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Knowledge and good lecturer. Tries to hard to force students to enjoy material, and does a lot of cheap tricks to make students go to class. Doesn't quite understand how a lib ed works. Treats students like they're all majors. Nice guy, otherwise.

Yea...he is a REALLY nice guy, and a great lecturer. The labs are a problem, though, and the grading. Labs are only worth 4 pts for hours of work, yet a 1 minute pop quiz is worth 3?? That makes no sense. But if he modified his grading and improved the labs a bit, it would be an awesome class!

I took this class to fill the bio requirement, and I'm extremely glad I did. Kipfmueller is a very energetic lecturer and he knows his stuff. Very conscious of students' outside classes and workloads. Grading is only an issue because he tries to make it work to the student's benefi.t Definitely introducing yourself to him; he's a great professor.

Really passionate and interesting lecturer. Actually made me like a science class for once. Labs were hard, but I had a great TA (Adam Berland), so had no trouble. Grading standards are kind of weird and arbitrary, but the prof is open to suggestions. Take this for your science requirement.

It was an interesting class, and actually very easy...if you had Kurt for labs. I've heard horror stories about the TAs - we had two sub and they were AWFUL - but if you get Kurt, he'll help you out and make the lab process much much easier and less time consuming. He was energetic, funny (ask him about the time he stole a tree) and engaging.

I took GEOG 1403 with Kurt in the spring of 2007. He was by far the best professor I had that semester. He's a very enjoyable guy; he's not boring at all, and he gets you interested and talking about Biogeography. I'd take him again. As far as tests in class, easy. Labs easy too. I never read the texts, all class notes, Google, and STUDY GUIDES! A+

He is by far one of the most interesting lecturers on campus. Even if Biogeography doesn't suit you, he can still make it an interesting class, and you want to listen. Only downside is that his tests are pretty hard, but just do the study guides and study sessions.

Made an otherwise boring class very interesting and went above/beyond to help students & make lectures fun. On the downside, his tests were a challenge, his TAs were mostly inept, and the labs were poorly written, made more difficult than needed, and some marked with errors. The TA I had was useless, and the labs were the worst part of this class.

He's pretty entertaining as a lecturer, though his handwriting is pretty illegible. The textbook is completely unnecessary, but the online readings are a must. His tests are hard, but if you study, it's possible to get a good grade. Pretty easy class, in my opinion, a good choice for the bio with lab requirement

Kurt is a great teacher. He is very interested in the subject material which is very important for teaching. He is easy to listen to and take notes from. Notes are the key to doing well in this course since there is no text book. He makes it easy to learn concepts. Lab involves lots of Excel. Very glad I took this course.

He is an entertaining and knowledgeable educator. To easily grasp an A or B in the class, you should definitely attend the lectures. The study guides are EXTREMELY helpful for tests...but only if you have the notes from class.

Kurt truly cared about how his students did in the class. The labs are really crappy and basically require a decent amount of excel knowledge, which is pretty annoying. Great way to get rid of the biology lab credit. I recommend this prof!

I liked his participation system using clickers.

Good class. I assume it would be way easier than a regular Biology class. I hardly ever attended a lecture and still did good. The labs are so long and boring though with incompetent TA's which is the worst part of the class. Otherwise great course and great professor.

I was not interested in the area that he teaches until I took one of his classes. He is an amazing teacher! He's hilarious, plays clips from Monty Python, and just tries to make the class fun.

He does a good job with the lectures, we watched blue planet three lectures this semester, which I enjoyed. The tests are difficult and the labs are boring. This class would be the easiest class if it was not for the tests being so difficult.

Great teacher. Funny, and makes the material fun. The labs are very easy, although somewhat tedious. Tests can be hard, but if you go to class you will do fine on them.

I highly recommend this class! Although it is usually a class of 500, Kurt presents the material in a straight-forward way and is interesting to listen to! He's a great professor - keeps class engaging and interesting! Tests are a little bit difficult, but slides are posted online for review!

I highly recommend this class! Although it is usually a class of 500, Kurt presents the material in a straight-forward way and is interesting to listen to! He's a great professor - keeps class engaging and interesting! Tests are a little bit difficult, but slides are posted online for review!

I would definitely recommend this professor!! The labs are boring, but easy--I had a great TA! It helps if you attend class--Kurt presents the material clearly even for someone not interested in science! The lectures were interesting and engaging and he tries to throw in some funny bits which helps!

Hate science? PERFECT CLASS. Prof extremely knowledegable, funny, and makes class actually INTERESTING! Hate reading? Perfect. As long as you attend lecture, you don't have to buy the textbook! Just pay attention in class and an A is possible.

Kurt kept our class of 450 students attentive in his lectures. He presented the material in an interesting way and used video clips to make the material memorable. Don't miss any classes and take good notes, paying attention to things he mentions more than once or says is important. I agree with others: tests hard, labs somewhat boring.

Really keeps lectures interesting, and I enjoy how he incorporates intriguing, relevant video clips into lecture. Labs are easy and almost tedious. Probably my favorite class in my first semester at the U. Definitely take this course for Biological Lab lib ed if you need, and environment.

Although the tests could've been easier, the labs are VERY simple and in general I really enjoyed Kurt and this class. Recommend.

I really do not like science, but Kurt made it extremely enjoyable. He is super excited about what he teaches which makes the class interesting. Definitely listen to his lectures because the tests are almost solely based on what he says in lecture and the tests are not easy if you don't study. But overall, really awesome class!

Great teacher...makes boring topics more interesting as this is a choice for a low-level science requirement.

awesome. def reccommend

Kurt is one of the best profs I've had! He engages you in the topic & makes science interesting. Take this if you need to take a bio class! 2 tips: get a good lab partner & always go to lecture! TAKE NOTES!!! It's actually a pretty easy class.

He's a good, fun teacher, but I really didn't enjoy the class at all, but then again I don't enjoy the subject at all. Tests are pretty hard with lots of essays, although he has been progressively having less and less essays on his tests. You can only lose 17 points the whole semester to get an A. He doesn't give any practice tests.

You will either enjoy this class or hate it with a burning passion. Here's how to figure out which will be you: Do you agree with every premise that will be presented in class? (i.e. things of questionable scientific validity) Then you'll love it. If you have a problem with ANYTHING, then brace yourself. You will be made into a laughingstock.

Lectures are mandatory because all tests are lecture based. I took this class to wipe out env and bio, but I felt that the grading system was ridiculous. You can lose about 24 pts (including extra credit) out of 4 -50 pt exams, 2-20 pt lab quizzes and 12-4pt labs. Lab quizzes are hard. Would not recommend.

Kurt was a great professor. Articulate and explains the topics well and with a passion. The class isn't easy but if you attend the lectures and study the lecture notes the tests aren't too bad. I would take him again based on his teaching style and helpfulness.

Great class to take instead of a basic biology! Kurt kept the lectures interesting and always threw in a couple of Planet Earth clips. Easy enough if you attend lectures. MUST attend labs. Put in work and it will be fine.

Best professor I have had. His lectures are very clear and easy to understand if you just listen. He is down to earth and understands the students. For example he cancelled the lecture the day after Halloween because he said we would all be "tired" in that class.

Fantastic professor. Very easy to pay attention to, altered tests to make them easier for the students, and kept people involved in lectures. Labs felt like worksheets. Highly recommend.

Kurt is a great professor with a lot of passion. He kept things entertaining throughout the semester. Lectures aren't mandatory but going is highly recommended. I thought the test were kind of hard but then again my strong point isn't science. I would for sure take one of his classes again to fulfill a requirement. Overall he's a great teacher!

Some what entertaining lecturer, but his power points are useless, 90 percent of slides are just pictures. Seems like a nice guy.

Kurt is a very straight-forward with his teaching style. He is very well prepared for each class and presents the material in a way that's easy to understand. His tests aren't the easiest but as long as you go to class and take notes, you'll do fine. He's also funny, which is a plus.

Very nice professor, lectures are interesting and engaging. However, labs are extremely boring and tedious.

Fantastic professor. He is entertaining and passionate about what he does which makes the class so much more enjoyable. While the tests can be a little tough, if you do the readings and go to lecture they are easy. In lecture he strongly emphasizes what will be on the test. Kurt is awesome. Take his class. You will love it.

I took the class under S/N just to satisfy my biology requirement, thinking I won't attend most of the classes anyway; I ended up attending most of his lectures because Kurt makes the lectures very interesting with amazing videos and he has a wealth of personal experience that you cannot imagine. Environmentalist, tree-hugger and a good instructor.

Kurt is a great lecturer! I took the class because I heard that it was an easy class to fill lib ed requirements, but afterwards I'm really fascinated by evolution and related topics. As a CSE student, these were the only lectures I looked forward to during the week. Looked over notes/slides for 30 minutes before each test-too easy. Go to lecture!

I was a UMN Geography major and this was by far my favorite class! Kurt is a great, down-to-earth professor who doesn't take himself too seriously like many at the U. He assigned a lot of reading but it was very interesting and actually tied into the assignments and lectures. I would take any class with this guy!

Great guy. Really cares about students.

He is extremely interesting and an excellent professor. Very down to earth and interested in what his students have to say. He goes by he rules and is very clear on his expectations

Awesome professor

Kurt is a very good lecturer. He sometimes talked to us as if we were younger (high schoolers) but he was overall a reasonable professor. Attending lectures was a must. Most of the test questions were pulled directly from lecture with a small amount of them coming from readings. The lab was pretty boring but it was a good course.

The class itself was very interesting and fun, but the minute the exams came out, you pretty much saw your own death. Kurt is a great professor and has a great personality and passion for his job, but his exams are on another level.

There was no textbook for the class, just a lab manual, & that was really helpful for a tactile/visual learner like myself. He goes off on tangents & he jumps around a lot in the lectures, but the TAs step in to keep him on track. Tests are everything, they're hard but Kurt and all the TAs tell you straight up that they're hard. Loved the class.

The lectures and material was pretty interesting, but the class itself was a bit more difficult than expected. Your grade mostly relied on how well you did on the tests (there were 3), and the tests were kind of hard, there was usually some obscure thing on them that we barely talked about in class. Too difficult, especially for a Lib Ed class.

Took Geog 1403 to cover the bio lab requirement and do not regret it one bit. You have to go to lecture because there is no text book and the slides are usually just pictures so they don't make sense if you're not in class. Overall super easy class just delves deeper into topics you should have learned in the 8th grade, labs are easy to get 100% on

He is one of the most inspirational professors I have known so far. He cares about not only materials but also student slife beyond the class. He has decent humor and good voice to keep students awake. His lectures are down-to-earth and pretty easily comprihensible. As long as you attend every class andlisten carefully, you got an A.

Kurt genuinely cares about his students AND the subject of the course. I left each lecture feeling satisfied- not overwhelmed by material, but enough to be tested on. Labs are a pain in the butt, but just be open for discussion w/ your TA. Would 10/10 recommend this course and prof bc his passion made it easy for me to be passionate abt this class.

He really cared about the stuff he was lecturing about, no study guides so class attendance is basically mandatory.

Great lecturer. Tells a lot of stories and adds bits of humor. Easy to talk to. Understands most people take the course for the lib ed requirement, so is reasonable with the amount of required readings and doesn't require a textbook for course. Presentations are picture heavy, so take good notes and you will do fine.

Kurt is really straightforward with what you are expected to do for the class. The class is fairly lecture heavy, but as long as you go to lecture and take notes you will be fine in the class. Typically spent less than a two hours a week doing work outside of class except for when there was a test.

Kurt was a great lecturer and professor. I had troubles with my TA and he completely understood and took my side. The exam are a little stressful but if you study well you'll do well.

Took the class as an elective, but surprisingly turned out to be one of my favorites. Great professor, not that hard of a class.

Kurt's amazing. I never thought I'd be interested in Biogeography, yet here I am. The first unit's the hardest; fairly smooth sailing thereafter. Only critiques are that his lectures get a bit ramble-y and he doesn't post notes online. Regardless, I'd recommend his class. You can tell he cares about the Earth and wants the best for his students.

Kurt is really great. He makes lecture fun and interesting. You have 3 tests the whole semester but they are HARD. He asks questions about concepts instead of just memorizing definitions. Really great class though. Easy to learn and follow just hard tests.

You have to take notes in class because his lecture slides are not very descriptive. Also towards the end of the class he started uploading an insane amount of readings but you were able to just skim them and be okay. The tests weren't bad if you prepared by looking over notes. He's a really nice guy and cares about the material

I took this class to fulfill a biological science requirement and fell in love with the subject! Kurt is a fantastic teacher who really cares about his students, and his lectures are interesting and easy to follow. Make sure you come to lecture though, otherwise you'll have a hard time on the exams. Great class, great prof!

LOVE kurt! He is so nice and cares so much about the material. Go to every lecture and take detailed notes - lectures are actually interesting. Tests are hard and definitely not easy A's. If you are just trying to fill a science requirement take this class pass/fail because its difficult to get an A.

Kurt is super cool. He's friendly and approachable, and enjoyable to listen to in lecture. He likes to throw in funny stuff to make lecture more enjoyable. Make sure to go to lecture to best prepare for exams. Show up and you'll pass pretty easily.

Kurt is FANTASTIC, even when I bombed the first test he was super encouraging. His lectures are awesome he really cares about the stuff and that makes you more invested. TAs grade tests and labs which sucks, they know nothing. If you can see the TAs do not take Lisa Santosa she grades super hard

Kurt is a g. The lectures are some of the most entertaining at the U. The labs are highly annoying and the TAs are nit picky. Tests are somewhat tough. You'll need to take more notes than you expect to get an A. Overall, it's an easy B and an attainable A if you work for it. Kurt, if you're reading this, the "active group in back" loved the class.

Amazing, he really cares about what he's teaching and has an amazing personality that makes you want to pay attention. Labs are pretty boring and exams are big multiple choice and short answer. If you're looking to get your bio lib ed requirement then this is the class with Kurt

Lectures are very important to attend, as Kurt's PowerPoint slides are mostly pictures and don't have a lot of information in and of themselves. He is very caring and super devoted to helping his students perform well. He assigns a significant number of readings, but you can get a good grade by just skimming them. Easy and enjoyable class overall.

Kurt was amazing! He is very passionate and makes lectures very interesting. Also the funniest professor I've had yet. Although he is a great guy, his tests are tricky. He definitely makes you work for your grade and has lots of readings. The labs are a bit annoying but nothing out of the ordinary. Be prepared to do lots of readings in his class.

Kurt is an incredible teacher. He knows his students might not share his same enthusiasm for the course content but he tries his hardest to convince them to love biography and/or geography. The class was generally not much work but the tests were somewhat difficult as he wanted to accurately asses our knowledge.

He is a super nice guy and is very good at talking to student. He always wants to make sure everyone understands the material. However, his tests were pretty hard. He says its more of a concept based test but IT IS NOT. A lot of questions are vocabulary specific and the test are all memorization.

Kurt's lecture is amazing, and you do not need to buy an expensive textbook if you decide to take his session. There is not much homework to do, but labs matters.

Took this class not realizing it was meant more for geography majors, but ended up becoming one of my favorite classes and now I am a geography major! Kurt is an amazing professor who is able to combine learning with real world applications. As long as you read, participate & take his assignments seriously you will do well

Kurt had great lectures and was very passionate about biogeography. He also genuinely cared for us as students, and he made most lectures pretty entertaining. The tests were graded too harshly and labs were convoluted and complicated (mostly because of the TAs, not Kurt). The class wasn't conducted very well but Kurt and his lectures were amazing.

Attending lecture, doing the assigned/suggested readings, and watching the videos is absolutely necessary for this class. It can be time consuming, but the content is very interesting and time flies by while studying. Kurt is very passionate about the content and presents it in a digestible manner. Labs can see intimidating, but they are not bad.

The tests are free-response and a little difficult, but if you go to all of the lectures and take notes you will have no problem passing the class. His lectures are super interesting and overall he is a great professor who genuinely cares about the material and his students.

I took this class Spring 2022 and found it to be fairly easy. I showed up for class and took notes, but I think people who did not go to lecture struggled. There was lots of extra credit and the labs could be nearly completed in the lab session so there was not much out-of-class work. Pretty good class to fulfill my LibEd biology requirement.

Would be nice to be graded on more than just exams (which make up 75% of the final grade) and labs (25% of the final grade), but he is a very engaging lecturer.

Kurt is a very entertaining lecturer and clearly passionate about his work. Very friendly and helpful during office hours. Only things graded are labs and tests. Must turn in all labs to pass the class. We've only done 1 test so far, but make sure to do his practice exams and thoroughly be able to answer his learning targets. Tests can be tricky.

Prof.Kipfmueller is an entertaining lecturer who genuinely cares about the subject matter and giving a message to his students. If you show up to class and do the labs, you will get a C minimum. Only 10 labs so you have 3 free weeks at the end of the sem. Labs can be done in class time & very easy. Tests can be hard so prepare!

such an amazing lecturer. the class was super hard but he made it interesting. it seemed like he actually cared about what he was teaching about.

Professor Kipfmueller's lectures are engaging and full of enthusiasm. The labs can be time-consuming, but manageable if you stay on top of them. Unstuck AI was a helpful study tool alongside the practice exams. Overall, an interesting class if you're willing to put in the work.

Recommend taking this class if you want to clear out your bio lib ed. It's lecture heavy - yes - but if you pay attention to the lectures and review the slides - posted online, nice - then you will be fine. The labs are nice and simple - good deadlines. Most of your grade is going to be quizzes weekly, labs, and exams. Passionate professor too!

Good class for biological science credit. Attendance is a part of your grade and if you don't show up to class you probably won't understand the notes he posts online. Labs are fairly easy and he has weekly quizzes that are a lot of your grade but are easy if you go to class. Tests are long-answer but not too hard if you go to class.

Kurt was a chiller. Only had 3 midterms that I studied the night before and got A's and B's. He was an interesting guy and fun to listen to. Def take him for the Bio/environment requirements.