2.5
Quality3.4
Difficulty64%
Would Retake85
Reviews64%
Would Retake
85
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
13
4
14
3
16
2
21
1
21
What Students Say
“His grading system is confusing and his lectures aren't the greatest”
PDBIO120 - 2.0 rating“Most of the grades were derived from weekly homeworks”
PDBIO120 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
24%
Textbook Required
67%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.09 avg changeRatings by Course
120
5.0
(1)BIO225
4.0
(1)BIOL360
4.0
(1)PDBIO445
4.0
(1)PDBIO444
4.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PDBIO220
5.0
BIO360
4.7
PDBIO360
4.4
BIOLOGY120
4.0
BIOL360
4.0
Reviews (85)
I loved this class. He has a very practical teaching style. It is very possible to get an A in this class. If you go to the TA review sessions once or twice a week and understand the problem sets, then you will be set. I got a very strong A in the class. But I did spend some time learning the material and getting extra help. Highly recommended
No Comments
I took this class twice.. the first time I absolutely hated it and had the grade to show it. I took it from Prof. Hansen the second time and enjoyed it a lot. Just do the problem sets and go to the TA's if you don't understand them. The TA's are extremely helpful. If you understand the problem sets you should do great in the class.
Marc Hansen is passionate about what he teaches and takes a very sensible approach to biology. What I most loved was how he focused on comprehensive understanding rather than regurgitation of facts. In class, instead of spoon feeding us material, he gave us questions often times that forced us as a class to think as a team and come up with answers.
No Comments
Fun, cool teacher. Will Talk about nacho libre in class.
Classes were good. All his assignments were worksheets, as well as the exams, which was frustrating sometimes because they were confusing. Also, the grading was annoying. Comprehension of the material, while encouraged in class, made little difference on assignments. Minus the grading, though, I would take another class from him.
lazy teacher!! TAs are dummies as well!!
Good fair class. Would recomend him. He is fair in grading and teaching style doesn't let people get too far behind.
Teaches material at a 100 class level, then gives quizes at a 400 class level. Not clear on explanations, gets frustrated when students defend their answers on quizes. Doesn't have passion for job or for passing knowledge onto students.
This class is evolving and it shows. The lab is straightforward and fun. The lecture is a different story. There is no textbook. He doesn't seem to have a very good knowledge of physiology (which is the bulk of the lecture material). I'm glad I had already taken the more advanced classes or the class would have been a nightmare.
I never used the book in the class, however you can take whatever you want into the final and I used my anat/phys book which was a huge help. I also thought a lap top was a huge advantage because I could just search for the answers in word, pretty easy class I thought since you could use all this stuff...
Course was fun and very educational but grading was a horror show. Worked hard, talked to TAs, put in 6-8 hours a week on assignments and 18 hours on the midterm and final. Had an A for 90% of the term, but during the last week it dropped to a C. Teaches at a 100 level, tests at a 400+ level. Grading system was extremely frustrating.
Awesome lectures. Different than any class I've taken. Focuses on discussion, comprehension, and applying to real life. Homeworkand tests can be time consuming and not always clear in what is expected. Seemed like a breeze class until final. Everything is group work except the final. Understand the material. Hansen is hilarious and really helpful.
This class is a joke. Do not take it from him. I learned way more in 100 than in this class. Class can be fun because of discussion. I had a 98% before the final and got a B+ in the class. Pretty much you ace all the work during the semester and than he gives you a grade that fits his agenda. Take is from someone else you'll learn something.
Dr. Hansen is probably my favorite professor I've ever had. It was so fun to go sit in class and listen to him. His grading system honestly is not good. You can answer questions, but lots of them have a lot of loose ends involved and it can kill you if you don't tie them all up.
The lectures were entertaining but the grading was inconsistant.Often two people who'd written the same answer for a test problem or problem set would get dramatically different grades.I had a 98% before the final and ended up with a B-even though I did the same on the Final as other tests.
he is not responsible for grades. don't take his class.
His lectures lull you into a false sense of security. You can do well on all of the homeworks and still bomb the final. His final was extremely difficult and his grading was inconsistent. I went to talk to him about it but he wouldn't change my grade. Take this class from someone else.
Honestly, I never saw Dr. Hansen. He just designed the lab for this course. I thought grading was fair, but I had to study to do well on the quizzes and final. It's all about the TA. If you have a good one, great. If not, go to open lab.
He doesn't really teach. He asks difficult questions that no one knows the answers to and waits until someone says something. If no one raises their hand, he gets upset and leaves the class for a while. I have learned nothing- again, he doesn't teach, he just asks questions hoping that the students will teach themselves, but it does not work.
This teacher should be avoided at all cost. He does not teach a thing. His final had nothing to do with the class. I had never heard anything on the final before. It was open book and took me 5 and a half hours on it. The only way to pass the final was to buy the advanced physiology book, but that was not the textbook for the class.
This was the worst class I've ever taken. Dr. Hansen doesn't teach you anything about cellular biology. The lectures are pretty much useless and I had to go to the TA weekly for help (outside of class). I never opened the book once and had to print off the assignments weekly. He's a horrible teacher and I wouldn't recommend him to anyone.
Don't take this class if you're going to med school. You learn nothing which will be on the MCAT. Plus, grading is horrible - everything (yes, even the final) is group work and graded subjectively. The course was not hard, but I got the lowest grade I've ever gotten - it killed my science GPA. The book is a waste of money - you'll never use it.
Dr. Hansen is a good professor. He really wants the students to learn, and he was very willing to give help if you tried to get it. Grading was a bit rough, but it was his first time teaching the course - he recognized the problem with all the group stuff and I'm sure he'll fix it next semester. I learned a lot in the course.
Gets upset easily when you ask questions. Never take class from him
I DON'T KNOW WHY HE'S STILL TEACHING. HE DOESN'T TEACH YOU ANYTHING. AVOID HIM!
Sure, it was a hard class. I don't think it was impossible by any means. It did take good teamwork though. I'm lucky I had a couple friends in there and we owned the assignments :)
I think he has anger management problems... his lectures aren't very well understood and nobody really understands him except for a select two or three. Most people don't even know what questions to ask besides "can you dumb this down so we can actually understand?" He is really smart, and is probably a good researcher, but he's not a good teacher.
This class was really hard. We never used the textbook and the tests were mostly based on powerpoints. I sit everytime but I never understood his lecture. I always asked TAs for Help. I love TAs more than Dr. Hansen. They taught me a lot.
Do you enjoy biology? Do you want to learn? Looking to get into medical school? Then Dr. Hansen is someone you should avoid at all cost. He's impossible to understand and his tests are even harder. He thinks he's an awesome professor because nobody does well, but, in reality he just has no clue how to facilitate the learning process.
This class will teach you how to learn from primary journal articles. I loved it. Dr. Hansen is approachable and will be more than willing to help clear things up. He treats you like a colleague and will not baby you. If you haven't done the work, he will know, and he will call you out on it. People who say he has issues aren't putting in the time.
The worse class I have ever had at byu... it kills your science GPA..... I recommend to take cell bio at uvu if u want to learn....
This class kinda felt like it was really two different classes. There is the cell bio part, and the reading papers part. The cell bio part is objective learning with difficult, but manageable tests. the papers part was very subjective with terrible TAs who graded things wrong that the professor told you directly were right.
I second the comments of the last rater. Tests and lecture weren't that bad - its a similar style to other science classes. Reading the papers and doing the problem sets was boring but may be of some value. The subjective grading of them by the TAs felt unfair. He is a good lecturer and sounds like Seth Rogen.
Probably the hardest class that I have taken yet in college. The grading of the problem sets is very subjective which I didn't like. Though it a difficult class it is one of the most worthwhile classes, on a learning level, that you can take at BYU. You learn a lot it just takes personal initiative to do well, like learning how to ride a bike!
1st time writing, inspired by this bad class. Dr. Hansen tries to teach by questioning what students think rather than being the authority on the subject. Slides and book do not help-Same style. Papers teach very little about the class and the TA's grade ridiculously hard. 2 Tests that are extremely specific. Do yourself a favor and take Evans.
Difficult class. He expects a lot of you, but he's willing to help out if you're struggling. His tests are really hard, unintentionally, but he curves them up if the average is too low. Problem Sets are useless, and barely contribute to your grade. Exams are tricky!!
Professor Hansen is the one of the worst professors I've had at BYU so far. I would say he teaches fairly clearly and to-the-point, but his tests are extremely poorly written (like he's trying to trick you not assess learning). The paper readings did help me learn to read research papers but the grading was so inconsistent as to be almost comical
Really teaches you to think rather than to memorize. Apparently there are those commenting who don't know how to think, only memorize, so they don't like him. But he cares about his students and wants them to be successful in the science world, beyond memorizing stuff.
Worst class I have had a BYU so far. Learning to read papers is beneficial but I think he does it in the wrong way. Just hope you get a good group, your grade depends on it. He told me first hand that you have to sort of know how each TA thinks and grades in order to do well on the problem sets (we had 9 TAs). Had a 4.0 w/ o chem until his class.
The second-most frustrating class that I've had at BYU. Dr. Hansen explains concepts well, but his attempt to 'make you think not memorize' in his class is woefully disorganized and ineffective. Every T.A. teaches something different - it's like the great apostasy. Read JSH: 10 if you want to have an idea of this class. By far my worst grade ever.
This class is already really ridiculous this semester - the T.A.s all tel you different stuff.
This class is so hard!!! This teaching style makes no sense
The class was okay. Most of the grades were derived from weekly homeworks. The midterm was a music video.. Sometimes I felt like I wasn't learning anything. He doesn't hardly use slides, but instead sticks to chalk figures on the board.
Dr. Hansen is a nice guy. But I didn't learn much at all. Almost everything in this class I learned in AP Biology. Dr. Hansen also taught a few things incorrectly, and I went up after class and respectfully corrected him, but he discounted it. Nice guy, would pick to take this class again from him.
The homework isn't hard but it will not prepare for the final at all! Take good notes and ask the TAs for help!
This guys is awesome. I don't understand how people feel that he isn't a good teacher. He is extremely smart and he is also willing to help one on one. Take classes from him.
Homework: Weekly problem set in a group, find smart, hardworking people. Midterm: A music video? If you're not creative oh well. Final exam: Very advanced versions of the questions in the weekly problem sets. Fun teacher, great guy, but sometimes leaves you wondering how much you actually learned in a semester. There are random in class quizzes
Easiest professor for the class. That being said, it's easy to get away with learning nothing (wondering how it'll hurt me in future bio courses) but still getting an A. Midterm is a joke video and aside from weekly "group problem sets", entire grade is based on an open-book, open-internet ten-question "exam". Not difficult, vaguely interesting.
His "grading" is the Least Clear of ANY teaching I've EVER had. Without getting a single grade below 85% He managed to give me a B-. He needs some major help and to pay a little more attention to teaching rather than trying to cure cancer or whatever he thinks he's doing.
I didn't really learn much of anything in this class. It didn't seem very structured and it didn't seem like Dr. Hansen cared too much about the class -- he just shows up and lectures (drawing diagrams on the board) He is a funny and nice guy and seems approachable. The class is mostly done in a group so find a good one at the start of the semester
This class was very poorly structured. Throughout the entire semester I had a solid A according to the online gradebook, only to receive an email AFTER finals week saying gradebook calculations weren't our true grade and grades could only be seen on his computer. Little transparency with grades, very difficult to see how you're doing in the class.
This class was not structured and Dr. Hansen didn't care about our class. We had group work the whole year until the final when he gave us problems that were super long and very difficult. Also, I had an A the whole semester and then he emailed us after grades were posted and explained that he curved the grades down to make a b average. SO LAME
Dr. Hansen is great! He's really mindful of the fact that we're college kids and want to have a life too. He doesn't make you buy the book because you don't use it. Your midterm is a music video. Your final is a take home test that you can use your notes on. You do problem sets every week. That's your entire grade: midterm, final, problem set
I had an A all semester than our 5 question final knocked me down to a c. It would have only been a B but he decided to say that the question answers could only be a certain length or you would recieve half credit. This was decided after he had already taken up our final exam. Dr. Hansen is a smart man, you wont have a ton of work.
Dr Hansen treats his students like they don't know anything. His sole purpose in the class seems to be proving that he is right and we are wrong. The TAs were what were getting me through the class, but halfway through the semester, he told us we could no longer meet with the TAs. The homework has nothing to do with the lectures.
I thought he was one of the most engaging lecturers here at BYU. The class was a little confusing, group projects were imperfect at best, but I loved the lectures. The slides and notes at the bottom are really helpful.
Absolutely terrible professor. He is not ashamed of the fact that he does not care at all about this class. Midterm is a joke (music video graded by the number of "likes" you get from your peers, had more to do with video editing know-how than anything about biology). Final exam was take home but he decided post-exam to change how he would grade.
He is just awful. Acts really intelligent, yet can't even figure out his own grading scheme. Worst professor at BYU.
He is not very helpful in making things clear. He comes up with analogies that make no sense. He also assigns homework and tests that don't have much to do with the lectures in class. I would not take this class ever again.
Professor Hansen is not only very knowledgeable, but also quite capable of explaining things in "layman's terms." He's funny and nice, and wants everyone to understand and enjoy biology, so he starts with the basics of everything and is always happy to help or to clarify. But DO NOT GET THE TEXTBOOK. It's only use, in his words, is "as a doorstop."
Doesn't use textbook, more specific and clear than textbook. Draws everything on whiteboard. You work in groups throughout the whole course, homework load is light. TA's were very helpful. No in testing center tests.
I would strongly advise you NOT to take this class. Take it from someone else. Doctor Hansen is a good guy and has good intentions, but the majority of the class had a very difficult time understanding his teaching method. Lectures were all over the place and created all sorts of confusion. Go to the TA's for help with weekly problem sets.
Do not take a class from this professor! If you struggle learning any aspect of science, this class will be difficult because of the teaching style. Lectures drag out from students asking a lot of questions and being confused. There are four story problems as homework every week to do in a group, and the tests are only a couple questions.
Nice guy. Class structure not always super clear, most of grade weekly group work and unit exams. Provides some extra credit opportunity, would recommend using TAs regularly for the homework, it can be hard to know what he wants specifically and requires some independent learning. Don't buy the textbook. Not bad, but there are probably better.
Dr. Hansen is awesome. All lectures are given on a whiteboard. Doesn't use a textbook. 4 weekly group questions as homework. The 3 midterms consist of 3 free response questions. One from the weekly homework, another he tells you the topic, and the last one is a "surprise". Optional final. Gave an extra credit problem to replace a midterm question.
First day in, he let us know we don't need a textbook or anything; he provided any info we would need. We picked groups that we would work together on our weekly 4 question homework set. There were like 4 3-questioned midterms that he gives detail on in advance. Optional final. I would rec. if you know biology or don't really care. Light workload.
Lots of group work, light homework load, short tests so know your stuff
If you already know a lot of biology then Dr. Hansen's class is an easy A, but if you actually need to learn, take it from someone else. His grading system is confusing and his lectures aren't the greatest. He's funny and he tries to be original but it's just really hard to do well in the class. I've never worked so hard for such a low grade.
Overall this class was extremely easy. His lectures are enjoyable hes funny and he does everything on the whiteboard which makes it easy to take notes. There was no text book so good notes were essential. There is no homework, so your grade is 100% tests. 3 midterms and a final 5 questions each. Its not a rigorous bio class at all
The content of the class is not hard, its about a high school level. But he makes the tests really weird. He finds the most random ways to test very simple concepts. Pretty much the only grade you get in the class is from the tests and all of the test questions are bizarre and ambiguous, so even if you understand the concept it is possible to fail.
I would not recommend Dr. Hansen to anyone that doesn't already have a solid background of biology knowledge. The tests are only over material specifically covered in class, but I read the chapters in the book to clear some things up because the lectures aren't super great. If you're not a science person you might want to take it from another prof
Class was pretty straightforward, a step below AP Bio in high school. Didn't even get a textbook and was fine (anything you really need is online). Tests are all free response but they aren't graded very tough. Homework optional, review sessions every week (also optional). Engaging teacher, really fun to learn from
One of the most useful classes in upper-level biology that I have ever had. We were not tested on the material in formal tests, but rather by the use of a semester-long project. We focus primarily on understanding how to use techniques in cell biology, how to read papers, and how to design our own experiments. If preparing for the MCAT, take him.
Dr. Hansen is nice enough, but I personally didn't care for his teaching style. He is not super organized and during lecture he just draws diagrams on the board. I did NOT have hardly any biology background and so I ended up having to learn everything from YouTube because his explanations didn't work for me.
PDBio was great! its a pretty basic bio course, so the concepts aren't too hard. But your grade is mainly your test scores since there's basically no homework. And you have to go to class since there aren't slides and no textbook. But it's a good class and Hansen does care about his students
Good teacher and he knows his stuff, not a hard class and a fair grader. Wish there was more organization.
So much experience (has his own startup(s)) that some things went over my head. Lectures aren't really structured in any order, rather focused on our needs. First half of class is lecture, second half is group presentations. Take his feedback each week to steer your research all for the final pitch. You get out what you put in. A if deserved.
Straight up, he's an okay professor. He lectures and has the TA's teach some classes and go over problem sets. You could get a solid A through B if you do the work but he doesn't give a ton of feedback so it can be tough sometimes. Tests were take home so that was good.
Take home tests take off all stress. Teaches class as if everyone already knows the material from AP (I already knew it all, so it was easy. But I could see the confusion in those who haven't)."labs" are pointless discussions unrelated to exams (skippable) but nevertheless interesting. He knows a lot & is super chill, never any HW. Basic concepts.
This class wasn't a big stress which was super nice. No textbook either, which made lectures the only source of getting notes. TAs were nice and accessible but were no help preparing us for take home tests. 95 is an A so that made it a little tricky once test grades were in. Also tip if you take this class get the audio book for The Gene on Audible
Dr. Hansen was a great biology teacher. He focused on understanding concepts rather than memorizing terms. We worked in the same groups the entire class and the classwork was relatively easy. He tried to answer every question and was very flexible. Tests were also set up to be fairly easy. Overall a great intro class with great discussions.
Dr. Hansen's teaching style is different in that there is no textbook, all the content is given through his lectures. He's extremely knowledgeable (Cancer Research PhD from Stanford) and is enjoyable to learn from. There is not a lot of homework (difficult weekly problem sets done in groups), and the exams are take home and open note. Great class.
Dr. Hansen teaches the Bio-Innovations series which is a useful for anyone with a scientific background not wanting to pursue research, med school, or other professional degrees. You'll learn a lot and if you make progress every week, things will go smoothly. Get lazy, and he will not be afraid to let you have it in front of everyone.
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
24%
Textbook Required
67%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.09 avg changeRatings by Course
120
5.0
(1)BIO225
4.0
(1)BIOL360
4.0
(1)PDBIO445
4.0
(1)PDBIO444
4.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PDBIO220
5.0
BIO360
4.7
PDBIO360
4.4
BIOLOGY120
4.0
BIOL360
4.0