2.7
Quality2.9
DifficultyN/A
Would Retake148
ReviewsN/A
Would Retake
148
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
23
4
27
3
35
2
37
1
26
What Students Say
“The most rude and unhelpful prof I have had in my entire academic career”
BIOL325 - 2.0 rating“Mid-Febuary and still doesn't have our marks up”
BIOL325 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.15 avg changeRatings by Course
121
5.0
(1)BIOL357
4.0
(1)BIOL325
3.5
(29)BIO325
3.5
(11)325
3.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
BIOL
4.5
BIOLOGY120
4.0
BIO112
3.7
BIOL121
3.1
121
3.0
Reviews (148)
The most rude and unhelpful prof I have had in my entire academic career.
Lazy as hell. Mid-Febuary and still doesn't have our marks up.
Seldom there for office hours, when there smoked a cigarette while I asked Q's
This guy is by far the most irresponsible and worst teacher I have ever had
he is SOOO bad
Worst prof ever. I don't recommend this guy- v. rude and poor marker.
Doesn't care about students & his notes suck. Unclear about exam expectations.
Exam answers must be pages long and must match his words EXACTLY!!! STAY AWAY!
awesome notes...don't have to know any new material after midterm
awesome teacher, pretty lazy but full of humour, great guy
He copies his notes straight from the text. His marking is inconsistent.
very fun classes, all essay exams though
He was **** most of the time; easiest course in Biology. TAKE IT!!!
No Comments
Had him as an instructor a while ago and he was great...I wonder what changed...
just sucks
This is is the worst prof ever. Never shows up for office hours and smokes @ u
i did great in this class! and the material was interesting!
No Comments
have to copy notes very fast, hard to listen to him, makes jokes
Great course. Straight forward and interesting material. Tests are reasonable and fair. Great sense of humor.
Hilarious lecturer. barely had to make notes because his lectures stuck in your head.
Needs to slow down during lectures!
not the dude who murdered his wife
I would like to start now! in a weird accent.
Greatclass, sometimes he seems a bit ****, but one of the most entertaining classes ever. Tests sounds brutal, but really not that bad. Reasonably interesting material, plus tells good stories that somewhat related to material
He was totally hilarious...the only class I didn't fall asleep in. tests were all essays but the class average was almost an A.
this guy is so irresponsible...drinks too much before class, don't give too much about his student's education
He's so funny! Cares about the students and is fair. Listen to his advice for test taking!
Terrible prof- marks exams with a dartboard. Doesn't attend most of his office hours, doesn't care about you, smokes in his office and is rude. If you can at all find someone else to teach you this course I would highly recommend doing that.
Awesome dude. You're the man
Somehow made biology interesting. Tests were very straight forward, but little or no written response on tests. All around, fairly good.
Okay class if you like memorizing stuff. Makes you laugh in class but marks hard.
a nice professor, have to copy notes like crazy during each class, just memorize the entire textbook and you'll get a decent mark
Jokes to do with sex, drinking, swearing - he'll share with the class. Too much note-taking, no definite marking scheme. Seems to give you a mark depending on his mood. Memorize notes and diagrams and you'll get a decent mark.
A humorous prof, inconsistent marking scheme. Makes lectures interesting sometimes with his jokes. Sometimes note taking can be quite tedious with a lot to copy down. Get a laptop!
Absolutely horrendous... barely skims over your exam paper. his lectures are essentially a recital of the textbook's content. as another student said, he seems to mark with a dartboard. avoid this professor if you can.
one of those vile british professors who is full of himself.
Very, Very, Very BORING lectures...always makes me fall asleep..and sometimes didn't understand what the heck he was saying!
You'll laugh your ass off all through the class (check for rye in his coke bottle...) but make sure to take the notes down cuz there's no text... awesome guy, fun class, you'll do well if you pay attention. Don't sign up if you're easily offended.
blake doesn't use a textbook but he is offensive in class. He's boring, and does not at all prepare you for his midterms. All his tests are in essay form, so science students, beware!!! busy office hour only after midterm cuz everyone's complainging
his notes are straight from the textbook, but i found that useful if you just wanted the main points instead of rereading the whole text. i have nooo idea how he marks though. his tests aren't hard, but just don't know what exactly he wants.
No prep for the midterm. DO SAMPLE QUESTION he assigns before hand or you're screwed (from personal experience). He's very much willing to give 10% on essay exams, so watch out! Write 10 pages for the midterm if you can. Quatity over quality for blake
I LOVED Dr. Blake. I found him hilarious. Took good notes, included comments that he made, as well as his diagrams, etc, and got 78%. Loved that exams were open-ended. Only bad: no concrete outline, no copies of lecture notes available if you miss class.
There's no prof as good as Dr. Blake. Very straight forward exams and very helpful.
Cool prof, great so far, cracks many jokes in class. Haven't tried his exams yet though, heard it's not too bad
Very cool prof., keeps the class fun with his funny research projects. If you are a book worm you will fail but if you can express your ideas ull do well.
Dr. Blake is straightforward and approachable if you can deal with a bit of initial gruffness (i think he's actually a bit of a teddy bear) Pay attention to the connections that he makes between small topics- that's where you'll earn/ lose the marks!!
had him last year. he was great! funny and excellent notes. got a nice 52% on the midterm.. decided to read his notes, and ended up with an 80%. i really enjoyed his class.
Dr. Blake is the shiiet! i was scared to approach him.. but u crack a few jokes with him.. and he'll like u.
Good guy. Funny. Doesn't seem approachable at first, but easy to talk to during office hours. If you show some genuine interest he's very open to discussing stuff.
he's super nice and is willing to help. it's an easy class where u just take notes.
snoooooz...... he just made this class very uninteresting for me.
He has the same note year after year and it doesn't matter what you right on the exam as long as u are a good bullshietter. His class is his notes, and are right out of the text.
Is he related to Colorado's Rob Blake?
Great course, good prof! Blake is funny, with a crass sense of humour that you have to stay awake to get. Really helpful in office hours, and wants you to succeed.
Notes are right from the text. The exams isn't hard but marking is subjective. Gives concepts to write about and expects us to write EVERYTHING but we have no idea what he is expecting. Take his course if u have a good memory because that is all u need
it seemed okay...until u get your midterm back...final was even worse
No Comments
Can be funny, but if not, you're in for a long 50 minutes... Biggest problem is the disorganized notes... very hard to co ordinate with the textbook. Midterm was easy tho.
The course material is uninteresting, and with Blake teaching it, the whole course was an absolute waste of time. His illegible notes are oversimplified and disorganized. He cannot seem to concentrate on the lecture material; instead, he makes random- and to be truthful- lame jokes.
This prof is hilarious because he isn't afraid to say whatever he thinks. If you can listen well, and write down the key notes-- you'll be fine. Practice writing essays, as they are usually a lump of the exam marks.
Funny guy, made the boring course material easier to listen to. However, the grading system is obscure and unpredictable. He also made us fork over $30 to pay for a "course notes" book that consisted of all his published journal articles, no actual notes.
The previous comment is dead on. He makes the lectures pretty easy to sit though and sometimes quite interesting. You don't necessarily need to study that much for exams since there isn't much to study for...But the grading system is strange and quite strict. The note package is useless.
inconsistent marker. Take your chances, could get an A or just as easily get a C
His notes are messy. He makes jokes in class that are not even funny. When you go visit him during his office hour for feedback on the midterm exam, it does not help towards the final. The marks he gives students are unpredictable. When you see his office, you can tell that he is unorganized.
This proff is the best~! his classes are like storytime since he loves to talk about his PhD days and how he kept getting **** in england instead of doing field work!!! Studied only his notes and got a decent midterm mark! Studied night before final, and everyone got the same as their midterm mark!
the course itself is boring so can't blame him for the boring lectures. although he does make the time go by faster with his jokes and stories like the one about his paint that spilt on the bus. the tests are alright. you just have to memorize the textbook.
Most boring class ever. His notes may be simplified, but it's to the point where you learn better from the text than from his notes. Found his class a waste of time. His midterm and final has to be passed through rote memorization. This is not the way a science class should EVER be run.
Laziest prof ever. Grading is totally random. Made us waste money on a booklet of his journal articles that he later admitted were too advanced for our purposes. Not a nice person at ALL when reviewing an exam. Has no respect for students (ie. smoking in his office while students review exams).
Exerts more effort in lectures trying to be funny rather than making the lecture material more comprehensive for students.
No Comments
I only attended 5 or 6 lectures..u just pay him $20 for his notes..and never go back until the midterm..most of the time..he talks about himself..or makes stupid jokes..his tests are all essay questions...boring class...boring course..just get the credits and leave!
His class is totally stupid. I learnt nothing from him and wasted 20 bux on his stupid notes. His notes absolutely messed up.All essay exams, grades almost depend on his mood. I wrote 18 pages(double space)essays in the final exam but only got a B. Just take his course if u wanna write more than me
His lectures are very boring and the mark I got on the midterm was very cose to the final mark. He doesnt do a good job of explaining.material was really easy but he marks exams really hard. midterm 25% and final 75%- he's a very lazy prof. expects too much for his qality of teaching!!
Why's he still here?
Avoid him at all cause! He's probably the most uncaring professor I've seen in first-year university. Boring and boring is all I can say about his lecture. Funny thing is he even asked me for a lighter when I went to his office hour. err...
Blake has really good notes and he is absolutely hilarious!
No Comments
easiest exam questions ever..just memorize text..
This guy is awesome!!! Why would you not want a prof who cracks jokes all the time? Unlike most boring a$$ lectures he tries to put some entertainment into learning. Luv the course!
Dumb jokes mostly, although I laughed my @$$ off a couple of times. Exams extremely unfair; dont know what's expected from you and have to write huge essays. I knew the content EXTREMELY well and wrote in great detail. Got the midterm back - no Xs or comments. So what happened? When I inquired, I was told I lost over 35% for not drawing diagrams!
do not take this prof for bio 121. he only talks about what he wants to talk about and his lectures are sooo bloody boring, but makes weird jokes occasionally. the class notes that he made us purchase were unorganized, unclear, and difficult to study from. textbook was a waste of money as well
Really funny guy. Tests are super easy if you take good notes and memoarize the heck out of them. Gauranteed A if u pay attention to the little amount of information he actually gives during a lecture. Had him for 121 and he was the exact opposite... he's more interested in 325
his notes are crap. sentence fragments everywhere that no one would understand. Don't take him.
Be prepared to get bored.If its a morning class it's ok. U CAN SLEEP. bcoz even if u r awake it wont make a difference.Although i attended most of his classes i hardy understood anything. Notes are horrible. When i look back in my notes there are hardly any complete sentences and none of it makes sense.Believe me he is the most boring humpty dumpty
realli funny guy....as he always laughed at his own jokes...mt n final super easy as long as u memorize everything (specifically his key facts sheets )...not a very organized person so crappy notes should be expected...make sure you write everything he says not everything u see on the projector as they would not even make sense to u after the lectu
Believe me the rating just below mine has been written by the prof himself. Bcoz i know he is the most boring guy. And if u want to write evrything you cant bcoz he never waits for u to write.Not even clear.
I found him very entertaining. He has no lesson plan so his notes are very scattered. Write down everything he says and you will do great on the exams. The exams are all written but very do-able esecially if you read his notes on his webpage.
This class was a nightmare, just horrible notes,horrible professor, horrible everything! just avoid him at all costs. He is hilarious, but I've got channel 57 for that.
Didn't go to 3/4 of his lectures. Don't buy notes, just photocopy from someone else. Waste of money. Get the textbook though, it'll clear up his notes. Weird jokes, crappy teaching style. Exams are very doable but doesn't really tell you how to get good marks. CANCELLED a couple classes without notice. Sleep in if you want to.
the most non-stimulating prof thus far-->class is extremely boring. Voice very monotone, lame attempts to be a comedian fall short. So unfortunate for a potentially interesting course and material to be tainted with poor pedagogy. Material very easy;i played truant 98% of the time yet managed to do substantially well on exams. Attendance optional
Knows his stuff-and knows how to test if you do, too. If you are truly interested in the course, take good notes, and appreciate his humor, you're GUARANTEED an A. Exams are practically "all or nothing" types: open-ended essays that either cause brainfreeze or allow you to strut your stuff-FAST! No time for BS. Review regularly and PAY ATTENTION!
Worst professor I have ever had. Very irresponsible.
Very Boring proffessor. Few interesting clases have nothing to do with the course. Avoid him. Poor attempts at humour, and regularly cancelled classes for no reason. My favorite "Alright class, it is cancelled for today, I can't get the door open". True Story
boring lectures, attendence is optional. if u do the practice exams he handed out u will be fine.. the exams are similar and the ques are repeatitive. Besides the whole course is almost identical to bio 11.. so if u rmb sth from bio11 and at least have some 'common sense' (eg. what's parasitism), this course is nth to worry about.
My fave course! Great prof; knows his stuff well; pretty funny. Notes are skeleton-like. (You need to write down additional things he says to supplement what he writes down.) Exams are easy if you go to class, stay awake, and take good notes. Essay/long-answer style exams. I thought final was much easier than MT. "Textbook" was useless to me.
one of my fave classes at ubc. really easy to get high mark, especially if you're good at writing in an exam setting. just make sure you get his verbal notes essays - you do need to know how to separate material rather than writing everything out to get all marks. the more focussed your essay is and the more relevant is is, the higher mark u get
This guy is probably the worst you can get in bio121 . he cancels classes for no reason, has a bad sense of humour (provokes a few nervous chuckles) and most importantly his notes plain suck. avoid him
One of the worst profs I've ever had. Class is boring and the notes are crap. He tries to be funny but fails miserably. Also, he lost my final exam so I had to deal with him personally. He's very disorganized and doesn't answer e-mails. AVIOD!!
His class is mildly interesting and pretty slack. However, the midterm was a complete joke. There is no guidelines for marks, no example answers to questions, and no sense in the way he grades the paper. You can study as much as u want but good luck with your grade. If you care about school avoid him
His final is easier than midterm.
Excellent sleep inducer, if you have trouble sleeping at night, attend his class. He has messy and writing, and a strange sense of humor...but in general I guess he's a nice guy. I find his voice a mellow drone, but he's an easy prof. study the notes he gives you and the previous exams..they're almost identical! Pick him if you want easy grades
He marks exams randomly and unfairly.
He is a nice guy. He marked the midterm very hard but the final was so easy, it was a joke. Definitely take him if you want a high mark, and a 50 minute nap during class time. Overall tho he is a nice guy!
funny guy. subjective marking because exam questions are all essay, need to know what he says in class because notes are USELESS, exams write as much as u can about wat he has said based on the topic but stay focused. textbook USELESS lol a money maker for him though. overall, a nice funny guy. invite him for some beers after finals.
his class is definitely easier than the other bio 121 prof but dont expect a stellar mark. although he makes it pretty clear what the exams and midterms will cover, he marks very randomly and assigns whatever grade he feels like
Generally good-humored, which helps since the subject matter can be terribly boring. His exams are mostly a repeat of previous ones, but it can sometimes be hard to guess what he wants you to write on certain subjects (his questions are mostly short essay-style). He was late for the final exam and often did not seem terribly interested in class.
easier than other profs teaching bio 121. his notes help a lot. if u think it's better to write short essays for midterms and final, do take his course, but if u prefer multiple choices and some kind of short answer questions, take it with other profs.
Thanks to this guy I have a much greater appreciation for the mediocre teachers I've had in the past. He redifined 'bad prof' for me.
not enough time spent on evolution.
Laughs very hard at his own jokes, which can be entertaining.
hard to understand
not bad
Worst prof I've had!! But his lectures are entertaining cuz all he does is make jokes the whole time and he swears a lot..he's funny...but hard marker!! Exams are all essays...I'm normally an A student and I got 66 in that class...he cancelled SIX classes, 4 of them with NO notice!! His notes aren't even helpful..
I bombed his midterm but did well on the final. It is all about learning the concepts... don't waste your time on small details. Very funny. Bad notes though.. Read over the old exams he gives you, because they don't differ much year to year, and then learn the concepts from his the course package or from the voicemail.
He can be pretty funny. It's important to attend all his classes, cuz u learn the bulk of the course from what he says. His notes are really hard to follow and his yellow book is really brief. The textbook is literally useless. What's good is that he doesnt' test u on the stuff he doesn't teach while absent.
he's a doop
A fairly funny Prof--swears alot-- and sometimes gets out of hand. Overall materials/ lectures are fairly simple and midterms and finals are not difficult; infact a fairly easy marker. Just be sure to attend his class cause the Green booklet is useless.
A relaxed class where you don't have to think too much because he mostly talks and the material is easy to interpret. It helps that he reviews and go over concepts at a relatively slow pace. The lectures are actually quite interesting and his exams are fair but the marking is entirely subjective. Textbook is useful for review only.
Attendance is basically mandatory cuz the not package is practically useless. Don't just copy down what he writes but EVERYTHING he says. Then just spit everything back out on the exam.
he is GREAT! i dunno wht people leave negative feedbacks..just so you guys know he doesnt do much and he doesnt expect much..read his booklet and ull do fine..textbook is a waste of money..i didnt go to any of his classes and i got an A. he is really caring and nice. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
His exact quotes : "England is playing Croatia for a birth in the Euro 2008. Should they win, I will be marking finals generously, if they loose.....". Well as we all know, England is out which means that would be in a bad mood... Good luck everyone on final results.
oh god... this guy is the worst guy ever! he doesn't tell you what he wants for the essays you have to write for the midterm and final, which screws you over BIG TIME
It's sad if you take his biology course
I thought he was really funny, one of the funniest teachers I've had. It's is definately not your usual textbook course and so preparing for a test can be challenging...all tests are written and very specific. I would take just because there isn't half as much reading as in other bio courses and he only teaches the interesting stuff!
he's very easy going and cracks a lot of jokes in class. he makes the lecture more interesting. if you follow what he says in lecture and his booklet, you should get an A.
For first and third year bio... Funny guy with entertaining lectures. Tends to ramble in class - you need to be good at reorganizing the information yourself. Always long-answer written questions - easy, but for some reason always marked me poorly, despite me knowing the material extremely well, and giving correct answer. Misread my exam answers.
He was the worst, rudest, meanest, bitterest, least enthusiastic, prof i had in my 4 years at UBC. If it were up to me, I'd fire this guy. I had a complaint about him and went to the bio office and said, "i have a complaint about a bio prof." Right off the bat, the secretary said, "Is it dr. Blake?". must get lots of complaints bout him. notorious!
Loved his class. I went to about 50% of the lectures at most, and still managed an A. Don't buy the textbook. To prepare for exams, make a detailed outline for all the sample exam questions he gives you in his course notes. This is the only way you can study for his essay-based exams, and it's not that hard or that much work! Good for first year
Strange prof. Talks of ****es a lot. Has funny stories but doesnt teach much. Tests are randomly marked proabably depending on his mood.
this guy was AWESOMEEEEEE one of the funniest and hottest teachers i have ever met! midterms and finals are extremely easyyyyyyy, just read his lil blue book, best of luck! cheers!
questions on final and midterm tend to repeat after you've gone through 3/4 the past exams in the book he sells to you which is really useful
He's definietely a character! He reminded me of one those chilled out guy, blazing in the basement time to time, and i mean that in the nicest way. He's sarcastic, cynical, but really funny. If you're a goodie goodie who can't take some dirty jokes time to time, then well.. thats just you. I thought he sticked to the book very closely, I've studied
Funny guy who made a subject I wasn't really interested in not all bad. His exams were fair, tip: write until your hand hurts!! Notes package was not that useful, except for the old exams that were included, do those and you are set!!
Very entertaining prof. Very easy class if you go and write down everything he says and spit it back out on the exam. Class avg was 80
laid back, cynical, and sarcastic are the ways to describe him. have lots of immature jokes(some quite funny).I found that I needed his custom notes & textbook cuz they build on top of each other. Class is VERY dull but if u take notes(do NOT attempt to draw stats cuz ALL in books)=high B or A :) Best bio prof of my year!
LOL, he's a joke, and so is the class. Possibly the easiest first year biology class ever. Buy or borrow his lecture note that he sells, no need to study or use the text. His midterm/final are questions from previous years, some are exact questions. If you want the easy way out, take his class; if you want to learn the material, don't.
Horrible prof.Useless lectures,and does NOT care for students whatsoever.I was a 90% student in bio12.Midterm based on 3 def questions + 1 essay..I regurgitated half the text from the blue book he sells you and thought I did well..turned out i got 63.The marking was the MOST unfair I've ever seen.looks for the most technical details missing. avoid.
Classes are very laid back and easy. He is very funny, and jokes and swears alot. Don't ask stupid questions or he'll make fun of you. Overall the course is easy and light. If you can write a proper essay you'll get an A. He is very helpful in his office hours. You have to take notes, which is basically coping what he writes. Interesting course
I guess if you can listen to someone with a monotonous voice, this is going to be a pretty easy course for you. If you're like me and can't stand listening to something in the same tone for 50 minutes, avoid if at all possible. He has the potential to put you to sleep due to the slowpace of his voice and is a picky marker. He is, however, easygoing
probably the most BORING prof ever at ubc.. dont listen to all those 'funny' comments about him..he cracks 1 or 2 weird jokes occasionally and laughs hysterically at them himself..EXTREMELY unorganized. worst yet, DONT KNOW WUT HE EXPECTS IN HIS EXAMS..requires LOADs of Long essays..and takes off as many marks as he likes. HE'S A NIGHTMARE!!
He is possibly the most boring teacher ever. He talks so slow and it puts you to sleep. If you don't bring your laptop, you will surely die from his "teaching". He makes comments/"jokes" that are rude and not even funny. He swears which is disrespectful. Midterm/final easy if you put an effort. Questions exactly the same as old exams that he sells.
Not reliable. Final exam was on dec 18th, it is now january 3rd and the marks are not up. He's good in the sense that he gives you a bunch of sample exams from which he draws exam questions so all you have to do is memorize.Class notes worthless, booklet hard to decipher as wording is screwed up and unrelated topics are put together.
HUM...Useless, unhelpful...BAH! don't take...seriously. Marks UNFAIRLY and INCONSISTENTLY. I got 69 in the midterm, and ended up with an 80 in the final. HUM.
He will put you to sleep. Guaranteed. And yes, the textbook is definitely necessary (on top of his booklet) because concepts are not explained well in class. The marking is a joke it doesn't matter if you're good in sciences or not. I almost failed Bio 12 in high school and I came out with 80% in this class. His final is worth 75% of your mark.
Most hilarious science prof at UBC. I laughed at least once every M W R because of this guy. Class was easy; just take good notes (exactly what he says) and write as much as you can on exams. Easy A if you know how to regurgitate.
No clear marking rubric. Randomly assigns a mark. And you will fall asleep even if you do intravenous caffeine injection.
Class Info
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.15 avg changeRatings by Course
121
5.0
(1)BIOL357
4.0
(1)BIOL325
3.5
(29)BIO325
3.5
(11)325
3.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
BIOL
4.5
BIOLOGY120
4.0
BIO112
3.7
BIOL121
3.1
121
3.0