Professor: Rubin Course format: Lecture Number of respondents: 18 Total Enrollment: 20 Class Composition: Froshs: 1 Sophs: 4 Jrs: 11 Srs: 4 Concs: ? Non-Concs: ? Don't Know: ?

Instructor Average: 1.61 Course Average: 1.73

“Endocrinology” is a team-taught course that introduces students to the basic principles of endocrinology, focusing on hormone action and physiological effects. The official prerequisites for the course are Bio 20 and at least one semester of organic chemistry, although most respondents felt that the organic chemistry background was helpful but not necessary.

Five different professors each taught a portion of this course: Professor Morris, Rubin, Messerlian, Canick, and Boney. Reviewers generally thought all of the lecturers were very “enthusiastic and knowledgeable about their fields.” They made great use of handouts and gave well-organized, thorough lectures. They were even humorous at times and were able to make the material interesting. Some students complained that there were too many different lecturers, to the point that the course became too broken up. Despite this, most class members agreed that all of the professors paid close attention to the level of understanding of the students, tailored the course accordingly, and were very accessible outside of scheduled meeting times.

Although students were very happy with their professors, they were not as thrilled with the assigned textbook. Almost everyone felt it was too advanced and too technical, making the readings dry and not always relevant. There was a midterm, a final, and one five-page research paper for the course.

Class members spent about three hours per week on average for the course, which met most people’s expectations. Take this class if you are looking for an interesting biology class, without a heavy workload, that will introduce you to a number of great professors involved in many different aspects of endocrinology!

View BI/0030 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.