3.3
Quality4.3
Difficulty61%
Would Retake300
Reviews61%
Would Retake
300
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
300 total ratings5
91
4
68
3
50
2
35
1
56
What Students Say
“Allows you to drop your lowest test grade but if your overall test average is still a 50 or below, you're screwed”
CHEM101 - 4.0 rating“The frustration comes from how that material is poorly translated to tests and quizzes”
CHEM262 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
94%
Textbook Required
0%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.11 avg changeRatings by Course
CHEM251
5.0
(1)CHEM261AND262
4.3
(9)CHEM102
4.0
(2)CHEM101L
3.8
(4)CHEM261
3.6
(104)Difficulty by Course
CHEM460
4.5
CHEM262
4.5
CHEM261AND262
4.4
CHEM261
4.3
CHEM101L
4.3
Reviews (299)
Dr. Beaver is new. Don't take his class if given the opportunity to take another teacher's class. He always reads off the slides and doesn't explain much on each slide. Took off points from participation grade when I missed class for having a concussion. Also doesn't prepare you for tests. Teaches the bare minimum needed to know.
Dr. Beaver is willing to help anyone who puts the effort in to reach out to him. He is a very understanding person. In order to get the most out of his class, I would definitely go to office hours to get a more detailed explanation of topics that you may not understand. Chemistry is tough, so of course, the class isn't a cake walk.
Dr. Beaver is relatively new and you can tell. He makes mistakes in class, which is understandable but often ends up confusing the class. Is a flipped classroom, so do expect to take time to learn outside of the classroom.
Dr. Beaver basically just reads directly from the PowerPoint slides with little additional explanation. He often seems confused when solving problems. If you don't go to office hours or peer tutoring, you basically just have to teach yourself everything.
Dr. Beaver is an excellent chemistry professor. He is clearly very smart and knows what he is talking about. The course is difficult but I think that Dr. Beaver does a great job in class and is always very exited to teach. He is super helpful in office hours and you can tell that he truly cares about his students. I highly recommend him.
So far, Dr. Beaver has been a decent professor. CHEM 101 is not an easy class but he's very energetic and wants everyone to succeed. He usually explains everything clearly and also gives you time to process and understand the chemistry problems that are done in class. As long as you continue to study consistently and do the HW you should be fine.
He believes in posting questions but not the answer key. How are we supposed to know if we get the questions right?
This is his first year teaching so I have to cut him some slack, but Dr. Beaver is mediocre at best. He gets angry when a select few don't watch his videos or study hard enough and takes it out on the rest of the class. He posts practice questions with no answers so if you don't know what you're doing, you'll probably end up teaching yourself wrong
Dr. Beaver truly cares about his students and takes time to explain whenever someone has a question. His explanations are comprehensive yet easy to understand. He's a really great guy!
Take 101 with someone else. This is a flipped classroom, which is ridiculous for such a difficult subject. He expects you to know things coming in that people with little chem background know. If you didn't take AP Chem in high school, you're screwed. Lectures are not helpful and the book is useless, so preparing for exams is very difficult.
Beaver knows his stuff, but isn't a great lecturer. He does tons of clicker questions instead utilizing lecture time to actually teach and explain the content. He can also be really sassy and condescending in lecture, but is very helpful in office hours. Tests are a huge part of your grade and questions are usually a combination of a ton of topics
Not a good professor. Be prepared for clicker questions which barely work and no explanations for the answers. If he does explain something, its usually explained wrong and he leaves the class confused. TONS of homework and extremely hard tests.
While a decent professor, the homework (due every few days online) helps you learn way more than you do in class. Many people only go to class to answer clicker questions to get all points for participation. Can get irritated and condescending during lectures and this can impact the amount of material you cover significantly.
Chem 101 is going to be challenging no matter who your professor is at UNC. Office hours are tremendously helpful, especially open group because you can get to know Dr. Beaver while actually understanding the material. This class makes you think, not memorize.
Dr. Beaver is a great professor for Chem 101! He is extremely enthusiastic and really engages the class during lectures. The semi-flipped classroom helps students better understand the concepts and learn actively. He is especially helpful in open group office hours where he will clearly explain any topic that a student is having trouble with.
Allows you to drop your lowest test grade but if your overall test average is still a 50 or below, you're screwed.
Class setup? Lowkey trash. You can PASS Chem 101, but you have to work for it. Don't wait until 2 days before the exam to actually start studying, you won't do well on them. Now this professor. Rudest teacher I've ever met. Not pleasant to talk to in or out of class. He gave just enough info in lecture though, the rest is up to you.
He is a very friendly teacher, and he has made my CHEM 101 experience a delight. Very interactive with the class, even trying to get the back sections of theclass to answer. Very helpful during group office hours and a great facilitator. Recommend having a true study buddy for CHEM 101 and definitely recommend reading the questions carefully!
Dr. Beaver is amazing, enthusiastic, caring, and puts effort into teaching the class. Overall it doesn't matter who you have because all that teachers teaching CHEM 101 go hand in hand and the exams are the same for everyone. Dr. Beaver takes effort to make practice problems and going to office hours helps a lot especially group office hours.
I had to rate Beaver because I saw that he was very underrated for how much he cares about teaching. On the first day he explained that all of us could get an A if we tried hard enough, and I still believe that's true. He cares a lot about our feedback to make sure tests are fair. If you read and do your work on time an A is very possible.
Awful teacher. I don't believe he fully understands the information he is trying to teach. This class take a LOT of outside reading and studying.
Even though Beaver is a new teacher, I still can't cut him any slack. He explained things poorly, and seemed like he confused himself when trying to work out problems. Many topics were "taught" through online videos that honestly didn't help. Wouldn't recommend this class with him; he's super sassy (not in a good way) and can be condescending too.
Dr. Beaver was the best teacher that I've had so far at UNC, he was full of energy and eager to help me in any way possible both inside and outside of the classroom
Dr. Beaver was a great teacher. He was always excited to teach and explained concepts in a way that made sense. He was also very helpful and cared about his students' success. He did make some mistakes sometimes, but all teachers do. If it was really a problem, there were plenty of resources that helped clear up any confusion from the lecture.
In the beginning, you could tell that Dr Beaver was new, but towards the end he definitely improved. Go to office hours, because they help a lot, and he makes an effort to know as many names as possible. He's actually a really cool guy and wants to help his students succeed.
Beaver is a young and enthusiastic teacher, but he doesn't always run the class in the most time efficient manner. Tests are a huge part of the grade, and he isn't always clear about what will be on it. He runs a flipped style classroom, which wasn't helpful for me. Offers a lot of opportunities for office hours though.
Professor Beaver was good, especially for having such a large class. You get out what you put into the class.
He is completely disorganized and doesn't use class time efficiently, but lectures are mandatory. The exams are very hard but after the first one you have a better idea of what to expect. He tries to be funny but it often comes across as annoying. Young, unexperienced professor who only helped the kids who sit in the front. I recommend Dr. Freeman.
I agree that Dr. Beaver could get moody during class - but it was also his first semester as a lecturer. He nailed the "disappointed dad" speech, but wouldn't do it if he didn't care. With that said, you'll have an option to attend Dr. Freeman's open office hour if you prefer his style of teaching. The workload is time-consuming regardless.
He cares about making the class engaging.
Dr. Beaver was never very clear on anything that was important for exams, which were a huge part of the grade. I did great in the hw/participation section of the class, but always bombed exams because I never knew what to study and the lectures never really seemed to help me. I mean I'm not a chem person, but the class felt super difficult.
Hip guy who is excited to be teaching. Lectures are alright, just make sure you take good notes for the chapter readings. GO TO GROUP OFFICE HOURS. He's super helpful and attentive during those, and it's a great way to review and study.
Dr. Beaver is a good professor who truly cares about his students doing well in his class. He will help if you reach out to him.
Dr. Beaver is incredibly enthusiastic about his position and will definitely help you if you make an effort. This class requires a lot of outside work, but this is the case for any chemistry class. You will do well if you read the material outside of class.
Professor Beaver was one of the best I have had at UNC. It is clear that he really cares about his students and what he teaches. If you take the time to attend office hours and reach him outside of class he is very helpful and encouraging. He is always positive and enthusiastic, even at 8 am. His cheesy chemistry jokes are the best!
Tough class, decent professor. Tests are way harder than what you're taught, and make up most of your grade (84% of it). Stay focused, get your grade, and get out. If you still can, I suggest taking the chem placement exam the day before classes start. Will save you the headache of lab (ugh) and lecture if you get over a 60 (sweet deal)
Overall, Dr. Beaver is a great guy that is willing to work with you outside of class. He offers many open office hours where groups can come in and ask questions regarding the material. These are essential if you need extra practice or help. The tests can be difficult due to the multiple choice asking tricky questions.
Dr. Beaver killed the Chem 101 game. Take this class with him if you can, he's an awesome lecturer and very accessible outside of class, gives great feedback
Dr. Beaver has been my favorite large-lecture professor so far at UNC. This man can make a 400 person lecture class feel personalized. Be warned, his class is hard, you must read every chapter, keep up with the work, go to recitations. Across all the Chem101 professors, definitely the best option, said by both his students and outside students.
Dr. Beaver was probably the worst professor I've ever had. Not to mention he's insensitive to some students who reach out to him for problems. He doesn't teach, he reiterates points for those students who've been fed chemistry all their lives and doesn't care about those who don't have those resources.
Prof. Beaver wastes SO MUCH CLASS TIME doing useless things such as breathing exercises and talking about diversity (important but not in chemistry!!) so we only end up talking about chem for 10 minutes at most. I only show up for the everyday quizzes on learning catalytics, but if we didn't have those then I wouldn't even bother going to class.
It was a difficult class no matter who the professor was but I really liked his teaching style
Chem is a hard subject but if you are into an organized class style and not into being belittled, then I would suggest avoiding Beaver. He has no structure to his lectures, gets through half of his ppts (bc of how much time he wastes) and doesn't teach thoroughly (he doesn't go too in-depth with his explanations, he barely even touches the surface)
Chem is hard. But the tests are made by both Bliem and Beaver, so your difficulty of test isn't dependent on professor. Beaver is always energetic, excited, and ready to go (even at 8am)! He genuinely cares about how much his class is learning and will stop and backtrack if he sees several struggling. Beaver is a great lecturer!
101 is definitely a weed out class (no matter how many times they say its not). Beaver is a fine teacher, he uses a "flipped classroom" where you teach yourself and he gives a vague lecture and some practice problems. Very heavy workload and if you don't have good chem hs background, expect to work A LOT to compensate. And tests are very hard.
That was excessive. Way harder than it needed to be. Horrible professor and dint work with student schedules when they could not make office hours. I would take this class over summer and transfer it in. The chemistry department at UNC is terrible.
Dr. Beaver definitely doesn't get the credit he deserves. He explains everything clearly and gives you lots of extra practice problems and worksheet. He's also super enthusiastic about teaching Chemistry even super early in the morning.
He does his best, but it's just a hard and unenjoyable class. Material starts out easy, gets way more difficult (don't be fooled). Tests are crazy, studied for 20+ hours to make a B- on the first one. Online book and online hw 3 times a week. Lectures aren't helpful, but mandatory for LearningCatalytics. Good thing is you can drop one exam grade.
Would not recommend for anyone that doesn't have a strong background in chemistry, as he practically flies through the topics without going into detail on any of them. If people do badly in the daily quizzes we get on the material he hasn't taught yet, he just says "that wasn't the best" and then doesn't elaborate and goes on with his slides.
This class was extremely hard, but that has nothing to do with Dr. Beaver being a bad professor. If you go to office hours, he will learn your name and be eager to help you succeed. Just going to lecture is not enough to do well. You get out of the class what you put in! An A required a lot of work, but it is very possible.
Dr. Beaver is a good professor who is very enthusiastic about teaching chemistry, and the success of his students. However, his lectures do not cover enough of the material that is on the test, and the tests are much more challenging. He gives practice problems and holds office hours frequently which helped me throughout the semester.
Beaver was a great professor! He really cared about his students and wanted us to pass. The class, however, was extremely difficult for most in it. If you have to take chem 101, Beaver is a great choice. But know that if you want to be successful in the class, do NOT fall behind, go to peer tutoring, and DO AS MANY PRACTICE PROBLEMS AS YOU CAN!
So this class is actually structured super well; you read a few parts of the textbook before class, complete warmup activities on the material you will cover in lecture, and complete homework assignments on what was covered during the week. You are always interacting with the material, if you read the textbook and study, you will be fine. Go Beav!
I had no chemistry background before 101 and immediately felt the consequences. This is a fast-paced class, (seemingly) designed for those who took AP chem in HS. I studied over 20+ hours a week and BARELY got out with a B-. Overall a decent guy but flies through material. Chem here is difficult, so I do not blame him; if you can, he isn't too bad.
Dr. Beaver was a solid professor for general chemistry. His lectures are useful helping clear up misconceptions from the readings and warm-ups, rather than teaching you new information. The tests are pretty difficult and can sneak up on you quickly because of the fast pace of the class, so prepare ahead of time with lots of practice problems.
Professor Beaver is enthusiastic and passionate about his job. He works hard to make lectures easy to understand and enjoyable. However, no matter who you have for Chem 101, it's a difficult class to excel in. There is plenty of reading, practice, and homework. The most important thing is to make this class a priority and do not get behind.
I'm not a "science" person, I've never taken chemistry before, and I liked this class, and Dr. Beaver is great. Go to his office hours, and get help asap if you even think you need it. Be rigorous with your study techniques. Make sure you know what you don't know. Keep a list of questions. PMA helps, big time. practice, practice, practice.
Dr. Beaver "teaches" in a flipped classroom, so you basically teach yourself. You read a few sections of a chapter and do a warm-up before class, then go into lecture and do more examples. He does not teach the material, he expects you to know and understand from what you read in the textbook. Very disappointed in this class.
Professor Beaver is great at explaining things when asked. Also, the way his class is set up worked out well for me. It is up to the students to learn the material and do the homework, and then during class, he reviews the tough problems and explains the material further. He is caring and sensible and I appreciated his enthusiasm in the mornings.
Chemistry at UNC is standardized, so the professor doesn't matter too much. However, beaver tended to get off topic with discussions of diversity rather than focusing on content. A decent guy, but did not adequately prepare us for exams.
Right off, DO THE HOMEWORKS DO THE READINGS. They may seem boring but they will be the reason you pass or fail depending on how hard you work at them so you understand the material. This class is hard and many people fail, but it is possible to pass if you use the materials. Beaver himself is nice and tries to make things fun so go to class!
He was an absolutely amazing professor, but the class was literally the hardest thing that I have ever done. I went to countless office hours and spent hours reviewing the material, but Dr. Beaver helped me through everything.
Dr. Beaver was a great professor. For chem 101, he does a good job of introducing the material to what is most people's first chem course at UNC. Definitely not an easy class, and you have to work hard to receive a good grade, especially doing well on the exams, but he does a good job in his lectures.
I loved taking CHEM 101 with him so much! He does a great job of teaching a large amount of students what they need to learn, and in a fun way!
I love Beaver so much, so passionate about sharing the knowledge of chemistry with the youth of North Carolina!
Chem 101 at UNC is one of the toughest courses around. The good thing is, Dr. Beaver gives you all of the tools you need to succeed. While I didn't get an A, I was very invested in the course and was satisfied with my grade. He cares about his students and gives very energetic lectures. Problem-solving sessions are really helpful so go to them.
Chem 101 is going to be a tough class no matter what professor you have, but Beaver makes the class very possible. His lectures are super enthusiastic despite them being so early, and you can really tell he cares. Go to his problem solving sessions, do ALL of the extra practice he assigns, and be engaged in class and you can totally do really well!
For some reason Dr. Beaver gets a bad wrap but he does his absolute best to make chem interesting and easy to understand. he really cares about his students and wants everyone to succeed and enjoy the material. If you want to get a good grade, he gives you all of the materials you could need to do so.
Dr. Beaver was extremely caring and dedicated to his students, making my experience with chemistry at Carolina much better than expected. Don't be afraid to approach him, he really is a great person!
His tendency to get extremely frustrated at the little things (the microphone cutting out, someone asking "too many"/"not enough" questions) makes class time awkward and intimidating. He curses in front of the students, which to me is unprofessional and unnecessary. He appears standoffish and unapproachable. He is very passionate about chem though.
Joshua Beaver was one of the worst professors I have ever had at UNC. He made general chemistry seem like it was the most difficult type of chemistry at UNC. Do not take chemistry with him if at all possible.
Cool guy, but his teaching method is really scattered - if you don't read the book you won't follow along really well. Be prepared for pop quizzes. He's willing to work with you and is very fair when it comes to adjusting exam grades and giving opportunities when the whole class bombs a midterm. He's on your side, you under the RBF personality.
CHEM 101 is by far one of the hardest classes I have taken at UNC. The class is a weed-out, no question. Be ready to read the online textbook every night and to need to go to every recitation for a week just to understand the basics. Beaver doesnt make the slides very helpful, and is willing to trick you on the exams. Study hard but listen harder.
Joshua Beaver is a great teacher and passionate about teaching chemistry, but is rude in office hours and overall extremely unapproachable. He often comes into class with a bad attitude and looks like he doesn't want to be there until he starts teaching. Nice guy to the students he likes, but to everyone else, incredibly rude and honestly scary.
Dr. Beaver really cares about his students and their success in the class. He provides tons of tutoring opportunities throughout the semester, and will take the time to help the entire class at times, if no one is understanding the material. I highly recommend him for CHEM101.
Good professor in office hours, but his class is way too difficult for an intro course. Practice problems he gives are no where near as hard as what is on the exams. Just a warning that you should know literally everything in the textbook for exams.
I was TERRIFIED of chem before this class, but I loved it. I'm excited to take more chem now! Dr. Beaver it the best professor I've ever had, and this is the best class I've taken. His lectures were beyond helpful and interesting. Take advantage of his help sessions outside of class and office hours- he really wants to help you do well.
Dr. Beaver truly wants everyone to pass. He's over CHEM101's lab department at the moment and he made it a better experience than previous professors (based on prior undergrads' experiences). Lab feels useless & the work is meticulous, but the TA you get determines how your semester will go. Luckily, mine was great. Go to office hours if needed!
Great new head of the chem 101l lab department! You can tell he cares about the students and he made the class more manageable than previous years. Lab was still a lot of work for a one hour class though. Your TA determines whether or not the class will be hard to get an A. Mine was amazing.
The chemistry labs at UNC are beyond awful. My TA took 10+ points off of my reports because of the way they looked, not even the content? Then, Dr. Beaver didn't curve the class. I was three points away (0.01%) from an A, and he gave me an A-. I am all for getting the grade I earned, but they take off more points than they should. Use AP credit!
I took orgo 1 with Dr. Beaver and he's awesome! Organic chemistry is such a hard subject but Dr Beaver made it fair and simple. As long as you do the work beforehand and make sure your are not left behind, you'll do just fine!
I can't say anything about Beaver as a teacher since this class is completely run by TAs, but I will say that Beaver is very kind and has eased the workload on lab students as compared with previous years. Grade in class completely depends on your TA. STILL A LOT OF WORK for a 1 hour credit course, but I feel like that is true for any lab at UNC.
Good guy
Have heard some questionable things about his personality, but as a lecturer, I'd definitely recommend Beaver. Most times I hate active learning structure but he makes it so that you're not "talking to your neighbor" 24/7. Makes TONS of helpful worksheets to supplement. Lots of mentors. Good at explaining things and answering questions.
Orgo can be very daunting, but Dr. Beaver is extremely caring and wants you to do really well. The concepts are tough but I would urge everyone taking the class to do the practice problems and work ahead. You wont find a 261 class that's easy but do the readings, practice problems, and go to class and he'll set you up to succeed.
With a very challenging subject like orgo, Dr. Beaver was the one professor who helped explain concepts clearly and show step by step how to work through tricky problems. By doing extra practice problems from the textbook and starting to review the powerpoint slides early the class is more manageable. So start early and practice a lot!!
I had Beaver for 101 and I can honestly say he is way better teaching orgo than gen chem. He actually cares if his students understand the material and makes sure that we have the resources to do so. He gives a bunch of practice problems and gives you everything you need to succeed. You still need to work reallyy hard to do well in the class though
Dr. Beaver is nice, but his class was just basically all self-teaching the material, and then in class you do practice problems. I would never take him again, but I guess he works for some people. To me, the expectations for the class weren't very clear. Instead I felt that lecture was a Q&A session as opposed to going over the material.
Didn't like his superiority complex and it shows when you talk to talk to him one on one. The homework was the easiest way to learn so lectures felt pointless. the tests count for a lot and for many they were hard, but he gave a few extra points after each test and more points at the end of the class so you can do well. It's a weeding-out class.
Orgo in general is one of the hardest chem classes, so you're going to have to put in A LOT of work regardless of who's teaching. Beaver has high expectations for students to do ALL THE READINGS which is normal for orgo. He's at UNC to teach, not to do research, so he actually CARES about learning. And he's always open to helping out IF YOU ASK.
The class obv sucks but i'm here to review Beaver specifically. I had him for 101 too and it didn't get much better the 2nd time around in Orgo. He's a fine lecturer and he makes good worksheets, but other than that he comes across as bored and irritable. In problem sessions he was curt and irritable and unapproachable - I did not feel welcomed.
I had Dr. Beaver for both 101 and 261, and honestly he hands you everything you need to succeed in the class. Tons of helpful and relevant practice posted, and his lectures are engaging as long as you do the pre-assignments. The material can be confusing, but as long as you put in the effort you'll be fine.
Professor Beaver is the best professor I have had here at UNC so far. He is clearly passionate about the material and is able to convey tough material in a way that can easily be understood by students. He makes it known that he cares about his students success and provides the right tools to be successful in the class.
Dr. Beaver is a good lecturer and offers a lot of extra resources. He certainly has high expectations, but overall he is a very solid prof. Actually do the reaction flashcards they will save your life.
Dr. Beaver is incredible. I absolutely loved him FOR ORGO - apparently he's worse for gen chem. There's strong speculation that he became nicer after he had his kid. Nowadays, he is super friendly and shows us photos of his kid all the time - easily my favorite part of the day. Also, his lectures are very informative and brilliantly explanatory.
Orgo is hard on its own, Beaver doesnt help. This classroom was flipped so going back and looking at lecture slides afterwards is not helpful. A decent amount of your grade is homework and attendance(15%) so that helps, but if you aren't naturally good at Orgo, youre not going to do great in this class. Studying starts to feel futile after a while.
I've always head that orgo was tough, and I'm at Chapel Hill so I expected it to be. Expected it to be tough, not impossible... it was. Bever isn't very good at instructing I was lost for the entire semester. Not sure what else to say, it was just very bad. The homework doesn't help but I do appreciate the extra practice sheets available. Dont take
Genuinely confused on why people are roasting Beaver. He clearly cares about his students and teaches you everything you need to do well in class. Literally no surprises on exams, and I don't think it's fair to blame him for bad grades when orgo is just a difficult course. There wasn't much more he could have done. Great prof, definitely take.
Orgo 1 is not an easy class, but Dr. Beaver does a really excellent job of preparing you for exams. He has given us so many practice resources this semester than I have ever gotten for a class, and this is what allows for a student to excel. These practice problems helped more than I can explain, it helped me UNDERSTAND chemistry.
Dr. Beaver is a great professor for Orgo 1. The tests are fair, and he gives you ample practice material. Would highly recommend!
Beaver was a solid teacher. He truly cared about student success which was nice. Orgo is going to be hard whoever you take it with but Beaver really took the time to help and share with us. Highly recommended considering other alternatives.
Despite what I put above I thoroughly enjoyed chemistry with Dr. Beaver, I just found that you need to put in some extra work on the side to truly understand the concepts (or hire a tutor). He genuinely does care about his students, but it is easy to not see this when his classes are so large. He is kind and has a passion for chemistry.
Dr. Beaver was a really good Orgo 1 professor. He provided A LOT of practice problems/exams and his exams were really similar to previous practice problems he had given us. Orgo is a tough class but he really cares about his students and gives you a lot of resources to be able to succeed. Definitely recommend but be prepared to work!
Dr. Beaver is the best Chemistry professor I've had at UNC. Organic chemistry is hard but he makes the material very clear, cares that his student learn, and keeps them very engaged during class. He is encouraging and accessible, and he is overall an extremely effective teacher.
Great lecturer
Dr. Beaver is a great professor for orgo. He is a great lecturer, organized, and clear about what is on exams. Would definitely take him again.
Dr. Beaver is a great professor. He definitely cared for his students and ensured his students would succeed. Orgo is a hard class so you have to put the work into it, but Dr. Beaver was very clear when explaining material and exams were fair. Would definitely take a class with Dr. Beaver again!
Honestly, Beaver is one of the only STEM professors at Carolina that I've had that really cares about his students. You can tell that he loves organic chemistry and wants his students to love it too. He gives a TON of practice problems and never surprises on exams. The class isn't easy bc it's orgo but he wants you to succeed.
I truly did not enjoy this class. I felt that he was arrogant and unaccommodating. I know that Orgo is meant to be hard, but I felt as though he made it harder than it should be during a pandemic. When people raised concerns about things, he either didn't respond or diminished our concerns as unimportant. I would not recommend him as a teacher.
Saying that he cares about your success is an understatement. He does whatever he possibly can to accommodate your success even during a pandemic. Learning organic chemistry is pretty difficult even when in a remote environment, so do take advantage in doing as many problems as you can and always ask questions. Believe in yourself.
Orgo is by default a hard class and even harder online, especially when this is the first time you've done it. Very accessible for questions and wants you to succeed, but doesn't make it any easier for you. Not really a buffer with Mastering HW and other points to even out test grades. Mediocre teacher at best.
Dr. Beaver helped me to enjoy organic chem. This is the only class that I don't essentially teach myself, pay attention in lectures and do the work, and you have no reason not to pass this class.
Orgo is a hard class in general, I definitely feel that beaver has been accommodating. He curves our quiz averages and after the midterm when everyone failed he gave us a quiz to help us earn half our points back. He definitely used to be problematic in the beginning of the semester, but I think he's changed. My favorite chem professor so far.
Organic chemistry is typically a hard class to grasp. Dr. Beaver had his moments, but I wouldn't say he is the worst professor I've had in the chemistry department. He wasn't super accommodating during the pandemic. This is a class that you HAVE to attend lecture, participate, and do practice outside of class to pass. Time consuming class.
I'm speaking as someone who is not the best at chemistry. This class was way hard, as all orgo classes should be. I put in hours of hard work and SOMETIMES my grade would reflect that. I think Dr. Beaver is probably good at teaching orgo, it's just not my best subject. He does provide lots of resources and gives a lot of time to the students.
Orgo is very hard and I didn't do well. I do think Dr. Beaver is a very good choice though, I've liked him best of the chem professors I have had. He does care and was accommodating this semester, adding buffers and opportunities to earn back points. I still think quizzes were ridiculous though, too few questions that were weighted too much.
Dr. Beaver does everything he can to help his students succeed. Clear content and structured lectures makes a hard subject more manageable. He is the only chemistry professor I had that took the time to learn people's names in a large lecture class. I would take a class with him over any other chem professor.
I've heard Organic Chemistry was hard, but I didn't think it would be that hard. I don't know my grade yet, but it probably won't be pretty. However, I truly believe that Dr. Beaver was a great professor. I feel like if I tried harder, I would have done better.
I think Beaver is a good option for orgo - he explains things well and you can tell he really does care about his students. There were lots of resources/problem sessions and despite there being some lags in communications, he always remedied any unfair situations. I learned a ton and thought it was a difficult yet fair and doable class.
I've heard bad things about him in the past, but everything I experienced was an excellent teacher who cared to explain and answer every question his students have. The class is very hard, don't get me wrong, but he made accommodations to help the grades since we were online (at least a little bit) and the higher test was weighted more heavily.
Dr. Beaver was one of the better chemistry professors I have had. There's definitely a workload that comes with this class, but they are resources that if you use, you can do very well. He consistently ran up to 10 minutes over class, but mostly because he took time to answer students' questions throughout lectures, which I appreciated
The material is very hard by nature but it's possible to do well in Beaver's class. The test/quiz questions were fair and similar to those in lecture/homework. I did take this class online die to covid so my experience may be different, but he made it clear what we needed to know and gave lots of chances to practice and ask questions.
I really put my all into this class but I'm just bad at orgo and did not do well. However, I enjoyed Dr. Beaver as a professor for the most part. He was very kind and explained most of the subjects in a simple manner. It was difficult towards the end and it felt like some of the hardest topics were skimmed over. I would take him for orgo again.
Dr Beaver is definitely one of the better chemistry professors I have had at UNC, however orgo is also a difficult subject. The lectures were very in depth and often ran late. Overall, he gives a lot of resources and practice and for the most part was understanding given everything was online. The quizzes were very difficult.
Orgo 1 is notoriously hard, but Beaver isn't a bad choice for professor. He was super organized with his Sakai site which I found immensely helpful. He can come off as condescending which is frustrating. The tests were hard but they were fair. The lectures were boring but necessary. He tended to go over time since it was online.
I'd highly recommend taking Beaver for Orgo. Orgo is going to be hard no matter who you take it with, but Beaver makes a hard class a lot easier. He explains things in a really simple way that makes it easy to follow along. He's very kind- which is shocking to find in the UNC chem department. I'd 100% take Beaver again.
This class *is* really hard. But I'm "not a science person" and I think Dr. Beaver is a good lecturer, and you can do well in this class if you are patient, persistent, and get help the moment you struggle. Go to recitations and review sessions. Work practice problems. It would be hard to catch up if you fall too far behind.
Beaver is such a nice guy, but his exams are completely unfair. We recently had a 25 question quiz with only 20 minutes and multiple students expressed how we felt this was not nearly enough time and he refuses to adjust the format of quizzes. It seems time and time again that his exams are set up to make us fail and not show what we know.
the midterm we had last night was completely unfair. He included many questions on topics we may have addressed once or not at all and completely ignored topics and reactions we had been doing the entire semester to try to trip us up. Test was not reflective of what we learned in class/had on hws/quizzes/praxtice test. clear he wants us to fail
For our latest midterm we were told we would get to have a cheat sheet. When a student thanked him for allowing us to use a cheat sheet he said you wont be thanking me after the midterm and he was right. The midterm and all tests in this class are designed for our failure. He does not care if he learns. He cares if we struggle and likes it.
If you can, PLEASE take this class with another professor. It will be nothing but emotional torment from a professor who cares more about making impossible tests and seeing students struggle than them actually learning. Please get a professor that cares and likes teaching. Your entire grade will be exams and quizzes.
RUN!!! run!! over 70% of 500 students failed the midterm, he is not curving and told us we earned our grade. The exam was completely unfair and the worst ive personally taken at unc. He prides himself in making impossible exams. You do not need this negativity in your life.
This class completely consumes my life. I put so much effort into this even got an orgo tutor. The exams are so difficult and nothing like the lecture or resources he assigns us to practice. I feel like it doesnt matter in this class unless youre already an expert. He wants to see us fail. :(
I think that the class has been extremely difficult during COVID-19. It seems like it is normal to have failing grades. Very poorly addressed issues during class.
As if giving students barely enough time for quizzes or failing more than half the class on midterms wasn't enough, get ready to be quizzed on material that has not yet been taught. Material is tough, but Beaver makes it unbearable.
The worst stem class I've taken during COVID. Most graded work cover things that are barely emphasized in class. Total disregard of how the instructional team has made the class difficult, instead students are told that such stress is rather good and content cant be explained to them. Ask for help? referred to same unhelpful resources over and over
To be as unbiased as possible, Dr Beaver presents the actual material fairly well. With the lectures and textbook readings (and reasonable practicing) the chemistry can be learned. However, quizzes and exams usually contain some/many problems that are either very hard or things vaguely covered. You must put in many hours for a hope at a good grade
This class was (is) hard as hell, especially during COVID. A TA confessed to me that they didn't know why Dr. Beaver has made this semester so much harder than it was when they had taken it before (and it was already hard, of course). When the average grade on the first midterm was failing, Dr. Beaver implied that it was the students' fault. Run.
Orgo is meant to be hard, but the difficulty of this class is excessive. The tests and quizzes have so many questions that will blindside you (even with lots of studying). People had to have passed 4-5 chem classes just to get here and yet the average on the first midterm was failing. Beaver puts most blame on the students. How is this allowed?
This class has consumed my entire life and Im still failing. I have done everything he recommends to study for this class and more and I consistently fail every quiz and every exam. He makes his exams SO impossible - its so demoralizing. No amount of studying will ever prepare you for his exams - I feel like its a waste to even try anymore.
Beavers lecture are very surface level discussions and the resources we are provided with dont dive any deeper into the material. He makes exams and quizzes as if we have been experts in the field of chemistry for years. Theyre unfair and he doesnt do his part as a professor to prepare us. The avg in orgo 2 this semester is failing. Save yourself
I took Beaver for both Orgo I and II - both were horrible. His tests/quizzes have barely enough time to finish and are extremely more difficult than anything shown in class or homework. After the first exam he took away the grade distribution on sakai. Blames students when in reality it is his teaching/tests that are the problem. DO NOT TAKE!
Twas a nightmare this semester! I loved Dr. Beaver for 261 and did superbly but this class has mentally wrecked me. Never have I put in such copious work to do so poorly. I think he does a good job of getting info across but the tests will be my thirteenth reason. I have had multiple nightmares and honestly just want more encouragements
In 261, we begged for non-linear exams, & he told us he was preparing us for the MCAT, GRE, & job interviews... Someone had a breakdown on piazza bc of his class. Exams are ridiculously hard this semester. He took away the grade distribution bc it exposed how poorly he taught. Over 60% of the class received below a 70 on exam 1. RUN FAR AWAY!!!!
Horrible. Does not care about students. Tests and quizzes are practically impossible. Take this class with another professor or get ready for hell. I know people who studied for at least 4 hours everyday for over a week for the midterms and still failed.
AHAH JUST DONT. Unless youre some kind of Einstein and youve already earned a PhD of your own in organic chem - do not take with him. It doesnt even matter if you study 3 hours a day every day for a whole semester - you will still fail. No amount of effort will help you do well in this class. Save yourself while you have the chance - run away.
My reviews keep disappearing, so I will leave another. He really does not teach well, and his exams were much more difficult this semester for no reason. Grading is opaque and they hid distributions from us after the first midterm went terribly. He resents any mention of these issues, and will not address them when asked. Look for a different prof.
I took Dr. Beaver for CHEM 261 and CHEM 262. He is an amazing lecturer. Quizzes and exams are hard, but it is definitely do-able if you work for it. I was out of school for 5 years before taking CHEM261 and was able to earn B+. If I can do it, you can do it. Work hard and work smart.
Dr. Beaver is a solid professor, overall. The class takes a lot of effort, which is to be expected from an upper-level chemistry class at a competitive university. Judging from other reviews, it appears that my peers just want a walk in the park. Sad! You actually have to put in the work to get good results, especially in this class.
The worst professor at UNC-Chapel Hill is Professor Joshua Beaver. For our first midterm, we were able to see the grade distribution for the class and when we all saw how bad it was and asked him about it, he hid all score distributions from us. The tests emphasize minute details that you barely learned months ago. Avoid at all costs. Nightmare
This is the worst class Ive taken at UNC! I took orgo 1 last semester and I was by far better than orgo 2. The tests this semester are impossible! Too much for a 75 min limit! Most got below 60% on the first exam! This teacher emailed us saying if we want to do better then go to office hours! The second exam was worse! The final is in Gods hands.
Dr. Beaver is a nice person outside of class and his kid (who he sometimes shows in zoom) is a cute lil baby. HOWEVEF, chem 262 with beaver is a menance to society. If you can, take orgo with someone else
Dr. Beaver is my favorite professor at UNC. Try hard, focus on understanding over memorizing, and go to office hours and you will enjoy this class.
Do not take this class. Half the class is spent in breakout rooms, the time he does teach, we go over surface level topics. Exams are ridiculous and do not reflect what we were taught. Some of the positive reviews are written by Beaver himself or peer mentors. Run away please!!!
Beaver does a good job at explaining concepts and his classes are worthwhile, but you are blindsided by exams. Tests contain content barely emphasized in class& questions are unfair, IMO. They tell you to "try harder" if you get a bad grade, but the only way for an A is to have no other commitments so you can dedicate your life to organic chem.
On the plus side, the curriculum is largely self teachable. It's not like I had another choice either.
Hard class, good professor. People are being unfairly negative because of the difficulty of the class - an easy class does not make a good professor and vice versa
Dude its just ridic. The level of difficulty from the lectures to the tests is just astronomical. It is unnecessarily challenging.
If you really really get orgo, you won't mind Dr. Beaver's class, but if you find orgo tough (like many students), you probably won't like his teaching. You can def succeed in Dr. Beaver's class, you just have to work HARD. He is an ok lecturer, and exams are challenging but overall fair/ very representative of extra practice worksheets/ppts.
I had Dr. Beaver for both orgos and I thought he was a pretty good professor. To study, I usually rewatched the lecture videos and did the worksheets. His lecture style might not be for everyone, but I thought they were engaging and organized. You do have to put a lot of work outside of class, but the class is fairly interesting.
I'm going to try to be as fair as possible. Dr. Beaver is an OKAY lecturer. He is fine, but his lectures are NOTHING special. I think people over-hype his lecture skills because compared to the other chem professors he's not quite as bad at explaining things. Mastering Pearson is a joke and he still uses it. My tutor has taught me SO much more.
I think that people are divided in the rates. However, the majority of students are warning you about the course. It is unfair to take an outlier and say, hey its not that bad. If >70% failed the first midterm, then you should definitely take that advice and watch out. Also people are falsely putting in 262 grades but they are not released yet.
Every night I have to listen to Folklore by the music industry, Taylegend Swift, and cry myself to sleep because of this class. Apparently no one in the chem department here at UNC stans Taylor and makes wickedly difficult exams because of this. Sad! 0/10 Anyways, stream Fearless (Taylor's Version)!
I had Beaver for Orgo 1/ Orgo 2, and I have mixed feelings. He is an okay lecturer and explains topics covered in class well. However, when it comes to quizzes/ exams, there are topics that he does not cover in depth or expects us to know. I put a lot of time and effort into the class and I don't get good results. Thankfully I have a great tutor.
Sadly I didn't get to take 262 with the other professor. When her lectures are recorded I watch those instead. Prof. Beaver just doesn't explain things in a simple enough way for me to understand. He's so knowledgeable that he cant dumb the information down enough
An easy class is not representative of easy material, the same way a hard class is not representative of difficult material. It's clear from these reviews that despite challenging material, everyone is putting in real effort to work through it. The frustration comes from how that material is poorly translated to tests and quizzes. :(
Imma keep this short for you. >70% failed the first midterm. He said "don't be sad, many other students are in your place". Look. Youre a premed. You need to do well in orgo 2. don't do it with beaver.
I have never given a review this bad, but if it helps students in the future so be it. 90% of lectures are spent in breakout rooms and he only covers surface level content. His tests/quizzes are ridiculous, 70+% of the class failed both midterms. I always say if you put in the work you can get a good grade, but not with him. Run as fast as you can
Like poetry, this class continues to degrade any hope of redemption to the very end. I've never had a final at UNC that has felt designed to take the ENTIRE 3 hours, in a similar way to the past quizzes, just longer. A passing grade would be a blessing. They say they want us to succeed, but kick us while we're down.
People have had to pass multiple chem classes, including Orgo 1, to even be in this class, so the students are not incompetent or lazy. When 60-70% of the class fails the midterm, that's more of a reflection of the professor. Exam questions are more difficult than lecture or practice problems. You'll have to study 24/7.
This class was the most miserable experience I have ever had at UNC. No transparency in grade distributions, worksheets riddled with errors, and a total lack of care from Beaver. Class time was so badly wasted that I learned more from the textbook than from anything he said. Please, PLEASE try to take this class with someone else. Anyone else!
I was hesitant to leave this review because it seems like I have the minority opinion. However, if you have no choice but to take Dr. Beaver, I would go for it. His tests were challenging but I worked on my study and testing strategies to see improvements. He was very helpful during office hours! It is not impossible to do well in this class.
Dr. Beaver is a wonderful professor; the bad reviews are rather unfair and I believe are more inspired the difficulty of the material than Dr. Beaver himself. I really enjoyed the class and encourage anyone to take Dr. Beaver as well.
Take Dr. Beaver's class 3 times a week for four months to treat an elevated GPA. Treatment can be administered online, but results may be more drastic than expected. Side effects may include: loss of sleep, crying on Zoom, and overconsumption of caffeine. Your treatment provider may: gaslight about exam results, distract you with his son
Orgo 2 is a tough class, but I still generally learned a lot from Dr. Beaver's lectures. That being said, the quizzes and tests were far more difficult than the other course assignments and often focused on content that was only briefly mentioned in class. Dr. Beaver did not seem particularly sympathetic to students who were struggling.
Censorship is concerning. Student complaints got deleted. 70% or greater failed the first exam. Blamed everything on students when the class failed. Sent angry emails of you disagreed with a class policy.
Uses diversity a lot in lectures but does not actually acknowledge diversity. Ignorant about student backgrounds. CHEM department lacks diversity in the first place.
ORGO is a difficult course, but the way the course was structured was not fair. He intimidated students who needed help. He did not care if someone failed and deleted messages of students who raised concerns about the course. The issues never got fixed.
students failed exams and blamed it on students. many students posted about mental health issues due to ORGO but deleted them. does not allow criticism of ORGO and shuts opinions down. gaslighted students bringing concerns. blamed struggles in ORGO to students but class was almost impossible. hid score distributions from students with failing grade
The professor along with other CHEM department seem resistant to making beneficial changes and are apathetic towards students needs. The circumstances of COVID were not considered enough and placed an unnecessary amount of blame on students. Beaver is not too bad but structured the course poorly by making unreasonable exams and gaslighting.
Dr. Beaver was wholly unsympathetic to the class, and dismissed many complaints about the fairness of exams, workload, and grading. Exams often have content that was only mentioned passingly in lecture, and reviews only cover basic concepts; studying lecture notes / success. By mid-semester, all you want is to be done. And I'm a chemistry major.
Avoid at all costs. Unless you sit at the front and answer questions, he doesn't know you and doesn't care to either. I personally felt uncared for in so many ways. He hardly explains concepts he just gives practice problems and expects the textbook to do the teaching (which it doesn't). He makes you feel more helpless than ever. AVOID!
Dr. Beaver is my favorite professor to the point where I want to mentor for Chem 261 for his class. The people complaining here need to understand that it is not his fault for them putting in a mere 5-6 hours a week. It is orgo and you need to put in almost over half your week dedicated to the class. I am taking 262 wit him next sem. Can't wait!!!
One of the worst professors at chapel hill. Bad at everything, sarcastic, condescending, can't teach, and tests are so specific on complicated topics, and the worst thing is he pretends to be an extremely nice, laid back professor. I would never take his class by choice, please stay away.
This class is very hard no matter who you take it with. To be 100% honest, Beaver explained concepts very well and I only struggled to follow along when I did not do fully commit to that lesson (my fault). He goes over about 10 practice problems every class, explaining every step. I think this is very helpful, but only if you also put in the work!
Orgo is hard regardless, so ignore the low ratings. Dr. Beaver literally outlines at the beginning of the year how to get an A. I am not good at chem, but have done all of his reccomendations and I am sitting at an A right now. He makes this hard class manageable and wants us to succeed. I loved him and he made this class fun. TAKE HIM! HE CARES.
If you are taking over 14 hours then you may want to take this class a different semester. It is possible to do well if you have the time to put in a lot of work, but if you are taking too many classes or just have too many things on your plate this class will be painful. Beaver is fine at lecturing, just a bit intimidating and pretentious.
This guy literally put a blank page at the end of the test before the last page to confuse students to think the test was over. Missed an entire section on the exam. Think he just wants us to fail
Dr. Beaver is actually kind of nice. He also provides many opportunities to review outside of class. However, he makes the tests unnecessarily hard. Therefore, make sure orgo is your only hard class the semester you take it. Be prepared for weekends and hours together after class reviewing. That's the only way to get an A unless you're a genius.
This is a very hard class regardless Of who you take it with. Dr. Beaver is an amazing professor and I am thinking of mentoring for him even though the class is hard. This class needs a lot of effort and students complaining simply didnt understand that. It isnt the professors fault as he is very accommodating. Take him in my opinion!!!!!
Dr. Beaver was the worst professor I have ever had at UNC. The midterm medians were consistently Fs. At some point, its not the students fault for everyone getting failing grades on midtermsits the professors fault. Additionally, he claimed he would consider the suicides on campus when curving our grades. There was NO curve for the students.
Beaver was a very fun and sweet individual, but the tests him and Johnson gave were very very uncalled for. Tests were hard. We were promised a curve because our medians were in the low 60s and averages were consistently in the 40s and 50s. We did not receive a curve at the end. Very upsetting.
Beaver's class has a clear structure and expectations from the get-go. He teaches at a brisk pace so it is important to read the textbook ahead of class. There are around 10 basic practice problems throughout the lecture. However, these questions are more basic so it's imperative to go to peer mentor sessions to get hard practice before exams.
Orgo here is going to be difficult no matter what. Dr. Beaver makes it very clear the class is hard. That being said, just going to lectures isn't enough. You also need to attend problem sessions/office hours if you want an A. Def makes you work for it. Practice problems were very useful, only complaint is he expects you to learn from the textbook.
This man does not care about the well-being of his students, especially considering that he continued lecturing while someone was seizing on the floor. Class is impossible to get an A in, curves are implied through what turns out to be empty promises. Do not take this class with Beaver at all costs. Take it anywhere else and youll probably be fine
I enjoyed organic chemistry immensely. It's a difficult subject and you have to be prepared to reckon with that when aiming for a high grade in the class. Rarely have I had a better lecture structure than with Prof Beaver. The problems in the lecture go over every piece of info from readings and makes it digestible. Loved the prof and the class.
Dr. Beaver's rate my professor is pretty derogatory but not entirely accurate. It's Organic Chemistry at UNC, it is going to be difficult. However, Dr. Beaver does care. The reality is, if you care he will as well, but he is not going to beg you to care. He is very accommodating actually, but you need to attend office hours and ask for help early!
I felt like they didn't give us enough practice for what they expected us to know. On exams focus on what you know and not what you don't; try not to get hung up on trick questions (they do give partial credit). There were suicides on campus and we're still in a pandemic, and to say I felt like Beaver cared about his students, would be a lie.
Honestly, Beaver is a condescending person. This class is the gateway to many health professions and he is aware of that. Beaver made it impossible to do well in his class due to his poor attitude and sarcastic behavior. This class was terrible and the amount of stress and sacrifices I made for this class was ridiculous. DO NOT TAKE BEAVER!
I really enjoyed Dr. Beavers class! Every lecture was very structured and he laid out exactly what we need to do to succeed. I wish more professors were as organized as he is! The tests were hard but if you do all the practice problems he offers and focus on understanding concepts rather than doing a bunch of meaningless problems you will do fine!
Organic chemistry at UNC is very very hard and to blame Dr. Beaver for that seems unfair. His lectures were engaging and helpful. You must come to class with a fair understanding of the material that gets solidified during class to succeed. Beaver wants his students to succeed! I failed the second test and still made an A-. You can do it!!
It is SO easy to blame a professor for poor performance on exams. Dr. Beaver has always gone out of his way to support students in their success. He is by far the best professor I've ever had. Participation and dedication to class will matter 100%. Follow the way they teach you to study and you will do so well.
Orgo chem is a challenging course. Do not come into this class expecting to get a good grade without putting in any work then blame the professor. Dr. Beaver has high expectations for students but this is consistent with all chem professors. His office hours and problem-solving sessions are very helpful and he genuinely wants students to do well.
Beaver is ruthless, but if you can look past his personality he is actually a reasonably okay organic chem professor. The exams are ridiculously difficult compared to class, homework, and the practice tests, but that's just classic UNC chem dept. You might pass with a C+ if you dedicate your entire life to the class.
Beaver is one of the best chem lecturers at unc. it sucks ppl rate him low because orgo is just hard, but he basically gave us enough leeway with covid that u barely had to come to class for full pts. i visited other sections this semester, but beaver is the best at understanding how students approach the material imo
There were 3 professors for this class but I think Dr. Beaver made the exams and they were extremely difficult. I genuinely love orgo, but his exams made me feel terrible about myself. While I liked the content of this course, Dr. Beaver made it so difficult to get a good grade in this class. It almost felt like he didn't want us to do well.
Dr. Beaver is an amazing professor and genuinely cares so much about his students. He is super supportive and encouraging. 262 is very challenging with any professor, but Dr. Beaver is very accessible. He is amazing at explaining difficult concepts, and gives more than enough exam-level resources/practice to succeed. Take him for organic chem!!
Took him for a summer session and it was the best chem experience. He really got to know us and our names. Tests were definitely difficult and tested your abilities on all the past lessons, but was for the most part fair.
Dr. Beaver is a caring professor that encourages group discussion and practice problems to learn material. I think many negative reviews on here are a result of the difficulty of the class, not the professor. Yes, orgo is hard, but this is universal everywhere and Dr. Beaver was effective at outlining what his students need to do to succeed.
Students write fake review to counter the good reviews. Plenty of people do well in ORGO and still dislike the class. Even if you did well, many agree that the class was such a bad experience and horribly taught. The constant wrong answers on PollEv or failed quiz average for most of the class is a reflection of the professor. One horrible class.
The best way to learn organic chemistry is through practice and Dr.Beaver provides a lot of optional practice. You do not need to complete all these practice problems but I found that doing 3-4 problems a day (or a worksheet) was enough to make sure I understand content. Be proactive about solving your problems! He cares and will help you succeed!
absolutely never again. The exams were incredibly hard and Beaver would talk to us after exams and tell us how disappointed he was in us lmao. He simply was not a nice guy and orgo already blows.
Chem 262 is a hard class regardless of the professor. Dr. Beaver does a really great job of making the content on the tests reflect what was taught in class. He is very accessible outside of class and makes a conscious effort to learn everyone in the classes name.
Dr. Beaver does a great job of making lectures engaging. He also makes a conscious effort to learn student names, and is really invested in helping students be successful. He is also a big help with study strategies.
Orgo is obviously a hard class but Beaver is a good professor. His lectures are always clear and have lots of class participation, and there are tons of resources to get help and practice after class. He's also very generous with partial credit on exams
Don't listen to anyone who says that Dr. Beaver is uncaring, manipulative, etc. They are just people who have become frustrated with organic chemistry - its a subject that takes a lot of work. Dr. Beaver truly cares about his students, is willing to help them in any way, and also is quite generous with his exams.
Orgo 2 is naturally hard, but I think Dr. Beaver gave us everything we would need to succeed. He is available for questions, has regular office hours and problem solving sessions, and responds to emails promptly. He overall hasn't done anything wrong in my book, even if he may not be the most exciting or charismatic guy.
Dr. Beaver seems to be universally despised for no reason. Organic chemistry is never going to be a cakewalk. However, Dr. Beaver was a funny guy who often told us many anecdotes. He did a great job with conveying difficult orgo 2 concepts to students. Exams were graded generously and Dr. Beaver actually (wait for it) wants you to succeed.
Beaver is a good teacher. The test were hard but fair and they are always good about giving us the partial credits. I believe Beaver wanted us to succeed and provided tips outside of class material on how to study.
Pretty solid professor and a good guy. He seemed to truly care about his students and their success. He understands that the material is hard and does everything in his power to allow students to be comfortable with it. I enjoyed taking his class.
Dr. Beaver was extremely kind and respectful. His lectures are interesting and engaging, and he's a very smart, fair person. The exams are stressful, but Dr. Beaver does his best to make sure you're not too scared for his exams. I recommend him wholeheartedly.
I feel like a lot of Chemistry professors get a bad rap because they teach a difficult class. CHEM 262 was definitely not easy, but Dr. Beaver explained content well and clearly wanted us to succeed. I wish he had written all of our exams rather than alternating with the other professor, but that is not his fault. I'd take another class with him.
Dr. Beaver is the best chemistry professor I have ever had. He genuinely cares about his students and tries to get to know everyone's names. He wants the best for everyone and always had great advice on how to succeed in the class. I would definitely recommend taking a chemistry class with him.
BEST CHEM PROF!! Made an effort to learn everyone's name. Commended individual students for improvement on exams. Explained the material so well. I did so much better in ORGO2 than ORGO1 w/austell. I absolutely adore Beaver. Extremely kind. iClicker for attendance. The exams were what I expected. I did devote a lot of studying time, but u should.
Dr. Beaver is a decent lecturer. Not the best by any means, but he was also not the worst I've had. Nonetheless, tests are very tricky and grading can be pretty cut-throat, so make sure you study and understand the material very well.
I know orgo is notoriously the most difficult class at UNC, so I'm trying not to let that get in the way of my rating, but Beaver didn't help my understanding of the material. The workbook was helpful, but to get the answers you need to go to ULA sessions, and they only solve a few problems. I worked my butt off, and I'll still probably get a C+.
Nice professor who learns your name if you participate. He can be pretty fun to learn from when he's in a joking mood, and is clearly passionate about chemistry. Chem classes here are what they are, but he does his best to help you succeed. You have to be the one to put in the hard work to succeed. Medians on tests were 66-68 so study hard.
I don't know why everyone talks badly about Professor Beaver but he is a very caring man. He is straightforward and will say that a problem was "easy". However, don't take that to heart. Attending his office hours is also great because he gives you tips on how to succeed in the course and he wants everyone to succeed.
Beaver is a respectable guy who deeply understands Orgo, making for a good professor, but he also has extremely high standards for students, so merely keeping up during lecture will not get you a good exam score. Tests medians were around 68, so you must deeply understand the material. This course is what you can expect of a Orgo course at UNC.
Beaver explains concepts well & learns names but orgo itself is a menace. CHEM 101/102 at UNC were pretty easy A's for me, but I spent several hours a day on orgo just to get a B+. Tho its possible to get an A- or A if you get in the 80s on exams bc they curve slightly at the end. Redo the slides, go to ULA sessions, do as much practice as you can.
I'll try to cover what the other reviews haven't covered already. I honestly thought Beaver was a great teacher and I always found his problem sessions helpful. I know it's hard, but try not to stress too much about your grade; there is a slight curve at the end. Here are my grades for reference: mid-80s on every midterm, low 90 on the final.
Dr. Beaver was nice and clearly knowledgeable about organic chemistry. However, I felt that he did little to explain any difficult concepts during lectures. All midterm medians were in the 60s and there was about a 1% point curve at the end of the class. Exam questions are harder than lecture and practice questions.
Dr. Beaver is very knowledgeable and truly cares about his students succeeding. However, he has a very condescending demeanor when explaining concepts in office hours or review sessions. He expects students to learn at the rate he would which comes across very heavily. He is very organized and lectures really clarify the textbook readings.
Organic chemistry very difficult in general, especially when you're taking it here! Dr. Beaver, however, is a very good professor and I really do think he cares a lot for his students. You have to do the reading, practice, study and work very hard!
His exams were definitely the most difficult to take and understand by far. If you do not have a thorough understanding of the material, and fall short of 100% understanding, the exam will be challenging. They are not impossible; rather, they test your overall comprehension through every possible question that could be asked.
poo. avoid.
Beaver is a difficult professor no doubt but I accredit much of my ability to study and learn effectively to his guidance and mentorship. He genuinely cares about your well-being and if you show effort, he'll reciprocate. Exams are pretty difficult but not impossible by any means. Go to class, participate, do the readings, don't fall behind.
Orgo 2 with Dr. Beaver is way better than orgo 1 (had him for both)! You NEED to do the legwork for this class - do the workbook/textbook problems concurrently with the lectures, study well in advance, and you will do fine. I got a B- in orgo 1 and I'm maintaining an A- in orgo 2! He cares a lot about his students - work hard & you'll be fine!
Seems to be a genuinely good guy and a solid teacher. However, he expects all of his students to have a near-perfect understanding of all of the material. It comes across as if he thinks this is our only course.
Dr. Beaver is a great guy! I had him for 261 and 262, and you can tell he really cares a lot about his students. Orgo definitely was not my favorite subject but he was always engaging and it was nice to come to class where the professor knows your name in a big lecture room. The course is hard but if you take his advice, you will do just fine!
Def a tough class and still harder than 261 (esp the second unit). Having a good foundation in 261 is KEY. Insider info: every test had a huge predict the products section, and acid-base shows up every time. Encouragement: first midterm=worst grade in orgo ever, last midterm=best grade in orgo ever. Midterm med were 77, 74, 77; final med was 79.
This is a very difficult class and Dr. Beaver is known for making hard tests, however, he genuinely does want his students to learn and succeed in the class. You will need to devote a lot of time to studying and practicing the material but you definitely can do well in the class.
The best chemistry teacher I've had. You definitely have to put in the work, and go to his Q&As and LA sessions as much as possible. Content is difficult but he genuinely wants you to succeed and will take student feedback to heart. Test questions are pretty straightfoward and fair.
Do not take a class with him
In 262, there's SO many rxns to know; prioritize this class. Keep an errors notebook. You need to understand WHY things happen. Beaver was more personable in 262 than 261, but still had high expectations of depth of understanding. Have him and the ULAs answer all of your questions, all the time. He is more willing to help if he knows you by name!
Dr. Beaver's approach is high structure active learning - it rewards students who practice every day using all resources (workbook, blank slides, worksheets, office hours). Was 261/262 hard? Yes! Does Beaver have high expectations? Also yes. This can be intimidating for some, but it motivated me to try my best. Orgo @UNC is high risk + high reward.
Became an alcoholic, it was that bad. Honestly, the main issue is the problems done in class are infinitely easier than the ones on the test. That being said, he's a really good guy and cares about you if you put in the effort.
He does not know how to teach. He is the most condescending man that I have EVER met and that's saying a lot. He is also so misogynistic. He is so self-centered, everything is about him and nothing is about the ACTUAL content of the class. This class literally bombed my mental health.
Lectures were engaging and easy to follow along, however the difficulty of the course was extreme at times, especially in the tests, tehy were nothing like the previous exam questions given for practice.
Extremely difficult course and main source of learning, his own written workbook has no solutions...so outside of the scaffolded answers he provides on canvas, ALL the other practice, good luck getting and if your schedule doesn't allow for you to go to office hours, sorry for you. Smart guy, fair but hard tests, and cares.
Organic chemistry is going to be hard no matter who you take it with. Beaver was a good lecturer and provided lots of problem-solving in class so lectures were never boring. The textbook for the course was actually very good and Beaver's slides were very helpful when studying for exams.
Organic chemistry is very difficult to navigate, but Beaver truly explains these concepts and ensures his students have a deeper understanding of the WHY behind everything. I am very glad I took this class with him!!
Very intersting lectures and very nicely planned out lecture slides. Dr. Beaver wants students to do a lot of practice questions outside of class and I do not like the pre-class reading quizzes (Easy to get points but heavy reading and does not really help me to understand the content). Easy to get daily participation and graded work points,.
Doctor Beaver's lectures were interesting and easy to follow, but you have to be prepared before the class. He cares about his students; however, he expects a lot from you. I would say do absolutely everything he offers, and you will do great. Overall, Doctor Beaver is one of my favorite professors at UNC, even though Orgo1 is hard!
Doctor Beaver's lectures were interesting and easy to follow, but you have to be prepared before the class. Make sure you take his advice in the syllabus and you will do good in this class
I quickly came to the realization that some people are good at orgo and others just aren't. I did the preclass, ULA sessions, the GPSS, workbook, and slides every week and still did bad in the class. Some people that didn't even do half of what I did would do better. Make sure you don't take any other hard classes bc this class is time consuming!
Orgo is fairly challenging and requires a lot of practice. Attention to detail is key in the course. As for Dr. Beaver, I don't have much positive to say. You ask him a question, he will not only not answer your question, but he will make u feel like a fool for even asking. I got more clear answers on EdStem, the TAs do better than he does.
Dr. Beaver cares about his students but I do not think he is a good lecturer. The slides are a bit confusing and his explanations were vague so we could "teach ourself". The review sessions only helped if you knew what you were doing and had a few questions. Orgo is one of those subjects that requires consistent studying so don't fall behind.
Dr. Beaver is a wonderful lecturer and instructor. Organic Chemistry is hard, and requires lots of practice and attention to detail; Dr. Beaver emphasizes these things daily in class, and puts a ton of effort into helping people correct their misconceptions. Easily approachable, spent a lot of time making the class digestible. Curved final grade.
Prof. Beaver was a nice guy and could be pretty engaging during class. However, lecture slides were often vague. Midterms were significantly harder than the final exam, and final grades experienced a slight curve. When in doubt about whether you should have received credit for an answer on a midterm, submit a regrade.
It's definitely possible to succeed by doing workbook +textbook problems, ULA worksheets, going to q&a sessions -- uncommon most students with other hard classes. Midterms are pretty fair, but Beaver is not super accessible; condescending and judgy -- gatekeeps info at his q&as, so go to those if possible (or todd). Has a buffer for graded work.
I love Beaver. He was amazing, and the class is very manageable if you stay on top of it. He has q&A sessions and office hours to help and genueinly wants to see you succeed. Many people said he seemed condescending, which at first he kinda did, but as soon as I talked to him a couple times he is the best prof ever.
It's UNC orgo, it's going to be a lot of content. I bombed the first test before learning how to prepare for this class. Skim the readings before class, don't spend too long on them, there's a lot of unnecessary info. Keep up with the workbook, it's the key to the midterms. Go to the ULA session and at least one problem solving session a week.
Great course overall. Orgo here is hard but getting a good grade is definitely doable. Beaver is a very caring and engaging professor. I can see how he may come off as condescending sometimes but he's very empathetic and receptive in office hours. Don't take Orgo with too many other hard classes. That was my mistake and I didn't lock in enough.
I was pleasantly surprised by this course. Joshua Beaver was extremely professional and knowledgeable. He always came prepared and stuck to schedule, never falling behind on the course material. He was genuinely compassionate with his students as well, encouraging participation and making a point to remember people's names.
Dr. Beaver was awesome. Set the best foundation for Organic Chemistry and his lectures were very informative. He is very smart and forces you to think through the course material. His lectures are also engaging and I would definitely take him again. The only slight is his exams are difficult, but I learned so much in this course.
Verily, this course is no mere pursuit, but an odyssey of torment where only the steadfast glimpse enlightenment. The lecturer bestows knowledge in fire and fury, yet we, mere mortals, are left scorched, grasping at fleeting truths. My soul writhes beneath this incantation of madness! And yet, is not true wisdom born from suffering?
This review is for 102. Dr. Beaver is a great professor. He made learning chem easier and made sure students understood as much as he could. Chem 102 at UNC is hard, and the exams are ridiculous. But Beaver is definitely the best professor I've had in the chem department and is passionate about what he does. I would definitely recommend him.
Chem 460 review. Lots of prerequisite knowledge required, make sure to brush up on orgo 2 before taking. Lots of pre-class reading, and exams were extremely difficult (be he did give a generous curve). The class has a large presentation component, which is fine, but just be aware.
this class was unnecessarily difficult with him. beaver is rude and condescending at times, and sometimes appears to have an ego issue. take with literally anyone else.
CHEM 101 was horrible for me, so going into CHEM 102 I was terrified, but Dr. Beaver was a great lecturer and made the class interactive and easier to understand. The lecture was a launch so the class was only about 35 people. Dr. Beaver was respectful and his LAs were great too. The tests were difficult. Go to the LA review sessions!
This class was so informative and engaging. Exams were hard but extra credit opportunities were given, and the final also had a take-home portion. Group presentations were a good grade boost and also enlightened us on modern orgo research. Dr. Beaver was also very helpful during 1-on-1 office hours.
Beaver's got good lectures and very accessible via OH so don't be intimidated. His LAs were just awesome! They single-handedly saved me in the class with super clear explanations. Study hard for the thermo exam, that by far is the hardest exam in the course. You've got this!
The class is definitely a lot of work, but Dr. Beaver's a good professor. He's very caring and explains the material well. Exams were also fair. Just make sure to keep up with the workbook problems and rxn flashcards.
Liked beaver in 261/262, not as much in 460. 460 was v difficult & structured poorly imo. You must be VERY confident with orgo 1/2 content, esp orgo 2, even if you took it years ago. Majority of class did poorly esp on exam 1. Added 15 pt curve to exam 1, 10 pt curve to exam 2, & a curve at the end, which was v nice and unheard of in UNC chem dept
It's a no from me dawg.
Chem261 is a tough class, but Dr. Beaver was an incredible teacher. If you're considering taking orgo with him, do it. He's incredibly understanding and caring. He learned the names of everybody who participated in class and would say hi while walking around campus. Attend ULA sessions, don't be distracted during class, and STUDY! You'll do great!
Professor Beaver is a really great orgo instructor. The content is just really difficult. He is very accessible outside of class and makes an effort to learn your name and truly wants to see you succeed. I am satisfied with the grades I got in this course and feel that they were fair given I crammed before every exam.
Dr. Beaver is truly a beacon of light in the UNC Chem department. While the class is difficult, Dr. Beaver made the material very accessible and was always down to help us out with material. He is a very effective and engaging lecturer. Sometimes he is a little sassy, but never condescending or mean. He also tries to be reassuring, which is nice.
Dr. Beaver is great but the class itself is challenging. The material is difficult, but he makes an effort to give students the resources they need to succeed.
Dr. Beaver does an amazing job working with the lecture hall, making the large lecture hall feel like a small classroom. You could tell he cares about what he's teaching and who he's teaching it to. His tests are supposed to be the hardest out of all the orgo professors, though. Also, his voice is very easy to listen to lol.
Dr. Beaver is an exceptional lecturer who really cares about his students.
Please take any Orgo class you can with Zurcher. Beaver is not a horrible teacher; he is just condescending at times and creates the most diabolical exams you can imagine. 3 midterms (70 or below was the median on all) and just took the 70-question final. Class is hard but doable.
Orgo is difficult, but Beaver's engaging lectures and clear expectations make the class manageable and even enjoyable at times. He is tough, but honest and tries to connect with students and help them succeed. He knows it's hard and pushes you to get help EARLY. Keep up with your rxn cards, practice DAILY, and consider rogue chem for the final!!!
Beaver wanted to see us succeed as shown by the 4 final EC points he provided. Be warned that he always tests the hardest parts of each concept and the "exceptions to the rule"
Great lecturer, but was VERY standoffish 1-on-1 sometimes. Make sure he knows your name. Exams were EVIL & if you didn't know 100% of content exams will get you. I never got > a 90 on any exam but ended with an A thanks to Rogue Chem and solving every textbook problem. He was fair with points back and cared for his students-you WILL learn orgo 2.
I took Orgo 1 with Zurcher and much preferred it to Beaver's Orgo 2. He has a tad bit of weirdness to him; gets very easily offended (became very passive aggressive the lecture after our second exam because students were less engaged and pissed at the exam difficulty). He wants you to learn, but its beaver method or death. Exams are hard .
Like other reviews are saying, Beaver is a good guy but his exams are awful. I did much better in orgo 1 with Zurcher and also prefer her teaching style. Beaver does want you to succeed and is nice in lecture. Can be oddly passive in office hours/1 on 1 interactions. Again though, his exams are SO hard so be warned
Literally the least accessible person on the planet. Ignores every email ever and didnt respond to any office hour requests. Went to one problem sesh and he made me feel stupid. Mid teaching style. Lectures weren't horrible, but him ignoring me made them horrible. Overall, came in with high expectations, left with a low GPA and anger in my veins.
I took CHEM262 with Dr. Beaver over the summer, and I can confidently say it was one of the best classes I have taken. Orgo is a dense subject, but with how lectures are given, the support outside of the classroom, and with enough practice problems, an A is possible. I plan to take intermediate organic chemistry with him! Do recommend.
Man, first stem class I took at unc as a transfer student and it makes me want to switch my major. Required iClicker in class, weekly quizzes online, no required practice but you're screwed if you don't do the recommended. Hard exams, I thought I could study but it just got worse as the semester went forward. Probably will retake w/ someone else.
Organic chemistry is just such a hard and content filled class. Dr. Beaver was a nice guy and lectures seemed to be helpful but his exams were next level hard. He is not the worst professor but if there Is an easier option, go with that one. Office hours were only held in 8 minute increments and sometimes answered questions a little backhanded.
Dr. Beaver definitely knows his chemistry and is good at teaching it. He just creates next level difficult exams that are hard to do well on unless you 100% understand everything in the class. My highest score on any exam was a 66% and I would study about a week in advance.... I did much better in Zurcher's 261 and found her exams to be more fair.
Orgo is just a hard class, and it takes a lot of time to understand and memorize it. Beaver was a good lecturer and 100% cared, but he made his exams SO HARD. You aren't screwed when you take him, you just need to know 110% of the content to do at least OKAY on the exams. It isn't like you can know 80% and make an 70 on the exam, you need 100%.
I enjoyed 262 with Dr. Beaver. His lectures make sure you will know the content. There's just a lot. Exams always have a few trippy questions, but fair overall. Did amazing on the first 3 and poorly on the final due to other stuff. An A is certainly possible if you spend 1-2 hours a day practicing. He gave some extra credit too so can't complain.
His lectures are great and he's incredibly knowledgeable about the material. He expects lot from students, but also cares about learning if you want to learn. I'd recommend if you truly want an understanding of organic chemistry, take it with him, but if you want the best letter grade you can get, take it with someone else.
Dr. Beaver is really nice and truly wants you to succeed. Explains content well during lecture and provides a lot of resources to succeed, but the exams are HARD. You need to do all of the practice material he offers and understand everything fully, but that's probably true regardless of the professor for organic chemistry.
Dr. Beaver is one of my favorite chemistry professors at UNC. He genuinely cares, will listen to student feedback, and is amazing at breaking down difficult concepts. His GPSS is super helpful and his class is very engaging. I highly recommend taking 262 with him.
Beaver is a great guy and probably knows the course content he's teaching better than anyone. Yes the midterms are very challenging but the final is much more fair in my opinion. If you got through orgo 1 with a decent grade, you know what to expect with Beaver. Study hard for the midterms and practice practice practice and you will succeed.
Class Info
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100%
Attendance Mandatory
94%
Textbook Required
0%
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