Plan ahead for courses where students have earned lower grades.
Lowest historical GPA first. At least 100 letter grades over the five years through the selected term. Grades reflect past outcomes, not workload or a guaranteed result.
Historical grades cover up to five years through the selected term. Only courses with at least 100 letter grades are ranked.
General Botany introduces basic plant biology principles, focusing on evolutionary sequences and structure-function relationships across organizational levels.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of David Baum, Linda Graham: One review suggests the workload is light if you attend lectures, while another indicates quizzes are difficult despite reading the textbook.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introductory Biology covers cell structure, metabolism, genetic information flow, genetics principles, and animal physiology.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course requires outside class hours to grasp lecture material and complete lab reports.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026General Ecology covers the ecology of organisms through biosphere levels, studying interactions in field and lab settings.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of Thomas Givnish: Reviewers report high difficulty, citing exams based on memorizing old research papers and homework that leads to failure without TA help. The teaching style is described as rushing through topics with wordy definitions.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026BOTANY 240 explores the utility of plant parts to humans, the origins and human modification of domesticated plants, ecosystem services, and the importance of sustaining plant diversity.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Students must read multiple textbook chapters weekly and memorize content not covered in lectures, while facing tests written with little notice that can be highly variable in scope.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025Introductory Ecology covers organism-environment relationships, population dynamics, community organization, and human-environment action programs.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of Tony Ives: Tests carry the most weight, so students emphasize completing all extra credit to boost their final grade. Quizzes are short but tricky, requiring careful attention to lecture material and readings.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026PLANT ANATOMY covers the structure and development of seed plants, primarily flowering plants, emphasizing structure-function relationships.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course features a large group project and extra credit opportunities, though one reviewer notes lectures may not align with exam content.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025Evolutionary biology course covering microevolution, macroevolution, adaptation, speciation, systematics, quantitative genetics, and phylogenetic analyses.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Students report that exams are tricky with ambiguous multiple-choice questions, leading to low grades despite perfect quiz scores.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introductory Biology covers plant physiology, organismal kingdoms, evolution, and ecology.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The botany portion requires plenty of memorization. Lectures are dense in content but explained clearly and slowly, with pauses for questions.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026PLANTS, PARASITES, AND PEOPLE explores the interaction between society and plant-associated microbes, covering topics like the Irish potato famine, pesticides, and genetically engineered organisms.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The workload is generally light, consisting of weekly quizzes, three midterms, and self-directed lab assignments. Reviewers note that attendance is mandatory for participation, but the exams and quizzes are considered straightforward if students review the material.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026PLANT SYSTEMATICS integrates taxonomy, evolution, and phylogenetics with emphasis on flowering plants.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025Explores how physical and biological factors affect the distribution of terrestrial biomes, ecosystem types, and biodiversity.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course includes weekly quizzes, readings, group presentations on biological papers, and a final essay, with tests described as clear and straightforward.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025Dendrology course focusing on identification, ecology, and uses of woody plants native to Wisconsin through lab and field work.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025A seminar for graduate students covering various fields of zoological research, including limnology and marine science.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026