Offers numerous opportunities to succeed: you get 10 pts of extra credit for going to office hours and 5 pts of ec on each test. The tests are really easy to study for, just study her learning objectives and make sure you know how and why something happens or doesn't happen. She wants you to know the material and makes it so it's easy to learn

Applies lectures and test to real world biology. She likes group work but it facilitates discussion and learning. There's no curve but she gives ec and the hw is easy and ends up on the test. Her discussion sheets are the test so master the problems on there and you're guaranteed an A. Really nice and caring, I'm definitely taking her for BILD 2

She teaches well because she takes time to read (from homework and index cards) what students think so that she can debunk myths about bio concepts. Expect to type a lot of written assignments before class though, and clickers. Recommend 5 hours total each week for hmwk and studying. Terrifically easy class if you've taken high school biology.

She really makes an effort to be inclusive and make the lecture different from your typical lectures. For all the people from my class complaining about her, they're most likely upperclassmen who waited way too long to take an INTRODUCTORY class. She makes the effort, and if you put it in, you'll get the A. Study, go to class, and stop whining.

Shes an amazing professor & she puts in so much effort to get us to FULLY understand the subject. YES, you have to put in the work to get an A but its seriously so doable as long as u go through the slides & do her study guide learning objectives (all answered on slides) for the exams. Shes super approachable & friendly. take her class!

She is such a passionate teacher. Her homework was just reading about scientists from underrepresented backgrounds and writing your response (I found all articles inspiring). I don't know why there are so many negative reviews because this was my favorite bio class I've taken. If you want take the time to engage in the class, you'd love this prof.

Dr. Owens cares a lot about her students and their learning and is always trying to find the best ways to teach students. The ones that get good grades in her class should have a solid biology knowledge if they continue on in the field. That being said this class is not an easy A and you should be prepared to work for your grade.

So I didn't do well on midterm 1, I got a D, but she drops your worst midterm. This last midterm, I got a 96%. Honestly just study and you should be fine. Yes, this class does require some dedication, (bio journals are due every Mon. & Wed. before class), but it's graded based on completion. Oh and go to office hours, she gives 10pts. extra credit.

Do not take this class lightly. It is deceptively simple at first, but the difficulty ramps up sharply. No one will hold your hand and remind you to continue practicing the fundamentals, but the material makes sense if you continue to practice the fundamentals. Success in this class depends on self-motivation and finding the right study group.

Gives you every chance to be successful. She gives 3 midterms (don't let that scare you) she drops the lowest one so you have a better chance at getting a good grade. She gives A LOT of homework but it cushions your grade. Going to office hours is helpful and extra credit. All you need to do to Ace the tests is to understand the learning Objective.

Nice teacher, she's funny even though she's not trying to be.

Dr. Owens is a really caring professor. She cares a lot that her students learn, which is sadly a rare thing. There is a lot of work, but it is all meant to facilitate learning. Neuroscience can be a challenging topic but I am glad I got to get my start with her! Also getting an A is very very doable.

I think Professor Owens is a really kind professor who really cares about her students and actively tries to better her teaching methods to accommodate to more students. She gives a lot of homework but it is easily done in 20 minutes and the weekly quizzes are really easy. Her tests are straightforward with some tricky questions here and there.

Really good professor who cares about students. Took for Bild 1 and 2. An A is very achievable as long as you do the homework and learn the learning objectives

Professor Owens was a great professor. She was very caring and just wanted to know what she could do if you were struggling. Offered extra credit and there were weekly assignments that did help with the material that was going to be learned in the future lectures.

I love Dr. Owens!! Her pre-recorded lectures were simple to follow and she even adds video quizzes that help with understanding material! Lots of busy work but it helped me study in the long run. Exams are open notes, internet, everything but don't let that stop you from keeping up with class. Easy A if you put in the effort:)) 10/10 recommend

Lots of assignments, but genuinely helpful in making the material more understandable & serve as plenty of opportunities to boost your grade. Lots of clicker questions, but mimick exam questions with full explanations & fit in pretty well within the lecture. Prof seems to genuinely care about students and actual learning vs just memorizing.

Professor Owens is a great teacher who wants her students to succeed. She offers some extra credit and makes sure to clear up any confusion through her lectures. She has quizzes during the prerecorded lectures which are helpful in making sure you understand the material. The exams are mostly FRQ but if u understand how to apply the material ur good

I seriously don't understand how she is rated 3.2. She is the best professor I have ever had. I went from biology being my least favorite subject to actually enjoying it. She tries really hard to make her students understand the material. Tons of resources: Piazza, study guides, study sessions, muddiest point lectures, extra credit, etc..

Dr. Owens is awesome! Really loved the way she taught and explained things. There are biweekly exams, but they are exactly what you'd expect from the practice problems and lectures and have extra credit. Homework is super quick and easy. Going to take her again next quarter for BILD 2!

I don't understand why Prof. Owens has such a low rating! If you are able to have her as a professor I HIGHLY recommend. She is super caring and genuinely wants her students to succeed & you are given sooo many opportunities to be successful in the class. Seriously the best professor I have had so far at UCSD!

Professor Owens is by far my favorite professor I've ever had. She shows a genuine passion for biology, really cares about the students' learning, and is very receptive to student feedback. There are a lot of exams throughout the quarter, but they are always representative of the lecture material and problem sets.

Amazing professor, Bild 1 with Professor Owens' class was a very fun and interesting class in which I felt like I learned a lot.

Really good professor, class had 5 exams and you could drop the lowest. The exams were tricky so make sure you really understand the learning objectives. Responded to emails quickly and had extra credit. Busy work but manageable

Owens is a great teacher who really explains concepts well. Super glad I took her and highly advise others to take as well!

I loved taking Prof. Owen's class. It was a little bit difficult in the middle of the course and I did poorly on 2 exams yet I was still able to get an A because she drops 1/4 exams! Every time you wouldn't do so good, she'll send you a message asking if everything is okay and if you need extra help, she'll make time for you. She is so caring!!

Dr. Owens is one of the best professors I've had at UCSD. I've hard that she may not be that great professor for in person classes, but online, her lectures were so clear and easy to understand. It made understanding cell biology so easy. In addition, her grading scale is ridiculously easy.

Dr. Owens is a very solid professor, especially for lower divs. The structure of the class allows for very effective learning and the quizzes/exams actually facilitate learning. I would definitely take Dr. Owens again!

Professor Owens is an extremely caring and thorough educator. She studies learning strategies and therefore she is constantly improving her teaching methods and constantly checking in with her students to see how they are doing. The homework consists of fun snippets of reading about the amazing scientific research done by modern biologists!

Lectures: I took her hybrid courses. To be honest, the online course is compact and quite easy to follow (also make connections) between materials. DI is mandatory (It is super helpful, IAs are great) you can go any of the sessions. Even though there are four total midterms throughout the quarter, but there are extra credit and drop policies.

Prof Owens is amazing in my opinion. Really good at explaining the material. This quarter was hybrid so 4 midterms and the final were online and open-note, open-internet. A LOT of busy work in the course, about 4 assignments per week, but she has drops, but gives A TON of extra credit. Her tests reflect her lecture content, so it isn't tough.

Decent but managable amount of homework for this class and biweekly midterms but they truly reflect learning and lectures are easy to follow along, amazing prof

Three midterms and a final, so lots of exams. She's an okay lecturer so you have to get a good understanding of the concepts discussed to do well in her class. Overall, fun instructor but lots of work.

Great

Great teacher. She teaches clearly and gets the information to students. Class is test heavy, 4 midterms and 1 final (lowest midterm is dropped). Tests are worth a lot of points and make up a large portion of your grade but they are fair and reflect what you learn. Lots of extra credit opportunities if you do them. Overall, I'd def recommend!

Melinda is the moment. She is the definition of a girl boss and great professor. Her grading and midterms are fair and she genuinely cares about helping her students learn. Three words to describe her? Queen icon slay

one of the best professors I've learned from at UCSD. she has designed the course in such a way that there are many avenues for learning the material, and literally always addresses student questions well. clearly extremely knowledgeable, cares for student learning, and patient. 100/10 would recommend

wait until spring and take professor owens! there are 3 midterms (1 is dropped) that you have 1-2 days to complete, and a final that we had around 4 days to take. attendance & section is mandatory, but we can have 6 absences for lecture and can complete alternate assignments for section if we miss. everything is manageable and pretty stress free!

Had her for BILD 1, but she makes the material really digestible and even provides videos covering topics more in depth if the class generally is having trouble with them. Drops the lowest midterm and has good section times that are flexible for many schedules. Provides good feedback when you make errors, answer keys for practice are very thorough

She was very nice and caring. Lecture + discussion participation graded. Extra credit for going to office hours once + 90% CAPES completion (our class was one person away from getting that). Exams were difficult and based on application (ex: research papers). 3 midterms (one dropped) that took at least 6-7 hours + an even longer final (20+ pages)

Professor, Wife, Mother, Icon, and Queen. Dr. Owens is genuinely one of the most intelligent and caring professors I have ever had. She always makes herself available to help students and is so kind. I actually love Dr. Owens so much and feel so lucky to have gotten her for BILD 1 and 2.

Professor Owens was pretty good! I found some of the exams a little challenging since they were heavily based on applied knowledge and given a situation you have to figure out. Her lectures are iClicker but she drops 9 lectures so if you are sick or don't feel like going 9 will be dropped!

BEST PROFESSOR EVER! If you have the opportunity to take one of her classes! take it! BY FAR the best professor at ucsd! shes very kind and truly cares abt her students!!

Easily one of the kindest professors at UCSD. Keeps lectures interesting sends out reminders for homework and other assignments, and plenty of extra credit. Bi-weekly midterms but you're allowed a 1-page cheat sheet and honestly, you probably won't need it. Discussion sections are a waste of time and are mandatory. Highly recommended!

Great prof: sends out assignment deadline reminders, plenty of extra credit, interesting lectures, caring, very fair bi-weekly midterms with a cheat sheet you probably won't need. Discussion sections are mandatory and a waste of time but it highly depends on the TA. Hope to take her again!

Midterms every two weeks, but Professor Owens has clicker questions in ever class that help increase your understanding and practice exams help! It is a bit too clicker question heavy, but it helps. Assignments seem kind of pointless, but sometimes they really help you gain an understanding of material before the lecture.

She is literally the best teacher I have ever had. Her class in engaging, educational, and so so so easy.

Super amazing, compassionate, and wise ! Patiently answers questions that people have and I really love her lectures. I would definitely take her class again.

Professor Owens' lectures are amazing and teaches us a lot with a lot of detail yet not convoluting at all ! She is also very compassionate, understanding, and wise! Would definitely recommend her classes !

Going to lectures is mandatory, but they're rlly fun and interactive. Discussion section is also mandatory, but there's alternatives that you can do online and asynchronously. Overall, tests were a big hard, but the teacher is pretty helpful.

Super caring, clearly wants students to succeed. Offers lots of extra credit, drops lowest scores for assignments and midterms, & offers a lot of opportunities for office hours and supplementary instruction. Breaks down the material super clearly and emphasizes in class discussion among peers. Attend lecture and do work on time and you'll do great

Dr. Owens is such a sweet and caring professor. You can tell she wants her students to succeed. Lectures are interactive with clicker questions. A downside is that there are lots of homework and 4 midterms but if you put in the work, you will succeed!

Professor Owens is genuinely the most caring, kind, and understanding professor I have ever had. She offers so much extra credit, goes out of her way to help students understand difficult content (posting supplemental videos to help reinforce difficult ideas), and is more than generous with the grading. Class is test heavy.

4 midterms + 1 final, lowest midterm dropped, and you get a cheat sheet. A lot of it is explain your answer. Easy A if you just listen during lecture. Lectures involve talking to the people around you, and she does i-clickers (graded on participation, not correctness). Lots of extra credit opportunities. Owens is really understanding. Great class!!

I enjoyed how Owens taught this course. She had good exams that represented what we learned in class. We were able to use a double sided cheat sheet for the tests and THREE for the final. It forced me to study and actually understand the material so they weren't even that necessary. I don't like the mandatory lectures, but it made me learn more.

SHE KNOWS WHAT SHE'S TALKING ABOUT, so best believe you're learning from a knowledgeable neuroscience expert. Exams and finals are HARD but there're a lot of assignments to recover from slightly low exam scores. 3 midterms, 1 will be dropped. You can look at notes and use the Internet but you have to really know your materials to answer them.

Professor Owens is literally the best professor I've had so far. She is really caring and has a lot of supplemental help. Take her! if she has open spots.

Professor Owens is extremelyyy kind, supportive and accessible inside& outside class. really cares about that students learn. don't skip lectures, independently think through the materials, actively participate and do the practice problems. all helps prepare for the tests. A bit hw& assignments-heavy, great exercises for overall learning though.

Professor Owens is an amazing professor that deeply cares about her students. Lectures are interactive, fun, and interesting! Be ready to think critically, apply yourself, and you'll be just fine in this course!

Easy to the point that I was bored. Offers lots of extra credit, drops lowest scores for assignments and midterms, & gives super generous cheat sheets. Emphasizes in class discussion among peers way too much. Attend lecture and do work on time and you'll do great

Owens gives a lot of homework, 2 journals a week for the entire the quarter, weekly quizzes, and she has 4 cumulative midterms. But, she cares about each of her students and is always willing to answer questions, she also has some pretty good IA/TA's, and they are really good at explaining content in section. Section is mandatory!

I LOVE OWENS!!! She is honestly super caring and is always open to explain concepts to students. Not to mention, her TAs are really knowledgeable and patient too. She has easy homework assignments that take me less than 20 mins to do. All of her lectures and reviews are recorded, and she provides study guides and practice probs. 10/10 professor!

I love Owens! 2 hw assignments a week (on completion) and a weekly quiz (with 3 attempts and 5 questions). The Opps say otherwise. There are 4 midterms (she drops the lowest one). Clearly outlines the stuff on the test in her slides. Do the PRACTICE sets,(similar to the tests).Very passionate and loves answering questions.

Owens is great! Owens explains things well and really cares about her students. The only thing is her class had a lot of busy work; it wasn't too bad but annoying. She has like 4 midterms plus final so your grade is very dependent on those test. They aren't too hard though; I studied a little and would get A's; helps if you took ap bio tho.

Owens is super accessible and accommodating for any issues. There are lots of tests and assignments, but the four midterms helps students stay on top of their work so the final exam isn't as stressful. Lots of assignments are dropped as well. The class started off more difficult but got easier. Would recommend!

She's an amazing lecturer with clear slides and very kind. She has A TON of busy work, but it's not that hard just annoying. Three attempts on weekly quizzes, you need an iClicker remote for lecture (which is recorded), and there's a midterm every two weeks (she drops ur lowest). There are opportunities for extra credit and discussion is mandatory.

She is a really good lecturer in which really helped me in understanding the concepts for this class! She is accessible outside of class and is a very caring professor. Throughout the weeks there are a lot of little assignments and there were 4 midterms, however they were somewhat manageable.

Attendance is largely mandatory as you can miss some days. Very flexible professor, as you can attend either lecture time and other discussion sections. How to succeed is very clear and is not difficult to understand how things work and is asked of you. SUPER HELPFUL Office Hours. Largest con is the 4 midterms.

I was so so disappointed with how the exam questions were laid out. Not only was there 4 midterms throughout the course, but certain exam questions would be a mere 3 points while others costed 16+ points. Be prepared to be clocked by these exams. Such a nice professor, but such a tough grader, coming from someone who took AP Bio in high school.

There were 4 midterms and the final. The midterms are easy if you study off the slides but beware of free-response questions. She offers guaranteed extra credit at the end of the exams. A cheat sheet is also given. She is very easy-going and can tell she cares about her students.

Prof. Owens is truly invested in taking the time to teach her students and goes above and beyond to make sure they understand a concept. If you post a question, she will often respond in less than 10 minutes. The class is content heavy, but if you put in the effort, it'll be a very rewarding experience.

Dr. Owens' flipped classroom setup feels strange, but it does give students a lot of flexibility. Tests are somewhat difficult & entirely short-answer, but HW & pre-reading are graded for completion. Online lectures are comprehensive, but sometimes dull. Lowest midterm dropped. Prof is very active on Piazza. Overall, very interesting class.

She mainly has you watch lectures outside of class and then in class you ask questions and do review problems with clickers. Her questions are more about application of the topic rather than just memorizing which I find super helpful. The content is also really interesting! Office hours right before class and midterms during class time

Professor Owens is engaging and makes the concepts accessible. While there's a lot of assessments, unstuck AI made studying more efficient. The class has a manageable difficulty if you stay on top of the work.

Best bio professor ever. Ppl complain about how difficult her tests are but honestly they aren't that bad if you just stick to learning objectives and do practice problems. There are tons of resources for exam prep. Tests were personally rlly interesting too. Her lectures are interactive & well structured. She really tries to help you understand.

I loved her teaching style! She always presented detailed lecture slides that were easy to digest. I personally liked her muddiest points videos at the end of each week, going through topics we learned. You can tell that this professor has a passion for her job, and I highly recommend taking her class! Also, there is lots of extra credit :)

Overall, she's really good as long as you like to participate with your class peers. She incorporates several clicker questions to keep you engaged with the material and its not just material vomit. She does skims through slides sometimes, so just be sure to look back after. If you REALLY hate talking to others, then this probs aint for you.

Professor is INTERESTED in the material and it makes ME INTERESTED. Doing the homework and quiz every week helped and even having mandatory lectures because it really did make this class easy, as I was consistently interacting with the knowledge. It even allowed me to make friends I had always seen in my other classes but never talked to.

Professor Owens is great, she keeps you engaged in lectures, answers everyone's questions thoroughly, explains the concepts clearly, and grading in this class was done so efficiently and quickly it makes me jealous for bio majors. Only thing is participation to section and lecture is mandatory, and the weekly quiz+2 journals every week was a lot

She is SO COMMUNICATIVE (responded 5 min after I emailed her). She is such a caring person and her lectures are great, but her class is PACKED w/ lots of HW/reflections (multiple tasks every day). She's hard if you're typically busy but everything is clear and fair. Personally, I don't prefer her style but she is still a great prof overall.

Overall, it's an easy class. I didn't know this, but you can reschedule tests if you have multiple on the same day—my biggest regret was not doing that. The content is fairly easy, so don't make the mistake of taking three tests in one day. Just ask to reschedule. Also, she helped me get into a research lab—don't hesitate to ask for help!

She's very passionate about her work, and a good lecturer. The learning objectives will help you on the test. She makes lectures mandatory (with i clickers), has weekly journals, quizzes, mandatory discussions, and four midterms (multiple choice & written response), which is a lot of work. She does provide extra credit and research opportunities.

There are four midterms that are mainly all free response so make sure you understand concepts fully. She also use iclicker so attendance is sort of mandatory, but either ways attend lecture so she can explain you answers. One thing I disliked was journals she gives before lectures as they are time consuming.

I loved her teaching style and slides were clear and easy to follow. 4 midterms which were lowk hard and the final was long but if you know how the information is applied and not just facts this class will be easy. If you make good crib sheets, you'll be okay

Though this is only my first year at UCSD, Prof Owens is by far one of the best professors I have had because she truly cares about helping her students learn and is extremely patient when explaining concepts. She is also very accessible outside of class. I personally really liked the flipped style of the class and would definitely take her again!

I loved taking the class. I was so scared for neurobio, but her class was amazing. It takes work and participation, but the Codon system she uses gives so much practice, and with the collaboration in class you learn so easily and it stays fresh so studying is so easy as long as u keep up (which she ensures bc everything is mandatory). Loved it sm.

This class had 4 Midterms and a cumulative final. Very fast paced. However she has study guides that tells you EXACTLY what will be on the test with a cheat sheet so just study whats on the study guide and you'll be fine. DO NOT waste your time studying whats not on the sheet, trust me. Tests are graded a little harshly but can depend on your TA.

I've learned the most in this class than any other at UCSD. I feel like this is a good elective for premeds (ie challenges you to apply concepts and think critically),, but the content is so DENSE. For our 3rd midterm half of the content was material from earlier weeks... u need to be locked in the entire quarter and do well on the final(worth 30%)

Professor Owens is super nice. But ngl this class traumatized me. She makes the tests way harder than necessary and then requires you to know exactly what she's expecting in an answer even though the question didn't ask for it. There's like 900 assignments due every week which is unnecessary. genuinely pls save yourself (pls)

So much work, I went through long-term depression to the point she pruned my synapses, and I was hopeless. I'm in need of a calcium potion to revive my long-term potentiation at this point. I'm so burnt out, it is concluded there is no light at the end of the transducin.