2.4
Quality4.2
Difficulty35%
Would Retake233
Reviews35%
Would Retake
233
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
23
4
43
3
28
2
59
1
80
What Students Say
“If you're pre-med, Cybulski is the best professor to take, because his assignment & exam questions are most like the MCAT, also, his students do the best on the standardized final at the end of the semester”
CHM141 - 2.0 rating“he will make you hate chemistry”
CHEM142 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
76%
Textbook Required
22%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.62 avg changeRatings by Course
CHM142H
4.1
(9)CHMC
4.0
(1)CHM142M
3.8
(5)CHM471
3.5
(2)CHM141CHM142
3.3
(7)Difficulty by Course
142
5.0
144
5.0
CHM351
5.0
CHM145
5.0
CHM141142
5.0
Reviews (233)
He likes telling students they're going to fail the class, and if he didn't curve it as much as he does, we all would. Though he's not entirely bad. He gave me four points to bump my grade up because I was honest about not knowing a problem.
His full name, being S. Mark Cybulski, the S in this case stands for satan. His never ending discussion of statistics cause me to feel like a lab rat. If you value your life or your chemistry grade, avoid him at all costs.
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You have to have faith in this guy. Don't let your bad grades on the test freak you out, he'll make it all work out in the end if you learn the stuff. He really just wants you to learn, and your grades won't be as bad as you think.
This guy is extremely boring. He is very mathematical oriented. He tries to intimidate you by making you think the class is extremely tough but it is moderate difficulty in the end. He is a nice guy with a mean front.
He's a difficult teacher and the exams are difficult but the cut-offs are low so in the end, you end up doing better than you expected.
Hard beyond all belief.
Very "rigorous" professor as he likes to put it, but probably one of the better ones out there. He focuses more on integrating your knowledge than on just strict memorization. keep up with the homework and definitely do the practice problems he gives you and make sure you understand why they work the way they do. He helps out a lot with cut offs
I really liked this guy. He was difficult, but very willing to help in office hours and was fair in grading. You can't memorize and do well in this class...but you'll remember it better.
This guy demands that you know the material. You cannot just skim through the material and get a good grade. Because of this, our class got the highest average grade on the department-wide final. His exams can be tough but he curves the grades upward very nicely at the end.
Is very nice and very helpful. If you practice all of the problems you can do well on the tests, but the exam grades don't even really matter because he weighs the final ALOT (but the final is easier than his exams). He really cares about his students understanding chemistry and while I had him for lec. he would stay after and help with my labs.
In order to understand the practice problems, you have to go to lecture. However, he seems very unsure of himself and I feel like he set the class up to fail. He says he's "happy" when the class average on an exam was 65.8%
Very nice but has a hard time getting his point across. Make sure to do the practice problems and study hard. low test scores but he forces you to learn a lot and teach yourself.
This man is impossible. Not only are his lectures incomprehensible, but you cannot understand his accent. The class was always correcting him. Unless you learned what he is teaching in high school do not take him, I went to his office and he was NO HELP. Also his practice exams are different than his tests, it makes studying impossible! AVOID HIM!!
Not going to lie, he is a hard teacher but as long as you keep up with the work, do the reading and problems on your own time and go to class you'll do fine. He's kind of funny but not intentionally.
Hard class, pretty good teacher. Its mostly up to the student. Lots of help sessions and other meetings are available, you just have to get yourself to them.
"chemistry is not a spectator sport" go to all the lectures and attend all help sessions, don't get behind cause it will really mess you, he's not that bad of a teacher, sit in the front otherwise its easy to get distracted in the class, you'll get a good grade on the final no doubt.
I liked Dr. Cybulski a lot. His main concern is that all his students know the material and in the end his students always do great on the final. Killer tests but he makes your grade work out in the end. Extremely helpful. Makes himself available for you. I definitely recommend him.
Yes, this is chemistry so the course is difficult but do not take this professor. I had to drop the course because I was struggling so much. He is very hard to understand at times (his accent plus confusing sentences makes it impossible). His handwriting is also HORRIBLE. If you can take anyone else please do.
He is one of the smartest teachers I have ever had. His tests are extremely hard even with hours of studying but what this does is immensely over prepare you for the ACS exam for the final. I got an average of a 60 on the four exams and I studied about 5 or 6 hours for each of them. He is a great teacher though, humorous at times. Experience him.
He's probably the most difficult teacher for the 141 level. His tests are impossible but those that had him were the best prepared for the final, which is ACS standardized. He also curves his tests a ton. i have an average of 60% on his tests and still got a B. He genuinely cares about his students and wants them to succeed.
Dr. Cybulski genuinely cares that his students do well. He is always asking what he can do to help the students succeed in his class. His tests are challenging, but there is a generous curve. Don't be frustrated in his class and take his class if you have the chance.
He is a very nice person and tries really hard to help his students succeed, but wasn't born to be a teacher, he was born to be a chemist. Like him as a person but withdrew from the class. His office hours are not very helpful because he just stands in front of everyone and lectures instead of meeting one on one and answering specific questions.
He's a really nice guy and tries to help you if you go to him but he is just not good at explaining things which is frustrating considering he teaches Chem. I had to teach myself everything from the book. You can do well in the class but be prepared to put a lot of work in on your own.
Hard to understand. Not very helpful. Refuses to give points to people who don't "deserve" them. Averages on tests were in the 50%'s.
First off don't base Dr. Cybulski on these negative reviews. He is very helpful and his presentations cover all the material you need to know. Personally I had AP Chem in highschool and this was one of my easiest classes. The test averages are usually low, but thats not his fault. A lot of people just don't do their work and thats why they fail.
absolutely the WORST teacher I have ever had. He doesn't care about you or what you get in the class, if you do bad he gets angry if you try to ask for help. He thinks there's no way he could be at fault even though the highest grade was a B. The averages for tests are 40's with no curve! DO NOT TAKE ...AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE
I hear if you are in a honors course he's a good teacher to take, but I was not. When I asked for help he would say "You truly understand chemistry when you can teach yourself." Well I couldn't. He said he would curve our grades but ended up not doing it. He is a nice guy, and is funny in class. If you know your chemistry take him, if not stay away
Hands down the worst teacher at Miami. Tests are nearly impossible (more scores in the single digits than above 90), refuses to help during office hours, and has a way of talking down to students as if they are a waste of time. If you are looking to cry every night, feel free to take his class.
Good luck! You'll need it. If you're thinking "maybe I'll be pre med but I'm not quite sure yet" this is NOT the class or professor for you. If you're one of those people who can look at a textbook and understand it instantly, feel free to take him. If not, don't. You will regret it. Curve balls are abundant and clarity is nonexistent.
I feel that this class was very educational in that Dr. Cybulski posed an incredible challenge. I warn you if you do not know your chem and you tend to memorize rather than actually learn the material, you will struggle Each exam is comprehensive on both this year's and last year's (CHM 141H's) material. He curves ridiculously though based on final
Most miserable experience I have ever had. Cybulski is a pathetic balding old man who seeks pleasure in torturing his students with impossible exams and unfair grading policies. I had to get plastic surgery for my butt when he was done with me. Be sure to get a lithium prescription for depression before ever entering the classroom. STAY AWAY
just not a good teacher, he doesn't understand what its like to not know everything about chemistry.
Attendance is highly recommended because he does not post things online. The grade is mostly based on 4 exams and a final. The Smartwork homework is the best way to study for the exams, which are difficult. He curves the semester grades nicely to help make up for a challenging class.
This is the hardest class I've taken in four years of chemistry at Miami. The subject itself isn't too difficult, but Cybulski makes it hard. Very little time is given for exams. He is the only professor I've seen give partial credit so he can take points off of a right answer rather than give points for a wrong one. Avoid.
A good teacher, definitely knows his stuff. Class is extremely hard-there is homework after every lecture, and questions are very difficult. Exams are hard, but there's a curve (84 = A) I spend hours a week doing homework for a B in this class, while most spend an hour before the non-honors exam to get an A. Only take if you are very good at chem
Dr. Cybulski is probably the most difficult professor I've had. His accent makes it hard to pay attention and his exams are cumulative over the whole year and really difficult. He makes up for it with a ridiculous curve though and most of the class got an A or a B.
run away. not a good teacher. i'm good at chemistry and i am currently failing his class. keep away from him at all costs.
Really kind and warmhearted.
The man is a really smart guy, but does not know how to teach to those who do not understand chemistry. Great teacher for those who pick it up fast, but if you are one that struggles in chem or does in his class, it only gets harder because he doesnt teach towards you or offer much help. Hard class. advice:get a tutor early.
Literally took info from online websites for his powerpoints and read them in class. He needs a new occupation.
Easy class overall. People who hate it really just have no idea what they are doing. He is very helpful right before every exam and pretty much tells you what will be on the test. If you try youll be fine
Overall a fantastic professor. Extremely intelligent so at times he can oversimplify some but this class really isn't as hard as it is made out to be. I love that he actually gives homework because that's the only way to learn Chemistry. If one does the quizzes, reads the textbook, and reviews, he will make it through alive :)
STAY AWAY! Professor Cybulski defintely knows his stuff and if you consider Chemistry to be your #1 subject then you will probably do fine but for all average students or students that have not taken AP Chemistry AVOID Cybulski like the plague. His homework assignments are 25% helpful and 75% ridiculous hard problems which will not be on the tests
Dr. Cybulski teaches difficult material, but he is genuinely trying to prepare his students for higher level professions that require large amounts of chemistry. In my section, the kids who come to class and do the assigned homework after every class are very successful. The kids who don't come to class do poorly. These other reviews are unfair.
I had Dr. Cybulski for two semesters and I chose him because of the immense amount of practice problems he writes himself. Make sure you keep up and because if you get behind you will start losing motivation and do poorly in his class but overall he's helpful if you search him out and as long as you keep up and don't skip classes, you'll do fine
He does not explain things at all and he will not help you if you go to him for help at all. Try not to take this professor for chemistry
Really bad teacher. Always talks about how he is a better prof. than any other chem. prof. His class is harder than the Honors class. Makes you memorize all equations. Avoid at all costs.
people tend to not like him because they simply waste their time reading the textbook which he hates and never uses. If you just do all of his practice problems and online homework it isn't hard to do well in his class. also he curves a good amount at the end
Do not take Cybulski for this class if you have not taken AP Chem! Make sure you are confident in your math skills or else it will be a continuous struggle for you to keep up. He is a nice man, extremely smart too but his method of explaining the material is VERY fast paced. The homework is optional but if you fall behind good luck catching up.
Cybulski is a fantastic professor. His class is overall very difficult though. Very fast paced but the man knows what he's talking about. He's available for extra help and gives lots of practice problems in the book (optional) for you to work on. Quite the difficult class though.
GOD HELP YOU. This is the hardest professor i have EVER countered. This class is extremely fast paced and he expects you to memorize everything. When i was in this class we were ahead every other class by 3 chapters. DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR YOU WILL REGRET IT
The worst teacher I have ever had. I came out of a wonderful high school and so far been very prepared for college. Until his class. AVOID at all cost.
Cybulski's lectures are both informative and engaging. He cares about his students. The only reason people do not like him is because they suck at being students. period.
Ive never hated my life more than in this class. Mark teaches in a room way too large for his ability to keep interest. He is so dry and it is almost impossible to follow him sometimes. WOuld not recommend. Save your self.
friendly but not grade teach
Cybulski is by far the most difficult of the Gen. Chem professors- ok if you have a good background in chemistry, but you'll have to self-study EVERYTHING otherwise. He has a rather condescending tone that makes you feel as though you aren't good enough.
Very intelligent but unable to effectively teach students at an introductory level. He was very bad at explaining concepts so the students could understand. Not impossible to do well but a lot of extra work is required. Went at a much faster pace than other professors but seemed to be much better prepared for the standardized final.
Not a good teacher at all. Only take if you have a good background with chemistry. Did not curve any of the exam grades. Not much outside work to bring grades up. Would not recommend.
I fail to understand why people dislike Cybulski so much - CHM 141 is not very difficult. He prepares you very well for each exam and the final. People just complain because they are stupid and other professors who teach the course go slower. I learned a lot in the class and did great on the standardized final. If people do poorly, they don't study
"The Bull" forces students to earn the grades (he will not hand out As), and if you hate chemistry, the class will be a challenge. Sometimes he struggles to explain complicated topics in a way that students understand. Despite this he does want students to succeed and if you enjoy chemistry or need it for your major, he will prepare you well.
Cybulski is a very kind teacher when you ask him questions after class or talk to him in person and is always willing to help, but I do NOT recommend taking his honors section OR his regular section unless you have taken AP Chem in high school. Online homework and exams are challenging and you must work incredibly hard for a good grade.
I cried almost every day in this class. Do not take unless you have Chem background. He only confused me more when I asked for help. I am a good student and could do nothing to understand this material the way he taught me. Even my tutor with heavy chemistry experience could not answer his practice problems. Avoid at all costs.
I don't like his way of teaching at all. His lecture examples were the only helpful piece of his lectures and he took it very personally would students would not show up. His class was a challenge; his practice quizzes were hard but they did prepare you for his exams. He did not seem open to helping and he was incredibly confusing.
Class was very challenging and he wasn't willing to help students study or with homework. His lecture examples were helpful, but the exams and homework wet much harder than other sections. Try to avoid him if you can.
Cybulski's exams can be challenging. Homework quizzes are optional and helpful. He organized a few help sessions to prepare for the final ACS exam. I ended up doing better on the ACS exam than his other 3 exams so, IMO he prepared his students well for the final. Overall, he's a good instructor albeit dry at times. I just wish he'd curve his exams.
He uses the book powerpoint but while going through tells you the book is wrong so it's hard to go back and study from the book or slides when he says material is wrong. If you get a homework problem wrong you never find out how to correctly do it because he doesn't go over anything. Exams are hard and you a pressed for time.
Spends the first 10 minutes of class telling the students how stupid they are. Read the textbook, do the example problems, and the problems at the end of the chapter (in syllabus). Prepares you for standardized exam because you want to cry the entire semester. Absolutely horrible!
If you're pre-med, Cybulski is the best professor to take, because his assignment & exam questions are most like the MCAT, also, his students do the best on the standardized final at the end of the semester. But, it's hard to pay attention because his lectures are dry rambling & if you ask for help he will ridicule you, you have to teach yourself
Do not take cybulski for your first college chemistry course. He clearly does not want to be teaching students, and spends more time on concepts and ideas that aren't relevant to anything. Very unhelpful lectures and a lot of homework.
Berates students regularly, ridicules people who ask questions in class. Tests are notoriously difficult and often emphasize material which was not emphasized in class. Seems to think his role as a professor is to scare students out of science-related majors. Gloats when classes do poorly on his exams.
His teaching was sometimes unclear, but the book helped you understand what you had learned in class. He gave a lot of hw, which was annoying, but did help you stay on top of it and he would help you if needed, but it was kinda difficult to get the advice out of him. Tests are the easiest out of all of the other chem teachers.
Cybulski is your standard Chem prof. He makes it clear what's gonna be on the exam. For the most part, it's on you to learn that material. He coaxes you through the material through quizzes. Stay on your game and you'll be fine. Having a background with AP Chem will get you an A.
Lectures are long and rambling. Tests are hard but not impossible. Definitely one of the hardest gen chem professors. Read the book and stay awake during lecture and actually work problems from the book and you just might make it.
Structures his class so that the homework can be hard, tests are easier, and the final is a breeze if you do alright in the class. Nice curve at the end of the course. Not an easy prof, but he will teach you the material very well. Take if you're science major. Extremely helpful in office hours. Negatives: lectures can be boring, takes attendance.
The best thing Cybulski is for is teaching you how to get lost in Chem. He can barely speak english and all I know is he should most likely switch to teaching education majors how to confuse kids.
Cybulski's teaching style : he spends the majority of the lecture going over problems without giving a proper explanation of the concepts behind them. For students who can easily grasp scientific concepts with minimum explanation but have difficulty understanding problems take him but if you're the opposite don't take his class.
This man is literally the worst teacher that I have ever had. I am convinced that he actually knows nothing about chemistry. Loves to stand students up for meetings and simply reads slides with no explanation. Doesn't teach at all. Honestly terrible in every way. Avoid him at all costs.
He's a horrible professor who is never on topic, but if you go to his office hours he can help
Worst professor I have had so far at this University. He expects most of his students to be interested in going into medicine (which I am not) and would talk about this for a good amount of time during a lot of his lectures. He is hard to understand and does not cover all the material you need to know. Would NEVER take again.
I took Cybulski for the first semester of my freshman year. Don't expect to learn anything in the actual class. The only way I passed was from teaching myself through the textbook. The textbook questions are a lifesaver, especially since he never actually explained how to do anything. Not sure how he's still a professor here.
Very unclear and does not like to be definitive. Does not give much help on homework assignments and makes them much harder than class examples.
Standard chem teacher in my opinion. Its a weedout type class so expect the averages on tests to be low Cs or Ds. There is a weight at the end that is fairly helpful. Would say that he is a bit harder than most but not unbearably as if you work then you will be rewarded. Test questions are similar to homework. Just go to class and study well.
At first he seems like a hard senile old fart, but he really prepares you well. Lots of homework, exams are hard, as well as the homework. He gives you everything you need and makes you build off of it, which makes him a successful teacher. You may not like him much, but you'd be lying if you said you didn't learn anything or didn't respect him.
His exams are way tougher than the final is. Seems like a good thing because you do better than expected, but all it really does is dig you into a hole. Also can be confusing, and holds you to the last possible second.
His accent is hard to understand. He doesn't come to class early or stay late really. His class is very hard and the other CHM 141 professors are much better.
Don't get too scared by any rating system or other student. Most of time, it's people that do not perform well that have the more prominent voice. Dr. Cybulski was a good professor. He's hardcore in lecture and you need to pay attention, that evening start the problems and review, then go to his office hours. You need to be an active learner.
Difficult class material and homeworks prepared me well for exams. Exams were not easy, but I was always well prepared for the exams because of the thorough homework. Teaches information other professors don't, which is good. Final exam scores much better as a result.
Homework difficult and frequent, but matches exams well. Exams more difficult than CHM 141. Very helpful and thorough in his preparation of homeworks to prepare you for exams. Enjoys talking to students in person to help answer questions. His interest in chemistry is inspiring.
He is extremely hard, yet knows everything. He has a small accent, yet after the first week it doesn't bother you. If your not willing to study, you will die. If you study the homework and power point lectures, you can do very well.
Very condescending to students who ask questions, don't fully understand the material the first time he says it, or do less than spectacular on exams. Spends most of his lectures trash talking the textbook over its "sloppiness." Do NOT take over summer unless you absolutely have to.
Reads off a powerpoint for every lecture and skips over basic details for everything. Worst professor I have ever had. Exams are hard and expects too much of students.
Cybulski's lectures are hard to follow unless you've already read the material, so I typically got lost in lecture. However, he expects you to know a lot and gives out a fair amount of homework to help you prepare. I recommend him if you have to take a lot of chem and need to learn your stuff. If you're just getting credit for one semester, avoid.
I would not take the class if you just need a credit. The class is all lectures and they are really boring and hard to follow. If you really need to learn chemistry he is not the best professor to have.
He is a really tough grader overall, homeworks are useful but the lectures are boring and not helpful at all.
Dr. Cybulski was my first college chem prof. After failing the first quiz I went to him for advice and he told me to read before coming to lecture. I did so and started to understand the topics. The homework was really hard and time consuming which prepared those who worked hard in class for the hard midterms and ACS national GenChem exam.
Dr Cybulski tries. If you prepare questions when you ask for help and do regular readings and work hard on the homework you'll do pretty well. His exams are a lot harder than the other chemistry professors but its worth it for the acs final. gl
Horrible Teacher all in all
Dr Cybulski gives you the materials to succeed but you have to work and study for your grade. He puts in the effort of giving homework questions and practice tests to help you succeed on the tests and final. Put in the work and you will be rewarded. He knows what he's talking about and isn't lazy about teaching.
Cybulski is very intelligent and knowledgable about chemistry, but he lacks as a teacher. He is very negative and complains about the book and the class very often. He does give some extra credit for attendance and doing all of the homework. If you do all of the homework and practice exams you will be pretty well prepared for exams.
Cybulski over prepares you for the final exam, so yeah his sections gets a better grade on the ACS exam, but the homework and tests are way harder than other classes and brig your grade down. Homework is really hard and confusing. He goes really fast over everything at lectures and tells you to read the textbook. Take him only if you LOVE chem.
Had to withdraw in the middle of the semester with a 40%. Posted PowerPoints online, and read from the PowerPoints posted for an hour of lecture. Did not teach a single problem, but expected us to know how to do the homework. Tests are 25 questions, so if you miss a few, youre doomed.
If you have him for chem, switch out. Seriously. He's the worst. He rambles about people like Bohr in lecture and then the only thing on his tests are difficult math problems. He is a really smart guy, which makes it worse because when he does sample problems it takes him exactly 1 second and no one can follow his work. Mark: terrible.
Cybulski isn't awful, but you have to teach yourself. If you don't understand the lectures, don't ask questions if you don't want to get a condescending passive aggressive response because if you don't have a PhD in chemistry he automatically thinks you're stupid.
He is kinda hard to understand due to his accent, but also is an extremely boring lecture, which is also often very unclear. He is a very smart man, he just can't teach. I ended up having to retake the class because his was so difficult but got a high A the second time around. Definitely avoid unless you're good at teaching yourself.
This class is a trap. It's the latest intro chm class available, so more people take it. You have to take chm 141 in the morning to avoid this old man's wrath. The man knows chemistry but is unable to teach you what he knows. He reads off the slides verbatim and then gives unnecessarily hard tests compared to all other chm sections. Do. Not. Take.
He gives a lot of homework but it relates well to the exams. The exams are tough, but if you study hard you can get a good grade. Just be ready to work hard and read the book if you can!
If you're not in the department/pre-med, try to avoid. If you are, this prof is a must to understand the material. You'll have to work hard, but it'll be worth it. (Plus you'll pass the ACS final, which all sections take. His students get the best scores) When he says some won't pass, he's being honest, not rude. 33% dropped for a reason.
The crowd complaining about Cybulski comprises of the braindead apes that are used to having all of the information posted on slides. I came in with the expectation that he would just read off of the powerpoints - it was nothing like that. This man is more articulate and eloquent than most of us college students. Take him if you have at least 100IQ
Cybulski gets a lot of undue hate from students. Sometimes his lectures feel like they go completely over your head, but that's to be expected in Chemistry. His homeworks are extremely difficult, but they make the exam feel easy. If you want good exam grades but at the cost of harder homeworks, take Cybulski.
he will make you hate chemistry
Take this man if you want to learn chemistry. He's incredible at prepping his students.
He reads off of slides he downloads from online. He started my semester by saying to a group of 300 that most of us won't make it through his class. We had a quiz on the 2nd day and he said if we got below x score to drop immediately. He's a super smart guy, but being smart doesn't translate to being a good professor, sadly.
If you like being confused in class and seeing material for the first time on the homework, he's your guy. If you can take ANYONE else save yourself and do it, but if you do take his class make sure you know the homework problems inside and out, they WILL show up on the exams (hope you don't want an equation sheet because you aren't getting one.)
Not clear with information. Rants more about your ACT scores, and how bad the book is. Lectures are heavy, not taught any chemistry in class, but graded homework has difficult chemistry problems. Be ready to teach yourself!
According to Cybulski everything is "elementary" and you have to use "brute force" in chemistry. You have to teach yourself and lectures are useless but you still have to go them. Lecture examples are the only things on the test. And lastly if there are that many errors in the book, write the thing yourself Cybulski.
This guy is very inconsiderate when it comes to his students. He refuses to work with you when things come up in your life besides chemistry. The most disrespectful and inconsiderate professor I have ever met. You leave his lectures having to reteach yourself the material and the work load appalling. It's /general/ chemistry, Cybulski.
Gives incredible amount of homework and expects students to understand the material after a very rushed lecture. I've read and taught myself the concepts on my own, but it has not aided me much. Additionally, we had to pay for an online homework site, ALEKS, that he flat out told us after our first exam that it doesn't help us, yet still assigns it
This class is extremely hard. On days of exams instead of learning new material we could come to class for an optional review which still wasnt helpful. We also had to pay for our homework on ALEKS. ALEKS was extremely unhelpful when preparing for the exams, the content on the exams didnt match the homework problems on ALEKS.
I have never disliked a class more than this one. He only uses powerpoint with lecture in class and it is extremely hard to get everything. There is nearly nightly homework and you will spend a majority of your free time studying. The final grade is way over 50% exam based. Homework counts for almost nothing in the long run.
Ok I finished this at the top of my class so here's the secret. You will learn nothing from this man in class, you learn everything on your own but his quizzes help. GO TO THE SI's! Your entire grade is going to be the exams which are easier than his homework. Stewart is a lot easier but does not prepare you for what college/national final is like.
Cybulski fails to understand that some students cannot succeed solely on lecture material and homework without explanations. Exams are 25 questions and your grade relies almost entirely on them. He gives a lot of homework & most of it requires additional research. Unless you're a chem major or premed, do yourself a favor and find another professor.
The rumors about Cybulski are true if you don't want to put in the work. I started off agreeing to what was said but when I actually started going to his office hours on Wednesday which is actually just sessions of optional quizzes they are LIFESAVER and he is actually super nice and will answer all your questions. CANVAS QUIZZES ARE THE EXAMS!
Cybulksi expects you to put in the work outside of class to understand the material. His Canvas quizzes and lecture examples prepare you very well for his tests and the ACS at the end of the semester. Don't be intimidated by all of the horrible reviews- if you put in the work, his homework is doable and his tests are passable.
Good if you live and breath Chemistry
I had a love/hate relationship with Mark. Honestly, I wouldn't have shown up to his class if it weren't for him taking attendance. Go to office hours/SI sessions religiously and study his quizzes! His class was unenjoyable to start, but once you get the hang of his teaching you'll be okay. Make a good effort to show you care, and he will help you.
Definitely don't recommend Cybulski unless you want to increase your stress level by 100. He made chemistry way harder than it needs to be and treated his 100 level class as if it were a 300-400 level one. His exams were also not comparable to those of other professors teaching the same material.
Between his various canvas quizzes and ALEKS assignments, Cybulski runs a tough course, but ultimately one in which you learn a lot more than the other sections. While he complains about the book all day, and rambles on about past statistics, his class does well in preparing you for your future in chemistry. He's a bit harsh, but it's for the best.
If you end up taking Cybulski, your grade is essentially determined by the exams so there is no room for error. His exams are essentially his quizzes with a few tricks. I recommend reviewing all the quizzes before each exam and attending the SI exam review session. The lecture is tough but his class makes the national exam easy.
Multiple problems: -never publishes your total grade. You never get to see your total letter grade other than the midterm and final reports, youd have to calculate it yourself. Never published exam scores. You can only see them in person. -CONSTANTLY mentions how textbook is incorrect -only reads off slideshow and ignores student questions
Cybulski's assignments and exams were challenging, but if you do the homework as well as understand it, the class should not be too difficult. I was definitely more prepared for the ACS exam with his optional homeworks, however.
If you want a solid foundation in general chemistry, I highly recommend you take his course. If you just need to get this class out of the way, your best bet is with someone else. Dr. Cybulski asks a lot of his students, but you learn a lot if you are willing to put in the work.
Dr. Cybulski is by far the hardest CHM 141 prof. His lectures aren't helpful, but that being said, if you study his power points and practice his exams/canvas quizzes religiously, you can do well in his class. Hard work will be rewarded. He covers everything from general chemistry giving you a good, but condescending, background in the subject.
Worst professor I have EVER taken, currently am in the class and failing, and not too much I can do about it because he doesn't like to answer student questions. One student in my class raised her hand and asked him to go slower. His response? "I don't know what slow is". Complains about the book, makes you want to drop out, just HORRIBLE.
Do not take this class if you are not a chemistry or premed major. I am currently failing this course because he does not teach during lecture and I am forced to learn EVERYTHING myself. The SI sessions are helpful but even after attending all of them and completing the practice exam I still failed the exam. Not worth the time and tears.
Absolutely awful teacher. Both lectures and homework were useless and most students do the homework or labs during the class rather than paying attention. If you take this class do NOT buy the textbook. On the first day of class, he basically said if you bought it you're a sucker and gave us a free one online which we also didn't use.
Cybulski tries to do his job too well. He provides all the information you will ever need, makes sure that the information is accurate and up-to-date, and grinds you through the homework where you can fail and learn with fewer consequences than on the tests. However, too much information means he doesn't actually teach it; he just dumps it quickly.
Awful. Worst class Ive been in. He dumps so much information on us. I have a tutor for this class who is a senior chem major who took Cybulski and got an A, and even he has no idea how to answer some of the practice exam questions, saying these are questions Id find in my class. Unnecessary detail for gen chem. Hate it.
This was the worst class I have ever taken. The lectures were so irrelevant and did not make any sense. I would spend multiple hours a day on canvas quizzes just to receive low scores. The exams were nothing like the practice and there was little to no solutions to quizzes so those were useless. If you have a chance to take someone else DO IT!
Please stay so far away from any of his courses. Worst professor I have and will ever have. He is not helpful or supportive whatsoever. Even if you go to office hours it is very difficult to get help on the course work. Tests are ridiculously hard just because he can. Does not care about how you preform only cares about zooming through the material
Pretty much your whole grade is tests, 10% is homework 90% is tests. He tries to trick you on pretty much very homework/test question, which results in a ridiculously low class average and makes you question everything youre learning. Also no curve that Im aware of.
He makes Gen Chem 50,000 times harder than it should be. I did freshman forgiveness on CHM141 and got a 94% when I retook it with another teacher. Gen Chem is hard but he made it much more difficult than it should have been. I went to his office and he told me "I wasn't trying hard enough". DO NOT take unless you can teach yourself/know everything.
He is the worst professor. I cried every day because of how ridiculously unrealistic his expections were. I had a tutor and attended every SI session and still barely passed. He's unhelpful and I had to teach myself everything. There were questions the Tutors and the SI leaders couldn't figure out and he expected us (gen chem students) to know them
I took chm141 with cybulski in the fall, then willingly took chm142 with him in the spring. Why? He does a good job of preparing you. While the constant quizzes can really add up and it takes a LOT of focus and studying, they really did help me do well on exams. WORST lectures Ive ever had though. Take him only if youre good at teaching yourself.
The hardest CHM 142 class out there, half of the material he teaches in this course is meant for higher level chemistry classes. He adds this because he runs through what should have been taught over the semester in 5 weeks. You will often hear him saying This is normally saved for a 200/300 level course, but you should know it
read through ppt, research . do his practice exams (and aleks for hw points), and ask any questions u dont know on chegg or so. once u get ur score from the exam back, amend your notes or cards based on the mistakes u made. Exam revision: study cards,review quizzes. Be4 exam: SI exam review to do past exam,check understanding.
Giving him a 2 is generous. He takes forever to get back to emails and when he does, he has a condescending and belittling tone, as if its your fault that you're struggling. FYI, its usually not your fault, but rather, his. He does a poor job explaining things and I honestly don't think he cares if his students do well in his course at all.
I would not recommend this teacher to anyone who isn't a chemistry master. I wrote multiple emails for assistance and he replied in a completely condescending way on more than one occasion. Also, he told the class that he purposely left important material out of our lectures "to teach us a lesson on why short lectures aren't helpful." Good luck.
Hello, Im a 3rd year medical student and took Dr. C for both gen chem courses not too long ago. Im writing to encourage you all because I too had a very tough time in his classes and remember the daunting statements he would make towards students. Stay focused and dont let ONE grade/man change your dreams and whole career trajectory.
Worst professor at Miami. Has been here 30 years even after all these reviews. Not helpful and not accessible. Chem department hides which professor teaches which section because students try to actively avoid him.
Passive aggressive and honestly just not a good teacher in general
I ended up switching out of the class. There were 3 quizzes graded for accuracy within the first week of classes. One of which covered all of the information for the semester to come. He said he wanted to see what kind of background everyone had, then graded it for credit. Excuse me? I don't know all the information for this semester yet.
I took CHM142 over winter break thinking it would be easier and have less material. He crammed every single thing from a normal semester, left absolutely nothing out. Had a lot of very hard small quizzes on a daily basis. The only positive thing I have to say is he did reach out when my quiz scores drastically dropped and allowed me an extension.
Professor Cybulski does not seem to care much about his students. Almost everything in this lab is done strictly through the TAs. I tried to email him several times about my assignments and he never got back to me.
Dr. Cybulski isn't the best teacher ever, but I learned with him. If you pay attention to the lectures, attend the SI sessions (a lifesaver), and do the work, you can learn. He can be condescending and tends to talk a lot in lecture, but everything is done for your benefit. I've heard mixed reviews about individual interactions. You can do this!
Prof. Cybulski clearly cares a lot about his students, as he allows for exam retakes and holds at least 2 review sessions before each exam. If you actually make an effort in the class you will succeed. Although his homework assignments are fairly difficult, they prepare you very well for his exams. Overall, a good experience.
Professor Cybulski provides a challenging class that makes you work for every point to get a good grade. He provides more than enough opportunities and information to improve your grade and is very helpful in and out of the classroom. Exams are a high percentage of your grade but he over prepares you by providing a good amount of practice.
He is very lecture and at times monotone. However, I reached out to him at the beginning of the semester and he helped me improve a lot. Answered all my emails no matter the hour. Is an absolute cinnamon role if really want to improve in his class. Don't be afraid to reach out if your struggling and show him you will put in work to improve.
I took him during covid and had to do all online classes. This may have made it more difficult, but he was still hard to deal with. In his lectures he always rambled and did not quite make sense. Did not show how to actually work out most of the problems and made it difficult to learn. If you like teaching yourself then he is for you.
He doesn't elaborate very much on lecture slides, he just reads right off of them (and they're usually unclear to begin with). He is willing to help when you have trouble, but his responses to questions are very backwards. You're probably not gonna know you have him until a few days before the first day of class so... good luck I guess
You will have to teach yourself everything. Flies through lectures and slides so that half the time you can't even write it all down. Then when you go back through those slides the information isn't even complete. Be prepared to use every resource available.
Homework load is insane
Cybulski is a nice professor, but he takes his job very seriously and doesn't want students to fail. At first the homework was overwhelming, especially having never taken a chemistry class. He drops the lowest exam grade which is great. Don't be intimidated, the first few chapters are terrible but it gets easier. Definitely a weed-out stem class.
Just don't take Chem with him, he's terrible. In a class of 100 kids, he refused to use the microphone so nobody could hear him. He shows examples of problems by clicking through slides, but then the homework was completely different. I spent 4 hours every night doing the homework and I still had no clue what I was doing.
Dr. Cybulski isn't a great professor but he is a kind person. He gave exam retakes for every single exam we took last year and even offered us tons of help sessions. If you don't utilize the help he gives you will not do well in this class. Just listen, take notes, and do your best and you'll be fine!
Dr. Cybulski is not great at teaching the material, but as long as you use the resources available to you the class is not impossible. I attended the SI sessions, Help sessions, and studied using our previous homework assignments and have done well on all of the exams. He also drops your lowest exam, homework, and quiz grade.
Lectures are very note heavy, and this course involves a lot of independent learning. If you have any questions, Cybulski answers his emails very quickly and will give you helpful feedback. He makes his practice exams and homework hard so the exam will be easy. Also, there is a good amount of homework that can bring your grade up from bad exams.
Dr. Cybulski gets a bad wrap here at Miami, and I can sometimes understand why. He just reads the lecture slides and is very monotone. There is also ALOT of homework. However, he also offers tons of resources (SI sessions, help sessions, help/tips on homework). Your worst exam and some assignments are also dropped. He is great at communication!!!
Very lecture heavy and very hard to listen to, monotone. Funny at times but that is rare. He would check attendance but it wasn't for points, but it is very difficult to understand if you do skip unless you're really good at teaching yourself. Provides a lot of helpful resources, SI is good, but overall not my favorite. Difficult.
If you want to teach yourself chemistry with no help from a professor, this class is for you. Lectures are monotone and not very helpful. Reading the textbook without doing anything else was more helpful than Dr. Cybulski was. Wouldn't recommend.
Dr. cybulski spends all of class just reading the slides and making the confusing material more confusing. He never responded to any of my emails. If you ask for help he tells you it is in the textbook. You dont have to go to class but if you dont you will have to teach yourself everything which was easier than trying to understand his teaching.
At the start of the semester I felt lost, and reading the RMP reviews on here didnt make me feel better. I soon learned that he makes what you need to know for exams VERY clear. Just understand the canvas homework assignments and thats all you need. Hes a nice guy and I feel bad for judging him in the beginning. I didnt have to work SUPER hard!
Not a fun class. The dude isn't very clear about what you need to know and thinks that things he personally views as important are thus important to the class and will sometimes teach on these but they won't even be on the exam. The SI was good but there's only so much they can do. Be prepared to study because if not, you are toast.
H e is soooooooooooo NICE, Exam is extremely easy, why you guys give gim this point! Shameless!
Cares about his students! If you dont understand a concept ask him and go to office hours along with si.
Made lecture materials available outside of class and was usually pretty flexible about extensions for assignment. He did conduct attendance checks even though he posts the slides after class. Gives a lot of homework but it's honestly necessary to learn the material and the workload was extremely manageable.
This is an example that tenure isnt allows a great thing. He doesnt teach the material and his PowerPoints are so boring and weird. You will have to teach yourself but its hard material. The only good thing is the grading scale makes it easier to get a better grade than you should if your having a harder time. I really dislike chem after this.
LOTS of homework and no makeup for any reason. Taught myself most of the material - boring lectures but takes attendance. At the end of the semester he drops a bunch of homework assignments to match the point total in his syllabus, so if you aren't a great exam taker then your final grade will drop at the end. Nice person, boring subject. Use SI's.
Very tough tests that don't have much to do with the content. Very hard to study for, definitely use outside sources to help yourself understand the material
Cybulski is VERY lecture heavy with extremely mundane powerpoints that will have you zoning out within the first 15 minutes of class. Doesn't do a very good job in explaining concepts for you to understand. Two assignments due before every class, one of which he admits makes you do stuff he will teach "next lecture". UTILIZE OUTSIDE RESOURCES!!!
Lectures are very dull and could be skipped as long as you look over the slides on canvas. Learn to use the resources he provides and outside resources as well. The homework is often harder than the tests, so it's helpful to look over the solutions and answer keys.
He doesn't teach, he just reads off the slides. He does curve and drop grade but DO NOT take chemistry with him. Drop the call and just take it with someone else. He doesn't give you straight answers and he is not helpful at all during office hours.
DO NOT TAKE HIM. He is clearly tenured and does not care about class. Just flys through the power points and does not care about actually teaching. Does not do example problems that could actually help. Just assumes we know everything he is talking about. Miami has got to get rid of this guy.
It is important to attend lectures and apply yourself. If you do what you need to do, it will be possible to succeed.
Chemistry is difficult, but Professor Cybulski provides his students with all of the material necessary to succeed in his class. It takes a lot of work to do well, but Professor Cybulski is always willing to give students extra help. Attending lectures isn't mandatory, but it's helpful for homework and exams.
He is the best Miami has to offer. Be prepared to give it all you got though, you need to put in the work in order to succeed. He isn't a bad professor, he gives all the necessary tools for you to succeed. You might have to watch YouTube tutorials outside class sometimes but that goes for all classes.
Nice guy, terrible lecturer. Always answers emails quickly. Tests are hard, but always based on the homework. If you use outside resources and study a lot, you will be successful.
He laughed at my joke.
People will try to tell you that he isn't that bad of a teacher, and that CHM 141 is just hard. Do not listen to them. Dr. Clune's CHM 141 is like high school in comparison. This is a good class for people who like to teach themselves out of the textbook and do other work during lecture.
Super nice guy, horrible teacher. He answers question quickly, but unless you want to teach yourself do not take this class. SI sessions help a lot though because he basically gives the tutors his exams before hand.
His lectures are borderline incomprehensible if you weren't present for the lecture, and even then they still make no sense. Whatever unit he says we are learning doesn't stack up with the book, he goes way more in-depth so if you miss a lecture you're basically screwed. Thick polish accent, so if you struggle understanding accents, skip him.
If you don't have to take CHM 141 with professor Cybulski DON'T! This was the worst class I've ever taken and made me cry daily. Cybulski does not care about student success and makes you feel stupid for not having a PHD in Chemistry as a freshman. He is not helpful when you reach out for any assistance. Exams are impossible to pass and matter.
There is a final exam at the end of this class, even though it's a lab. The final tanked my grade, however, he was accessible outside of class and was very supportive while I had covid during the first lab. The fact the lab is run by TAs is a bit frustrating but I'm not entirely surprised. Be prepared to write.
A lot of homework after every lecture and his lectures are impossible to understand. I don't think I ever knew what was going on in class. Tests are hard but he tries to prepare you with practice tests.
His lectures are very confusing. Very condescending when you ask him questions. Hours worth of homework due before every lecture that makes up very little of your grade. Exams are hard, but he tries to prepare us with practice exams VERY similar to the exam.
Be prepared for him to single you out in class, in front of everyone, even before an exam (it happened to me... called me out 3 times and wrote my name on the board in front of 250 kids). Good luck if you get him. run pls. he also does not help when you email him.
worst professor i've ever had
Do not take over the summer unless you are able to commit 24/7 to studying for this one class for 6 weeks. You will be teaching yourself because his PowerPoints are very confusing. We would have one quiz due every morning. When you go to office hours it seemed like you were inconveniencing him. He did let us retake a exam which did help.
Easy A. Just go to class when you need to and watch tutorials when you don't feel waking up. The homeworks will destroy your grades at first but the exams are pretty much like the homeworks. Use the homeworks to study and you'll learn, went from a C to an A after first exam. Best of luck
You know that one teacher that makes you love a subject? He's like the opposite of that
Handwriting + choice of words just messes with my head
This professor is beyond irritating. You are forced to show up to lectures where he rambles on about his slides constantly interrupting himself to tell you that whats being taught is not exactly always true but 'You'll learn that later'. The material isn't impossible but just be prepared to teach it to yourself. Listening to him is exhausting.
Dr. Cybulski is the most condescending and rude professors I have ever had. A word of advice for first year students taking this professor is to try to ask as little questions as possible as to avoid him knocking your confidence down tremendously. Lectures are imperative for tests and exams. Avoid this professor if you can!!
Once you get past the first few weeks Mark Cybulski is a great professor! He provides ample amount of exam study resources (which are after lecture 5 points "quizzes) and practice exams which are exactly like the exams. He always responds to my questions via email and is honestly willing to help if you put in the effort. He deserves a high rating
always rambles about how the textbook isn't accurate and how his way is better. content wasnt impossible but it was essentially self-taught.
I do not think he is as bad as people say he is. I went to his office hours once, concerned about my grade and the upcoming exam and he hyped me up and told me that I had nothing to worry about. Attendance is weird, the amount of class you can miss is a mystery. Lots of homework. Exams are just like Canvas homework.
He assigns a lot of homework and rambles a lot throughout lecture. Exams are hard, but he gives a lot of material to study with prior to exams.
Lucifer incarnate
Couldnt ask for a worse Professor
Easily one of the hardest classes I've ever taken. Most of the material you will have to re-teach yourself using the powerpoints and online videos, and there's 3 1-2 hour HW assignments/week which prepare you VERY well for the exams. Also gives 10 point quizzes before each exam that look like the exam. Hard work but manageable and pays off.
He is unclear when presenting to the class, and gives lots of homework after every class. The homework is not always based on material covered in class and is confusing.
He speeds through the slides and doesn't explain example problems. You basically have to teach yourself the material to do the homework. He has attendance checks at the end of every class, and if you show up late he will call you out. Going to SI sessions and reviewing the practice quizzes are very helpful when preparing for exams.
Please, for the love of everything, DO NOT TAKE Professor Cybulski for CHM 141! The class material is hard enough, don't take a professor that will make it harder. He assigns too much homework. His lectures are not clear. He seems like a nice guy with good intentions, but do yourself a favor and take someone else.
Dr. Cybulski is a great professor! He gives a lot of homework but it prepares you very well for the exams. He holds a lot of help sessions and posts solutions to the homework which is super helpful. He makes it possible to get a very good grade in his class, you just have to put the work in.
Dr. Cybulski gets a bad rep. He's an honestly good guy and tries to do what he can outside of class to help you succeed. He gives a lot of homework, but if you do it and actually try to understand whats being taught, then you will do very well in this course. He also drops a lot of assignments to help your grade before the end of the semester.
I don't know why Dr. Cybulski catches so much flak. He assigns a lot of homework but it closely resembles what his exams will be over and he drops a lot of homework assignments at the end, and even drops the lowest exam too. Having a solid background in chemistry is extremely helpful.
If you take this class, you will be teaching almost everything to yourself from the textbook. He has a heavy accent and flips through lectures very fast with little explanation. Also homework after every lecture.
Hes terrible
He offers no extra credit and it's difficult to understand his accent. His lecture notes don't make sense and I ended up teaching myself the entire class through youtube videos. He doesn't curve exams even if the majority of the class gets a 50% or under. You have to turn in pictures of your homework and he won't even give you credit for it.
Absolutely terrible! You teach everything to yourself and he does not offer help if you are struggling. Hard to understand and goes way too fast on lecture slides. DROP ASAP.
He gives you solutions to his quizzes which are good to study when preparing for the exam. If you want to do good, you need to utilize the resources and be prepared to learn the material yourself since the lectures are fast.
Awful professor. He never taught the right topics and taught them differently as they would be on the homework and in labs so it made it very frustrating and hard to do. He always got off on a tangent while doing lectures and when he did do examples he went too fast and did not explain it.
Overall, Dr. Cybulski is a decent professor. his class is very hard, and a lot of homework which is also graded harshly. very helpful to talk to in office hours, but his lecture can be repetitive and heavy. homework is heavy, and graded harsh with only 1 attempt at canvas quizzes.
He is not good at teaching and a lot of the time the homework will reflect what's in the next lecture, not the recent one, making you end up confused, this is the same for lab order. It's hard to understand his accent and mumbles a lot, you'll teach yourself and have lots of hw, but use the canvas quizzes to study.
I had Cybulski for both CHM 141 and CHM 142. I would not recommend taking his class ever, he is hard to understand and gets very behind compared to the other Chemistry classes. There are 2 homework assignments after every lecture and the exams are difficult if you do not do well on the homework.
Cybulski responded to emails in a timely manner. You knew exactly what would be on exams. Class was extremely difficult. Spent 25+ hours a week on this class alone and barely passed. Got help from multiple tutors but the content was still incredibly difficult. Only taught off slides. At least 6-10 assignments a week. Covered content too fast.
While Dr. Cybulski is definitely not a good lecturer, every other part of his class was extremely straightforward. From his assignments, exams are almost 1-1 content-wise. Do the assignments, look over what you missed, and you will do well, even if you didn't attend the lecture. He really cares about his students, but you will be doing tons of hw.
I had Dr. Cybulski for both 141 and 142 and really liked the way he taught. His class was by far the most organized and the grading criteria was extremely clear. He made it very clear what he expected you to know on the exams and even provided practice problems to help you and he even drops a lot of assignments at the end of the semester.
I would literally rather run a marathon over broken glass than ever have to listen to this man again. He refuses to give any lecture examples and blames students when the average for the homework was a 20% and exam average was 40%, there is nothing in this world that would be worth ever taking his class again. SAVE YOURSELF
Good luck if you have this professor is all I can say. I ended up teaching myself the material online because none of his lectures made sense and I couldn't understand what he said half of the time due to his accent. He never offered extra credit and half of the class dropped halfway through the semester. "Chad's Prep" videos really helped me
Chemistry can already be a challenging class and Professor Cybulski just made it that much worse. There is no true teaching style, there is an overwhelming amount of homework, and he ranted about equations instead of teaching the lecture. You basically teach yourself. He did answer questions in person though.
Cybulski's class is rough, but with the right study tools like unstuckstudy AI, you can make it work. His lectures are tough to follow, so focusing on the homework and using online resources is key. The workload is heavy, but if you put in the effort, you can succeed.
he sucks. run if you take him.
Class Info
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100%
Attendance Mandatory
76%
Textbook Required
22%
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