 for the class was a 59. He compared us to 5th graders and then refused to answer questions about an assignment based on the test. I have never struggled so hard to pass in a class and have never felt so unsupported and disrespected as a paying student.

rude and immature comments for no reason and goes off on random opinion based rants often. wouldnt ask my worst enemy to take this class, he provides little to no help, pray to pass.

This guy sucks. Hes so rude and theres only 4 tests. He doesnt teach and just goes through a power point and is so unhelpful. Id honestly choose a different professor or take the class a different time.

this class made me go crazy. He speaks gibberish, so get ready to teach yourself or pay for a tutor.

This class does not make any sense at all. All the lectures are shown through Powerpoints and none of the information relates to the tests. Good luck trying to even get help on homework as well since he doesn't give homework help and refers you to the book instead. Had to learn stuff on my own. Skip this class or find someone else.

this mans horrible to say the least, only grades are 4 test which are hard bc he puts things he doesnt even teach, everyone in here is struggling. This man goes off topic every single class, do yourself a favor and go somewhere else.

138 question final. No minor grades, only tests with zero opportunities for extra credit whatsoever.

If you can avoid it , do not take this class. This man is literally my villain origin story . He only grades 4 test , which are very difficult and he test over the most absurd things. if you wanna get some extra points make sure to read his inquiries of curious minds. Im sure he is a very nice person outside of class , but dont take this class

There was no homework, no quizzes, and no extra credit for this class. The grades are solely based on the tests- which are curved, but if you aren't a good test taker this class isn't for you. Professor Ott is also very rude and talks down to his students so I don't recommend him.

Do not take this class unless you literally have to. I was able to get by because I read the textbook religiously. The only grades for this class are tests which he does curve but he takes forever to get them in. You will honestly have to spend most of the time teaching yourself the material, if you can't do that then you will 100% fail. Good luck

lectures are very boring and he goes off topic a lot and seems to talk about COVID 24/7. his lectures dont match the exams so be prepared to teach yourself. he is also very rude to his students. theres only 3 grades and its the exams so if you fail the first one just drop the class

I got an A in course and found it easy as long you pay attention in lecture and read. However, in my whole academic career I don't think I've had a prof seem to hate their job as prof Ott. He is a genuine A hole who punches down at his own students who dont have decades in the field. The biology department at TXST would be better if he stepped down

The entire course is based on 3 tests. The lecture time is not used to help take these tests. The "curve" never got the class averages break out of the low 60s. 48% of the class was set to fail based on the raw final test scores. He also doesn't let you look at old tests either. Don't expect sympathy or understanding from him, he does NOT care.

I hate this man. His voice is grating to my ears and if any circumstance you get this man as your professor, try to switch out. His assignments are pointless and irrelevant to the learning material, he is annoying, he is boring, he is old and I hate him. HE IS EVIL. THE BOARD NEEDS TO GET RID OF HIM!!!!!!! would give negative rating if I could.

He expects you to already know almost everything

I stayed almost to the end because i though i could pass but the only 2 grades left was 2 exams and even getting a perfect score on them i could not pass the class. The professor is entertaining but the lectures and what he teaches and the tests are just not made for students. He expects you to know things and is very rude to the students.

Only 3 grades.

A bitter, condescending mannequin of a scientist. Hardly even a professor. Lecture slides contain approximately 1,000 words per-slide and are chaotic, as if made by a 10 year old. Unnecessarily verbose. Hides behind long, complicated-sounding technical terms (many of which are made up by him). Prioritizes exam grades and syllabus adherence.

As someone with a 3.9 GPA and a love of evolution, I am here to say that this is THE HARDEST class I've taken, not because of the material but because of professor Ott. I would rather take organic chemistry 100 more times than take a class with him ever again. Do yourself a favor and avoid him if at all possible.