Nicholson, Lisa  

I liked Dr. N. I took the online course because I didn't get into the in-class one, thinking it would be easier. I had difficulty staying on top of the weekly homework assignments and listening to the lectures, but the online quizzes were really easy. The quizzes, however, do not compare at all to the midterm and final. Those require a ton of studying, so make sure to put in the hours through out the quarter to stay on track. Study the entire study guide and know it inside and out and you will be fine. Overall, fair class and great teacher who obviously loves what she does. Take her.

Excellent professor. The material is a bit hard to memorize or understand at times but she is willing to help if you talk to her often in office hours. She's also passionate about what she's teaching so it makes taking her so much better!

Dr. Nicholson is a very nice teacher. She is certainly very well versed in nutrition and food science. However, the class was way too much work for a general ed. The class seems easy in the beginning with simple assignments and easy quizzes. When the final and midterm come around, though, it gets very difficult and complex. The study guides have around 300 questions on them (1 question usually has 5 sub-questions). I put in a ton of studying for the tests, probably around 12 hours for the final, which was far less than I studied for my upper division major course. That being said, you could probably cut the studying down if you stay up with the reading and constantly ask questions. It is an interesting class, but be aware of the intricacy and thoroughness she demands, I wish someone had warned me.

Nicholson is a pretty good teacher. You cover a lot of material in her class, but she makes sure you know what you have to know for the tests. I'd recommend taking her lecture class as opposed to the online one just because you stay much more involved. She gets sidetracked really easily, but most of the time it's about interesting stuff. Her class always goes right up to the end, so don't expect to get out early. Follow the study guide when studying for the tests and make sure to know your vitamins for the final. Overall, solid class!

Extremely irresponsible and disorganized. I took her online class and she was so unclear. The due dates on her e-mails were different than PolyLearn. She took forever to grade things. Her tests were impossible.

I was in her. In person class and it's definitely not THAT bad. I managed to do well enough, and science is definitely not my strong point. The tests are difficult, and in my opinion, there is just too much material covered. Doing the online practice definitely helps for the quizzes, which are pretty easy, as well as the tests. She keeps you the full two hours, which can be tough, but if you listen closely, there are some interesting little comments that just kinda slip out of her mouth. It was an interesting class, and I'd probably recommend taking it in person rather than online. Overall, it's not that hard to at least pass the class with a C, and I'm proof that a high B or B + is definitely manageable with some studying. I bought the book, never read it, just skimmed it before tests and quizzes. Also, she's really enthusiastic and nice.

Professor Nicholson is the sweetest lady! She is extremely knowledgable about the subject and really wants to see her students succeed. Going to her office hours is really helpful and she gives in depth study guides for the midterm and final. Sometimes the material is a little difficult but If you do the work it is impossible to fail! I highly suggest this class.

I LOVE professor Nicholson! Don't get me wrong - this class is not a walk in the park. The tests require a LOT of studying to do well on, but she gives you a study guide that helps tremendously. Nicholson is a super sweet lady and loves answering questions. I loved her enthusiasm on nutrition, and her difficulty made me truly understand the basics of nutrition as outlined in this class. I recommend taking her if you are up for a little bit of a challenge and are willing to out in the work but truly want to understand/learn nutrition!

Not only is she a really good teacher but she is one of the sweetest people! I messed up on a project worth almost as much as the final, and she gave me an extension. Three people showed up late to our final but she still let me them take it. As far as her teaching style, she teaches to the test. Shell always tell you to star something if it is going to be on the midterm/final, and it always is. Towards the end, she had to rush through a few chapters that ended up being the majority of the final, but as long as you put the work in, her class is not too bad.

Nicholson is super sweet! She is really nice and smily and is very understanding of students problems. I have heard that the online class is easier, but I learned a lot from this class. I would take her if you really want to learn about nutrition

Nicholson was my first professor at Poly and she was Awesome! FSN 250 is a somewhat interesting class but it would not have been as interesting if it weren't for her. She taught the material really well and was very reasonable with grading. She also has a food day! Everyone brings in ethnic food for a project. It can't get much better than that.

This is not a hard class. Dr. Nicholson gets really into it and it can be interesting at times, but powerpoint after powerpoint gets boring. You're graded on 2 75 point assignments (all you have to do is answer personal questions about your eating habits EASY), 2 150 point reports (also easy because all the info is in the book), 150 point midterm (she tells you what's on it), 200 point final (same as midterm), and a 150 point final presentation (just include all the info she asks for and you'll be fine). The class has 1000 points, and you can do up to 60 ec points that are easy. So if you do the math, you can bump your grade 6% points by annotation websites, watching a movie, eating at an ethnic restaurant. However, this class is so easy it would be sad if you actually had to do that to save you from failing the class. Take it, you can relax all quarter for 4 hours a week.

Every lecture is power point, it gets a bit boring and tedious. The tests are all pretty easy straight from lecture. Do the extra credit offered because the final is really hard compared to all the other tests so that extra credit will really help you out. There were a couple of projects throughout the quarter mostly a big group project at the end. There is a big party with food and what not at the end of the quarter. The class is pretty easy just a little boring.

Professor Nicholson was an absolutely amazing professor. As I write this I try to think of the faults she might have and I really can't think of any. I took an online version of this class, which she ran, where we came to class once the first week, once for the midterm, and once for the final and that was it. I didn't get very much facetime with her but she made quite an impression on me. Most of our communication was between E-mails and Blackboard but I really enjoyed having her as my teacher. What really impressed me about her as a professor was how understanding and caring she was towards her students. Nicholson would go out of her way to help out her students. She was great at understanding our problems and difficulties and always found the best solutions. Definitely take her if you have a chance.

Contrary to the rest of the comments below, I did not enjoy Professor Nicholson at all. I took her FSN 250 online course last quarter and she seemed to be mentally out to lunch the entire time. I was confused about due dates on projects and assignments because she altered the syllabus every week. We had to work on a wiki page and she never explained how to create it, but rather assumed we would figure it out on our own. I was disappointed with the lack of dedication she appeared to have with the course. She was ridiculously unorganized, forgetful, and clumsy. She must have realized that the class was getting peeved with her constant amendments to the course schedule because she finally wrote an apology email to the class. In fact, that was one of the only email responses I ever got from her since she missed all the others I had sent and blamed it on "phone error" at the end of the quarter. Coincidentally, she also forgot to bring in her evaluation sheets during the final. I don't trust this teacher nor do I like her. Perhaps the people below loved this class because it was incredibly easy and a "fun" waste of time. I can't think of any other reason. I'm sure the next person to leave a comment will criticize this review. Too bad I'm honest and not in denial like the rest. Take this class, but don't expect too much from this lackadaisical instructor who makes CalPoly look bad.

Worst nutrition class I've ever taken.

If there is any perfect example of why some people are meant to be teachers allow me to introduce exhibit A: Dr. Nicholson. Within the first 5 minutes of class it's evident that teaching is her passion and she loves her students. I loved having her for 250 however the material in this class was a little boring: mostly learning theories and stuff. However, her enthusiasm and positive attitude as well as classroom discussions compelled me to go to class. Participate in those discussios as much as you can so she knows your name and knows you have some good ideas/thoughts. Often, there's no right or wrong answer but more like how well you can argue your point.

She is absolutely positively one of the BEST professors at Cal Poly. She is not only a great professor, but a great role model, and just a great person all around.

Dr. Nicholsen is one of those rare teachers you encounter that, with endless energy and enthusiasm, is an example of how positive life can be. Even though the subjects she taught weren't really my cup of tea, I took away life lessons. She has the innate skill of making you feel comfortable, and if you have the opportunity to get to know her, she will enable you to be a better person overall, if not just academically. Lovely person, teacher, role model!

Super understanding. helpful. gives nutrition knowledge and info not found with other professors.

Dr. Nicholson is great! She is sweet, caring, and smart. She really wants to help students and is always available. She keeps a tight ship though with lots of projects and essays.

This was a relatively easy class. The main reason why you need the book is to do the four homework assignments, she covers all the material you need to know for the tests during lecture. Watch out, she seems sweet but is a very hard grader on her short answer test questions.

During this entire quarter all I could think about was how this professor reminded me of that small little dog that runs through the back of scene 23 in The Incredibles by Pixar. Seriously, if you look it up you will only be able to see it...