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Appel, Christopher

Cumulative GPA: 3.76/4.00 with 29 evaluations
Presents Material Clearly: 3.72
Recognizes Student Difficulties: 3.83

Soil Science Department, Cal Poly, SLO
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SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: A Required (Major) 5:07 pm, Mar 22, 2010		Chip Appel is the man! He makes learning about dirt, excuse me, soil fun! Do the homeworks and do them well because they are worth the same amount as a midterm. There were two midterms and I got a C+ and a B-. They weren\'t easy but I think if you do the study guides and memorize the information you could easily get an A. I think I complicated the questions and I don\'t think the book reading matters that much. I feel like the notes from in class are the focus of his tests. Do the labs and do them well (TAKE LARRY RAIO for lab!!!) because that will boost your grade. Also, be sure to go into office hours if you don\'t understand something; Chip is really helpful. Another cool thing- he memorizes every student\'s name in the first couple weeks. The final was comprehensive but I thought it was easier than the midterms. Chip really does everything possible to make sure students have the opportunity to do well; he even offers extra credit! He is always cracking jokes and is really passionate about soil. TAKE HIM!!!

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 8:34 am, Jan 7, 2010		Chip is the man! Take him. It\'s a hard class, but if you work hard you can get a good grade. Plus he does hat and moustache days!

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: A Required (Support) 9:07 am, Dec 15, 2009		Dr. Chip Appel is a fantastic teacher. He does all kinds of fun and goofy stuff like instituting \"hat and mustache\" days throughout the quarter. He makes all the material very clear and interesting. I never went to office hours with him but it sounded like he was very willing to take extra time to help students out. He even took the time to learn EVERYONEs names within two weeks. He really cares about the students. He will do a lot to help you out but he isn\'t an easy teacher either. He gives tough homework and quizzes every lab. You need to work hard in this class but Dr. Appel makes it just fine.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 1:04 am, Aug 14, 2008		Probably one of my favorite teachers here at cal poly. The test were pretty hard but he is so worth it. He is so funny and makes class fun. He is just a really great guy. He keeps tract of everyone's birthday and memorizes everyone's name by like the second day. He still waves to me around slo and I took this class a year ago.(and I am not a overachiever student)

SS 121 Freshman Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 9:54 am, Jun 11, 2008		He is a good guy and is REALLY enthusiastic about the class. You will learn a lot but the tests are hard... really hard. I don't this it has to do with him as a teacher this class is just a bitch in general.

SS 121 5th Year Senior Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 9:10 am, Apr 1, 2008		Chip is all about getting students involved and learning the material. I had him for the lecture and lab and that made the course much easier! It is a hard course but if you put in the time and energy you will pass it no problem with Appel, I've heard alot about the other professors that teach ss121 and not much of is has been good. I would definitely recommend taking Appel.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 4:21 pm, Jan 9, 2008		this is a class that i had previously dropped because it was sooo boring with Dr. Rice. If you need ss 121 take appel!!!

SS 121 Senior Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 5:36 pm, Mar 25, 2007		Chip is a really great lab instructor. I know people in lab hated and failed all the lab quizzes, but they really are nice to have. They helped prepare me for the lecture tests even though I had a different instructor for that [Dr. Smith.] He does spend some time going over how to do all the labs, and he makes everyone get to know each other. But it helped create a better atmosphere where we all helped each other out if someone got stuck. Grading was not bad. It wasn't overly harsh or too lax. All the quiz material is mentioned beforehand, so it's not a bunch of surprises. But if you haven't done dimensional analysis before, make sure you practice! Labs are graded somewhat strict, but it's because he wants people to do good work. If you messed something up, explain what might have happened. Think about what you're doing in lab. We pretty much never got out early except for towards the end of the quarter. There are a couple walking fieldtrips, and a small paper due that relates to them both. Basically Chip is a super nice, friendly guy and he knows his stuff and how to talk to people. Take his lab if you don't want to be bored!

SS 110 Junior Grade Earned: B General Ed 7:10 pm, Jan 3, 2007		Appel is the Shit. He's not very easy, but he's hott so it makes up for it! Take him if you want something nice to look at for a few hours. If you want an easy A...take someone else.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: A Elective 6:33 pm, Sep 27, 2006		He was very helpful if you did not understand. He also explained the information in detail. If it was not for him then I would not have done as well in my Lecture class.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: N/A Required (Major) 4:26 pm, Mar 27, 2006		Appel is really cool, but difficult. He gives you great information, but he'll expect you to go above and beyond yourself. His weekly quizzes are crazy, i didn't do very well on them, and his packets, well, they're tricky. Make sure you have someone to work with, talk about what's going on and go beyond just what Chip gives you. He's a great guy though, and he's really nice. If you're willing to put in the work, Chip Appel rocks, and I totally recommend him, otherwise, don't. He'll make you think, you can't just coast by in this lab. He tells you how to do the lab actually, but the packet can get really tricky. Students beware, but you'll have fun if you have him, that's no doubt. Good luck.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 10:51 pm, Mar 19, 2006		Chip is the man! He is hilarious and is probably the sole reason why I want to pursue a career in Soil Science. If you want to learn about soils take Chip, but if you want an easy A, I recommend taking someone else. He knows his stuff and his weekly lab quizzes are hard. Chip is one of my top 3 proffessors I have had at Poly and I actually learned something.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 8:05 pm, Mar 16, 2006		Study for the weekly quizzes. He's a very helpful teacher and knows his soils, he's just hard, so if you want an easy teacher, take Dingus.

SS 121 Senior Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:22 am, Mar 15, 2006		The lab: Just study a lot, especially the calculations. Be on top of things. Work hard! You'll do fine. The prof: Great guy. Very nice.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 6:31 am, Dec 22, 2005		Chip is a cool surfer prof. who has a great sense of humor and relates well to students. I loved his interaction in lecture. Gives clear understandable lectures. His tests are hard so study for them. He's one of the best soils professors, take him!

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 4:08 pm, Oct 12, 2005		I had Appel for lecture and lab. Great in both. I recommend taking lab and lecture with him if you can because the material goes together at times. Hard class, but Appel is very helpful and available in office hours. Great sense of humor, made soil science fun. Highly recommended. I know many students that hate SS because they had a bad teacher, I love SS because I had a good one.

SS 121 Senior Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 9:49 am, Mar 24, 2005		Chip's a totally nice guy with some humor. The class itself has a lot of material to cover. I had Chip for both lecture and lab. Weekly quizzes in the lab section, so study both the new, old, and any material. The tests for lecture was very challenging for me, but if you do lots of studying you'll manage.

SS 121 Senior Grade Earned: C Required (Major) 7:46 pm, Feb 1, 2005		SS 121 lab wiht Chip was eventful. He is alway there if you have a question. And the field trips are a lot of walking but you "learn by doing." Read the next lab before the next class. That will help you pass his tests. If you hook up with a good lab partner then you will be done with lab with time to spare. You will have to go on a walking field trip. If you don't go you loose 100 points. That is one lab score. He goes over the lab before you do it. I would recommend Chip to any student.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: N/A Required (Major) 8:23 pm, Jan 23, 2005		I had Appel for SS121 Lab, not lecture. This was a 3 hour lab, and we only got out early once or twice. He often lectures for the first 1.5 hours of lab, and it's just a repeat of what we learned in the real lecture. Although the lab is dry and long, Chip is very through and goes around to make sure everybody understands the material. He has a very dry sense of humor, which can be absolutely hilarious sometimes.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 6:44 pm, Oct 27, 2004		Go to his office - he's very helpful. This class isn't that hard if you review your lecture notes. Do the homework in groups - it's a lot easier.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: A Required (Major) 7:10 pm, Jun 3, 2004		Chip is the best teacher I have had at Cal Poly so far. He presents material clearly and is always more than willing to help you out when you dont understand something. Though I should mention that his tests are rather challenging. I did recieve an A but I studied A LOT for his tests. Chip goes by the book so dont expect a curve or any pity. Some advice, go to every class because he raises your grade by 3% if you make every class, but after your first missed class he takes off one letter grade per absence. This isnt the kind of class you can miss anyways, missing a few classes would probably give you an F anyways. Chip makes the class worth it, he has a dry sense of humor and is absolutly hilarious, I highly reccomend this teacher.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: B Required (Major) 2:39 pm, Mar 28, 2004		Chip is really a good professor. He makes what is nomally a very mundane topic as interesting as is possible. He also keeps the class fun with lame soil jokes and gives birthday presents from the soil science department's lost and found to people who have a birthday during the quarter. His tests are difficult but, from what I hear, easier than most other SS instructors. He also takes attendance, not outloud but silently, so even if you think he isn't checking he is, and it affects your grade as much as a full letter if you miss more than once. He also gives extra credit for perfect attendance. Fair teacher overall, though.

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 9:00 pm, Mar 23, 2004		Going in to this class, I was intimidated because everyone said it was SOOO hard. I had Chip for lab and lecture, which proved to compliment each other nicely. He has a dry sense of humor but it is hilarious. He does an awesome job of explaining the material, and answers any questions perfectly. His labs are long, but he covers everything you need to know. If your looking for an easy class, this is not it. But if your looking to learn alot and have a good time, i highly recommend it. he also keeps you informed about your grade. TAKE HIM, HE IS AWESOME!!

SS 121 Senior Grade Earned: C Required (Support) 2:03 pm, May 27, 2003		Chip is a great guy! This isn't the easiest of classes and quite frankly, I was happy that I put it off until my senior year because it might have been a little overwhelming taking it as freshman. I also had Chip for lab and he always made sure to explain everything and not make you feel retarded. His tests in lecture were hard, but fair and my high lab grade is actually what saved me. Out of all the horror stories that I have heard about the other soil science professors, Chip makes the class a walk in the park. He also isn't a bad looking professor, so on those Fridays when you really don't want to go to class, it is at least worth your while to go and check him out!

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: D Required (Major) 3:23 pm, Apr 3, 2003		Chip is a really cool guy!! I throughly enjoyed each one of his lectures. Although I did recieve a D+ due to my own laziness. While chip is a really great professor, he's not the kind who will cut you any slack. He really plays by the rules. I would highly recomend Chip to anyone who wants to take SS-121 and learn a lot. If your just looking for an easy A, you better take another teacher.

SS 121 Freshman Grade Earned: B Required (Support) 10:18 pm, Apr 2, 2003		Appel is an above average instructor. So far as the soils department, I would only recomend Hallock over him. Very laid back, labs last two or two and a half hours, and there's no lab final. Pretty easy as a lab, but I thought grades were all around pretty low. The final three labs focused more on math and class grades took a dip. It isn't hard. Appel makes a commitment to remembering you and your name. Everything is a "unique and interesting opportunity." Oh yeah, and soil isn't dirt. How dare you! Soil is.. "life." Hahaha.. but really, take the class.

SS 121 Junior Grade Earned: N/A Required (Support) 3:22 pm, Dec 5, 2002		This guy is great. His lectures are totally straight forward and he gives you a brief outline to follow for each one. He's totally into the material and his enthusiasm for it is contagious. He's pretty funny and entertaining too which helped when the material got a little dry. He gives you a study guide for each test and nothing is on the test that isn't on the study guide. He also really good about clearing up misunderstandings and seems to really want the students to get the material. There are a about 5 homework assignments, but they're not that bad and they really help you understand the material better and help you study for the tests. I learned a ton of stuff in this class and even though I thought I would hate it, it ended up being my favorite class this quarter. Who knew learning about dirt could be so painless?

SS 121 Sophomore Grade Earned: A Required (Major) 6:11 pm, Nov 27, 2002		He was a really good teacher, he got everyone involved and made the information fun. He was also really fair as far as grading goes. It's a really sweet lab to have after a late night on the town.

SS 221 Senior Grade Earned: N/A Elective 11:27 am, Nov 7, 2002		Chip's a good guy and a good teacher. He's good about helping you out in class, but he does a good job of explaining things so you shouldn't need too awful much help. No lab final.

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