3.2
Quality3.7
Difficulty68%
Would Retake102
Reviews68%
Would Retake
102
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
16
4
31
3
25
2
18
1
12
What Students Say
“While this is a tough class, having this professor did not help”
CHEM122 - 2.0 rating“Uses clickers for participation”
CHEM122 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.01 avg changeRatings by Course
CHEM112
5.0
(1)CHEM122
3.3
(83)CHEM123
3.0
(3)CHEM132
2.9
(15)Difficulty by Course
CHEM132
4.1
CHEM122
3.7
CHEM112
3.0
CHEM123
1.7
Reviews (102)
He's very knowledgable on the subject and made it easier to understand when the class was confused. Uses clickers for participation.
Attendance by clickers. Lectures move slowly, which is good for understanding the material, but also an unfortunate lullaby. He knows his stuff, though, and is perfectly easy to understand.
Dr. Mandir is a very tough professor. His tests and quizzes are very hard. Expect brutal lectures that are not engaging and offer little time for questions. Practice problems are always easier than the actual tests. I would recommend going to get additional help multiple times a week to keep up with new topics and information.
He is very knowledgeable, but he just has a hard time engaging the class, his lecture slides are not that good and the tests are very difficult.
Like any other chem class, it's not easy but mandir is knowledgeable and caring. We is so helpful in office hours and understands that it is a hard class but he gives you the best help he can. Each chapter had and EOC and mastery which took a long time so don't wait until last minute. (pretty sure every chem class does this though)
He is a great teacher, and I have signed up for his chem 132 lecture. Easy to understand in class and is open to answering any questions during class. Tests are hard, but every class takes the same one, and there is a curve at the end of the year.
Mandir is probably the best Chem 122 professor UT offers. The class requires a lot of work. There is homework for every chapter that can take 1-4 hrs to do. Quiz per chapter, lowest 2 is dropped. There is 3 exams that are 15% each, the final replaces the lowest.He takes attendance by clicker questions, I signed up to take him again for Chem 132.
Easy to follow if you've taken chemistry previously. I would probably be lost if I hadn't taken AP Chem in high school. Do all extra credit.
While this is a tough class, having this professor did not help. While he is smart and understands Chemistry, I don't feel like it was ever on a level that students could understand. He's a good guy but needs to offer more ways for grades to be brought up. I studied, went to class, did all quizzes and homework well.
Doctor Mandir was a pretty good teacher. If you are taking gen chem he is for sure better than some of the other professors. He is one of those guys who is so knowledgeable that they have a hard time teaching it. Get ready for a lot of lecturing but that is the nature of the class. He was nice in all of my interactions.
Professor Mandir was very unapproachable when it came to questions. The entire class was made up of monotonous lectures that did not even make sense half the time. He would spend 30 minutes completing a simple topic and then rush through the actually difficult things. Do not recommend.
I had Dr. Mandir for chem 122 and chem 123 in the last two semesters. The class itself is demanding but he doesn't really help much with his lectures. He explains everything but glosses over some important stuff so I just forgot that some topics existed. He takes attendance by clicker questions but it doesn't count for much.
I have heard some people like this class but personally it was the worst class I have ever taken. I have never been so stressed out in my life. The lectures are hard to follow and homework makes no sense. The exams were hard too and if you are not good at math, good luck. I personally would rather be a business major than take this class again.
If you want to be in the medical field, transfer schools because you will not pass this class. I personally feel the whole department needs to self reflect and re-evaluate. There is a reason so many people are failing and its not just because chemistry is hard. Even with going to review sessions, Good-luck Charlie.
Dr.Mandir isn't great but isn't terrible either. I had him for 122 and decided to take him for 132. I do think he was better at 122, however he was decent for this class. The test are difficult but there's no way of getting around that. It is a very math heavy course and can get confusing cause he over explains things often.
One of the worst teachers I've ever had. Did not care if we understood his lectures, all he cared about was getting through the slides. I taught myself the entire course load. Tests were genuinely impossible. One time a quiz closed on my friend early because her computer dropped the wifi and he wouldn't let her retake the quiz, so she got a 12.
If you don't have a lot of prior chem knowledge this class will be very hard. I didn't find his lectures helpful. I relied on the SI sessions and I watched them after every chapter. The homework was difficult and time consuming, and the weekly quizzes were also hard and had a strict time limit. Overall I wouldn't recommend Mandir.
Joshua Mandir is easily one of the least approachable people I have ever encountered. His lectures are indescribably boring and monotone, often leaving people with more questions than answers. His exams are unnecessarily difficult, and he takes pride in this. After attending his office hours, I've never felt more demeaned and bothersome.
He goes through his lectures fast but if you are confused he is very accessible outside of class.
Chemistry in general is a difficult subject, but Dr. Mandir was very helpful in covering everything needed for the department exams. As long as you take notes in class and pay attention, you can do well. Dr. Mandir posts practice problems for the exams and answer keys which were very helpful, and was open to questions during class. Great professor!
Chemistry is a very hard subject, and you won't do well if you don't apply yourself. I 100% recommend going to SI sessions. I think I've done so well because I went to almost every one. He's a fine professor, & the lectures can be boring, but if you follow along and work out the examples with him, you'll do fine. Some people are afraid of effort.
The lectures were useless and extremely boring to me, the only things that helped were the hw and the SI sessions. He posts old exams that are super helpful to use when studying/practicing. Exams are not impossible as long as you know what you are doing. Practicing the concepts is extremely important for passing this class.
His lectures were pretty clear but sometimes it was easy to get lost while he worked on a practice problem. The homework was difficult and the due dates were easy to miss since they weren't on Canvas. He has a lot of office hours and I would highly recommend people to go and ask him questions there. The class is hard because it's chem.
Honestly, probably one of the better CHEM professors at UT. The class itself is just really difficult, but I don't think anything can really help that. Just use his office hours, the practice problems he gives, and do your own studying and you should be able to receive a decent grade. He DOESN't record lectures though and there are clicker points.
Professor Mandir is, when considering how much content he must teach and the limited time in which he is given to do so, a particularly good chemistry professor. General Chemistry I can be a wake-up call of sorts for students pursuing STEM majors. For lectures, I would very much recommend taking some time before class to copy down the notes!
He is very helpful and accessible outside of class, but if you are struggling you should attend SI sessions. He does a very good job of teaching and asking for questions. He is very organized with material and responds to emails quickly.
Mandir is a very knowledgeable and wants his students to succeed. He is very helpful during office hours and really breaks down topics during lecture. He does not very much from his lecture style, however.
Mandir is a decent prof and covers a ton of material. The class in general is tough, so utilize office hours and SI. Homework is easy/important to do. Exams are very tough and heavily weighted, but that's the department's fault. It's a shame he doesn't get to write his exams, students would do so much better.
People say Mandir sucks, but he is genuinely an amazing person and professor. He loves teaching and is super sweet and funny. If you don't understand in lecture, make a point to visit him in office hours. People fail this class because they don't put the work in. Yes it's hard, but just show up, ask questions, and do the work and you'll be fine
Mandir was a great professor and even tho they werent extremely engaging, he taught the necessary material and taught it well. tests werent hard at all if you pay attention, do the practice exam, and do the SI worksheets
Dr Mandir does an excellent job with the Chem 2 material. He makes sure to walk step by step through the problems and explains any questions well. His clicker questions are easy if you pay attention and he is willing to help with them. Very accessible outside of class and tests are very doable if you pay attention to his lectures. 10/10 Chem class!
This professor is simply not nice or good at what he does. He says due dates are clearly posted and they are very much not. He grades incredibly hard without clear instructions. He is not understanding what so ever. Do not take him if you can avoid it.
He moves to quick and he is very unapproachable. Doesn't teach very well and the exams are some of the hardest I've taken.
He is sassy but a good professor. One of the better professors in the chem department, he taught well and was efficient. Just pay attention in lecture.
He is a very nice teacher, but you must do a lot of the work on your own. He talks to the class like we have already learned the subject and are just using the class as a review. There are a lot of quizzes and homework, but that comes with the class itself.
Daddy Mandir was a fantastic chemistry teacher, I do not think I could have possibly learned more from him about Gen Chem.
Daddy Mandir was a fantastic chemistry teacher, his lectures were very clear and informative and he was always available to answer questions whenever needed.
Mandir is a good teacher. There are long weekly homework assignments but that is with all Chem 122 classes. Only knock I have is sometimes he realizes he is running low on time during the lectures and will rush through some topics in an effort to cover everything so it is easy to get lost. But definitely take Mandir he is a great teacher.
This class was primarily a lab so most of the instruction was done by a TA, but Dr. Mandir still had a lot of influence in the class. He sometimes came in during the lab times but was mostly unhelpful. The class is not super difficult, but it is a lot of writing and tedious work.
Mandir is a cheeky, knowledgeable professor, who cares about his students' success. Chemistry is difficult, so time and effort are required to pass. Attending lectures is paramount to success. 8/10.
Do not take his class unless you took some sort of AP or college level course in high school. If this is your introductory class to Chem, he will expect you to have past knowledge and will not go over many of the basics. The whole chemistry department is a mess, but save yourself and take someone else.
Mandir does a really good job at teaching Chemistry. He goes over topics fairly quick and you need to pay attention if you actually want learn. This class is not easy and you need to put in the time and effort to get a good grade. He provides you with everything you need to succeed.
This class is known to be hard, and there are many things that the professor cannot control, so work hard and study. The class isn't that hard if you put in the time. I never went to office hours, so I can't dictate his ability to help you out of class, but his lectures were sometimes hard to understand.
Lowkey is easy. Just attend lectures and try to understand. Grind the homework; they are the same but different scenarios. Si sessions are good. Gives a lot of extra credit; take advantage of them. He is a friendly grader, replacing the lowest exam with the final exam (if higher) and dropping the 2 lowest quizzes. Study and make good use of time.
he emailed me back really fast when i emailed him. he wasnt that bad. its not his fault that chem just sucked at knoxville. he was nice in general but he didnt fix my quizzes when there was a glitch on the website preventing me from taking it.
Dr. Mandir is a good professor considering how bad the chemistry department is. He gives quite a bit of extra credit which does make the difference. The homework he gives out through the online textbook is difficult; however, it really does help you to understand the material.
Chemistry at UTK is generally hard, but I did not learn well with Dr. Mandir. He speaks to the class like we already know the information, and he is just going through it as a review. If you put your time into studying and a bunch of your own work, you will pass the class.
Nice enough guy, hated his lectures. Barely explained new topics and his slides are practically impossible to comprehend. SI sessions were the only thing that helped at all.
Mandir was a good professor but an alright lecturer. He goes through lessons very quickly, but he posts all material well beforehand. He is a little hard to follow. Definitely will need to attend SI sessions and study outside the lecture. Not bad. 7/10 overall.
I had Mandir for Chem122 and it was not terrible. Worse professors to take. The lectures do go very quickly but he always posts the slides at the end although the notes are mostly scribbles in the margins. Chemistry is hard at this University anyway so you're going to have to put in effort no matter the professor. And he was kinda funny sometimes.
Mandir does a pretty good job at explaining the chem content, sometimes he does go pretty fast but he will always answer any questions you have. Very up front and honest guy, but since chemistry is such a hard course in general, I recommend going to the SI sessions as well.
Dr. Mandir is a solid professor. he gives good (but fast) lectures and extends lots of extra credit opportunities. I had him for chem 122 and 132 and would definitely recommend. He is also very approachable for office hours.
His lectures tend to be quick, so write some of the notes down before coming to class.
mandir is one of the better chem lecturers at utk. he goes through info quickly, but doesnt read off slides the whole time. he has examples in class and never makes you feel like you are failing. he grades clicker questions for accuracy and attendance, but if you go to class and actually practice (chem is hard in general), you will succeed.
He is great. The lectures can get a little long, but it isn't terrible. Gave loads of extra credit. Added over 3% to my final grade.
Mandir's lectures are fast-paced and he talks at you as if you already understand and know what he's talking about, even when it's brand new information. His office hours were intimidating and not helpful compared to other chem professors. His lecture style is unorganized and boring, which makes them hard to follow.
He is one of the best at UTK! Definitely fast lectures, so make sure you take the time outside of class to review the material. Gives a lot of extra credit opportunities.
Dr. Mandir is by far the worst professor I have ever had. His lectures are lackluster and he approaches the content with the precedent that it's "really quite simple" and meets questions with an apathy that makes them feel better unanswered. I believe that I shouldn't have to completely self-teach in order to be successful.
Dr. Mandir is an ok professor. I didn't find his lectures very helpful so I ended up teaching myself most of the material. I found my SI to explain lectures much better than he did. Exams are challenging but if you give yourself enough time to study, you'll do fine.
Although Mr. Mandir has not taught or learned organic chemistry in a long time, he did a very good job. I think him refreshing on organic chemistry helped him explain it to us. It was almost like he taught on a peer level. It was so great! He was very helpful and super funny.
I loved him! He is so genuine and kind and did a great job of teaching us in a way that we would understand. Make sure you actually go to lecture even though he posts the slides because he does a lot of examples that aren't on the slides. Also need to put in a lot of time outside of class to get a good grade but I loved him.
This man is not a professor. You teach yourself everything, he "lectures" like you already know it, his notes are no help at all (his handwriting is also chicken scratch). You would think if your exam class average is usually 40-50% then you would curve, but that's too simple, right?
Chem sucks but I would take Mandir again. Worst part about this class was his handwriting though. Exams were hard and sometimes included info that was barely discussed, but that's the department's fault. Slides are posted w lots of practice problems. If you put the work in, you can do well
Mandir is the best chem professor at UTK. His lectures are informative and he answers questions thoroughly. To succeed in his class I recommend reading the textbook on top of attending lecture. The book dives into some topics that appear on exams but aren't touched on much in class. He allows you to replace your lowest exam grade with the final.
His lectures are boring but he will teach you. He is kind of an a-hole though so if you miss an assignment he will not be willing to work with you at all.
I'm not great at chemistry by any metric, but Professor Mandir presents the course material in a great way, and he provides ample outside resources as well. The bulk of your grade comes from the exams, but if you have a good HW/quiz average, you can still pass the class with a decent grade if you do poorly on them (speaking from experience).
Lectures go extremely fast. Your grade in the class is completely reliant on the exams, so if you're bad at standardized tests and don't want to study, you're screwed. Go to the TA meetings, they're how you'll pass.
Dr. Mandir gets a bad rap but honestly he's a great professor. He has a dry sense of humor. To pass and do well in this course it is imperative to repetitively do all of the homework problems go to TA/SI study sessions. People that can't keep quiet/put the phone down during lecture will fail. Pay attention and give effort - and you will succeed.
The lectures are good and it is not difficult to pass the class or get an A.
Got a D last semester, took Dr. Mandir's class this semester instead, and got an A! Concepts are explained in easy-to-understand manners and PLENTY of example problems are gone over in class. Review sessions are incredible as well and absolutely worth going to. VERY exam heavy, but the final is mult. choice and can replace your lowest exam grade.
Since it was a lab, the class itself is taught by a TA. The class is easy as long as you keep up with your lab notebook which has clear grading outlines in the syllabus. Dr. Mandir does occasionally walk through and does a good job answering questions.
Dr. Mandir is by all means not a bad professor, but I wouldn't say he's top of the line either. He's helpful when need be, but comes off pretty rude in lecture. Don't think I would've passed the class without my supplemental instructor and TAs there for help- definitely utilize their sessions!
I liked Professor. Mandir but he moved through the lecture very quickly. There is also minimal review before exams (5-10 minutes q/a the class before), so you must use outside resources as needed. I do not think it is impossible to do well or get an A in his class if you complete work on time, attend class, and study. Do not try to cram.
Mandir overcomplicates the small stuff and brushes over the hard. You will get whiplash in this class because of how fast he moves through content; he will start new content on exam days and refuses to review. He answers questions about the class itself with flippant or attitudinal responses. Do not take unless you are prepared to teach yourself.
Mandir teaches like you already know the material and overcomplicates everything. I didn't understand a word he said and learned the material when I went to the SI sessions twice a week. Mandir is a decent professor but can come across as rude sometimes. It is possible to do good in the class if you put in the work.
Dr. Mandir's class was very difficult. I barely absorbed any information while in his class, and strictly depended on SI sessions, tutoring, and the organic chemistry tutor. His lectures are dense, and he goes through material extremely quickly. I recommend that you especially study a lot for the first exam because in my class most people got 50s.
Dr. Mandir teaches in a very straightforward and to the point manner. His class is lecture heavy. I appreciate his lecture style, and he is obviously knowledgeable beyond the scope of the course. However, he sometimes over complicates the material, and it seems as though he'd rather be teaching a higher level course elsewhere. Solid professor.
Taking chemistry here is in general super difficult, however Mandir is a professor that wants you to pass. Make sure to do the extra credit, it can really help your grade in the end. He is a funny guy and likes to make conversation with the first few rows of the lecture hall. This was my second try taking this class and improved significantly.
learned mostly from the textbook. Final exam replaces lowest exam grade.
learned mostly from textbook. final exam replaces lowest exam grade.
If you just do the homeworks, they teach you most of what you need to know for the tests.
Compared to other chem prof, I would definitely say Dr. Mandir is one of the best for gen chem. He gives lots of extra credit opportunities and is a pretty good lecturer. Only thing is if that you have to miss class or extend homework, you need a valid excuse to get extensions.
Chemistry is hard here, but Mandir is definitely one of the good ones. He wants you to pass and is always willing to help. Exams are important, but if you study you should be okay. He sometimes can move quickly through lecture though.
I just really did not appreciate the teaching style. I think that he can come off as aggressive to students as well and that is very hard for most students to watch. The lectures were just all over the place and it was really hard to learn anything in this class because of it.
I learned nothing from going to Dr. Mandir's lectures. He went through them so fast it was impossible to take notes. I had to study and learn the material on my own time, and even then, going through the slideshows and taking notes never got me above a 40% on the tests.
Chem 2 is hard in itself, and Dr. Mandir understands the material very well. His lectures are good and cover test material. However, sometimes he overexplains concepts and will say stuff you don't need to know for the exam (just be aware). He cares and is patience with questions.
He's a great professor! Chemistry is hard but he explains it well during lectures, does not use hard language. Clicker/participation is the attendance. As long as you put in the effort to learn you will do great. It's exam grade heavy so you have to do good on those.
He's not a great lecturer. Doesn't explain things fully, and you have to teach yourself a lot of the topics. Lectures are often hard to follow even if you've taken AP chem prior.
Mandir is a good teacher that enjoys when his students actually ask questions. He goes a little fast with small words, but he knows what he is talking about. This isn't on him, but the test were quite difficult compared to the practice tests.
Dr. Mandir was horrible at teaching anything. It was much more helpful to just go to the SI sessions to learn stuff. It's very annoying he took attendance otherwise I wouldve never went because of how useless of a teacher he was.
He's just mid. Chem itself is a difficult class for many people, classes are long and the lectures drag on but if you just take notes and study hard you'll be fine. He'll answer questions and reexplain things if needed but he moves through lectures quickly and will go on tangents. Wouldn't be my first choice to take again but hes not the worst.
Dr. Mandir is very knowledgable about Chemistry but not so much at simplifying it for students.
Dr. Mandir is very knowledgeable and knows what he is talking about, but I feel that he doesn't simplify subjects enough for students.
Mandir was not my fav, he goes to into depth into just gen chem if its hard for you to understand things in just one hour I don't recommend taking him because every class you are learning something new and he goes over a problem that takes like 20 mins then ask us if we got it.. no we dont
he knows what he's talking about but almost too much to the point where he can't imagine anyone else not getting it. He moves so quickly and his notes are incredibly messy its near impossible to go back and look at them just because its not even legible. I recommend going to the SI sessions from the beginning and watching organic chemistry tutor
I ALMOST TRANSFERRED. The exams are impossibly hard if you don't have experience with Chemistry, which I didn't. Believe me when I say that I put everything in to this class just to pass. The chem labs feel like a warzone. Nobody understood what they were doing. I'm sure he's a nice fella, but something has to change. Cry frequently, attend SI
Goes through the slides really fast. Knows what he is talking about, but can't simplify it enough for someone who doesn't understand. I learned more from going to the SI sessions than from his lectures.
Dr Mandir is a good professor. He goes fast during lectures but is always available during office hours where he can explain everything much more thoroughly. You have to try to do well but if you put in the time and effort you should be fine. I would recommend him and take him again if I could.
terrible. take someone else if you can. I went to office hours to ask questions and he yelled at me. terrible teacher, boring, and rude. doesn't help you at all.
Prof. Madir is pretty chill and explains chemistry very well. He always has time for questions. However, he also seems to take pleasure in the misfortune of young chemistry students during exams. Literally sadistically laughing lol. Respect it, but also not the best when I'm literally shaking, afraid. GO TO REVIEW SESSIONS!!
Not an incredible professor but you can still put in the work to get an A. I'm not sure if any of the chem professors are actually good. He just stands in front of the class and rushes through his lectures everyday. Not very approachable. Regardless, his PowerPoints are helpful and I was still able to do good in the course.
I had him for the lab section and he was only in the lab maybe twice the semester. His TA's do everything in the lab including grading your notebook, lab reports, and entering your grades, all he does is submit you final grade. My TA Rebecca Foley was good though, she responds to emails quickly, is a reasonable grader, and is very nice/approachable
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.01 avg changeRatings by Course
CHEM112
5.0
(1)CHEM122
3.3
(83)CHEM123
3.0
(3)CHEM132
2.9
(15)Difficulty by Course
CHEM132
4.1
CHEM122
3.7
CHEM112
3.0
CHEM123
1.7