One of the best professors at Davis, IMO. I loved his classes and his teaching style. He grades assignments hard, but usually gives practice questions for tests that will show up in some form on the exam. He is also a very nice person who really cares about his students. Highly recommended.

awesome

Good teaching style. Has printouts for each lecture but pay attention because not everything is on there. Quiz and midterm were straight forward. Cares about his students and is a nice person.

Awesome teacher! Really nice and has a good lecture style. Grading is a little hard and there is a lot to learn for the class, but he makes the topic really interesting.

He is a great lecturer and knows his material. I wish he were more hands on, if you know what I mean. He is also not bad on the eyes. Although, he appears oblivious to his hotness factor.

Professor "Stack" was fantastic. I confess to poor attendance, but I regret it because every time I went it was riveting. He strikes me as the kind of guy who'd play whiffle ball in a hurricane. Stoic. Steely jawed, an iron glint in his eye. I look forward to more classes with Stack!

Awesome professor. Very helpful and available at office hours. Will even help with research and job opportunities. Also very hot.

jay is a super cool guy. exams were difficult and grading was sometimes brutal, but still an enjoyable class. one of the best profs i have had. awesome.

A wonderful professor. Extremely helpful and caring for his students. Really bright and knowledgeable in the subject. It was the first time BIS2B was going to be taught, and all the staff including the professors did a great job. Professor Stachowicz is admirable and makes his lectures very interesting and clear as water. Highly recommended!

Amazing professor, very clear. Very good at answering students questions. You always know what is expected of you, so you know what you have to study. Office hours are also very helpful. And as a bonus, he is very good looking.

Great professor, great personality. Very interested in the material, and sells it well. Lots of cool Blue Planet clips. It isn't an easy A, I recommend going to class, putting time and effort into the papers, and reading the text. Exams are pretty straightforward if you know your stuff. No curve balls, just know the information well.

really great teacher and extremely helpful. you can tell he's passionate about what he teaches and he genuinely wants his students to understand.

Wonderful professor. If you have the opportunity to take his course, do it. He is extremely helpful and approachable in office hours and really takes the time to make sure you understand a concept. Very interesting lectures, provides lots of examples, movie clips, and clearly LOVES his job. UCD doesn't have enough like him

Great lecturer - he's very clear when it comes to explaining the material, and provides many real-world examples to help you connect these concepts. Very knowledgeable, helpful, and enthusiastic as well. Definitely one of the best professors I have had at UCD so far.

Good professor and his class is not too difficult. He explains everything clearly and gives a lot of examples. Study his lecture slides and study questions. Tests sometimes have very similar questions to those on study guide. I recommend taking this course with Professor Stachowicz.

one of the best professors in the bis 2 series. makes coming to an 8am lecture worth it not only for the lecture but for his good looks as well. exams are fair and he really does want his students to do well on the exams. highly recommended!

Amazing professor! If you can, take his class, even if it means waking up at 8:00 am. He made the class really interesting and fun. Also, he podcasts the lectures, which is really helpful for the final. Tests were really easy and straightforward.

Great teacher! Great class, and comfortable learning environment. I recommend this class and this teacher to those who are having trouble selecting. He is well educated adn passionate about his work and it makes attending class fun.

Stachowicz is very enthusiastic and makes an effort to know all his students by name. Be warned: Eve 115 is not for people who want to take marine biology for fun. You will be bored out of your mind unless you love rocky shores and larval populations!

I took Jay and Rick's 2B class, and I'm glad I did. Because of them, I actually considered becoming an EEB major. Jay explains the concepts clearly. His study guides prepare you for the midterms and final tremendously. He's a great professor.

This class is has ridiculously easy concepts but MC questions can be tricky and screw you because each one is worth 4% of the grade. so miss 2 MC and a couple points here and there on long answers. and you're at a B. EASY EASY pass/B grade. HARD HARD A grade. justa warning. He was a great lecturer though, and made fun of Grosberg which was funny.

LOVED this class because of him and Rick! (I prefer Rick's teaching though) Midterms can be a bit tricky but if you really go through lecture and KNOW the stuff, you'll be good to go! Emphasis on lecture slides, not text. This class is so much more interesting than 2A and 2C.

Took Bis 2b with him and Grosberg. I highly recommend both of them. Jon's style of lecturing is very clear and concise and makes the material interesting. Prior to taking this class, I heard that Bis 2b was boring, but these two made the class a fun learning experience. Tests were kinda tricky, but if you study a lot, you'll get a good grade.

Very good and clear lecturer - this class was so much better than BIS 2B - always used relevant examples (local to the Davis area or CA) and tests were based completely off of lectures. Do the study guides!

I really enjoyed this class. Lectures were very clear and the professor is very approachable and always available to help students. He has a good sense of humor which makes lectures entertaining. Make sure you go to discussion sections because tests are heavily based on them.

Really good at explaining concepts and keeps you engaged. Midterms are easier if you do the study questions and know your concepts. Final has tricky questions. Don't forget about lab grade because it's just as important. Class is out of 500 points and can't lose more than 50 for an A-. If you get 100% on EVERY test but lose 51 on lab and get a B.

Best professor for the bis series! really helpful and pretty clear on whats on the midterms.

Stachowicz and Grosberg are AMAZING together. Their lectures are incredibly clear informative. They speak in a manner that keeps you engaged, making it apparent how passionate they are about the subject. Tests are very appropriate and mostly based off of what is taught during lecture. I wish I could have them as professors for all my classes

clear, organized, wants you to do well, and overall nice person.

Lectures are very clear, so you know what will be on the test. Study the lecture slides! Very easy to pass this class, but quite hard to get an A since this class is POINT-based (HW, lab, and test points are all worth the SAME). Very little extra credit given to boost your grade. Overall, fun and clear class. Grosberg and Stach are cool professors!

John and Rick are the two best professors I have had at Davis thus far. They are not only here for research, but here to TEACH and are amazing at juggling both with ease. I have nothing but good things to say for the both of these men. Tests are lecture-based and everything is straight-forward and about the big picture. Take this class with them!

Stachowicz is a really good professor. He knows his stuff and is very helpful. The Grosberg-Stachowicz duo is the best in the business for BIS 2B. Take them if you have the chance. I would definitely recommend.

Took BIS 2B with Jay and Rick (they teach it together), both great lecturers. Used PowerPoint slides in lectures, it helps hugely to print slides out before lecture and take notes directly on them in class. Posted lecture videos on SmartSite so you can rewatch lectures. Ask prior students for old midterms, they reuse test questions all the time!

Tests are based on lectures very closely and resemble study questions so make sure you do those! I preferred Jay's lectures to Rick's but preferred Rick's study questions as Jay's were more broad. Good duo overall. Make sure to pay attention in class and work hard on pre/post labs and you will do fine in the class. Tests have EC questions.

I actually preferred Jay's lectures over Rick's, but both were very engaging and thorough. Exams were based HEAVILY on lectures and follows closely to the study guide questions they provide, so DO THOSE DO THOSE DO THOSE and make sure you do them correctly. Overall, good prof, accommodating, engaging, and clear speaker which I appreciate.

Great Prof! Gives very clear lectures and is willing to help. His lectures are duller but more clear than Rick's. His study guides are awesome (just like the exams but slightly different scenarios.. do them!). Can be kind of intimidating, but he is very helpful in office hours (especially around the final exam). Tough class but he makes it bearable

I enjoyed taking this class with Stachowicz and Grosberg. Both professors were great and knew their material, and I found Dr. Stachowicz's lectures to be very concise. He is helpful in office hours!! Definitely do the study questions every week!! The only downside to this class would be that there is no extra credit/curve.

I think this is probably the best teacher I have had in my time at UC Davis. I enjoyed his lectures, and was quite personable. He still recognizes me around campus even though I only went to office hours a few times. The material is interesting, and if you're willing to put in the work, you can pull a good grade. Excellent class, excellent teacher.

LOVED him and his lecture buddy Grosberg! You can see the passion in what they teach and the passion in teaching the younger generation. Would 15/10 take these two again! highly recommend. BUT don't be fooled, they are awesome but you still HAVE to put in the work.

Decent class, it's just that most of the ecology stuff Jay lectures on is pretty boring. He's a good lecturer and definitely knows what he's talking about; it's just that he isn't the nicest professor I've met. Rick taught the class with Jay, and their notes are clear and easy to follow. Overall, an easy class IF you put the time in to study.

Jay may be a boring lecturer, but he is very straightforward with you about what you need to know on the test. DO THE STUDY Q's.

Jay is awesome. Super clear. Study guides are straight-forward. Tests are not confusing. Jay is everything you want in a perfect prof. It is professors like him that make me proud to say I attend UC Davis. Really. That's how great he is (along with Rick). May other students experience my terrific experience for generations to come!

This class was pretty easy. Jay and Rick are very explicit on what they expect you to know for the exams. Although their lectures were sometimes boring, they did a phenomenal job conveying the material. Also, their study guides were very similar to their exams, so make sure to complete it (and understand it, don't just memorize).

Jay was a solid lecturer and kept things mostly interesting. The class was structured well and was the best transition I saw into online during the spring COVID quarter. Definitely made biology a less daunting and more straight forward subject. All round a good choice to take.

Rick and Jay make a perfect duo for this course. I love biology and evolution and they made me love it even more! They handled online so well and made sure we had access to study guides, lecture notes and recorded lectures, and responded on Piazza, too. For the most part lectures are informational, concise, and sensible. Highly recommend :)

Stachowicz is one of the best professors I've had. He's a great lecturer, even online, and genuinely cares about how much we learn. EVE115 (marine ecology) was one of the more challenging classes I've taken and you have to work for your grade, but it's probably the class I've learned the most in. Would definitely take again

Tests make up a large percentage of the grade. Study guides aren't much help, as they don't send out the answers to help make sure you're correct. Lectures are good, though.

Lectures are easy to follow, he doesn't rush or anything, and not boring. Study guide, yes they dont give you the answers but you probably would know the answers by going through the notes and rewatching lectures. And you got piazza when you still dont get the answer.

clearer lecturer and more helpful in office hours than rick. def study! esp. study the sg for tests. tests aren't too bad-close to lec notes. hard to get an A bc no class curve - can only lose 50/500 pts for A (not A-). i fell asleep each lecture (sry jay) but watching the recordings and not going to class worked out fine so take that as you will.

I mess it up but good professor

I wish I could take more classes with Jay. Though I'm a bigger fan of cell biology and genetics, the way he presented ecology/evolution piqued a completely new interest in me. Very straightforward in lecture, and super accessible/patient for questions during office hours. Definitely do the study guides before exams and talk to him in office hours!

Lectures were organized/clear but long and sometimes dull, and with the BIS2 series you can't miss or not understand anything. Very test-heavy, grades are basically based on that and lab. I respect both Rick and Jay, they're a good duo for this class but don't let you use a calculator on tests (HW equilibrium, hated it). Good study guides though.

Difficult class but I definitely learned a lot. Field trip to Bodega Bay was very fun! You can tell Jay is passionate about what he teaches and genuinely wants you to learn. Harsh grading; midterm/final are essay questions and HARD and the research proposal is challenging. Very informative, rigorous class.

the content itself isn't necessarily hard to learn from prof as long as you study outside of class

VERY reading heavy, research proposal proj takes lot of work but is simple. exams are essay questions. week b4 each exam u get 5 prompts (u can basically write out each essay!) then during in class exam you write, revise, and edit whichever prompt (out of the 5) u get. its always random. requires LOTS of citations from given+outside sources.

Great professor, jays super helpful and you can see he cares about making sure his students understand the material, unfortunate rick is retiring so they cant do the class together anymore they were a funny duo for bis2b, study hard and you'll get good grades especially since they give good study guides, didn't like the lab practical much though...

Great professor but the lectures do get tedious. Clearly loves biology and makes himself very accessible to students. Saw the "skip class? you won't pass tag," that's a lie. I didn't go to class from wk6-10 and still passed with ease.

Jay is a great professor! Funny guy. Highly knowledgeable. Exams pretty much completely resembled study guides which was great. Super accessible during office hours. Study guides didn't have answer keys which was frustrating sometimes. Re-watch lectures and do the study guides and you'll be good to go!

Jay is a very fun and interesting lecturer. If you go to lecture, take notes, and use the study guides as practice tests, you'll do fine. He's very clear about what students need to do to succeed in class.

He explains the content in his lectures very clearly. The slides are helpful and easy to follow.

Dr. Stachowicz is an amazing professor. He definitely cares a lot about his students and wants us all to succeed. Not only that, but he is extremely passionate about biology and loves to share that passion with others. Definitely the best professor I've had so far.

I took Professors Stachowicz and Grosberg's course last Spring Quarter. Lectures are super interesting; the material was well-explained and the two professors work well together. Both also have a great sense of humor. Tests can be hard, but make sure to study properly and you will 100% be able to get a better grade than I did.

I have had Professor Stachowicz for both EVE 115 and BIS 2B and he was amazing each time! I think he makes very clear and informative slides and is very approachable. He's super smart and knows so much about Ecology but he's still humble and kind. 10/10 recommend!

While defiantly a challenging class, if you're willing to put in the work and are interested in marine ecology then it's an amazing class. Midterms and final are in class essays with a lot of prep work required to do well beforehand but really helps you understand the content instead of just memorizing facts.

This class is so much fun. Grades are mainly based on a paper and exams are essay formatted. Everything is given beforehand so you have plenty of time to prepare. I highly recommend Jay- he's approachable and clearly cares about his students.

love his enthusiasm and his humor! as someone awful at anything STEM he made it really digestible and understandable. BIS tends to go quick so be sure to review and use discussion sessions wisely especially if you're slow like me. try not to skip! study guides are goated and they post midterm answers after they're graded which helps for the final.

Good slides, good pace, answers questions.

Dr. Stachowicz is an amazing professor!! He is an overall amazing lecturer and great help in Office Hours. He will answer any question and will work it out until you understand it, and is straightforward on how much detail needs to go into certain subjects for tests. He has been the best science teacher I have had at my time at Davis!

I took BIS2B with Gerhart and Stachowicz as co-instructors, with Stachowicz giving half of the lectures. This course has 2 midterms + final, Labs + final report, and discussions, with the lowest lab and discussion dropped. There is no curve. Beware of the due dates that I missed (for practice midterm 1 and final lab report)!

Great professor. Awesome lectures, really took the time to explain things. Super easy class.

In BIS2B you have no homework and you learn everything you need for the midterm in lecture. Literally everything you see in lecture will be on the midterm. Stachowicz is goated- he's a really good lecturer, so you're set. He does such a good job of going over everything, and you can tell he knows his stuff. Go to lectures, study, get that A

He made a good team with Dr. Gerhart! Clear and organized lectures, and I like that discussion went into the real-world examples of the material. The labs were pretty easy and usually didn't take the whole 3 hours. Beware no curve, but if you study the practice exams, study guides, and go to OH, I think it's very doable to do well!