Current instructor

Ellen Damschen

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

Raw average: 3.80/5 from 35 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.

What students say

Original student reviews · all captured dates

BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 2/5
Nice and fun professor who likes to incorporate activities, even in large lecture halls. She is pretty chill, and the Ecology unit itself is not too difficult, so mostly just read through the slides to prepare.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 5/5
I really don't understand, she used terminology that we had not learned. The other professors were better.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
The least stimulating professor ever. I was genuinely falling asleep in her class.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 1/5
Very unorganized. Lectures are very boring and are not worth going to. She seems to have a hard time teaching very easy content. Other 2 professors were MUCH better.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
Seems to care a good bit, but lectures are very boring and the ecology unit as a whole is about as unorganized as it gets.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 1/5
She obviously really likes what she teaches but her slides won't make sense if you're not actively present during lecture
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with Ellen Damschen

BOTANY 299

Directed Study in Botany

1–3 credits

BOTANY 299 is a directed study course that introduces students to research questions and provides mentorship in a botany research environment.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+13 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample
BOTANY 691

Senior Thesis

2–3 credits

BOTANY 691 is a senior thesis course focused on individual research conducted under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+14 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY 699

Directed Study

1–4 credits

BOTANY 699 is a directed study course where students explore botany research questions under faculty mentorship.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2022: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=1 letter grades).

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+14 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample
BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460

General Ecology

4 credits

General Ecology covers the ecology of organisms through biosphere levels, studying interactions in field and lab settings.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2021: 3.28 GPA, 55.6% A/AB (n=81 letter grades); Fall 2022: 3.19 GPA, 52.7% A/AB (n=93 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.50 GPA, 76.7% A/AB (n=60 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

Ellen DamschenGarrett Knowlton+2 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026
ZOOLOGY 299

Directed Studies in Zoology

1–3 credits

ZOOLOGY 299 is a directed study course where students conduct independent research and develop hypotheses under faculty mentorship.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Fall 2025: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=15 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.96 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=14 letter grades).

Sharon ThomaJeff Hardin+27 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026 · limited sample
ZOOLOGY 682

Senior Honors Thesis

1–4 credits

ZOOLOGY 682 is a mentored individual research and study course for students completing a thesis in an Honors program.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Scott HartmanJeff Hardin+31 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample
ZOOLOGY 691

Senior Thesis

1–6 credits

ZOOLOGY 691 is a mentored individual research and study course for students completing a senior thesis.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Scott HartmanKaren Strier+34 more

No recorded grade history

ZOOLOGY 692

Senior Thesis

1–4 credits

ZOOLOGY 692 is a mentored individual research and study course for students completing a senior thesis.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Karen StrierDavid Abbott+21 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample
ZOOLOGY 699

Directed Studies in Zoology

1–6 credits

ZOOLOGY 699 offers selected research projects for junior and senior students.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2019: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Spring 2020: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Spring 2022: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades).

Scott HartmanKaren Strier+46 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026
ZOOLOGY 990

Research

1–9 credits

ZOOLOGY 990 is a graduate research course where students conduct advanced biological research under faculty mentorship to fulfill program requirements.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Karen StrierJeff Hardin+40 more

No recorded grade history

Recorded teaching history

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Fall 2026BOTANY 299Directed Study in Botany
Fall 2026BOTANY 691Senior Thesis
Fall 2026BOTANY 699Directed Study
Fall 2026BOTANY 995Research-plant Ecology
Fall 2026BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460General Ecology
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 299Directed Studies in Zoology
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 681Senior Honors Thesis
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 682Senior Honors Thesis
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 691Senior Thesis
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 692Senior Thesis
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 699Directed Studies in Zoology
Fall 2026ZOOLOGY 990Research

Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.

Instructor identity & provenance 
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