3.6
Quality3.3
Difficulty80%
Would Retake183
Reviews80%
Would Retake
183
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
74
4
57
3
3
2
17
1
32
What Students Say
“AVOID HER AT ALL COSTS”
MCELLBIX116 - 1.0 rating“This is the kind of teacher that gives teachers a bad name”
CELLBIO116 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
82%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.25 avg changeRatings by Course
HUMANPHYS
5.0
(1)MAMMPHYS
5.0
(1)BIOCHEMISTRY
5.0
(1)X195
5.0
(1)X136
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
105
5.0
BIOCHSUMM
5.0
MCELLBIX10
5.0
MICROBIO11X
5.0
PHYSX109
4.0
Reviews (183)
Least favorite teachers ever. Not helpful outside class, unclear explanations, and her tests are ridiculous. No way to guess what random detail youll be tested on by paying attn in class bc she pulls questions from q banks other from books. Memorize the book & pray for a curve @ end of class
Very helpful and friendly instructor. She even met me on the weekend and went over the difficult topics once again.
Good Prof! I ended up taking 3 classes with her!
Hard but good instructor
Dr. Ahuja is one of the best professors at extension. She truly cares about students and is an amazing instructor. Some people complain about difficulty, but her test are completely fair if you go to class. She is always willing to help her students
Very sweet professor, but her exams are horrible and grading is unclear. She doesn't curve every exam and THINKS there were extra points in the class to give as extra credit. It would've been nice to see the actual grade breakdown. Lectures are long and not very helpful..I taught myself from the textbook instead!
She is great, helpful and caring
Very clear lectures, fair expectations and endless patience. BE SURE TO STUDY HARD.
She is a very helpful instructor. Her tests are tough but if you don’t know your stuff you shouldnt be in post-bac program anyways
Dr. Ahuja is very well informed and is always accessible--I recommend her online course.
not happy with this class. her grading is completely arbitrary. she gives vaguely worded assignments and then takes off points when you don't include something that was never asked or specified. you have to teach yourself everything; there is no instruction. much more work than an in-person course and less direction. assignments take hours!
I took her online class and got an A. The best thing about this course is that she is super fast in grading and replying to emails.
Biochem has some tough material. Instructor is swift and helpful. Overall I recommend it.
I enjoyed the material very much. Not hard at all
Consistently has mistakes in her answer key and won't give credit for questions marked wrong because of it. Inconsistent in teaching style. Won't stay after lecture to answer questions.
Solid class!
She is one of the best instructors I have ever had. I had a long commute but it was worth all worth it as I learned a lot
The course was interesting and instructor is caring. Overall a very inspiring experience.
I really appreciate the passion this instructor puts into her lectures. She pushed hard but her exams were a good practice for MCAT.
This was my first online course and it has been a very good learning experience for me. I am ready for more!
Thank you professor : D
Interactive class! Great instructor!
Poor communication. Prompts, rubrics, expectations, and reason for grades are vague and unclear. Professional at the superficial level but ultimately unhelpful. Rubrics included in the syllabus do not correlate with actual grades given. Her commentary is short and far below the level of expectation she has for student work. Rely on the book.
My favorite class out of the four i've taken at Berkeley's extension.
High energy lectures made the subject fascinating- loved it <3
Unclear questions on exams and arbitrary grading. Unwilling to give helpful feedback.
This class has been the most difficult that I have taken--and I have taken a lot of higher level courses. She is clear and knowledgeable, willing to go over areas the class is fuzzy on and the reviews before the exam were very helpful.
I learnt a lot from this class
The instructor has high expectations but I enjoyed and felt satisfied.
No help from the instructor, her interest only to grade you. There is no clarity in written assignments requirements.
It seemed an intimidating course initially but was manageable. Lots of text reading and memorization but in the end got used to it and got a good grade.
Although it's obvious that she knows the material well, she's completely incapable of explaining what she wants from the students. Her questions are extremely vague, and she's quick to take off points for not mentioning very specific details that have nothing to do with the question asked. Awful class. Save yourself the headache and take elsewhere!
I thoroughly enjoyed this course. It was hard work but I feel I have developed more appreciation for life and it has most definitely renewed my desire to become a doctor
I took online biochem. at UC berkeley extension to boost my application. Everything was submitted online except final. I am not a wiz at chem or biochem and am glad this course didn't have too much chem.
I had not passed biochem last time when I took it at my university, so I took this online course through the extension program. The course and the book and the feedback, they all helped me do well this time around-overall a better experience.
The class has been wonderful and I really feel like I've learned a lot. Highly recommended.
Great online class.
I enjoyed the material and learned a lot
The course is not spaced well (simple topics are given much time, complex topics are not). Grading of essays is not clear (you get a grade with no explanation). Grading/ timing in unit tests is very easy but that of midterms and finals is very difficult. Dubious grading of essay midterms/ finals makes passing nearly impossible.
Grading is unclear, arbitrary, and capricious. I have never had a more distant, unfair and flagrantly uncaring professor. No interaction or actual TEACHING was done. I would have done better reading the book alone.
I have had a positive experience. Professor Ahuja was always prompt and responsive
I appreciate Prof. Ahuja's instruction- It was very helpful.
Incorrect information in lecture and on quizzes is only the start. No explanation for poor grading adds to the difficulty. Unwillingness to engage students and dialogue compounds. Result: average grade for a student in the course is failing and 3/4 of the studious, motivated students dropped it after the midterm.
This professor is entirely unhelpful. I asked for clarification multiple times from her and received rude responses. In fact, at one point she suggested online learning wasn't for me…I have my master's degree mainly from online courses. She is very poor and I do not recommend taking a single course from her.
I just got A grade in BIOCHEMISTRY! Woohoo! she's very good, clear, helpful and nice.
A LOT of material. It is a difficult course especially to take online but I am glad instructor was helpful.
Knowing myself, I always have so many questions...I am glad I got professor who was always so quick to respond and so helpful with replies.
Loved the material. I feel better prepared for medical school.
This is one of the worst professors I have ever had. Her questions are vague and she takes points off for not mentioning specific details that have absolutely nothing to do with the question. The assignments are also very long. Would not recommend to my worse enemy!
I learned a lot and am appreciative of all the efforts our professor had put in not just for me but for the class as a whole.
Terrible professor. Rude. Ambiguous grading and expectations. Distant. Arrogant. This is the kind of teacher that gives teachers a bad name. Find a course anywhere but with this professor.
This has been hands down the worst professor I have ever had. No idea what is expected of me in the final or in the assignments. Asks a vague questions and takes off points for not including details not asked about in the first place. Asked for clarification many times, and received rude and unhelpful responses. AVOID THIS PROF AT ALL COSTS.
I dont usually leave remarks about professor but I have to with her. She is absolutely the worst professor I have ever taken a class with. AVOID HER AT ALL COST. Grading is so ambiguous as well as her course. She is just horrible period.
I respect teachers and understand of the difficulties they face. Nonetheless, I am confident that Professor Ahuja is the worst professor I have ever taken. All material comes from the textbook. Feedback is nonexistent (and often comes with accusations of cheating). Testassignment questions are vague, yet grading is harsh. Stay away!
Very knowledgeable. Tests had heavy emphasis on book
I took several online course through UCB extension, but this professor is very unhelpful compared to other professors. Her response is very vague, and when ask about grading she responded with rude comments. Her lectures are not structured well with focus on main concept rather on details. Multiple choice quizzes doesn't prepare you for tests.
We spent the greater part of this class going over chapters that included cell respiration DNA Replication etc and less time on actual Microbiology topics; those were crammed at the end of the class. The professor was abrupt in answering and vague. Exam material is based on book. Not a very inspirational professor. Wish more discussion existed.
This is the WORST class I have ever taken (and I went to a top tier college for undergrad so I know hard vs. bad). The subject is really interesting, but Ahuja makes it MISERABLE. Her assignments are extremely vague. She will mark you down for not enough detail or providing too much detail. WOULD NOT WISH ON WORST ENEMY. Avoid her at all cost!
UC Berkeley Extension biochemistry is cheaper than most online classes, so I signed up for it. There are no lectures, just reading assignments and vague homework assignments with minimal feedback. Best bet is WRITE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE for homework. I regurgitated the reading for homework and memorized the textbook for the exam. Hard grader.
Dr. Ahuja is an amazing instructor. She consistently challenged the class to understand the material and articulate what they've learned. The material is well-organized and laid out coherently. The group project was fun and helped me dive deep into the material. The exams were appropriate and we had excellent preparation beforehand.
I have never had a professor this strangely horrible. Questions from the quizzes are copied from other school's quizzes easily found online, answers in the same order even. Midterm and final are essay style, ambiguous, and her grading is impossible. I asked for study tips and she literally told me to memorize everything. Don't take this class.
bad.
Horrible. Would not recommend. Her tests are multiple choice (which is fine), but she takes all the questions from online sources rather than her slides/textbook. If you take it, google General Bio Test Bank. About 80% of her test questions are recycled apparently. Wish I had known this earlier. Bad teacher.
Avoid Ahuja. One of those "No one gets an " types. Her lectures consist of flipping through Textbook Slides, and if you ask her a question, she tells you to "Google it". She covers very broad topics in lecture and during test review, but on the actual exam she asks EXTREMELY detailed questions, about topics she has not covered anywhere.
Very unhelpful, awful feedback on assignments (usually not even full sentences) and never clear on what she wants. Will ask a short answer question, and then take points off for not discussing something that was not even asked about. Clearly has no interest in student learning and takes forever to get back to you. Worst professor I've ever had.
Great teacher. Exam material was very fair and she's was helpful when you ask for clarifications.
I learnt a lot from her. She has a solid understanding of the material
The course challenging but that helped me in being through. Overall, Dr. Ahuja is very receptive to students, and if you have questions she is very quick in responding. I personally learned a ton in this class and am glad I took it.
Extremely unhelpful professor. Quiz questions are not from lecture or book, will not give feedback on papers, just a grade. Test questions are open ended and the answers she expects are like nothing you would think to give based on the question. Gives rude responses when asked for clarifications or additional resources. AVOID HER AT ALL COSTS!
Great class, I learnt a lot
Dr. Ahuja is a good teacher. She clearly knows her material and is a good presenter. Tests are reasonably fair. For CLS, definitely recommend it.
Dr. Ahuja is a good teacher, passionate about biology and helpful and patient in class.
I took intro biochem online from Dr Ahuja. Like all online courses, you are teaching yourself. I enjoyed reading biochem and writing papers. Very little of what she listed to know for the exam was asked on the exam. Instead, she asked us to draw structures we had not covered. Surprise! I dropped out. I don't like "tricky" professors.
Amazing professor- friendly and helpful. Loved this class! 3
Get ready to read and memorize
She really has a passion for sharing her knowledge. there is a lot to memorize, overall, a good class
I gained valuable knowledge that was applicable for MCAT. Course was enjoyable too
Thank you prof for a wonderful course!
Overall, good experience
great introductory class
course is organized in modules and i can say I enjoyed each module
The course is challenging, but the online lectures have sound info and the textbook is great at explaining. However, the professor will not answer questions, she is very hard to get ahold of, she doesn't understand what I write to her (language barrier), she gives no feedback and she wants way more detail than she actually asks in her questions.
Read and memorize. Dont overlook details because they may be on the exams. Tough grader, she will easily take off a point here or there on assignments.
I have taken both bio and Biochem with her. She expects a lot but it all paid off for me.
Highly recommended-- Absolutely great instructor and very interesting class.
The homework questions are vague, yet the professor seems to expect extreme detail not even asked for in prompts. Include every minute detail and you'll do okay. There is also not a lot of explanation about what you did wrong when a question is marked wrong. Overall, not helpful in the online format.
Dr. Ahuja is professional, helpful, responsive and cares for her students. Detail intensive study and memorization certainly required to do well but its manageable.
The demands of this class are poorly explained. The professor grades in a mysterious way and doesn't fully explain a grade. Asking her about a grade will just leave you with a greater mystery. The class average for the final was D, so half of the students got an automatic fail. Unless you're good with minute details, this prof isn't for you.
I learned a lot! Tough but doable!
Dr. Ahuja has been wonderful to me. Throughout the course, she was very accommodating to me, and her gradings were fair and timely.
Timely feedback and frequent encouragement was a plus for me!
I truly appreciate her enthusiasm towards the topics we cover each week and her words of encouragement.
I really enjoyed the class
I really appreciate that Dr. Ahuja always gave feedback and helped me improve throughout the course
I'm a seasoned UCBX online student--I worried the course content would be a mess like my other classes. This class was virtually error-free, and on a whole the content was FAIR. She's a tough grader, but a FAIR grader. I studied 22.5 hours for the final. There's a LOT to remember in this class. I liked wrangling with the discussion assignments.
Online class is great- LOADS to memorize but it is MANAGEABLE
Excellent course and timely gradings made learning seamless.
She's flexible to work with you when you have issues. She's kind. Grading isn't defined too well, lectures need to be updated and do not match her slides, lectures are rough to get through-- makes me want to sleep. Good course content and material, just need to push through not falling asleep.
Caring and fair professor. I enjoyed the course
Professor's enthusiasm was a BIG plus. It made me want to read the book and learn more.
This course was ridiculous. It's a basic physiology course. It is very focused on extreme details on the quizzes. I have questioned her on answers I believe I had right and she simply tells you it's wrong. The quizzes have such extreme detail and never test your overall understanding of anything . She never answers questions fully. Negative class.
For an online class, i appreciate when the professors are respond quickly, and she was always very prompt. Course is tough but manageable.
One of the best professors I have had! Course needs a lot of memorization towards the end.
Her online class is tough. She grades really hard. She never gives full credit on anything and will give things like 34.75/35. When she gives feedback it feels as though it didn't matter that you gave her what was required she wants you to read her mind as well.
The professor was super organized and helpful. Highly recommended!
Dr. Ahuja was the best instructor I had at Extension
Stimulating and engaging course- learning was fun!
Good Professor. One of the best.
If you are taking her class, prepare to waste time and energy and ultimately get a hit to your premedical career. The worst teacher in the UBX program and possibly everywhere--which is a high bar to meet.
I did learn a substantial amount information which I will apply to my work as a research assistant at a biotech company.
I took this course virtually but was fully engaged.
Very hard to understand during lecture, notes are provided but are riddled with run-ons and horrid grammer making it near impossible to understand when listening to lectures. Would not recommend at all.
This was my first course at UCBX-- Enjoyed it thoroughly!
We had fun--It was an engaging class!
Test heavy, tough grader, but very caring and accessible. She's very caring and is super available if you have questions. Lectures are not very engaging, but if you read the book you'll probably be fine. Not that many assignments - grade mainly depends on 2 exams. No quizzes.
Not the warmest of ppl. Definitely doable. We made it harder than it really was. Read the assigned chapters first. If you dont understand it then youre probably going into too much detail. Then listen to lecture as a study guide/review. She condenses the book to what she wants you to know. Beware, book sucks. HW is more detail than u need to know
Exams are fair considering they could have been a lot harder, so glad it wasnt. Stay on top of the reading. Make vocab flash cards will be very very helpful. Answers to hw will be in the book and some will be in her lecture.
I took general biology after other science classes and it felt like a breath of fresh air. It brought it all together.
The course is basically all pre-recorded lectures with little to no class time. Sounds nice but would have preferred live lectures for better comprehension. Read the book - that is what is on the exam. She's caring, but class was pretty dry. Test heavy and some homework.
I liked the approach and appreciate that Dr. Ahuja cared how we were doing.
Do not recommend this professor. The work was average but that wasn't the problem. The problem was the fact that she doesn't seem caring at all. Her email responses are condescending and sarcastic. At one point I asked her to correct my quiz and she replied with an attitude like really???? That's not a way to talk to a student. Waste of money
The course was straightforward, organized and she was always so prompt with email replies.
Excellent course, and instructor
I really liked the structure of the course. Live online format gave community feel.
Instructor was very involved and actively present throughout the course
Learned a lot. Prof was helpful. Exam was easy.
Took 4 classes at ucb Ext and this is the most organized. Loved the material/format. BUT won't take again b/c the main issue is N. Ahuja. Her pre-recorded lects fool you into thinking she is caring. Cold and unapproachable in emails. Having trouble w/ the class? Doesn't matteriifyou have a disability, she will blame you for not reaching out earlier
One of my favorite professors at Extension.
Lots of terms to remember but hard work pays off
I've never had a professor that cared less. Email responses are condescending and unhelpful. Quiz and worksheet questions will ask one thing, but she will expect more than what is being asked in the question. I have my B.S from another university, and I've never had a problem with a professor until this class.
I enjoyed the course very much and really appreciate how everything worked out smoothly despite the COVID situation.
Appreciated the feedback as it helped me.
I found lectures and coursework enjoyable. Assignments were not too bad either.
Professor Ahuja is helpful and engaging. The course is easy and stress-free. Highly recommended!
She asks you to provide far more in questions than you could realistically provide given the word maximum. She's an extremely tough grader to the point where there is absolutely no way you could ever get 100% on an assignment. This is the first biology course I've taken that I've struggled through and the primary reason is the professor
She is always so prompt with email replies and the course was straightforward.
The exams were not hard; Some memorization towards the end but overall Easy A !
Book is vast but lectures highlight what is important
I enjoyed the course even though there is so much to memorize! p
Its a fair and reasonable course. Not too much work!
Dr. Ahuja is awesome, insanely smart in cell biology and how it works in the human body and an amazing teacher. Very forgiving and fair teacher. 100% recommend if you want to structure a strong biology foundation
Probably in all of my academic years, 230 credit hours by far the most demeaning, condescending, classless individual I have ever dealt with in my life. COVID death in the family and I was told to prove it, still attempted to finish at the end and she slowly graded so my deadline past. Lastly, stated that I receive an incomplete and gave me an F.
Dr. Ahuja is nice and competent. She responds very quickly. Towards the end , I had a bit of a time crunch and she worked on a schedule with me so thankful for that.
The lectures complemented the information in the text book. Also, I really appreciate how quickly professor replied to any question I had.
I have already taken a few courses with this professor and its been a pleasure thus far.
Great class-- I learned a lot and was able to apply it at work.
It is a good refresher in Cell Biology and the teacher is fair too.
It was a pleasure to take this course
10 modules- she only grades one module a week, so dont expect to be able to finish the class early. She wont even open the next module until the next week. so if you have a deadline, start early. Takes forever to grade(1 week)
Fair grader, I will be happy to take this professor again!
I will never take another class with Nidhi Ahuja. She is condescending and rude and also very bad at teaching. Her lectures were not helpful. She said attendance was required then changed her mind without making expectations clear. Her tests were unevenly distributed in content and she does not care about her students.
Dr. Ahuja is honestly one of the best professors I've ever had! She is an amazing lecturer and cares about students - Exams and homework were super fair.
Not too hard quizzes and final exam was fair- Overall smooth!
I really enjoyed the course. Professor is funny, very approachable and deeply knowledgeable.
I have heard that Biochemistry can be tough, it was a lot of reading, the exams were fair and the professor was caring so it was not too bad!
This was by far my favorite course of all the courses I have taken at Extension.
It was a pleasure to take this course- very interesting stuff!
I'm only taking her course to transfer it to my university. Otherwise, the course is terrible. She expects the students to give her at least a week to grade the module and you're not allowed to move on until she does. It's not a "start anytime" course. You have to start 14 weeks before the course ends. Didn't know this and wasted a grand.
Beware of this course. Instructor is vague with grading. I had a 97 the entire class until the final. The final is very extensive in the material & it's an automatic fail if you score below a 70% on it. It is 60 questions w/2hr time, but only half are multiple choice. The rest have multiple parts ranging from 3-15 parts and 10 long essay questions.
Dr. Ahuja was prompt and supportive. The course was challenging as it has a lot of material and yet rewarding as I have learned a lot in this class.
Online exam- Easy A
Not a hard class with lots of opportunities to pull up the grade
The final exam is 60 questions for two hours. More than half the exam is either short answers or essay questions. Making it impossible to answer in the depth as the professor would like or even answer all of the questions. I had an A- the whole time in the class but after the final she assigned me an F.
Straight forward course- Smooth ride and good grade at the end :)
It is a self-paced class with a decent workload and a fair final exam.
I enjoyed the material and the course is perfect for CLS
Fair & fast grading Prof. I found the material engaging.
Honestly a little cruel that the lectures aren't comprehensive. There's a ton of lectures, they're long, and they don't even cover all of the material, the class is heavily dependent on the textbook which sucks for people who are better visual/audio learners.
Dr. Ahuja was always very clear on assignments and materials. There were no trick questions and assessments were fair.
Nidhi is the best! I appreciate learning from her class this semester!
Dr. Ahuja was very helpful, understanding and knowledgeable.
Dr. Ahuja was amazing. She was always willing to help and responded fast to any questions or concerns I had. She was so welcoming and so encouraging. She gave me great detailed feedback and I was able to apply this to my throughout the course. THE BEST YET!
Challenging yet rewarding course with a supportive professor. Detailed feedback and fair assessments. Unstuck ai was a big help for prep.
Prof Ahuja is pretty reasonable with the grading - just make sure you do all the homework, participate in class, and keep your camera ON! Also, the tests and homework are textbook heavy so be ready to use the textbook as much as possible when you study on top of her lecture slides. It's best to keep up with your studying - lots of content to learn!
I would not recommend this professor or “facilitator” as she had described for herself. Mostly just gave negative feedback or none at all for assignments and quizzes. When it came to the final, I ran out of time partly due to unfamiliar questions (hardly anything we learned in class), but also a system failure. She basically said tough luck. 0/10
I took the online (at your own pace) course and actually enjoyed Nidhi's lectures but I found her tests, quizzes and assignments very time consuming. The amount of material you're expected to memorize in this class is BEYOND attainable. Don't get behind also because even if she says she will help you out/work with you, she does not come through.
Prof. Ahuja was one of the better professors I experienced at UCSD. I took Gen Bio I with Lab. The lab component was not my favorite, as they were time-consuming, but overall doable. She only had a homework, exam, and discussion board (with peer responses) due each week. I would take a course with her again.
I would strongly recommend professor Ahuja! Her teaching style was exactly what I look for. I always looked forward to her classes - they were fun and engaging!
Dr. Ahuja is fair at grading and her expectations of the class are clearly defined. I loved participating in the class and learning from discussions as well.
Knowledgeable and organized, but expectations were unclear and grading didn't always match the rubric. Even following the rubric wasn't enough since extra expectations weren't outlined, and concerns raised were met with policies rather than acknowledgment of miscommunication.
No grading rubric, she just grades subjectively. I've sent her emails she never responded to. Of all the professors I've had in my life (and I've already graduated with an undergrad degree),she's the worst professor in terms of responsiveness and being able to explain to you why she grades a certain way. If you can, avoid her and her minion of a TA
I really liked how my instructor was timely with all of her grading!
The professor is very approachable and patient.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
82%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.25 avg changeRatings by Course
HUMANPHYS
5.0
(1)MAMMPHYS
5.0
(1)BIOCHEMISTRY
5.0
(1)X195
5.0
(1)X136
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
105
5.0
BIOCHSUMM
5.0
MCELLBIX10
5.0
MICROBIO11X
5.0
PHYSX109
4.0