Professor: McKeown Course format: Lecture Number of respondents: 24 Total Enrollment: 28 Class Composition: Froshs: 0 Sophs: 0 Jrs: 3 Srs: 6 Concs: ? Non-Concs: ? Don't Know: ?

Instructor Average: 1.71 Course Average: 1.53

“Molecular Genetics” teaches students about different advanced genetics techniques used to analyze complex problems. The material includes methods using different models, such as bacteria, yeast, drosophila, fish, and mice. The prerequisites for the course are Bio 46 and Bio 28, both of which students felt were very appropriate and necessary for understanding the material.

Professor McKeown was considered by class members to have both a passion for the material and “mastery of the subject matter.” His enthusiasm was greatly appreciated by most students, especially in a class so early in the morning. He utilized a unique teaching technique where he wrote everyone’s name on a flash card and called on class members to answer questions, which forced people to keep up with the reading. Although he was extremely knowledgeable, his explanations were sometimes confusing. He was always willing to go back and explain concepts, and he showed “great concern” for student’s needs.

Reviewers thought that almost all of the assigned reading was useful. In terms of grading rubric, the coursework consisted of six problem sets/take-home exams and one presentation for graduate students. According to the majority of survey correspondents, these assignments were challenging but reasonable in magnitude.

Class members indicate the prospective students can anticipate spending on average between five to ten hours per week for the course, although most worked much more to complete the problem sets. In general, this more or less matched most students’ expectations prior to enrollment. Respondents urged fellow students to take this fascinating course, but to come prepared with a strong genetics background and bench-work experience!

View BI/0154 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.