Fall 2026

Introduction to Biochemistry

Covers the chemistry, nutrition, and metabolism of biological systems.

offering recorded3 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Scott Coyle4.4/5Mario Pennella3.7/5Richard Amasino3.7/5 +1 more

Summary

1 / 6

The course involves four noncumulative exams requiring significant memorization of cycles and pathways. Some reviewers find their specific sections dense and difficult, particularly those focusing on catabolism, while others note that exams are fair if students study practice problems.

Grade history

↗
average GPA
letter grades
A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F

All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors

Prerequisites

Course map

(CHEM 341, 343, or concurrent enrollment), or graduate/professional standing

BIOCHEM 501 used by

“Used by” includes alternatives; linked courses may have other requirements. This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree

Professors

Fall 2026

Scott Coyle

/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 4.88/5 from 33 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

Scott Coyle is consistently praised for his engaging, clear, and funny lectures, with students finding his explanations of complex concepts accessible. He provides supplemental videos and materials, and reviewers describe him as patient and helpful. One student notes his lectures are dense and fast-paced, requiring advance preparation of slides.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.49 GPA, 70.5% A/AB (n=637 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.58 GPA, 75.0% A/AB (n=768 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.60 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=701 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 3.73/5 from 30 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

For this course: 3.7/5 raw quality · 3.5/5 difficulty · 27 reviews

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

Mario Pennella is a caring course coordinator who actively improves lectures and supports student success. Reviewers highlight his accessibility, willingness to meet outside class, and responsiveness. He is described as accommodating and helpful.

Some students criticize Pennella's monotone delivery and dense, memorization-heavy sections requiring significant time. While one reviewer found his lectures clear and fair, others felt his teaching style was less engaging or the content overly demanding.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.49 GPA, 70.5% A/AB (n=637 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.58 GPA, 75.0% A/AB (n=768 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.60 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=701 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 3.64/5 from 14 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

Richard Amasino is frequently described as passionate and straightforward, with clear exams that reward rote memorization of cycles and pathways. Reviewers appreciate his engaging style and the inclusion of historical context, noting that his explanations make dense material manageable.

Some students find his lectures dense, disorganized, or difficult to follow due to excessive information and lack of pedagogical training. Critics note that slides contain unnecessary details, making studying challenging, and describe his engagement as lower compared to other instructors.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.49 GPA, 70.5% A/AB (n=637 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.58 GPA, 75.0% A/AB (n=768 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.60 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=701 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.49 GPA, 70.5% A/AB (n=637 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.58 GPA, 75.0% A/AB (n=768 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.60 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=701 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Historical reviews for Lisa Lenertz-Lindemer are polarized. Some students found her lectures unorganized, unclear, and boring, while others praised her helpfulness, clear exam emphasis, and strong grasp of the material.

JILL WILDONGER is recorded teaching in Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

LISA LENERTZ-LINDEMER is recorded teaching in Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

MARIO PENNELLA is recorded teaching in Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025, Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

RICHARD AMASINO is recorded teaching in Fall 2006, Spring 2007, Fall 2007, Spring 2008, Fall 2008, Spring 2009, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025, Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SAMUEL BUTCHER is recorded teaching in Fall 2006, Spring 2007, Fall 2007, Spring 2008, Fall 2008, Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025, Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SCOTT COYLE is recorded teaching in Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025, Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

Calendar & sections

Fall 2026

Schedule loads here as you scroll.

SectionModeEnrolled / capacityWaitlist
LEC 001Classroom Instruction280 / 4200
LEC 002Online Only619 / 9900

Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.

Meeting source records
Download part 1

Student experience

the class

Scott Coyle is described by reviewers as an engaging and clear lecturer who makes complex concepts accessible through supplemental materials. Students report that his supportive demeanor and straightforward teaching style help them understand the material and enjoy the lectures.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.49 GPA, 70.5% A/AB (n=637 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.58 GPA, 75.0% A/AB (n=768 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.60 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=701 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

The course involves four noncumulative exams requiring significant memorization of cycles and pathways. Some reviewers find their specific sections dense and difficult, particularly those focusing on catabolism, while others note that exams are fair if students study practice problems.

Mario Pennella is reported to be highly responsive and caring, often meeting with students outside of class. While some find his monotone voice or dense lectures challenging, others appreciate his clear guidelines and willingness to help students succeed.

Topics

  • Chemistry, nutrition, and metabolism of biological systems

Grades

Historical instructor

Fall 2026 · Projected

Before grades are released

– average GPA

Approximate 80% prediction interval

About this estimate

The course’s semester-average GPA, not an individual student’s grade. The center uses 5 same-season terms, weighted toward recent results.

The range uses the finite-sample 80th-percentile rank of absolute errors from earlier same-season forecasts. Each forecast uses only records from earlier terms. At least four forecasts are required; bounds are rounded outward and limited to 0–4. This is an empirical estimate: changing instructors or grading policies can reduce its coverage.

8 earlier forecasts · 0.16 GPA average error.

Grades over time

Through Fall 2026

More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data

Where this course fits relative to

Latest available grades · Spring 2026 · all course levels

GPA

Higher than % of other courses in this group.

Course GPAs · red marks this course’s range

letter grades

More recorded grades than % of other courses in this group.

Typical course in this group: letter grades.

About this comparison

1283 courses over the same term, each with at least 30 recorded letter grades. Cross-listed courses count once. GPA is not a measure of difficulty or teaching quality. The typical course is the median by recorded grade count; tied values are not counted as lower. Grade counts describe course scale, not unique students or typical section size.

Descriptions compare GPA with this group’s average: at least 0.20 higher or lower; otherwise close to average. Section size uses median recorded enrollment: small up to 30, mid-sized 31–99, large 100+. Lectures and discussion/lab sections are described separately.

Sources & history

UW–Madison

Catalog & offerings

Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.

Catalog observation history

Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.

Download part 1
Selected offering source records
BIOCHEM 501 · Fall 2026

Introduction to Biochemistry

Recorded 2026-09-07
Raw records
[
  {
    "run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
    "semester": "1272",
    "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
    "offering_id": "1272:200:001836",
    "course_id": "BIOCHEM 501",
    "course_uid": "course_82b02a0645c630ce73cc6253",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "001836",
    "source_subject_id": "200",
    "title": "Introduction to Biochemistry",
    "credits_min": 3,
    "credits_max": 3,
    "typically_offered": "Fall, Spring"
  }
]
Rate My Professors

Student reviews

Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.

Read original reviews
Download part 1
Madgrades

Grade history

Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.

Explore recorded grades
Dataset & model

Recorded 2026-09-07

Download the original dataset
Model outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Download part 1
Full model traces

Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.

Download part 1Download part 2
Model & dataset provenance
{
  "model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
  "model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
  "task_version": "14",
  "output_id": "eb2fb9b79ca147ddde3772dc5db0f420ae0bb14a9382eede9e86c8236a1c5b65",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}