Fall 2026

Exploring Biology

Exploring Biology introduces core biological concepts, research methods, and career landscapes to support first-year transition to UW-Madison.

offering recorded2 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Cara Theisen2.6/5

Summary

1 / 7

Students report an overwhelming amount of out-of-class assignments that feel like busywork. Many note the effort required exceeds that of higher-credit courses, with one reviewer spending more time here than in their major classes.

Grade history

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average GPA
letter grades
A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F

All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors

Prerequisites

Course map

First year students or first year transfer students only

  • First year students or first year transfer students only
INTEGSCI 100

This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree
  • First year students or first year transfer students only

Professors

Fall 2026
/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 1.44/5 from 18 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.

Cara Theisen is frequently criticized for treating students like young children, which reviewers find annoying and condescending. While some acknowledge her subject knowledge, many describe her teaching style as overly simplistic and patronizing.

Reviewers consistently report that the course workload is excessive and disproportionate for a two-credit class, often comparing it to heavier credit loads. Many describe the assignments as busy work that lacks academic relevance or biological depth.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2023: 3.86 GPA, 92.4% A/AB (n=145 letter grades); Fall 2024: 3.94 GPA, 96.7% A/AB (n=152 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.86 GPA, 93.3% A/AB (n=149 letter grades).

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

No reviews exist for current instructor Cara Theisen. Historical reviews for Chris Trimby describe the course as busy work, while Hannah Richerson is praised for interactive discussions and detailed feedback.

CARA THEISEN is recorded teaching in Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Fall 2025. 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 Instruction69 / 800
DIS 301Classroom Instruction18 / 200
DIS 302Classroom Instruction17 / 200
DIS 303Classroom Instruction15 / 200
DIS 304Classroom Instruction19 / 200
DIS 305Classroom Instruction21 / 221
DIS 306Classroom Instruction21 / 220
DIS 307Classroom Instruction18 / 220
DIS 308Classroom Instruction21 / 221
LEC 002Classroom Instruction81 / 882

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

Meeting source records
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Student experience

the class

Reviewers consistently criticize the course for excessive busywork and a workload disproportionate to its two-credit value. While some find the content interesting, most describe the experience as frustrating and not worth the time investment.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2023: 3.86 GPA, 92.4% A/AB (n=145 letter grades); Fall 2024: 3.94 GPA, 96.7% A/AB (n=152 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.86 GPA, 93.3% A/AB (n=149 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

Students report an overwhelming amount of out-of-class assignments that feel like busywork. Many note the effort required exceeds that of higher-credit courses, with one reviewer spending more time here than in their major classes.

Reviewers frequently complain that Dr. Theisen treats students like young children, which they find annoying. Some appreciate the campus connections built, but others find the two-hour lectures excruciating and the structure confusing.

Topics

  • Core biological concepts
  • Bioscience careers
  • Biological research methods

Skills

  • Foundational academic skills
  • Biological research communication

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.

6 earlier forecasts · 0.11 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 · Fall 2025 · 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

1320 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
INTEGSCI 100 · Fall 2026

Exploring Biology

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": "1272:503:023798",
    "course_id": "INTEGSCI 100",
    "course_uid": "course_c8f1d3fe5b347f865e024a23",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "023798",
    "source_subject_id": "503",
    "title": "Exploring Biology",
    "credits_min": 2,
    "credits_max": 2,
    "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 1
Model & dataset provenance
{
  "model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
  "model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
  "task_version": "14",
  "output_id": "140d15bb34557ddb750e61ccc695d66696cfd62b31f57503bbd847a227daab1c",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}