2.1
Quality3.9
DifficultyN/A
Would Retake107
ReviewsN/A
Would Retake
107
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
10
4
8
3
20
2
35
1
34
What Students Say
“Horrible at professing and teaching”
CHEM1110 - 1.0 rating“unfair grading policies & ineffectual lab manner resulted in a full letter drop”
CHEM112 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.31 avg changeRatings by Course
SCIENCE
5.0
(1)CHEM1020
5.0
(1)HISTSCI
4.0
(1)GENERALCHEM
4.0
(1)CHEMISTRY1110
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
CHEM112
5.0
HIST2810
5.0
CHEMISTRY1110
5.0
CHEMISTRY1120
5.0
CHEMCHEM
5.0
Reviews (107)
No Comments
Horrible at professing and teaching. You have to teach yourself.
unfair grading policies & ineffectual lab manner resulted in a full letter drop
He was no help and his overall teaching ability is terrible
very vague
He honestly doesn't care whether you understand the material or not. When you ask him for help he relies with GO LOOK AT THINKWELL! Go for Northrup. He is the one who makes your hour exams anyway.
Useless! He can't teach and can't profess but that doesn't bother him in the least. He is the single worst professor I've ever taken. You must teach yourself, which is very hard when you don't have an actual book to look at (he uses thinkwell.) Horrible!
if you can teach yourself based on an internet textbook then GREAT class. he never teaches just talks about stuff that is never on the test or exams. likes when his students are confused and when they fail, thinks its a compliment.
No Comments
unless your female, though not necessarily pretty, and sit in the front row, you'll have to steal notes from someone in Northrups class to have a chance of making a decent grade. Our class consistently has the lowest score on the hour exams,
I HATE THOSE POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS HE USES!!!! He is a nice guy but a hard teacher because he thinks you should understand things he never explained, oh, except on that powerpoint thing which he runs through so fast. He should focus on material not po
No Comments
horrible teacher.. be prepared to teach yourself if you want to pass
Very nice guy after class, but incredibly hard and vague in class!
STEER CLEAR. If you are better off teaching yourself chemistry, then you can try your luck. He is very arrogant and overbearing at times. He tries to make you feel like an idiot because you dont know something that he never covered...etc.
You really do have better luck learning the material yourself. Even then there is no guarentee that you'll do well on his quizzes and test. Avoid this class as best as you can! If you can't, study like you've never studied before and find help!
he uses powerpoint and clicks so fast you cant take notes. He doesnt give a flip about his students
this dude sucks dont ever take him he will ruin your life. he is very full of himself and doesnt even understand what he is teaching.
Worst teacher I've ever had, stay far far away.
If you love chemistry, you will love this man, you get two lectures instead of one, Thinkwell and the class lecture, yay. I went to lectures, didn't do thinkwell at all, got a C. He's boring, but oh well. Dry sense of humor is kind of funny.
No Comments
he's A ok in my book!
I liked the guy. Not the best teacher in the world, but very likeable. And remember, chemistry is a hard subject to teach to an auditorium full of people.
I took the WebCT course and it was going fine, until the 2nd test came around. Some students were cheating by circulating the test answer sheets to each other. It blew my curve, and put me behind one semester for graduation. I had to withdraw from it.
He has two flaws: 1:He's extremely self-absorbed. Spent the first 20 minutes of class on how to pronounce his name, though we still call him Fartsch. 2: he confuses himself easily, and then makes it up as he goes to protect his ego.
yes his class is hard!!! but what cham isn't he does not teach it very well and he picks on people a lot in class. be ready to study your ass off. i got a B
Dr. Furtsch is one of the most brilliant people on campus and he is a great asset to the University when it comes to the research side of things. However, he belongs in a lab, not a classroom. Make a study group with studens from another section.
The man needs to stick with research!! Can't lecture. Very knowledgeable. Raises more questions than he answers.
This old bald guy is the smartest man around, but the guy makes no sence. Take his class and you will be better off staying in bed for an extra hour of sleep.
he's horrible take somebody else or don't take the class
Ah, he's not so bad. Yes, he confuses the heck out of himself, but he knows more about chemistry than anyone else, so if you come to class and pay attention, you'll learn it.
he is intellegent it's just that he cant relate the material to life. I would advise for anyone to take one of the other chem teachers. Two of the other men substituted for us on two different occasions and they were a lot more clear
He is really hard to understand and doesn't seem to even understand himself sometimes. He is a nice man outside the classroom, but he doesn't know how to help people because HE CAN'T TEACH!!!!
Furtsch explained about a grand total of 2 class periods coherently to where I benefited. The rest was up for grabs and I learned most of my stuff from OWL or people in other sections. Pirates and Lumberjacks DO agree: I am a badass.
I thought he was a good teacher. If you show anyt interest in class, he will be glad to talk to you after. Respects intelligent people and asking hard questions. Does not respect social sciences / humanities.
He is so boring, and relied too heavily upon online homework (OWL is awful). He rambles on and on in class about chemistry, but what he covers in lecture rarely shows up on tests. Sort of easy to pass, but find a different professor if you can.
No Comments
any teacher with powerpoint slides should try just a little harder to help their students understand the material
This guy knows more about chemistry than every other professor there, sure he has a hard time explaining some things but he is a funny teacher and a wise guy too. I learned more in his class than the semester prior to taking him. Take him for the Humor.
No Comments
Not a very good TEACHER (key word)=TEACHER
No Comments
I loathe chemistry, but this guy was mean and sarcastic enough to make me like it. He uses Northrup's notes, as does EVERYONE ELSE. OWL is also a departmental plague. The class is easy if you go to class, and do the cursed owl homework before it's due. Boring subject, great teacher.
he is a horrible teacher and extremely hard to understand. i was actually considering a chemistry major before i took him. ive always made good grades until i came to his class.DO NOT TAKE HIM!
crappy teacher. dont take him.
He is definitely not the best, but it could be worse. He is sarcastic and sometimes rude and his tests are very hard. You can't rely on lectures alone or you will fail. You have to do homework and practice problems
He is the worst teaher I hae ever had. He does not teach. He uses northrup's notes and powerpoint slides. Anyone can do that. I hate him. He has confused me more than helped me. I WOULD NOT TAKE HIM!!!!!!!! TAKE NORTHRUP!!!!
He is the WORST teacher I have had. He was extremely rude, unclear, and was not helpful in the least bit. I learned more each week in Dr.Lisic's lab than from this professor. DO NOT TAKE HIM!
He's not as bad as everyone says...Chemistry is a hard course no matter who you take. He is always willing to help you if you go to his office hours or email him. Go to class and read the text and you should do fine.
I would suggest taking another professor. He's happy to help you, but the help he gives isn't very good. He confuses himself and the rest of the class. He's smart but not a very good teacher. This makes his tests REALLY hard. Keep up your lab grade and you might squeeze by. There's also a big curve.
Rude, overbearing and a bit **** with a dry sense of humor... his own sense of humor. Tests were all over the board, one from lecture, the next from readings, etc. Take notes, read, study and hope. I don't reccommend him as a teacher myself... if chemistry, take anybody else.
If you can't take his way of teaching, you don't need to be in a 4 year college. This is the real world. He offers as much help as possible, has the easiest tests in the department, and grades on a curve. All you have to do is study which builds your character and work ethic.
Chemistry is a hard a class but furtsch helps by answering questions and helping students after class. hes test are hard but he curves the final grade.
I would not recomend taking Furtsch's CHEM class. He does not know how to teach, and he commonly confuses himself during lecture. If you already know chemistry, then it would not be a bad idea to take his class because he curves his quizes a decent amount, just don't expect to learn much from him.
Basically to put it bluntly he SUCKS. Yes, he grades on a curve, reopens OWL at the end of the semester. But he skips over some major notes bc he can never keep up bc during class he goes of on unimportant tangents. Study, dont trust OWL, and pray........A LOT!!!!!!
Furtsch is a smart,funny man ,but a horrible teacher. His tests are harder than the rests but he gives a larger curve.If you want an A,you will have to work your a** off to get it.He makes the tests difficult for a person on his chem level, not a freshman. Just be willing to work if you have him!
CHEM 1110/1120 tests are standard for the department. His tests are neither harder nor easier than anyone else's. His quizzes may be harder or easier, but not the tests. Advice: take Swartling, if possible.
Yeah, the only class im failing because he throws in random questions for no reason. oh i have to know every chemical compound known to man, hell ****in yeah
He's cool for seeming like an ****, but he does try to help, i just wish he could schedule stuff for those of us taking more than 19 hours of class, when do we get to study?
Took summer class. He is willing to help any time you need it, just ask. And for those of you who say an "A" is impossibe, I got A's in 1110 and 1120 because I did work hard and I got alot of help. Tutoring is free.
Furtsch is hilarious. I had heard that he wasn't a very good professor, but he actually turned out to be very good. I really enjoyed his class.
Furtch is possibly the worst professor on campus. He's horrible at teaching and doesn't know what the hell he's talking about most the time. Avoid him at all costs.
Wow, I really don't like this class. He isn't a very good teacher, and i have learned 80% of that class from OWL. He tends to try and explain things through chemical equations...it doesn't work. His drawings suck too, and he has a very bad tendancy to go off on a tangents. You can study your a** off and still fail. JUST GET NORTHRUP.
He has to be the wors teacher ive ever taken. he makes the exams harder than any other teacher, i know because i have compared them with the other profesors. Avoid at all cost
Great teacher! very intelligent, funny, witty, and fair. his lectures are interesting, and his quizzes are harder than the other chem profs., which means that you will be more prepared for the final exam. he is reasonable, does everything he can to help, even opens up OWL to be done even if it is past due. Take him! he is not hard, the class is!
Waste of a class. It would be nice if he lived up to the rep of a nice little bald guy but Furtsch is avwaste of your time during class and gets behind quick. He can't really explain anything that he teaches. He offers no curve like the other chem professors- get out the first week if you can.
Not the most helpful or entertaining, but I pulled an easy A. Do the online homework, take notes, glance at the tests online, don't bother reading the book, and you'll do fine too.
He rushes through material. His quizes and tests are crazy hard unless you devote all study time to chem. He forgot to pass out evaluation at the end of semester. He said "you guys didn't want to do those anyway did ya". When I complained to head of Chem dept I was told he has tenyear and only has to do those ever other semester.
No Comments
I hate chemistry with a passion, and this is the worst teacher that teaches it here. If you see STAFF and there is the slightest chance he teaches it, just don't risk it like I did. I messed up bad and now I am praying that I pass.
What can you say about fursch....HE IS REALLY HARD!!!If you take this class good luck gettin an A or even a B!!!He tries to make you fail and loves to see you suffer...i have one word for you Northrup!
His class was extremely easy because i already took Differential Equations. Look for at least 20 hours per week of studying.
Dr. Furtsch is a really wonderful, intelligent professor. He's always willing to help, even with other classes. His lectures are very interesting. He grades fairly. He's funny. He is just an all around awesome guy. I would definitely reccommend him to anyone who wants to learn Chemistry. I feel very blessed to have been his student.
No Comments
He is definitely the worse teacher i have ever had. He can not teach and doesn't even know how to do what he is teaching. We had a review session and he got the questions off of OWL then worked on the board and he missed 75% of the questions. If at all possible drop and get different teacher.
GRRR, he covers the material so quickly and so inadequately that you have no chance on the quizzes. His quizzes are insane to begin with, but with the lack of actual teaching that occurs, it's made worse. Don't take him for a professor, unless you REALLY like Chemistry, you'll hate his class......
STAY AWAY FROM HIS CLASS!!! Boring, hard, doesnt know material, messes up on equations, ect. BAD CLASS!!! Take Northrup.
I thought maybe Chemistry just wasn't my strong points, but looking at everyone's comments, I realize that it was him. He moved way to fast for Chemistry 1. He gives way too many online problems. I ended up forgetting to do them, and the tests were just too hard. I have to retake it next semester now. I heard Swartling or Northrup is good.
He gives too many online problems!! And he sucks at providing straight answers to questions. His tests are insane and horrible. No one is doing great unless you happen to be a genius or a chemistry finatic. Good luck... (you'll need it.)
Great guy, but I couldn't understand his explanations at all, so I had to learn from my book and OWL. If you study you'll be fine, but very frustrated.
He is a great guy, but he aint that great of a teacher. His quizzes are really hard and you have to work your tail off. He will help you when you need it though.
TERRIBLE teacher. Can't even work the review problems correctly. Drop him if you get him. Quizzes are very hard.
Furtsch was a horrible teacher. He went SO fast. I loved chemistry in high school & I was great at it, but once I got to his class, I was screwed. He doesn't explain things well at all. He gives WAY too many OWL problems & his quizzes are EXTREMELY hard compared to Swartling's. Take Swartling or Northrup if you can. Do NOT take Furtsch!!
Furtch can not explain any of the material clearly. DO NOT take him, you'll regret it! Quizzes are very hard, and offers no extra credit. Does not prepare you for Chem 1120.
I ended up dropping the class. Chemistry is definitely not my strong subject, and I wasn't learning anything in his class. Very hard, but he is willing to help I guess. I wouldn't recommend this teacher unless you are really good at Chemistry.
He might know the material but doesn't know how to teach it. very hard quizzes and test. He won't help you if you don't understand the material.
he is the most useless teacher!!! he is the worst teacher i ever had. don't ever think about getting him. he is hard in tests, and quizzes and doesn't know how to teach
He's not that great of a teacher, but he does give extra credit on owl sometimes. He has sample quizes online and sometimes the questions are on the actual tests. If you like chemistry and can teach yourself you'll do fine.
Very gangster, not a stranger to the streets, nor to the hustle.
Completely HORRIBLE! Doesn't ever teach, but you probably will want to go to class because he gives extra credit with the clicker. Do all the OWL and the extra credit possible because you will need it! Does give a pretty good curve on the final grade, but if you want to learn anything, I would AVOID FURTSCH!!!
He sits at the front of the class, says nothing, and then expects you to know everything that will be on the test, your grade will most likely suffer...I suggest avoiding this one if at all possible...
Truth is, he's not a good teacher, this isn't an evaluation from a student with an ax to grind, I'm seriously warning you, it doesn't matter how interested you are in the subject going to this class will suck the life out of you, if you need to learn anything about chemistry, don't take him, because he doesn't teach anything at all...
Nice guy horrible prof. He will expect students to know everything, regardless of how little he goes over. Fails to cover all material, makes frequent mistakes while working problems, lectures are rushed and unorganized. If you have Furtsch you'd better love the book and be good at teaching yourself, because you won't get anything from his class
Nice guy help at every matter and also if you are goos at studies then you got A or B.Take him he is nice
Good professor, tells you from the start you have to study and work problems or you will fail. Posts notes on the internet and will help if you ask for it. Just do work and its an easy A or B.
terrible teacher. whatever you do DO NOT TAKE HIM!!! can't teach and smarts off constantly at you. if you can teach yourself you might have a chance of barely betting by.
He doesn't do particularly badly and if you enjoy a joke at his expense you'll probably love him.
He's a really nice guy, and he's fun to talk to, but tenure is the only reason Furtsch is still teaching. He gets problems wrong in class all the time.
I had Furtsch for both Chem 1 and 2. He's actually a pretty good guy once you get to know him. He may stumble a bit in class sometimes but he will ALWAYS help you out if you catch him in his office. Really good with email and I think he curves his grades. One of the better ones in the Chem dept.
He's not a great teacher, but he's entertaining. Any time I went to his office to talk about chemistry, we ended up listening to Soviet-period classical music.
I like him as a person; he is very inteligent and knows his material. Thst being said, he has trouble teaching it, I haven't attended a class yet that he didn't make numerous mistakes. Often times it is hard to understand where he is going with his point. He admits there are problems with Webassign but continues to hurt students Gpa with its use.
Furtsch is a cool guy, but he's hard to learn from. He's got a monotone and likes to talk down to the class when messing up on tests and homework assignments. He's very smart with chemistry but isn't a great teacher. He doesn't like doing whole problems in class often but will go over some homework stuff. He gives a lot of time to do homework.
Furtsch is a good guy just not the best teacher. He goes over a lot of problems in class, but usually goes quickly and doesn't finish the problem. Overall, not bad, but not the best.
Not a good teacher
I believe that Furtsch is a good professor. I do not know why he has such a bad rep. He is very helpful, gives a lot of time on homework, announces test in plenty of time, puts all in-class notes online, and he curves. What more can you ask for?
Furtch is a horrible professor. He doesn't teach any material and doesn't care about his students. He has completely screwed his class this year over when it comes to the final. He told us that since he didn't have time to get everything together that we were on our own for chapters 9, 10, and the final. DO NOT TAKE HIM!!!!!
Dr. Furtsch is an AWESOME professor. I learned so much about chemistry from him. I went to class, studied and did the homework and make an A.
Class Info
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.31 avg changeRatings by Course
SCIENCE
5.0
(1)CHEM1020
5.0
(1)HISTSCI
4.0
(1)GENERALCHEM
4.0
(1)CHEMISTRY1110
3.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
CHEM112
5.0
HIST2810
5.0
CHEMISTRY1110
5.0
CHEMISTRY1120
5.0
CHEMCHEM
5.0