Keeling, Elena  

Keeling is overall just bad. her tests are unnecessarily difficult considering the rather straight forward material. i helped other students with their comprehension and did not receive an A myself.. maybe im the idiot.. anyways she is just not a great lecturer and a poor explainer of overall simple biological themes. If you can choose another professor or want to wait for a better priority for a different teacher i recommend that. If you want a GE class, it baffles me that this is an option if you are signed up and are not a bio/chem/some science major that needs 161 get the fuck out of it because its miserable. literately.

Professor Keeling is really informative in her lectures and thanks to it, the information presented to you seems worthy and exciting. She also immerses you in lecture by making you do hand gestures for answer choices for questions which she asks. It's all good UNTIL THE TESTS!!! Ladies and gentlemen, in this day and age, all that matters are the grades. Sure people say education is important and it is but sadly, grades are the only thing which define your future. But never mind this tangent. I felt like I had everything studied and that i knew everything there was to know. I made almost 20+ pages of notes to study, and i walk in. The questions are absolutely insanely difficult. In fact, I got such a bad grade I burst into tears. Guys, if you want a hard core challenge then consider but otherwise i would steer clear of this class because the tests and the infinite stress which Keeling's tests cause are absolutely not worth it at all. I wish I took someone else.

Keeling has to be my favorite professor at poly. She's extremely smart and if you ask any questions in class she will call on you by name then answer your question and sometimes even go more in depth if it's relevant. She goes over everything you need to know in lectures and her tests are set up so if you understand the material well enough, you can make the connections and answer the questions correctly. Some people find the tests difficult for this reason but they really depend on how well you can make connections for yourself. I didn't do anything extra and the lecture material was enough to do well. Even if it's for another class, if you get the chance take Keeling!

Alright listen up people. First of all, DONT TAKE HER!! Yes, this woman is super stoked about biology and yes, she is a really good lecturer. One of those professors who knows everyones name in a 150 person lecture class on top of that. Here is what will happen if you end up taking her class...your going to show up to lecture and she will do her powerpoint slides and your going to understand the material and say to yourself "oh! I totally understand this!" mainly because Keeling presents the information clearly. Then your going to show up to the test and be like "WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!?!?!?" Seriously people, her tests are ridiculous/insane/nearly impossible. I felt like a graduate student from taking those tests because how advanced the wording is and the questions tend to be more applications like real life scenarios than facts based from reading the textbook. If you honestly want a good grade to help your GPA either take 12 units with two easy courses and just focus on that class or definitely take someone else. Also if your just taking this class as a GE, get the hell out right away, its not worth your time/money. Overall, shes really nice and very helpful but I wouldnt recommend her to anyone. The people who absolutely love her are the people who easily get the information and receive an A in the class; well yeah no shit you people will love her. Want more proof on that? Go to her other poly rating with her old last name, Levine, Elena. Mostly all of the comments are the kids who received an A. But if for any reason you do end up having to take her you must study, study, study!! Make outlines, charts, go to office hours, anything you can think of besides just reading the textbook. I would even suggest bringing a tape recorder because she gets very detailed during lecture. I hope you guys understood me because people may love her but she is hard, a very hard professor for what is supposed to be an intro class.

If 161 is not a weeder course, I don't know what is. Keeling is so difficult; there is so much material, and she really demands backwards and forwards knowledge of EVERYTHING. Her lectures are extensive, and that's just the tip of what you need to know. It feels like the course was structured for people who had the privilege of taking AP Bio at their high school, so the basics were just review; the only people I knew who got As were those who took AP Bio. The little study assignments and quizzes won't make up for the midterms. I spent most of my 25-35 on this class after the first midterm, and I never could get better than a C-. Lab saved me, but barely (avoid Emily if you can). Basically, if the purpose of Bio 161 is to make you feel like you'll never be able to be a biologist, Keeling did a fucking fantastic job.

Professor Keeling is one smart lady...too smart actually. Everybody do yourself a favor and take someone else. Whatever you do, try not to take her. Yeah shes nice, yeah she knows your name no matter how people are in the class, and yeah shes stoked about biology BUT make sure you dont take her. Class with her was just ridiculous and I couldnt stand it. The tests were hard..really hard. Like the person below me said, if this isnt a weeder course then i dont know what is because Keeling did a fucking fantstic job of doing that. I know 3 students in that class who are changing their majors now. Good job Keeling! Way to represent the Bio Department

I normally dont do this stuff. But someone reminded me today about this class and I felt the need to write one. This class was awful, just awful. Keeling presented the material well but her tests were insane! Even I'm surprised I ended up with a B in the class. I literally guessed on at least 15 questions. Well I must of got them right cause I swore I thought I was going to end up with a C. Throughout the quarter she gives you these little assignments to do but its completely pointless and wont affect your grade whether you do bad or not. For example, a research paper was worth 8 points. Pssh come one Keeling, thats a bunch of bullshit. Your grade is based off your exams and lab so you dont need to worry about those little assignments. I never enjoyed going to class with this lady...shes awful, tests were way too hard and I would NOT recommend Keeling for this class, let alone any biology course she teaches

-Speaks extremely fast, you better be a fast writer -Loves answering questions, but just won't have that much time to do so in class. go to office hours -extremely intelligent, knows basically everything about molecular bio -helpful, holds review sessions & encourages students -there is a LOT of material in this class. you can't procrastinate on the reading. -don't think i ever fell asleep in this class, mostly b/c she talks so animated & calls you out sometimes.. asks for participation

Dr. Keeling is an amazing teacher. Yes, she will push you to work hard and she will challenge you, but isn't that what learning is about? She is brilliant and excellent at explaining concepts in class. If you go to class and work hard, you can do very well. She gets to know everybody's names within the first week and will call on you sometimes, so make sure you are paying attention. Dr. Keeling has a heart for her students and I love how passionate she is about Biology. I recommend her to everyone!

So im confused why people have been hating on keeling. She is an amazing teacher. She tests straight from her notes. So listen up! And hellloooo its college not high school anymore freshman! Just because you had AP biology doesn't mean your going to get an A. A word of advise, if you found this class impossible, the maybe you should reconsider your major or at least your study habits because folks it doesn't get any easier if your a Bio major. It gets a lot harder actually.

I have to agree with the person below who said "it seems to me the only people who love Keeling are the people who only got an A in her class" Those students must leave her office hours with a little brown on their nose if you know what I mean. I got an A but damn I did not like her! Be ready to bring you game face as soon as walk into class because shes a fast talker and will call out on questions. For me, it was good and bad the way she presented the material. There were days when it was very clear and straightforward and then the bad days, you would tell yourself I know for a fact other students in this class besides me are completely lost. Her tests are insanely hard and the questions were very wordy to the point were it seemed unfair she would put it on the test. The only reason I barely got an A was because I had a private tutor. I would not take her for any bio course she will teach in the future

Dr. Keeling blew me away with her overall knowledge of cell biology. I have never met someone before who knew so much about a subject. In lecture, there was not one question that she did not know the answer to. She portrayed the information very well and her powerpoint slides are helpful as well. Her "homework" assignments are small, but incredibly beneficial. As a freshman going into her class I did NOT know how to study, and by doing these homework assignments, they helped to redefine my knowledge of how to study. Office hours are extraordinarily helpful as well, given that she does not just sit there and throw answers at you. On the contrary, she asks you questions that require you to think critically, which is what college is supposed to be. These questions connect perfectly with her tests, which were incredibly challenging, yet satisfying. Her tests are not simple by any means, and do not ask brief, "fill in the blank" questions. Rather, they literally test your knowledge of inductive reasoning and critical thinking ability, which is satisfying if you know the material, but devastational to your grade if you don't. Dr. Keeling is the epitome of brilliant, and it shows in her class. Do not take a class with her if you are looking for an easy way out. You will be kicking yourself in the face. If she is teaching a required course, by all means take her. You will learn so much!

Dr. Keeling was one of my favorite teachers of freshman year. Her lectures are very clear and she even manages to make them interesting. She is very personable as well, she learns everyones name in the class. Her tests are straightforward from what she teaches in lecture, however due to the large amount of information this class requires you to know they can be a bit difficult to prepare for. She is very helpful in office hours, and is very eager to help you to understand the material. Overall a very helpful teacher, one worth getting to know.

Dr. Keeling is one of the teachers that some people will just get and do amazing in her class while others will have an almost impossible time. She never makes an attempt to simplify the material she explains it to you like you've had an incredible background in it. I did not, which made her class super hard for me. She is very arrogant and always speaks in a sarcastic tone. If you do not do well her exams be prepared to have every question in class directed your way. Basically she loves to call on students. Her office hours are pointless because she will have these weird followers that attend every office hour every single time. I cant say I'd fully reccomend her. She isn't a very inspiring teacher and I would suggest taking another teacher if possible it will save you a lot of time and headaches.

nah

She was awful. Yes, she's very intelligent, but that doesn't mean that she's a good teacher! Her powerpoints are completely scattered, her tests are NOTHING like what she talks about, and she's also quite boring. I would not recommend this class, regardless of whether or not you're ridiculously good at bio.

I loved Dr. Keeling. Most of the people complaining about her on here are the ones who did not put in effort or try to learn it, and sorry, but it's time to grow up and take responsibility for the coursework and if you are having trouble, then go to office hours. Her office hours were extremely helpful and she would work with you one on one until you really understood it. I could tell that she really wanted me to succeed. Yes, her lectures are fast paced, but that's because it's a challenging course with a lot of material that needs to be covered; she has no other choice but to conduct fast paced lectures. Her tests are very difficult because they require you to not just memorize facts but actually understand the material, which is what you should be doing anyway. She was a fantastic professor, and I would definitely recommend her for this course.

I loved Dr. Keeling. People complaining about her are the ones who did not put enough effort to learn. I basically didn't have much of a social life because I was busy studying for this class, but it was worth it in the end. I took BIO 161 3 years ago with her and now as a senior student, I am so glad that I did. Her office hours were extremely helpful and she would work with you one on one until you really understood it. I could tell that she really wanted me to succeed. She has no other choice but to conduct fast paced lectures due to the amount of material, but she does it well. Her tests are very difficult because they require you to not just memorize facts but actually understand the material, which is what you should be doing anyway. She was a fantastic professor, and I would definitely recommend her for this course. Also, Dr. Keeling knows TONS of stuff about biology AND YOU WILL HAVE QUESTIONS. She expects a lot out of you, but you are in school, so get used to that. I have also taken genetics with her. This class is a ton of work, but I got my moneys worth and feel very much prepared for the future. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS FOR A GE...haha

Dr. Keeling is an annoying ass cunt. She gives a bunch of meaningless assignments and grades them really harshly. She also puts a bunch of unfair wordy questions on tests and quiz to trip up her students. The clicker questions are also always very difficult and stupid. She always tries to get the class to participate by doing dumb shit like telling us to put two hands in the air for a particular answer and her voice is so irritating. Overall she is just like all of the other terrible professors that are to stubborn, ignorant,or full of themselves to tell the difference between making something rigorous and making a class hard.

Keeling really is an amazing professor. She knows what she's talking about and her classes keep you active and motivated to participate. The only issue I ever experienced was obviously the difficulty of her exams. She words things really strange and in a way that makes you feel stupid. But no worries! You can at least get a B with the lab!!

unnecessarily difficult.

Professor Keeling is great. You learn a lot in this class and are definitely challenged. I didn't take a study session or workshop for this course, but I'd recommend it in retrospect. She also calls on students randomly to answer questions. To avoid being put on the spot and embarrassed, I would voluntarily raise my hand when I happened to know the answer to a general question she asked the class. By doing this every couple of lectures, I avoided being called upon randomly. In summary: ask questions, study hard, and don't be down on yourself if you don't get that A - this class is difficult.

I absolutely loved professor Keeling! Everyone seems to harp on her because she's a tough professor, and she is but in a good way. Professor Keeling provides a challenge for her students so that they are able to fully understand the material and she is more than willing to help any student that has trouble, however the student needs to take the initiative and ask for help. There are a few homework assignments and online quizzes throughout the quarter and their purpose is to act as a study tool. There are two midterms and a final exam. The midterms break up the information throughout the quarter, while the final is cumulative. Her tests are designed to get you to think, to make sure you actually understand the material and aren't just regurgitating information. Overall, Professor Keeling is great because students actually learn in her class. Do the assignments, keep up with the readings, study hard, and you'll be just fine.

Very conceptual but a very solid professor.

I think part of the reason Dr. Keeling has a reputation as being a very difficult professor is because Cell and Molecular Bio is a very difficult class. I think with any professor that class would be challenging. Dr. Keeling is a very kind woman who is very willing to work with students on improving their test grades if they're willing to work with her. She is very good at explaining things during class and is excellent in office hours. She goes through with you every single problem that you personally missed on each exam if you go to her office hours so that she can help you understand where your thinking went wrong. The only thing that I think she could work on is that she does talk pretty quickly during lecture, and you really have to give your full attention the whole time. Its very hard to not miss things every once and awhile. Her midterms were very fair and definitely not too hard, although the final was a bit more challenging and quite lengthy. Overall, I hated the class, but loved her.

Dr. Keeling is an extremely good lecturer. I'm not a biology major so I did not have much background knowledge before entering this class. The material you have to learn is very dense, but Dr. Keeling explains it in a way that is concise and makes sense. Some professors have a voice that make you want to fall asleep, well, her voice makes you want to pay attention. I have heard from other BIO 161 students that her tests are harder than other professors (and I do not doubt that) but honestly, her tests are just really good at measuring how fully you understand the material. So yeah, you might not get an A, but you will learn a lot more from the tests because they really challenge you and test your knowledge, that's kind of what a test is supposed to do anyways. Signing up for a study session or the workshop is a good idea, and it never hurts to try out the study strategies she provides on the syllabus. Overall, amazing professor, great class, I learned SO much.

In my opinion how well you do in this course depends on 2 things: 1) How many/ recently you've taken biology courses before this class and 2) how difficult your other courses are that quarter (notice it is mostly freshmen who just took AP Bio that are getting As) I personally had not taken a biology class prior to 161 in several years and this class was hell. Not to mention I had a tough schedule all around. Keeling is known to be the most difficult bio 161 teacher and lives up to that. Her tests are just stupid (half the class got a D/ F for both midterms). What will save your grade is the Lab and surprisingly the final which is longer but a bit easier than the 2 midterms. I found the most helpful way to study was watching hours and hours of biology videos on youtube

I really enjoyed the structure of this course. The tests are not super difficult if you learn how to study correctly. People always complained that they memorized the information but couldn't apply it to situations which is the style of almost all of her test questions. Memorizing terms is NEVER an effective way to learn! This class really emphasizes the importance of understanding material more than just memorizing words. This class mostly consists of learning processes and it's so important for biology to have a really good understanding of how all of these things really work; so although the material is difficult, I think Keeling does a great job of being patient with students and helping them learn the material the best way they can. She is also very kind and super smart!

I really didn't like this professor even though I did well in her class. The class is surprisingly stressful because she constantly calls on students during her lecture. My main issue with her was that she is a very smart woman, but has a difficult time actually breaking down the material and explaining it in a way that is accessible to someone who hasn't taken a vast amount of biology. What you get out of this class is what you already know. If your solid in biology then you will supplement that knowledge, but if you have any weak areas she will expose them and you have to work your ass of to get better. I wouldn't recommend her because I didn't like personally like her teaching style, and I prefer the other instructors to her.

Dr. Keeling is really really smart. She taught me to think in a completely new way and the studying techniques that she suggested have helped me in all my classes. She emphasizes understanding rather than memorizing which is what will help you remember material for much longer. If you are lazy you will hate this class, but if you are truly interested in science you will get a lot from this class. Be prepared to work your ass off if you want an A. If you don't try in this class you will not pass. A lot of it is understanding how she is going to test you and what her tests are like. Really study the figures in the text book, most of the questions are based on understanding them. She is so willing to help you if you are really not getting it, but don't be lazy and ask her if you haven't read the book.

Keeling is a great professor who really gives students all the resources they could ever need, and although the way she stresses forming good study habits can get repetitive, they are helpful. She provides special office hours for her 161 class and truly cares whether or not students actually understand the material. BIO 161 covers a lot of material so no matter who you get it's going to be a lot of work, but I'd say take Keeling because her tests are very straightforward and she tells you directly in lecture the few things you actually need to memorize. She made me excited about cells which I did not expect and presented the material in a very understandable way. Compared to other professors as I've heard, Keeling is very fair and organized. She tells you exactly what she wants. I kind of love her too, she's awesome.

Keeling is beyond a shadow of a doubt one of the most brilliant professors Cal Poly has. That being said (and this is coming from someone who literally spent 10+ hours a week studying for this class), her tests were unnecessarily difficult. I frequently confronted students that were enrolled in the other BIO 161 classes, and all of them said their tests were semi difficult. She expects Freshman who have literally not been prepared for college whatsoever to answer graduate-level questions. Also, her method for letting you see what you missed is incredibly stupid. I performed poorly on both midterms and visited her office hours to clarify what I missed; however, she doesn't let you actually see your test. You get your scantron back, and then you have to go around the room one at a time and each person in her office hours asks a question that they missed, regardless of if you missed it or not. It took about 2.5 hours each time I went to get about 6 of my questions answered. Also, she does not post her lectures or your grades on Poly Learn because "Poly Learn is not user friendly," even though she's a borderline genius. You will not see what grade you have unless you email her or wait for them to be posted. All in all, if you have to take her, prepare to study your butt off and do poorly, to which she will tell you "Oh, make charts and you'll study better," even though most of you are probably like me and have 12 other units, a part time job, a volunteering gig 5 hours a week, and other commitments. If you have to take this class as a GE, drop this class like it's hot and GTFO.

Dr. Keeling's BIO 161 is not an easy class. Showing up everyday, taking notes, and studying a bit on the weekend is not enough to pass. You need to put in a consistent effort and put in a lot of time. This is not necessarily because she is a hard teacher, but because the class is challenging. Keeling's lectures are jammed pack with information and she presents the material very clearly. She is extremely helpful in office hours and genuinely wants to see you succeed. I got an A, but I worked my ass off for that A and it was not by any means easy. I would take one of Keeling's classes again. She is an incredibly smart woman with good intentions and gives you every opportunity for success.

The best thing you can do for yourself in this class is go to office hours. She will be exorbitantly helpful to you individually, as well as give you a little bit of an idea what she'll be looking for on exams, which are much more difficult than one might perceive from lecture. Pay attention to specifics in the lectures, although she warns not to "memorize," that's pretty much necessary unless your brain is hard-wired for bio. Overall, she's a nice lady that teaches in a very high-school manner: she expects to calm down the lecture by flickering the lights on and off, and also doesn't really realize that her students have classes outside of bio 161.

Bio 161 is a hard class, and Keeling is not the easiest professor, but she's awesome and super intelligent- she reminds me of Bones! Just listen in lecture and lots of the test questions are verbatum from lecture. She does have a couple of homework assignments which are annoying and worth a disproportionate amount of your grade, but other than that she's pretty good.

If you want an easy A avoid this professor but if you truly want to work for a good grade and actually understand the material take Dr. Keeling, she's challenging but truly cares about her students. Ive learned a lot and would totally recommend her!

Dr. Keeling is so smart it honestly scares me. Her knowledge regarding bio is amazing and I loved learning from her. Her tests are very hard, but if you study a lot and make sure you're prepared its pretty easy to achieve a B. Another BIO 161 teacher might be easier, but there is no way you will learn as much as you do with Dr. Keeling. So depending on your long term goals (to learn a lot, or get an easy A) Dr. Keeling is a great teacher.

Keeling is an excellent professor, having said that she is also the most difficult professor I have had at Cal Poly. She expects nothing short of perfection on assignments and grades harshly. Her exams are very challenging and she does not provide any study guides or objectives. However, she is extremely knowledgable and will go far out of her way to help a student that cares. After this class, you will really know the material but she is definitely the hardest bio 161 professor.

If you have to take a bio class for a lab I would not take 161 in general, but also probably not with keeling if you want to just get a good grade. To get an A you have to put in a couple hours a day which is unreal for a GE. If you are taking the class as a support class and actually want to learn and understand the information, I highly recommend taking keeling for really any class she teaches. I have never met a person that knows so much about a certain subject as she does. It is unreal. To sum up: if you want an A dont take her, if you want to learn then shes perfect.

Dr. Keeling is probably the most intelligent person I have ever met in my life. The amount of knowledge she has on biology is so unreal that sometimes I wonder if she does anything else. That being said, her class is very hard and if you didn't take AP Bio or a college-level Chem class, you'd better be studying your ass off every day. There aren't too many homework assignments and she gives quite a few PolyLearn quizzes. Although not entirely difficult, she grades homework pretty harshly. Even though her tests are insane and you must put thought into every test question, she genuinely cares about her students and regularly sent me emails when she realized I was struggling in class. She's very adamant that students use proper studying techniques. If you really want to learn the ins and outs of biology, I highly recommend her, but if you're taking it as a GE, the amount of work you have to put in is unnecessary.

Keeling was a good lecturer and was eager to help and explain all of the material, however her tests were ridiculously hard. No matter how hard I studied the material, her questions were not straightforward and she minimally discussed similar ideas in class. If you are looking to take BIO 161 and have a choice, do not take her. She is a really nice person and super smart, but I wouldn't recommend taking her if you aren't a BIO person.

Overall she's nice in person, but when it comes to her grading, you'll want nothing less than beheading her and parading her head around campus on a spike. The weekly quizzes she gives you are fairly easy, or so you think. A good way to estimate your grade on her assignments is to guess what grade you think you got, then subtract 4 letter grades from it. You aren't graded on how well you understand the material, but how much you understand what she wants from your writing. If she asks a question on a test and your answer is 99% correct, you'll still lose all the points because it isn't exactly what she wanted. I still don't understand how teachers like this are still teaching. Im probably going to transfer if the rest of the teachers here are as bitchy as she is.

I thought I was decently intelligent until I took this class. Dr. Keeling truly wants to help you, and she will give you opportunities to boost your grade but BEWARE OF THE TEST. Half of the class got either a D or F on the first test, with only slight improvement on the second. In my opinion the final was the hardest. I'm still unsure how I passed this class. Anyway, she is a nice person who is insanely smart but she wants you to be on her level. My main advice would be to write detailed notes on the handout she gives you and STUDY off of that. Seriously engrain every detail into your mind because her questions seem to mostly revolve around that.

"To pass my tests you need to know more than A to B and B to C, you need to know A to D" Elena Keeling Keeling was simply put one of the most horrible teachers I've ever had in my life. She intentionally made the first midterm ridiculously difficult with an average below a C and no curve, almost 25% of the class failed and she simply laughed it off. She plays favorites, she won't help you during office hours and put quite simply I'm convinced she enjoys failing students. The reading was actually fun and I learned a lot of biology but when it came to tests and assignments they're not even related to the text or anything learned in the class. Now I'm sure some of you are assuming I am not good at bio or ripping at her because of my low grade but I feel its necessary to mention I received an A in lab for this class with a different professor. Multiple classmates would joke about literally guessing several answers in tests and overall this whole class is a waste of time. I genuinely hope Keeling gets removed from Cal Poly and any teaching in the future, I also hope she sees this. You are the reason that several of my friends switched majors and lost hope.

DO not take keeling! this class is unessesarily difficult! I had a bio tutor, went to office hours EVERY week (basically whenever she has an office hour i was there) and was in a study session and still did horrible. She acts like you already know all the material and if you tell her you don't understand she makes you feel dumb. Her class moves so fast and the test are crazy hard. While I will give her credit for being very intelligent on the topic, she does not understand students difficulty and that they don't have the extensive bio background like her. I HIGHLY recommend not taking her

I got blocked into prof. Keeling's class and was turned off by the ratings on here; decided to take the class anyway and wow people really aren't being fair. This is legit the only class I've taken so far where the professor LEGITIMATELY cares about their students. Keeling learns everyones name in the lecture class by the second week, repeatedly reaches out to and emails students who are struggling in the class, works with you to adjust bad study habits/offers suggestions, offered study sessions with her once a week in the cosam dorms (yosemite), and offers Q and A sessions before midterms. I definitely did not have an easy time in this class, you cant expect an easy A, but she literally did everything a professor can do make it easier for students. She puts in so much time (for this class specifically) that she definitely is not required to, and the people who rip on her are always the ones that ignore her emails and won't go to office hours. The difficulty of this class is pretty much the same as every other science class i have to take for my major, but I am learning so much more in this class and doing significantly better just because she makes it really easy to do well if you put in the effort. There are definitely teachers at this school who really don't care if students fail or not, or who like to see kids struggle, but she is not one of them. It is easier to work with her and she is a really nice person if she can see that you are genuinely putting in the effort.

Keeling is one of the best and most caring professor's I have had so far. Yes her class is pretty difficult, but really theres no reason why you shouldnt get a B minimum. She has little assignments online due throught the quarter, 2 midterms, and final which is basically a 3rd midterm and final of everything together. Keeling doesn't test you on things that you can just memorize. She will never ever do that. She tests you on how well you know your stuff by for example asking you what would happen if this went wrong in a process and things like that. Overall her class wasn't hard I only got a C because I really slacked off and messed up bad on the 1st midterm. If you really wanna know your stuff take Keeling you won't regret it. It's not too hard to get an A either.

Dr. Keeling really is a great professor. I have heard a lot of negative things about her, the main complaint being that she calls people out in class for being on their phone. You shouldn't be on your phone anyway, though! She values the intellectual growth of her students and has such a passion for biology, that she wants you to pay attention and learn as much as you can. She puts a lot of effort into preparing for this class, and she expects the same in return from her students. She does not ask for too much. She is also very approachable and is really helpful when it comes to study strategies. Her exams are challenging, but she can be a major help if you are willing to talk to her. I got a C on the first exam and went to her office afterward, and she worked with me to change the way I studied, in hopes that I would improve. I ended up getting a B+ on the second exam and an A on the final, and finished with an A in the class. As long as you work hard and approach her when things go wrong, you will have a great quarter with Dr. Keeling. I would recommend her to anyone.

First of all, I didn't fail this class. This class took up a good amount of outside studying time and I put in the time to do so before class and before exams and it was not nearly as helpful as she claimed it would be at the beginning of the quarter. The exams were all "applied" information and they were written in a very difficult to understand format. The class is not curved at all and after the first exam this quarter, there were equal amounts of every letter grade and she seemed to be perfectly fine with that fact and just said that we have plenty more time to make it up during the rest of the quarter, which really just means exams. Few of the points in the class come from areas besides exams and she is very stingy about awarding any assignment full points. Her lectures are all pictures and few words so I suggest that if you are not a visual learner, that will make it even more difficult for you. Her lectures go very fast and it's hard to ask questions about previous slides because she wants to finish what she's saying before she will answer your question. Reading the book before class and to prepare for the exam was not as helpful as one may hope, Keeling just takes all the figures from the textbook and uses them in her lectures. Her tests are not at an appropriate level for the 100 level class that this is, they are far too difficult for the level that we are at. I took AP Bio in high school, which as a junior was a little bit ago, but it did not help me as much as I hoped it would. This class is passable, it's not easy and Keeling makes it more work than I think this class should ever be, but it's not impossible and I think that if you are a Biology major and/or you are passionate about this subject, then take Keeling. If you just have to take this class as a requirement or a building block for other classes, take someone else. I am sure it will make your life easier in comparison to having to deal with Keeling. Oh also, she memorizes everyones names and calls you out in class to answer questions (and she calls you out if you're on your phone which is not my favorite) and there are Learning Catalytic questions that are not always the easiest and she doesn't give you a lot of time to do them, so get to know the people sitting around you so you can talk about them (they're not always easy and they're super annoying to do). All in all, if you're not a Bio major, I would HIGHLY recommend taking someone else.

fucking sucks i hate the way she says "steroids" she asks for everything but also nothing DO NOT TAKE drop out ASAP

Most intelligent person that I have ever met. She is incredibly good at explaining things and breaking them down for student that do not understand.

I really enjoyed Keeling's BIO class. Not sure why so many people are complaining about how hard it was. Welcome to college. It was a hard class in the sense that it was a ton of information in a short amount of time, just like any other BIO class. Keeling is harder than other professors, but this is a class that needs to be hard in order for you to really learn everything that the class offers. She had a TON of office hours, and was helpful in them. I recommend taking her.

Do not take BIO 161 with Keeling unless you just took AP Biology. Her lecture moves so fast and is so complex. The tests are so extremely difficult, I wanted to cry after every one lol. Not a fun experience.

I'm telling you right now that if you're taking literally any other classes, DONT take this class. She expects so much out of you and is not sympathetic when you don't understand the material. She has a million office hours but shames you if your schedule doesn't fit with any of them, insinuating that you're not trying hard enough if you don't go to 3+ a week- which is just not realistic. She speeds through lecture material so quickly that you don't even have time to catch your breath. The midterms and final are NOTHING like what she discusses in class or the questions are related, but structured in a way that it has four hypotheticals layered in that you don't even know what it's asking anymore. I had a failing grade in lecture and a 98% in lab and that's the only reason I passed this class. Do not recommend, if you have any other choice, take someone else.

In all honesty, I have no idea WHY Keeling has such bad reviews on polyratings. Originally I was in Black's class for Bio 161 (the guy who wrote the book) but I ultimately decided to switch to her class because of talking to a 4th year workshop leader... definitely the right decision. I absolutely LOVEDDDDDDDDDD Keeling's class. She definitely goes fast during her lecture, but she literally HAS to go that fast in order to cover all of the required material for BIO 161. During her lectures I inserted her handouts as printouts on onenote on my tablet, and used a variety of colors-I think that definitely helped me later understand my notes compared to printing out the handouts and writing on them with a pencil. I wouldn't read the textbook, unless she specifically TELLS you to look up something. Some people say that her clicker questions her unnecessarily hard, but I disagree. Her questions were the type that made you take in the information that you just learned and process/connect it with other things (something you should already be doing!!) Any bio class is going to be hard, but Keeling made concepts the most straight forward and easy to understand. Keeling offered additional office hours JUST for Bio 161, and were extremely helpful! I went to a couple of them and it was a great time for you to interact with other people taking this class, but also get one on one time with her. Exams are not hard if you've taken AP bio recently or if you just study in general. I highly recommend going to her office hours. After each midterm, I went to her office hours to ask about the questions that I missed and she helped me understand why my thinking was wrong, and how I should get to the right answer. She also gives great test taking strategies!

Dr. Keeling definitely knows what she's talking about. Although her tests are really really hard she works one on one with you during office hours and really tries to get to the root of your problem if you haven't done well. She genuinely cares about her students success and held office hours almost every day during the week. She's intimidating and often tries to get you to arrive at the answer yourself instead of just telling you which is helpful but also frustrating at times. Overall, she's a great teacher and is passionate about what she teaches. I've also heard she's better than some of the other 161 professors, so I wouldn't switch out if you got blocked into her class.

Keeling's tests are extremely difficult, the type of tests where multiple answers seem like the correct answer. Due to COVID, she didn't let us take a final which could've improved a lot of people's grades. Homework barely counts in your total grade and so your entire grade is midterms and lab.

This is a very conceptual class. You must know much more than the basic mechanism. Dr.Keeling is willing to give helpful pointers if your grade isn\'t where it should be. Make sure that you go to her office hours and keep up with the reading.

Dr. Keeling is an incredible professor. Yes - her class is difficult. It's a 5 unit lecture! I studied more for this class than any other class, but I still only got a B. That being said, Dr. Keeling presents the material in a way that makes you pay attention - her animation and passion for the subject is outstanding! She will make you learn. Her tests are predictable as far as format goes - you know what to expect. They are difficult, but that is the nature of the material. I definitely recommend Dr. Keeling for any class, and I am going to try to take more classes with her in the future.

Understand the concepts and the mechanisms, how they work and can go wrong or right. Read before and go to office hours she is more than willing to help, especially if she know that you are trying. Study the notes and the book sections that match the note titles and you will do fine.

If you have to take Genetics, take it with a different professor unless you are already familiar with all of these concepts of genetics. Elena Keeling is a very intelligent woman and she knows her stuff, I'll give her that.. But the way she talks in class is like she is reviewing the material. And in a way, she does expect this to be review because she extremely encourages you read the material before class. Unlike other teachers who also recommend this, she acts like you should all understand what she is saying the first time she goes over it. She goes through material extremely quickly, so be prepared. She asks iClicker questions that you have to have more knowledge than what she had explained. She jumps around on the sections she is teaching. She makes you do hand signals every 5 minutes when she asks you a question and if you don't put one up, she calls on you and tells you to. She talks up until the last minute of every class and she asks us all to print out handouts of the slides. The infuriating part is that half the time in lecture I'm trying to fill in the labels on the handout which she covered up in the printed slides just to ensure we went to class. She could have easily left her comments and labels on the slides, but nah that would be too easy. I will forever have nightmares of her saying "yes, no, yes, no" while doing hand gestures (take the class and you'll soon understand what I mean). My main issue with her was that she went over the material as if it was review. Her occasional homework assignments/in class assignments were really hard.. but her tests were even harder. The exams had brief multiple choice, selecting which of the following is correct, word problems, calculations, fill in the blank.. you name it. I can not emphasize enough that merely memorizing the material will not be enough. You have to understand the material in extreme depth. There were 3 midterms, participation for the daily iClicker questions, homework and in-class assignments, and a final. I showed the handouts to an academic counselor/psychiatrist to express why I was struggling in this particular bio class and he told me that I wouldn't experience anything harder in Med. school. If you go into her office hours, she will be willing to help you. I won't take away from the fact she is intelligent and I would NOT say she was cruel. She was nice, in her own way. Just made the material and the exams way, way harder than they needed to be.

This is a difficult class!! But do not let that scare you away. Dr. Keeling is an extremely intelligent individual and expects a lot of her students, but if you are willing to put in the work, anyone can succeed in her class. My main piece of advice would be to AT LEAST skim over the relevant textbook chapters prior to each lecture. If you don't, she'll breeze through a lot of material very quickly and it will be hard to keep pace if all of the material is foreign to you. Many students find her demeanor to be condescending, but that often stems from her making students struggle with their questions instead of just providing them with the answer. This can sometimes be awkward, and leads to people not wanting to ask questions in class, but it can be a great way to learn if you embrace it. Dr. Keeling is a genuinely kind individual and I would definitely recommend taking her class, but just be prepared to work hard!!

Dr. Keeling is extremely intelligent, but she is not the best at conveying knowledge to her students. I would recommend taking another professor if you have the opportunity to do so.

Dr. Keeling knows EVERYTHING and holds her students to very high standards. As senior biology majors taking a senior level class, she expects you to be able to explain things in the same depth that she does and to really understand the mechanisms behind all of the detailed components of cellular functions. This class is a ton of work, but having taken it with Dr. Keeling I guess I can say that I definitely got my money's worth. P.S. all of you freshman below crying about how hard 161 is are in for a RUDE awakening.

Clearly everyone who is ripping on keeling are freshman. If you guys are having an issue with her just wait until you take a class other than 161...because i'm sorry, but you will be in for a RUDE awakening. My experience with keeling for cell bio was great! Ive never had her before, and based on these previous ratings bio 161)was slightly scared. But WOW--this woman is by far the smartest person i have ever been acquainted with and it was a great experience to learn just a smidge of whats inside that brain of hers. She is an AMAZING lecturer, very clear with what she wants you to know. Do not get me wrong though, you cant go into one of her tests having just memorized the material from lecture and expect an A...or even a B--you must work with the material/manipulate it so you can apply it to her test questions. There are some classes I have taken here at poly that I feel I wasted my money on (Bio 426, 361 etc.) but this class was super interesting and is applicable to every other bio class you take. Im rambling on, but my point is...Keeling is a great teacher and friendly human being...please do not base your class decisions on what dumb freshman say about her...because they know nothing about what makes a decent professor. For all you seniors who are waiting to take Black for 452 and not keeling because you heard she is more difficult...suck it up...take keeling Black is just as hard.

just the worst. don't take her because she is too cold of a person.

I think that people are discouraged by Keeling's attitude because she comes off as very abrasive. Keeling is borderline genius in the field of cell biology but she is far from humble. She will not shy away from making you feel chagrined in front of the entire class if you ask a question to which she may think the answer is obvious. Cell biology is going to be a difficult course no matter the professor but at least with Black you won't be anxious to ask a question when you don't understand something.... That being said, the biggest problem I had with Keeling's teaching style was her speed, which I think can also be attributed to her supreme intelligence. She breezes through signaling and trafficking pathways, throwing out names of proteins and molecules as if every student has already learned them, then moves on without a breath. Taking notes was not easy.... The exams were made with the intention of truly testing the students' ability to understand and apply the material. For example, from the comprehensive portion of the final exam- one question had three parts: 1 how does a decrease in temperature affect membranes 2 something related to biochemistry of membranes, and 3 which would be more affected by a decrease in temperature and why: protein transport into the lumen of the cis-golgi, or protein transport into the ER? I thought this was the most difficult question I ever encountered on any of the exams, simply because I wasn't prepared for that type of question. I got an A in the course, not because the material came easy to me, but because I spent an average of 28 hours studying for each midterm and close to 45 hours studying for the final. It takes a lot of work, but if you take your education seriously, it will be the most rewarding course you take as a biology undergrad. Just be prepared to drink a lot of coffee.

I don't care how brilliant she is she's a cold hearted b*tch with no soul. Literally the most pathetic and disrespectful person I've ever met. She's a sorry excuse for a teacher and should not be in an academic setting. I'm sorry, but do you get a thrill out of calling people's questions "obvious" and publicly humiliating people. She also whips through information like nobody's business and doesn't take the time to clarify anything. If you go into office hours prepare to get publically shamed. Elena keeling you suck. Goodbye b.

Dr. Keeling's class is not easy. Basically everyone on here is either "she's great" or "she's terrible" ill give it to you like it is. Her class is difficult, you will have to read some of the book and study a lot (I find re-writing my notes in a more easily understandable way (better than the chicken scratch notes I usually take during lecture) really helps me). I would just expect to get 1/2 grade lower than your average (eg I'm an A student but no matter how hard I tried I got an A- in her class) of course this isn't true for everyone! Dr. Keeling is definitely harder than Dr. Howes (?) but I can tell you that my friends that took Dr. H had a much harder time than me with the MCAT's cell bio stuff. You will have to work hard (think about taking easier classes along with cell bio) but you'll learn a lot and retain a lot. Id also advise anyone to go to Dr. Keelings office hours often especially to ask her about how EXACTLY she wants homework completed because she can be kind of a stickler about weird things that totally could have been fixed if you went to talk to her for 10 mins! So even though the class is super challenging I would definitely recommend Dr. Keeling because if your going to do it you might as well do it right!

What else is there to say? Fine person, nothing interesting. Class was meh... Blah, blah, blah... Fine person.