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Retsek, Jennifer 
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CHEM 125 Sophomore Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 8:39 am, Mar 27, 2013 Report Evaluation |
I liked Dr. Retsek. I took her for 124 and 125. For 124, it was a 7AM lecture. I slacked off and didn't go to class sometimes. I ended up getting a D. She knows all students names within 2 weeks of class. For 125, there were 3 take home quizzes, 2 in class quizzes, 2 midterms each 20%, a final that's 20%, lab is 20%, and participation is 2.5%. Do well on the lab reports and tests and you'll be fine. Also, the final can replace a test. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 9:12 pm, Jan 1, 2013 Report Evaluation |
I absolutely ADORE Dr. Retsek! I was really nervous about taking chem since I haven't taken it for 3 years, but Dr. Retsek moved at a reasonable pace and always presented material clearly. She posted a schedule online, so you know what you're going to be learning about each day, and when any tests and quizzes are. She grades harshly on the labs (so answer everything thoroughly!), but the class is completely manageable as long as you study. She had several weddings to attend at the beginning of the quarter, so Dr. Heying and Dr. Neff both subbed for us, and I definitely preferred Dr. Retsek over both of them (although Neff is good, too). Dr. Retsek also made a point of learning all of our names, and there were 118 of us! I would definitely recommend Dr. Retsek because she presents everything clearly the first time, and if you don't get it, she is very approachable and will gladly help you understand the information. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 1:23 pm, Dec 12, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Professor Retsek is an awesome professor. She explains the material very well. Online, she posts up an organized schedule, so you will know what is going on that week. She is very helpful when it comes to office hours and she responds to her emails quickly. She is a little picky when it comes to grading labs though, so be very detailed in your responses. This class isn't that hard if you actually complete the worksheets and read the book though. Overall, I recommend taking her class. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Major) 12:59 am, Jul 4, 2012 Report Evaluation |
After taking Retsek and Neff (the 2 standout chem teachers) I completely preferred Retsek. Her lectures are MUCH clearer than Neff's and waaaaay more organized!! That being said, her class is much harder than Neff's. You WILL have to study for Retsek and she is guaranteed to nit-pick your labs to pieces. But the way she has the grading set up is very fair. I got a D on the first midterm and A's/B's on everything else and ended up with an A in the class. But you must study, and don't procrastinate on anything. Out of the 2 I would reccommend Retsek, especially if you have seen the material before. Also take a workshop or study session with it and you are golden! | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 11:01 pm, Jun 28, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is one of the best professors I've ever had at Poly so far. She is a fantastic lecturer and really gets her point across. She is extremely helpful in office hours, which are important for understanding concepts and the labs. Her quizzes and tests are very straightforward; she never tries to trick you. They take studying and don't put it off. Overall, my advice for this class is to not procrastinate studying and doing the labs. Also, really make sure you understand the concepts both conceptually and mathematically. I say take Retsek, she will not disappoint. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 10:04 am, Jun 14, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is a solid chem professor. She is genuinely nice and helpful, but the class isn't easy. Do yourself a favor and take this class immediately after 124, as there is a lot of overlap that is not really reviewed. Retsek has pretty organized lectures that cover essentially all the info you need to know. Do the practice problems assigned and you really shouldn't have that much trouble with the tests. TAKE THE WORKSHOP; IT IS WORTH IT. The problem with this class are the labs. They are horribly boring and graded extremely hard by the TA's. Put a lot of work into them and you're still not guaranteed an A. So after taking 124 with Neff and 125 with Retsek, they are both equally as good. Neff is a bit easier, but retsek IMO did a better job portraying the material. I would definitely take her again if I had the chance. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A Required (Major) 2:28 pm, May 25, 2012 Report Evaluation |
After having Dr. Retsek for Chem 124 and 125, I would definitely recommend her as a professor in the future. She conveys the material very clearly, and if there was something you didn't understand, she is easily approachable in office hours or after class. Tests and quizzes aren't the easiest, but then again, chem isn't the easiest of subjects in my opinion, either. If you put in the work, your grade will reflect it, and the same goes for the other way too. Don't put off the labs, because they can be very frustrating if you have to complete them the night before they are due. Overall, Dr. Retsek is a great professor with a love for the subject, and is good with recognizing student difficulties. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 8:47 pm, Apr 3, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Professor Retsek makes the material in 124 very easy to understand and makes it very possible to get a decent grade if chem is not you best subject. She has w/s that have problems almost identical to whats on the quizzes and tests. She grades the labs very harshly but that's about it. overall your grade depends on how much work you put into it. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 7:24 pm, Apr 2, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is dope. She lays out everything you need in lecture and does examples in class. Tests and labs are both fair. If you do the worksheets you're golden. She prepares you well for the final and most of the time the lab portion of the class ends early. She's very helpful if you stay and do the the worksheets in class or go to office hours. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 6:38 pm, Mar 26, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Not the most interesting of lectures. She goes at a comfortable pace, and provides all the information you need. You can do the worksheets and know most of the material on the quizzes/exams. The labs are a bit strict for grading, but if you actually read what you get marked down for and fix it, you should get As on most labs. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 6:14 pm, Mar 21, 2012 Report Evaluation |
This class was easier than I expected, though the tests are pretty hard. My lab partner and I weren't chem geniuses, but we fared pretty well. To get As on the lab reports you need to check that you titled,labeled, and labelled everything. Pretty simple, but some took some time to finish. Class is supposed to go 2.5 hours, but we almost always got off over 30 minutes early. There are some example problems available, but did almost none of them. Probably would've helped, but if you are pretty good at tests, then you don't need them. I did pretty poorly on tests (C average) because I always got hung up on one or two problems, which basically sucked up valuable time. Hsd to rush through easier problems, blah blah blah. Retsek is probably one of the best chem profs for 124, along with Neff. No complaints here | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 1:21 pm, Mar 2, 2012 Report Evaluation |
She is a great teacher. Even though her tests are hard and I have to work a lot for the class, I'm glad that I took her. She is very understanding and presents her material very well | |
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CHEM 125 Sophomore Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 8:37 pm, Feb 5, 2012 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is an awesome chem professor. I never got to take Dr. Nef who seems to be the unanimous favorite for chem 124/125 but I think Retsek is a firm number 2 if not number 1. She presents the material in a clear organized manner. She also gives you a study guide and worksheets of her own design. If you can do all the worksheet problems and know the things on the study guide there is no reason you should not ace her tests. She will also drop your lowest quiz score and if memory serves your final grade can replace one of your midterms as well. When I took this class it was a combined lab and lecture and we always finished at least an hour early. You were free to go after the lecture but she would always hang around until class was out which means free one on one tutoring if you don't understand the material. She also makes a strong effort to get to know you and she knew my name within a week even though the number of times I talked to her one on one was only a couple times and late in the quarter. Take Retsek if the opportunity presents itself great person and a great teacher. | |
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CHEM 124 Junior Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:31 pm, Nov 17, 2011 Report Evaluation |
If you are the type of student that does not want to spend the entire quarter teaching yourself, AVOID AT ALL COSTS. Her syllabus says something along the lines of "my job isn't to teach you" and she sticks to that. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 9:56 pm, Mar 17, 2011 Report Evaluation |
I will never forget the first time I was in her lab. She walked around the room after she had given instructions and introduced herself individually. She already knew my name and it was really cool that she wanted to get to know me. She was always available and flexible to meet during office hours. She was a great lecturer, keeping me awake and I understood the material only because of her. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 11:56 am, Mar 2, 2010 Report Evaluation |
The class was hard as hell, but Retsek really tried to convey the material well. I put in a boatload of effort for the final, and she curved the class, which boosted by B- to an A. An overall decent professor. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 11:02 pm, Feb 22, 2010 Report Evaluation |
Retsek was more difficult than I thought. Even though she was hard, I did learn a lot. She would have a quiz on week, an \"exam\" the next week, then a break, and then the cycle would repeat itself until the end of the quarter. She gave good reviews for quizzes and exams, but the exams were harder than expected. Overall, she\'s a good teacher if you need to know a chem for your major. If not, I would try and look for an easier teacher. | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 2:21 am, Dec 25, 2009 Report Evaluation |
I thought retsek was overall a good chemistry teacher. She explains the information clearly and is very fair and helpful, especially in her office hours. That is where i learned a lot of the info. Also she drops ur lowest quiz and replaces your lowest test score with your final exam score. Some people might be hard on her but its not her that is bad its just that chem 124 is generally a hard class if you dont put time into it. One negative about retsek though is that she doesnt really curve. However i think she is overally a good teacher. I heard neff is a great chem teacher, but i would also recomend taking retsek. | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 12:07 pm, Dec 15, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is an awesome chem professor. She presents the material very clearly during lecture, and is very helpful outside of class. There is a lot of memorizing to do in this course, but Dr. Retsek provides everything you need to know; it all depends on how much time you put into it. There are 4 quizzes (lowest one gets dropped) each worth 5%, 3 exams (lowest one can get replaced by the final) about 37% of your grade altogether, lab reports worth 20% overall, the final (50 question multiple choice) worth 20% of your overall grade, and other assignments that make up the other percent of the class. Dr. Retsek does grade a little hard on the lab reports and exams, but she wants to make sure that you understand the material and that you are prepared for the final (which is pretty easy compared to her exams). Definitely use the open hours after class to work on worksheets and labs so that you can get help on them if you get stuck. The T.A\'s are very helpful and knowledgeable. At the end, she gives out extra credit just for taking surveys about her and the course (which really helps if you\'re borderline). | |
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CHEM 125 Junior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 12:22 pm, Jun 20, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is a great chem teacher! Many people complain about her tests, but if you just go to every class and take good notes you'll be fine. She writes her test straight from the notes, so there was never really any surprises on the tests. You do have to study a decent amount for this class though, but that's kind of expected. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 7:55 pm, May 26, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is an amazing chemistry professor. I had her for both Chem 124 and 125 and I learned so much from her. She is incredibly knowledgeable and her teaching style is perfect for chemistry. The material is hard, so be ready to do a lot of work in order to do well. If you ever have trouble understanding anything do not hesitate to ask her, she is always willing to help and is very approachable. She is an outstanding professor and a wonderful person. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: D Required (Support) 10:19 pm, May 11, 2009 Report Evaluation |
She is an idiot. Just one more in a long line of teachers who put a precedence on work and not on intelligence. She's an idiot, and she seems to want to teach idiots. If you're a mindless drone who likes to study all the time and lack any semblance of the ability to think critically in any meaningful way, then take Retsek, you'll love her! | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 12:00 am, Mar 25, 2009 Report Evaluation |
She's a great teacher, a lot of people fail because of there lack of work, but there really isn't that much work. There is no homework, just a weekly lab which is exceptional, and studying for the weekly quizes. Just do the worksheets, and you can pull off a good grade. Doing the worksheets correct, makes quizes cake. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 3:47 pm, Mar 12, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Professor Retsek is an AMAZING professor. She knows her stuff and she expects a lot from her students. You need to study A LOT and practice problems until you feel like you're going to die. But it's all worth it. She's a great instructor and very approachable if you need help. She's always flexible and willing to meet outside office hours. She's sweet and kind and treats her students with respect. If you have to take Chemistry definitely take her. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 12:21 pm, Feb 26, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Great teacher. Tough, but its a tough class. Extremely approachable. Despite what your grade says, you usually learn a lot. Be prepared to work. I learned nothing from Chem 124 and was worried about 125, but Retsek takes care of you. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 9:59 pm, Feb 21, 2009 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek was a very helpful and approachable teacher. Her lectures were very straightforward and she presented the material very clearly; she doesn't drone on like some teachers. She wants to help you and is EXTREMELY helpful during office hours. | |
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CHEM 142 Sophomore Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 11:47 am, Dec 2, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Wonderful professor. Definitely would recommend. | |
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CHEM 124 Senior Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 7:23 pm, Nov 29, 2008 Report Evaluation |
This was a really great class considering that chemistry is the spawn of the devil...seriously...hated chem in high school. Anyway she is a more than helpful teacher and her TAs for this class were great. If there is one thing that you should know about the class is that the labs are a little weird. Take detailed notes during the lab to help with the write ups because you will loose points and you will have to ask to find out why. My major advice is to simply pay attention. Everything will fall into place from there. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 12:40 am, Nov 10, 2008 Report Evaluation |
TAKE HER. She is amazing. The class was pretty hard, but she explains everything so well. I took her in the studio and she was awesome. She tries to get to know everyone. She's awesome in office hours: she'll basically give you the answers to labs if you go in to see her. Her tests are pretty hard, but as long as you know the lecture notes, do the homework, and do the worksheets, you will easily get a B or higher. She understands the difficulty in the course. I'm pretty sure she curves at the end of the quarter. I would take her again if I could!! | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 10:22 pm, Jul 10, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Very approachable, lecture is long and boring, but clear and helpful. 1 quiz/week & usually 1 lab/week. 3 midterms and a final that can replace your lowest midterm. Challenging course- it starts off pretty smoothly and gets harder. I suggest trying really hard in the beginning of the quarter so you don't get screwed like about 1/3 of the class! Definitely take Dr. Retsek for 124 and 125. | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 2:00 pm, Jun 24, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Retsek is great. The key to doing well in this class is taking really good notes and doing/understanding ALL of the problems on the worksheets since problems on the quizzes/midterms come straight from the worksheets. I did all of the problems that were assigned from the book as well and had a B+ the whole quarter, which is what I ended up with. It's one of those classes where you have to expect to get docked for stupid stuff on labs and whatnot. Keep your grade up during the quarter because the final is a tough 50 question multiple choice test that I thought I got an A on and ended up getting a 37/50. She does curve the final grades a little at the end but not too much. Overall, Retsek is great at conveying information and answering people's questions. TAKE HER. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 11:05 pm, Jun 17, 2008 Report Evaluation |
This class was pretty fair. Workload was good, labs were fun sometimes, but the lectures were really long. You get about a lab and a quiz each week. Make sure you do at least half of each practice worksheet she gives you to study for each quiz. If you do it then, you can do less studying for midterms and more beach trips! Professor Retsek drops your lowest quiz and gives some extra credit. She's really helpful in office hours and curved our class a good 5% too! | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 6:39 pm, Jun 17, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Dr Retsek was a very straightforward and honest teacher. People complain about her but I feel that everyone will get the grade they deserve. Going to office hours and staying in class when she gives you worksheet time do not go unnoticed. She is aware of those who try hard and have troubles and those who simply don't care. She wasn't as good as Christina Abel in my opinion, but overall a good teacher and I would recommend her if you don't mind working a bit and really want to learn Chemisty. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 4:24 pm, Apr 30, 2008 Report Evaluation |
AMAZING! I loved her... not only is she personable and makes an attempt to know every students name in class, but she is extremely fair on tests and quizzes! Her final is almost the exact same questions that come from the first 3 midterms, like over half were with changed numbers or elements! Highly Highly suggest her, she is so helpful in office hours! I would never take another chem teacher! | |
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CHEM 125 Sophomore Grade Earned: D Required (Major) 7:40 pm, Apr 1, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Dr.Retsek is a cool and caring teacher. I had her for lab which is much different than lecture I bet. She's very straightforward and very smart. I got a D because I suck at chem but retsek is cool. | |
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CHEM 135 Junior Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 3:30 pm, Mar 20, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Man, this teacher did horrible things to my gpa. she needs to work those fat titties off and teach the material the right way. And on top of that, her tests were intentionally completely different than the problems done in class and in the book. Not to mention the curve for the class was one of the worst i ever seen. Straight D's and Low C- with a random A and a few B's. If you want a good grade, skip this trick. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 5:59 pm, Feb 28, 2008 Report Evaluation |
She's a really sweet teacher, and very helpful if you go to office hours. This is just a really hard course and she doesn't give any breaks. Even if you feel like its a lost cause, study your ass off for the midterms, and it'll help you a lot on your final. The final is easier than the midterms, or at least it was for me because it was based on concepts instead of the little details in the book. She lets you replace your lowest midterm grade with the final grade. It allowed me to get a B in the class even though I had a D, D, and C on the midterms. WATCH SIG FIGS. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 11:36 am, Jan 8, 2008 Report Evaluation |
Retsesk was a good teacher overall. I really struggled with Chemistry along with about 1/3 of the class. Though she didn’t seem to recognize this until the final weeks of the quarter she did recognize my personal effort and made additional efforts help me pass her class. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 2:23 pm, Jul 19, 2007 Report Evaluation |
Prof. Retsek was a great professor. I am not that great at chemistry, but if you try hard in her class and lab, she recognizes it. After I got the second midterm back and didn't do too well, I went to her office hours and she went over every problem with me until I understood it. Her class is hard, but you learn a lot in it. She also does a lot of fun experiments in class. The best part of her lab is that if you stay after the experiment is over, she'll help you with you graphs and lab problems. My lab group would stay after to do graphs, and she'll guide you in the right direction, and then sign off on your graph which means you'll get full credit for it. In this class you have three midterms and five or six quizzes all together. The quizzes are tough, so don't just study the morning of. If you do all of her handouts and book problems the quizzes will be easier. The midterms are really hard as well, the average was always around a 60 or so. I studied my butt off for her final, a good ten or twelve hours, and I got a C on it. I was so happy with that grade. All in all, she's a great prof, and if you get the chance to take her for any class, you definitely should! | |
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CHEM 125 Senior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 3:19 pm, Jul 3, 2007 Report Evaluation |
I had to write this years later after having Retsek. The reviews are way harsh. She is a wonderful person and loves teaching. Chem is just a hard class, these freshmen don't know what they are saying. Jen just expects a lot from her students, we do go to Cal Poly, not some loser JC. She is one of the reasons why Cal Poly produces the best graduates. She knows her stuff and teaches it well and yes, you do have to study a good amount for her tests and quizes. Study a good amount and fix your mistakes and you'll do fine. She is cares about her students and wants them to learn. Take her, you are in college to learn, not to just get a grade. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: D Required (Support) 2:12 pm, Jun 13, 2007 Report Evaluation |
Retsek was excellent! She is an awesome teacher and if you dislike chem, she is a great choice. The material is hard but not as hard as the material in Chem 124. Lecture is pretty boring but she does cool experiments for you. She is very helpful in office hours and is a really sweet person. I definitely loved her but the material sucked for me. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: D Required (Major) 9:31 pm, Apr 29, 2007 Report Evaluation |
What is there to say. First of all her lack of organization is something to be said for. She constantly failed to inform the class of quiz and exam dates. She is not very helpful during her office hours. All she'll do is ramble on about how stupid you are and tell you that you should reread the book after you read it 4 times before. Seriously one of the worst teacher I have ever had. She does not cover any of the material that is on her tests. She just doesn't have good teaching skills. Avoid at all costs. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: D Required (Major) 12:07 am, Apr 26, 2007 Report Evaluation |
TERRIBLE!!!! DO not take her!!! your GPA will go down. seriously. She failed half of our class. She is so uptight. she marks you off for anything. She is not at all helpful during her office hours. Do yourself a favor and don't take her. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: F Required (Support) 9:34 pm, Apr 16, 2007 Report Evaluation |
She is a very tough grader. She expects everything to be perfect on the labs. I recommend not taking her. She is not at all helpful during her office hours and she doesn't explain things clearly. | |
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CHEM 125 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 11:40 am, Apr 6, 2007 Report Evaluation |
To the arrogant jerk below: Rude, pompous comments are one way to NOT succeed at life. You can excel at academics and still have no social skills whatsoever, and in the end, not get very far overall. Anyway chemistry is a hard-enough subject for many people but Retsek managed to present it in an understandable fashion. I'd say she would be the best one out of all the others that are teaching 124/125. | |
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CHEM 125 Senior Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 2:45 am, Apr 5, 2007 Report Evaluation |
To the whiner below: Your blame is misplaced. If you're on the verge of getting kicked out, it isn't Dr. Retsek's fault, it is 100% yours. And who fails general chemistry?? Do you have gak for brains or are you one of those freshmen, just released from mommy and daddy's roof, who party day and night and then bawl when you end up failing college? This is Cal Poly, not UoP or Chico. And believe me, if you couldn't pass 125, you wouldn't get very far in the College of Engineering anyway. Get your resume for Applebee's all polished because that's all you got in your future, dumbass. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: F Required (Support) 2:50 pm, Apr 4, 2007 Report Evaluation |
She is cold hearted on the verge of getting kicked out of cal poly and woudn't round my grade up .15% she is just an ice queen! | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 4:58 pm, Mar 26, 2007 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is an excellent teacher. During lecture, she would go over the material thoroughly. Her tests are tough, but fair. More importantly than the grade though, I feel like I learned a ton during this class. Even though she was a tough grader, I would still recommend her as a teacher. She's very helpful during office hours as well as after labs. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 4:52 pm, Mar 20, 2007 Report Evaluation |
DR. RETSEK IS AN EXCELLENT TEACHER. HW LOAD ISNT TOO BAD. JUST DO THE PROBLEMS OUT OF THE BOOK AND THE WORKSHEETS AND YOU'LL DO GREAT. I'M JUST TERRIBLE AT CHEM SO THATS WHY I GOT A BAD GRADE BUT SHE WAS A GREAT TEACHER. I REALLY ENJOYED IT. TESTS AND QUIZZES ARE KINDA HARD BUT NOT TOO BAD IF YOU DO THE HW PROBS AND WORKSHEETS. | |
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CHEM 129 Sophomore Grade Earned: D Required (Support) 12:04 am, Mar 7, 2007 Report Evaluation |
Her Chem 129 class is very hard. She is a really tough grader when it comes to quizzes and tests. I barely passed. I know for sure that about half the class failed. | |
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CHEM 129 Sophomore Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 2:40 pm, Feb 28, 2007 Report Evaluation |
She presents the material clearly but she grades really hard. I think about half the people in our class failed. | |
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CHEM 128 Senior Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 10:54 am, Dec 14, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Dr retsek is a great teacher and presents the material very clearly. She is super nice and very approachable with problems or concerns. Best way to study is to do all the homework and especially the review sheets she hands out in class. She is kinda tough or grading and can be very tricky about how she sets up her problems on the test so know your shit backwards and fowards before going into it. Not sure about the curve because i havent got the grade yet but I did about 10-12 percent better than the class ave and currently am looking at about 77% so either alot of people are getting d's or she'll hook up the curve. Overall a really nice lady and a good teacher, just a tough grader. | |
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CHEM 129 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 8:54 pm, Aug 9, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek, I think, is one of the best teachers in the chemistry department that you can get. If you have the chance to take her, please take her. The notes she gives during lecture (although sometimes a little boring) are extremely helpful, and are the basis for the study guides for the tests. Make sure you do the suggested homework. First 5 weeks I slacked off and failed the 1st midterm, failed many of the quizzes, and didn't do the homework. After that slight reality check that I didn't understand acid-base equilibria (yes, equilibria, stuff from 128) I did all the homework, sat in the front of the class to pay more attention during lecture, and I aced the second midterm and the proceding quizzes. Luckily she allows you to replace your first midterm score with your final. If you do better on the final than the first midterm, she will change your first midterm grade to the grade you received on the final (so the final can be worth about 38% of your final grade). I never went to office hours and I received a B+ (almost an A- when after the first midterm i had a D). So make sure you stay on top of everything, go in if you really just don't get it, and you'll do fine. Oh, and the stupid ACS test, don't worry about it. It's mostly 128 stuff and barely any 129 stuff. I received a B in 127, a C+ in 128, and a B+ in 129, I didn't study but I looked through the book and went, oh yes, we studied that, but I don't really remember it, oh well. I scored a 42/50 and ended up in the 99th percentile. Make a guess if you're not sure, work fast, and don't stress because the average for cal poly students is a 30/50 (60%) and the part that goes on your final grade for 129 (10% usually) is curved anyways and doesn't really affect your grade THAT much. | |
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CHEM 129 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 11:27 am, Jul 10, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek was really helpful in explaining things if you went to her office hours with questions and wasnt condescending in the least. She really cares and will go back and reteach a topic if she feels the class hasnt figured it out yet. So far my favorite chem teacher. =) Homeowrk was optional, but really helped with knowing what test and quiz questions were going to be like. Her only thing with lab was to have really, really in-depth observations and at least try to answer the questions. | |
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CHEM 129 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 10:36 pm, Jun 26, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Easily the best Chem professor I have ever had. Not only did her labs completely coencide with the lectures perfectly, but she made sure you understood them both perfectly. Do the homeworks, and you will do perfect on the tests. | |
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CHEM 129 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 7:48 pm, Jun 12, 2006 Report Evaluation |
This class is really hard but Dr. Retsek is really nice. She presents material in a clear way but the homework she assigns is almost never like her test questions. Tests are really hard and you have to study and go to office hours almost everyweek. | |
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CHEM 125 Junior Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 1:19 pm, Mar 23, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Welllll, what can I say about Dr. Retsek? I honestly think she is about as good as you can get for this course. The CHEM series for engineers is a tough series, no matter who is going to teach it. But Retsek does everything she possibly can to make this class bearable...and passable. She has three midterms, a final, and three quizzes in addition to your lab grade that she calculates for your final grade. Luckily, she drops your lowest quiz score and your final can replace your lowest midterm score. She doesn't curve your grade, but from what I've heard, no one does in this series. But, Retsek does whatever she can to make this class easier and more understandable for the students. She is extremely helpful in office hours and is more than willing to help any student that is willing to ask for help. A final note: spend more time on her prepared worksheets rather than doing book problems. If you can do the worksheets, you can do the book problems and the quizzes. It's obviously best to do both, but worksheets should take priority. Retsek is a solid, knowledgable, and willing professor. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 5:51 pm, Mar 15, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Ok, i don't know what that dumbass in chem 111 was thinking, because JR is an awesome teacher. If you don't get an A or a B in her class, then you are just not trying hard enough. She gives you all the info you need to do well, you just have to STUDY IT! I'll admit, her tests were a tad difficult, but nothing nobady will ever have to deal with eventually. She always answers her e-mail and will always be extremely helpful in office hours. Take her if you can, but if you are lazy and don't like to study or do work, (basically what college is all about...) then don't take her. Simple as that. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 12:38 pm, Mar 3, 2006 Report Evaluation |
I cannot say enough about this prof. She's great. She presents the material incredibly clearly and gives you all the tools necessary to get an A in the class. She understands when people have difficulties, and is very helpful in office hours, and is always available via e-mail. Just do as much of the homework as you can, especially the worksheets because they are often almost identical to the quizzes, and go to all the lectures. Definitely take the prof. She knows her shit. | |
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CHEM 111 Sophomore Grade Earned: N/A Required (Major) 4:35 pm, Feb 1, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Probably the most ANAL and STRICT professor in the chemistry department...most people would say she is the biggest bitch when it comes to grading, so AVOID her at ALL COSTS...take Friend or Lowell instead!!! | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Major) 2:21 pm, Jan 10, 2006 Report Evaluation |
Awesome professor. She presented notes to copy in class that were very helpful. The labs were all pertinent to the information. She's very helpful outside of class and will guide you through any problem. I highly recommend her. | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 2:37 pm, Jan 3, 2006 Report Evaluation |
The doctor is a great teacher that goes over the material thoroughly and also understands that it is a hard course and tries to help her students. I recommend Retsek, but if you take her do the worksheets(not collected), do the homework(not collected), and pay attention in thermo. I got behind from thermo and didn't do most of the worksheets or homework. If I had I probably would have gotten a high B or an A. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 5:30 pm, Nov 9, 2005 Report Evaluation |
She is a nice teacher. She presents the material clearly. Although it is not an easy class, I recommend Dr. Retsek. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 9:32 pm, Apr 13, 2005 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is a great teacher. She makes chemistry fairly easy to understand. There is no homework besides the lab reports, which can be done on the computer or handwritten. Be prepared to spend hours studying for this class because the material is excessive and fairly complex. The only reason she gives the qizzes is to make sure you are keeping up on the material (All 3 are only worth 12%), but that is extremely important because you can't cram for this stuff. Her tests are hard but reasonable and her lectures seem really long but she crams everything you need to know in them and in a very easy to go over later format. Great help in office hours and extremely reachable by email. take her, you wont't regret it. | |
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CHEM 125 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 4:54 pm, Mar 30, 2005 Report Evaluation |
Chem 125 is more mathmatical and less concepts than Chem 124. This is still a hard class. The labs take a very long time to do and total 22.5% of the overall grade. There are 3 midterms and a Final with 3 quizes. If you score higher on the final than one of the midterms it replaces that grade. She presents the material very clearly and makes it interesting. If you don't understand something she is very helpful in office hours. This class takes a lot of time and effort. I was studying all the time for it. Thursday nights are not very fun because the only time there isn't a quiz or test on Friday was when there was a lab quiz. If I had to take chem again I would definately try to get her again. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 9:52 am, Feb 24, 2005 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is an excellent teacher. She shows great interest in her students and explains the material for this class clearly. The class is tough in general but Retsek gives you a good understanding of the material. The final was difficult but it was the same for all sections of 124 and out of all the teachers Retsek and Neff made most of the questions. SO TAKE Resek if you can she is friendly, really gets to know her students, and explains the material well in lecture. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 6:11 pm, Jan 5, 2005 Report Evaluation |
Retsek was an awesome teacher for this class. Her lectures were very well organized and easy to follow. She gives time to do the worksheets in class, so the only homework is the labs. Just do the worksheets and that's all you need to know for the quizes. Her study guides for the tests are very helpful and cover everything that is on them. If you can take Retsek I would highly recommend it. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 1:39 pm, Dec 28, 2004 Report Evaluation |
this is a hard class if u dont go to office hours, she doesnt scale her grades, but she should. Retsek is a very fun and happy teacher and it is an entertaining class | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 6:52 pm, Dec 22, 2004 Report Evaluation |
She is tough and so is the course but with some effort a good grade is not impossible. Dr. Retsek really helped with understanding the material and was always in her office when she said she would be. She also answered e-mails in about a couple of hours, and her responses were very helpful. I strongly reccomend taking Dr. Retsek for chem 124 | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 5:17 pm, Dec 16, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Absolutely take this teacher. She has an incredible gift for teaching! Don't expect not to work in this class though. The reputation the Chem 124 has is well earned- you will work your ass off. The only difference the teacher can make in this class is whether or not you will learn something. If you take Retsek, you will definetely learn a lot, and enjoy the class, as well, because she has a knack for making the dullest of materials seem interesting. Also, one other attribute that blew me away was the fact that if you work your ass off in this class, she will see that, and when it comes time that you need a favor from her, she will be a lot more willing to oblige, letting you turn a lab report in late. However, if you don't put any effort into the class, good luck! I would give her a five, but I can't. Awesome professor. Incredibly fair. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: C General Ed 11:40 am, Dec 15, 2004 Report Evaluation |
This is a very hard class. Especially for a first simester of college. If you can take it later I would do that. As far as taking Retsek... She is a good teacher and knows her stuff. She is more than willing to help you out at her office hours. This is just a hard class, and taking Retsek was probably the only reason I did not end up with a D. If you have to take this class take Retsek. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 9:00 pm, Nov 29, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Professor Retsek is a great teacher. She knew everyone's name in the class by the end of the second week, which is amazing considering there were 100 people or so in the class. She doesn't go too quickly, but make sure to keep up with the recommended homework problems because those help a lot on the tests and exams. She gave us three quizzes and three tests plus a final, so if you do badly on one exam you have room to improve. She is always willing to help you if you have a question. I would definitely take her again. | |
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CHEM 127 Freshman Grade Earned: F Required (Major) 12:33 pm, Nov 19, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Okay Retsek isn't all that bad but she sucks. I took her this quarter and she is really a picky teacher. If your sig figs are wrong (these of which I still don't understand) she takes off points. She expects you to know a whole lot about chemistry before you even take the class which sucks because like me, I had a bad chemistry experience in high school and knew hardly anything upon taking this course. There are a lot of people who know what they are doing which makes it bad as well. So be careful upon taking this class if you are going to. | |
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CHEM 111 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 5:59 pm, Jun 17, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Professor Retsek is a wonderful professor to take, if you are doubting your abilities in chemistry. She goes at a very reasonable pace, and is very approachable. In less than two weeks she knew everyones name, and would walk around the room making sure we understood what we were doing. She is more than willing to help. be sure to do all the homework assignments she assigns, as they are indicitive of the material that goes on the quizzes that she gives so often. Unfortunately she can be a tough grader, and the final hurt practically everyone in the lecture as the average grade was a D. But dont let this keep you from taking Retseks class. She makes everyone feel confident with the material she is teaching. | |
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CHEM 111 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 1:29 pm, Jun 16, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is a wonderful professor. I know that there are a fair share of bad chem professors out there (I have already had to take 2 others), and she definitely proved to be the best I have had. She is a difficult grader, but if you stick to the material, it gets easier to understand as the class continues. She is also great during office hours because she is willing to help anyone and always extends them before a major test. Though there are many midterms and quizzes throughout the course, it helps you stay on top of the information without getting behind. Take her! Her bubbly personality makes the class less frightening and more enjoyable. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 3:10 pm, Mar 28, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek is one of the BEST Chemistry teachers here at CalPoly. Even if you aren't fortunate enough to have her as your professor, DEFINITELY GO TO HER REVIEW SESSION before the final! The class isn't as hard as people make chemistry out to be; just make sure to pay attention when she's teaching new stuff, and pay attention to the worksheets and packets she gives out. She's approachable and very helpful if you need assistance or answers. Her lectures are quick, but nail down everything that's important. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 1:22 pm, Mar 28, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Dr. Retsek, in my opinion, is all you'll need to get an A for this class. Attend every lecture, take notes, complete lab assignments on time, ask help from her if you need it(trust me you should take advantage of office hours) I used to hate Chem since highschool but her approach and explanations helped me enjoy learning Chemistry. She is a hard grader and particular about minute details. But you can avoid errors if you approach her and ask her all your doubts. She does curve I think and she is very understanding. Be in constant touch with her and there is no way you can get anything less than an A!!! | |
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CHEM 124 Sophomore Grade Earned: F Required (Support) 8:05 pm, Mar 27, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Jennifer Retsek is a wonderfully kind woman. She will do as much as possible to help her students. She'll answer an infiniate amount on the most mundane questions until you get the material if you go to office hours or stay after class. Her lectures are crystal clear and she understands difficulties extremely well. I failed the course but i didn't do the last lab and DITCHED the final. I had NO time for this course and my grade in no way a reflection on her ability to teach. Her shortfalls are in the NAZI style grading. our first assignment was balancing 40 equations and sure enough we got the assignment back with EVERY equation THROUROUGHLY graded. homework and virtually every assignment is like this, but she balances this out by being there while you do the assignments and is incredibly open to help you. take advantage of her effort to help and you will do extremely well in her class. she's a great professor though very picky. i'de recommend her most definately. | |
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CHEM 128 Freshman Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 6:48 pm, Mar 24, 2004 Report Evaluation |
I had her for lab, she is good at explaining the lab, and what we are going to do in the lab. She only lets you to work with partners. Her policy on the labs is that you must turn them in that day, unless it is a long lab or material that you have never seen before, but for the most part they are due that same day. if they are late you lose 25% of the points. she is a very hard grader on the labs, i lost alot of points due to sig figs, and units, make sure you have the right sig figs and units. The three quizs that you take are extremly hard and challanging. | |
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CHEM 124 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 8:24 pm, Mar 4, 2004 Report Evaluation |
Not particularly my most enjoyable prof, but not my worst. She's very nice, but she and her TA are tough graders, and she lectures pretty fast. However, she does a good job of explaining things if you ask her. | |
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