This class is for sure a challenge. He does offer lots of extra credit. He is very understanding and helpful to his students. He curves grades, thank god! This class is managable. I don't think he would fail anyone, he'll work with you.

this class is tough but yo can do it if you set back a lot, I mean a lot! of time for it. He is a funny guy and very helpful!

Botany: Very good teacher. He warns everyone that the class will be challenging, so to look over your notes. He's thorough and teaches a very broad subject in just one semester, so it may be info overload for some. If you take good notes during lecture you'll do fine (anything he talks about is fair game for tests, so note everything!)

McMurray is a wonderful, although challenging, professor. Take notes (EVERY word that he speaks and EVERYTHING on powerpoints), utilize all resources he provides on Angel, and study hard. Don't simply try to memorize the material- you need to truly UNDERSTAND the material. Do these things and you'll do fine.

I had him for botany. John is the prof you take if you want a challenge. His test are tough. They require critical thinking skills. I couldn't ask for more out of a prof. He will only will prepare you better for your future. This class will require a lot of out of class room study time. He is straight forward with that. great overall

McMurray was a great teacher! The class is hard but you should study and work hard for your grade. He answered all the questions people asked, and is also a very nice professor. His class is not a blow off class that is for sure.

He is well versed in almost any Science field and you can tell his intelligence through the material he teaches. This is NOT a "filler" class, this is for serious students studying Biology. Keep up and study a lot. The knowledge you gain from him is worth it. His teaching level is half that of a 4 yr science major class if this is what you are in.

Botany was one of the best classes, as well as most interesting, I have ever taken. Dr. McMurray makes the class even more enjoyable. The coursework is full of great material and if you are really looking for a huge enhancement in your academics take classes with him! In botany he grades 100-86 A 85-70 B 70-60 C

I took General Botany with McMurray. He was very clear and readily available to answer questions and help the students in any way. He covered topics well in lecture as well as in lab. I find it interesting that the negative reviews of this prof are also the ones that use incorrect grammar, punctuation, and capitalization. His class was enjoyable.

Very clear and articulate lecture, with great visuals on the whiteboard. However, the lecture is not at the difficulty level of the testing. The only test that made sense was the final (prepared by the dept.) Would much rather have been taught at the same difficulty that the test was presented. Felt prepared studying until looking at the tests..

Micro summer. Very clear and articulate lectures, with great visuals on the whiteboard. However, the lecture is not at the difficulty level of the testing. Tests had diagrams we had never seen before. Avg class grade on several exams was ~65-70%. Gives bonus points, but not enough to make up for the poorly written exams.

Dr. McMurray is a great professor to take if you enjoy Biology. He is very intelligent and his lectures are fascinating. His tests can be quite difficult though and require you to think critically and recall a fair amount of information. If you plan on majoring in Biology and want to do well in the subject, his class is a must.

I don't understand why people have trouble in this course. His lectures are thorough and covers all the essentials, yes he strays from the subject from time to time, but he's a great professor. His exams are tough & extremely detailed, but what test isn't?! I find you will be well prepared for exams if you study on your own as well!

General Biology I is a demanding course. For every demanding course, there needs to be a demanding professor. Professor McMurray does a splendid job on covering the material and presenting his lectures. He is very organized. He is also willing to help. He gives bonus points, however, he is very detailed during the grading of exams. I earned an 96%.

Dr. McMurray is a good professor, and he is very intelligent. His class is tough, but it is possible to make an 'A' if you study and complete the extra credit. His tests are quite tough--especially the first two--so you have to really study in order to make a good grade.

This is definitely not a blow-off class or one that you will never need to study for. McMurray uses powerpoints quite often, but the bulk of what you will need to know will be what he writes and draws on the whiteboard. If you pay attention in class, take notes, draw and label the pictures, and study for the tests, you should do well in the class.

I had to study 5x more for Bio than for Chem 1. I still got an A. To pass it isn't just memorizing like some other classes. He is very clear on what to study. Anything on the board is important. Lecture tests mult choice,lab fill in the blank. He's good at emailing you back. I wanted to take him again for Bio 2 and microbiology

The key to doing well on tests are to look up every learning objective listed. Know the powerpoints by heart. A large portion of the tests are definitions. Lab quizzes are a breeze if you just review the portions he tells you it's over.

He's a great professor! Inspirational lectures and efficiently taught material! However, he is just as tough in grading and his exams are tough.

McMurray is an amazing teacher. He is super nice and willing to explain a topic until you understand. The inclass test are easy, just study the powerpoints, and pay close attention to what he writes on the board. The lab tests are a diff story, study hard. I want to take him again, hopefully botany because that is obviously his passion.

He is a tough professor but I learned so much! It is unclear what you will be graded on so you have to study every little detail. Make sure to read the textbook as well because some exam questions are not covered in lecture. Beware his lab exams are extremely tough and the averages were always Ds and Fs. Study, study lab! He loves pictures on exams

I loved my class with Dr. McMurray. He's an amazing lecturer & he genuinely cares about his students. He's such a sweetheart. He is NOT an easy teacher. If you're looking for an easy A, look elsewhere. But if you need to get a solid understanding of biology for future classes, he's perfect. Lots of extra credit. All lecture tests are Scantron.

Great professor. He assigns a lot of work so be prepared to spend a lot of time on this course. He gets way behind grading all the work he gives out. He is very smart and has great lectures. I would suggest buying colored pencils because most of his lectures are colored illustrations. Test are difficult and tricky. He does offer extra credit

I took the summer Micro class and absolutely loved Dr. McMurray! His lectures were engaging and the labs were fun an informative. I would highly recommend him. He is particular about the drawings you do for lab, but when it's lab final time, you realize why he is so particular. I have learned so much in this past 8 weeks. Be ready to study though.

Learned so much. GREAT lectures, but if you are not a visual learner you may struggle with all of the diagrams and flow charts. Very patient, all around solid guy. The tests are hard, but an A is doable if you complete all of the extra credit. Slow grader, but generous. You MUST attend class, tests from lecture. Buy older ed. of book, rarely used.

I took Dr. McMurray over the summer and although it was a hard class to take in 8 weeks, it is doable. He gives great lectures and gives extra credit. Be prepared to dedicate some time studying. There is a reason not everyone is a Microbiologist: it's hard! I would highly recommend Dr. McMurray! His tests and quizzes are tough but taking notes help

Guys- It's college. Do not expect this prof (or any other) to hold your hand and spoon feed you. You are an adult. Put the work in, attend class, learn the material, and you will be fine. I took it over the summer and earned an A in the class and I am only an average student. A++ would take again.

He is a great professor. Use your objective lists as study guides, get the answers out of the powerpoint and book. If you don't study you will fail. He cares about you doing well. Make sure you put effort into your lab papers and experiments. Show up to class!! He will work with you. Do the Extra Credit and try.

There are a couple things you need to know about McMurray: he's busy - like all the time, he sometimes doesn't answer emails, he counts off for missing class, and he doesn't grade in a timely manner. Think you know the material for the tests? Think again. HOWEVER, McMurray is a great teacher who wants you to succeed. He does AMAZING lectures.

McMurray is a great instructor who loves to fill the white board with diagrams. Many resources are provided through the online portion of the class, even the power point slide shows which are picture heavy. Slow grader, lectures are very detailed and be prepared to deviate from the course schedule. Lab is fun, extra credit is given.

He is such a great guy and actually wants his students to succeed. His class isn't easy and you definitely have to work for it, but he'll go out of his way to sit down with you and try to help you understand. He also has a great sense of humor which makes everything so much better. Studying + extra credit easy A/B

Dr. McMurray made our subject interesting and fun to learn. He did an amazing job at reworking our semester in the midst of a pandemic.

For his microbiology class: He provided detailed, not rushed lectures. Some are picture heavy with lots of color (great for visual learners). Very knowledgeable, wants to help. Engaging during labs. Gives specific objectives for lecture & lab exams. Very slow grader. Tough grader on labs, looks for specific answers. Took class during pandemic.

I really enjoyed Dr. McMurray bio II class. It was very lecture heavy and with a lot of connect homework. Read the book, lab manual, and take really good notes during lectures and you should be good. If you are struggling I do encourage to go speak with him during his office hours. He is really nice and wants to see his students pass the class.

he's awesome at lecturing but he also gave an insane amount of homework and assignments. you need to be at his lectures because the power point he gave is mostly an outline of what he will lecture. you would also need to be ready to do a lot of connect assignments and lab assignments.

Dr Mcmurray was an excellent teacher. He made sure everyone understood the lessons and made sure we asked questions before he moves on to the next lesson. The only issue I have is the long objective lists for the exams but overall you have chances for extra credit to raise your grades up

This class was honestly a fun class The professor explained things with clarity and with interest, it is definitely a lecture heavy diagram on the white board class but with attentive learning and studying it is easy to get a decent score on lecture exam. homework and extra credit along with the labs compensate for some low exam and lab exam scores

If you're looking for a blowoff class I'd avoid him, however if you're preparing to take the MCAT I would highly recommend this professor as the depth of study and way that he teaches is highly conducive to ACTUALLY learning the material. My only complaint is that he runs extremely behind on grading homework.

Was great at explaining concepts but seems to get behind really easily. He is very kind and understands things happens. He has extra credit to improve grades. The downside is he is hard to get a hold of out of class because he doesn't have internet at home. Great teacher though, I recommend.

It's a tough course, study the objectives for exams thoroughly. My extra credit brought me up 4%. He doesn't have WiFi, go to office hours don't email. He takes a really long time to grade assignments, that's the only real complaint. It's the end of the year and less than half maybe are in. GO TO LECTURE you need his board diagrams to pass.

Study study study all the notes, if it was said in lab or lecture it will be on the exams. He is really good on opening up all the smart books and homeworks for you, just very late on grading. Overall I really liked him and he's passionate about what he teaches.