Szlavik, Robert  

Without a doubt he is knowledgeable on the subject, but within BMED 310, probably about 45 minutes net of what he drones on about throughout the entirety of the quarter is actually used in labs and examinations, which can make things confusing and frustrating in labs.

Szlavik resembles a santa claus like figure. He definitely knows the material and seems like he has a lot of experience in the field of biomedical engineering. His MatLab and SPICE modules weren't too hard and his labs were okay. However he doesn't specify in too much detail what he wants from labs and thats an inconvenience because by the time you get your first lab back, you've already tunred in two labs. He does however go over in class about how to do most of the code so its not hard to actually do the labs. I'm defintely taking futre BMED and ENGR classes with him.

Definitely a profesor who knows the material he's teaching. I agree that he doesnt go far into details about his expectations of lab work but when approached with a problem, he is available and will help.

Capitaaaaaaalllllll D douche!!

Best prof in the BMED department - all of the quiz and test questions come right out of the homework or the examples he does in class. A little bit boring during lecture, but he's really easy to learn from!

He talks way too fast and doesn't really answer anyones question. When someone asks him a question, he answers it in a fashion where he goes around it and never really gets to the point. His test are short but a lot of material. He is a really smart guy but he's just so hard to understand.

This guy is a genius and the tests are very fair - everything on the tests is from the homework or directly from the notes. 10/10 would recommend.

Szlavik is by far the most straight forward professor I've had in the BMED department. He provides everything you need to do well (homework that is just like the tests, solution keys, powerpoints, in class problems). He isn't very upbeat in class, but if you pay attention, you'll do fine. I put this class off for a long time after EE 201, and after 440 with him, I love EE and started to take more EE classes. This guy is awesome.

https://bmed.calpoly.edu/static/media/uploads/faculty/szlavik.jpg P*ssy Destroyer

The first half of 440 is very straightforward: you essentially cover basic circuits and op-amps and it's easy stuff. There's usually an in-class practice problem that covers this stuff so you get it quick. The next half gets a little more qualitative where you discuss ECGs and pacemakers and membrane voltages. It gets harder to follow the lecture b/c Szlavik's not terribly clear on what the objectives are for the lecture so you're not totally sure what you need to know. However, the optional hws give you a pretty good idea and he goes over a practice midterm and final before each exam. Sometimes the exam problems are even taken directly from the hws or from a previous MT on the final. Szlavik's cool though, he's really nice and knowledgeable. Especially if you're interested in the subject material, he's a great resource. The labs are straightforward PSPICE or MATLAB simulations. They're short – most people are done in an hour or less.

Negatives: Some people might take Szlavik's directness as him being rude or dismissive, but he really tries to help all of his students and cares about their learning. The second half of the course has more qualitative learning (almost in the vein of BIO 231), so if that's not your thing then it may be a little annoying for you. Sometimes it's hard to tell what Szlavik is looking for because there's a lot of content for a fairly short midterm. Positives I didn't have a great experience in either Physics III or EE 201. I was also bad with op-amps in BMED 310, so I was a bit concerned coming into this class. Szlavik pretty much immediately made me feel more confident with the material and simplified and explained it incredibly well. I actually almost enjoy doing circuits now because I feel like they've been demystified for me. Midterms are fair and cover material he covers in class. The homework is optional, but it pretty accurately reflects the midterm so I'd suggest doing it. Even if you're MD or general concentration and never plan on touching EE ever again, Szlavik's course won't become a pain in your ass and a lot of the material is interesting in a general "pursuit of knowledge" kind of way. Labs are like simpler versions of BMED 310 and should pretty much never take the full 3 hours. They're a mix of MATLAB, SPICE, and PSPICE, and the reports are short and to the point. A lot of people finish the lab and the report in the lab period, but you can dip early if you want to. TLDR - This class is easy and rewarding if you go to class and ask for help if you need it. Szlavik is a great professor who wants you to succeed and teaches quite effectively.

Szlavik is a walking textbook. He is very smart and knows what he is talking about. He is very helpful if you ask, and the warmup problems were the best part of the class because they were so beneficial for practicing for exams. My problem with his lecture style is that it is just plain boring. It's like trying to listen to an audiobook of a textbook for 1.5 hours straight without being able to pause. Dense black & white powerpoint slides don't stop coming for 1.5 hours while the class starts at 6pm. It becomes nearly impossible to focus and understand what Szlavik is trying to teach. Students either need a break for 5-10 mins in the middle of lecture, or have the class earlier in the day, or make the class more engaging and exciting. Szlavik is such a cool guy, but man these lectures are painful to get through. Overall, pretty easy class. Homework isn't turned in, our grade is made of exams and lab reports. Exams are fair/easy-ish without much studying. Lab reports take maybe an hour and are individual.

szlavik is the shit. he\'s like a textbook that talks to you with random one-liners thrown in the mix... and if you pay close enough attention to hear those then you should be fine in any szlavik course. ive had szlavik for 3 BMED classes and i will say that he does take some getting used to but once you do you actually might enjoy an engineering class. he doesnt assign much work and as long as you do the homework, you will see the exact same problems on the test with the numbers changed. overall he shoots for class average test scores of 80%. there is no textbook, and the lecture slides he posts will have blanks you need to fill in which is useful for notetaking, especially considering how quickly he talks. here\'s a one-liner he likes to use in bmed 440: \"this class is like drowning- once you stop struggling its not so bad\"

Szlavik is my favorite professor at Cal Poly. He presents material extremely clearly and provides written-out notes (during class, not posted online) knowing that students will use them to study later. He is an absolute baller. His bioinstrumentation classes are the shining light at the end of the dark, depressing EE tunnel

Took him for several BMED classes. 300 level, 400 level, or grad level, Szlavik's lectures are directly off the slides. The tests? They consist of the EXACT same problems he does for examples and homework. Spend a day, hell, a night of honest studying before each exam and you'll have your A. That has to be my only gripe... that his tests reflect his low expectation of students. On a nicer note, Szlavik is extremely knowledgeable. Bastard's a living, breathing engineering textbook on legs. Very approachable in office hours and very pleasant guy. Take him... and if you want to learn, ask questions. He'll have answers.

This dude is dope and 555 is a sweet class. He totally prepares you and his test are extremely fair. Not an easy subject but he knows how to teach it.

he looks like an older version of Peter Griffin from Family Guy