Quality 1/5Difficulty 5/5
Although I got A, it took me too much time due to overwhelming workload! All the assignments are nonsense for a non-bio student. I spent more time on this course than my 4-credit major course.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Cara Theisen
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
Quality 1/5Difficulty 3/5
Do not take a class with her unless your life depends on it. You will hate your life all semester, so little work for 2 credits, and you didn't even learn anything. Learned more in high school than I did here. I beg of you, do not take this class or anything with her. They think it's some huge thing because it's a FIG, but it's not.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 1/5Difficulty 1/5
The professor is not the problem with this class---the class is the problem. It's a two hour long lecture every week in which less than half the time is spent on actual biology, which itself is less than high school level and irrelevant. The content itself is easy but there this an insane amount of busywork; should be a 3 credit class, not 2.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
This class is such a waste of time. Information was middle school caliber and there is so much pointless homework. It is a super easy A if you are willing to sit through the two hour lectures once a week and complete basic assignments. Peer leaders are great though!Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 1/5Difficulty 1/5
For a class that was only worth 2 credits, it was easily the class I spent the most time on outside of class due to the long out of class work. Additionally, the class itself was very long and was the worst part of the week due to how long and uninteresting the course was.Rate My Professors ↗
Quality 2/5Difficulty 3/5
Workload is insane for this class, it just isn't worth the 2 credits.Rate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Cara Theisen
INTEGSCI 100
Exploring Biology
2 creditsExploring Biology introduces core biological concepts, research methods, and career landscapes to support first-year transition to UW-Madison.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
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.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025INTEGSCI 320
Internship
1–3 creditsINTEGSCI 320 is an internship providing academic credit for skill development in science education through service, peer mentoring, and leadership.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Recent recorded grades — Fall 2020: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=8 letter grades); Fall 2021: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=9 letter grades); Spring 2022: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=2 letter grades).
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sampleINTEGSCI 330 is a practicum in STEM peer leadership that applies leadership, mentoring, and communication skills to support STEM student success and enhance participants' own leadership development.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=16 letter grades).
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2025–Spring 2026 · limited sampleA mentored practicum developing graduate student skills in teaching and learning college science courses through independent teaching experience.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Recorded teaching history
Explore courses taught by this instructor →Browse recorded courses
| Term | Course | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | INTEGSCI 100 | Exploring Biology |
| Fall 2026 | INTEGSCI 320 | Internship |
| Fall 2026 | INTEGSCI 330 | Practicum in STEM Peer Leadership |
| Fall 2026 | INTEGSCI 850 | Mentored Practicum in College Science Teaching |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
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