Current instructor

Irwin Goldman

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

Raw average: 4.71/5 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

PLANTSCI 350
Quality 5/5Difficulty 1/5
he's a really good lecturer and makes the content really interesting. the class itself is really easy, all the content is from lecture and there's no outside readings.
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PLANTSCI 350
Quality 5/5Difficulty 3/5
PLANTSCI350=HORT350. Irwin is a wonderful professor in my opinion. The content in this class was very interesting and I still think of some of the topics daily. The lectures are definitely long but by midway through the semester he started letting us go 15-30 minutes early everyday. You do have to study hard for exams, but are they are doable.
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BIOCORE 381
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
Irwin was fantastic; he is the best of the 381 professors. His evolution unit was captivating and he made me excited to go to lecture, and his exam content of evolution was not too difficult. He did spend multiple lectures talking about Darwin and his life which is not very relevant to the course or exam but he still made it interesting
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HORT350 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 3/5
Super nice guy! Definitely is passionate about what he teaches the only downside in my class was the exams were all short answer and pretty hard. We also couldn't see our overall grade the whole semester.
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HORT350 · course not matched
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
I really enjoyed this class, even though it something that I don't need for my major. Irwin is my favorite teacher I have had so far, as he reminds me of a fun grandpa. He is really sweet, and really enjoys what he is talking about. I would highly recommend taking this class just for fun.
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HORT350 · course not matched
Quality 5/5Difficulty 4/5
Horticulture 350 was my favorite class taken at UW Madison so far. All of the lectures were very interesting and made me think critically about the world around me. Also this class is not just limited to horticulture but the lectures encompass many other academic fields philosophy, chemistry, etc. I would definitely recommend taking this class!!
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with Irwin Goldman

Covers basic principles of ecology, transmission and population genetics, and evolutionary mechanisms including the origin of life and species diversity.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Reviewers describe Irwin Goldman as passionate and clear, noting he provides helpful study resources and cares about student success.

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Fall 2025

PLANTSCI 350 explores the intersection of plants and human wellbeing through a horticultural lens, examining how plants have shaped society and culture.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Irwin Goldman is described as a wonderful and engaging lecturer who makes the content interesting. Reviewers note that while lectures are long, he often ends them early later in the semester, and exams are considered doable with study.

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2025–Fall 2025 · limited sample

A deeper look at the scientific, social, economic, and policy implications of essential crops for human wellbeing.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 3.73 GPA, 85.0% A/AB (n=20 letter grades).

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2025–Fall 2025 · limited sample

PLANTSCI 699 is a special problems course for independent research in Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences guided by faculty.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

No recorded grade history

PLANTSCI 990

Research

1–12 credits

PLANTSCI 990 is a graduate research course involving independent research and writing under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

No recorded grade history

Recorded teaching history

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Fall 2026BIOCORE 381Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics
Fall 2026PLANTSCI 299Independent Study
Fall 2026PLANTSCI 350Plants and Human Wellbeing
Fall 2026PLANTSCI 351A Deeper Look at Plants and Human Wellbeing
Fall 2026PLANTSCI 699Special Problems
Fall 2026PLANTSCI 990Research

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

Instructor identity & provenance
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