He does a great job at teaching the course. There is a lot of content, but he makes lectures as fun as he can. He mentioned many interesting facts about Wisconsin, which I found cool. Attendance isn't mandatory, but the slides are vague, so you won't learn much just by reading the slides. I would recommend the class to anyone looking for a gen edRate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Jim Berkelman
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
pretty basic concepts of ecology, overall very easy to learn. test questions are multiple choice, but very specific questions, which makes it hard to prepare for. Kind of a boring lecturer, he gets on tangents once in a while, and has a monotone voice. But overall pretty easy class if you are looking for an easy natural science credit!Rate My Professors ↗
Jim has been my favorite professor here so far. He seems genuinely passionate about what he is teaching and workload is completely manageable. There's one discussion post per week and two nature walk activities that can provide a good amount of extra credit. Tests do require a fair amount of memorization, but they aren't too bad.Rate My Professors ↗
Prof. Berkelman is a very nice guy. The lectures are a little boring content-wise but he is pretty funny and tries to make them more fun. Very easy content just kind of boring. Grading was super lax, all the assignments were essentially full points if you do them on time.Rate My Professors ↗
This class is low-key a little boring, but the professor is super nice and passionate. The material is not hard to grasp however the tests are actually pretty difficult compared to what you would except because most of the questions are super niche and nit picky so that is a little tough. DO THE NATURE WALSK EARLY it gives you extra creditRate My Professors ↗
Jim is a great professor, he made me excited to learn about the topics he was teaching and he is very passionate about his work and field.Rate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Jim Berkelman
Study of life history, ecology, distribution, and taxonomy of terrestrial vertebrates, focusing on Wisconsin species and conservation threats while covering major North American families and global groups.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
Recent recorded grades — Spring 2024: 3.20 GPA, 53.3% A/AB (n=60 letter grades); Spring 2025: 3.26 GPA, 58.7% A/AB (n=63 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.20 GPA, 59.4% A/AB (n=64 letter grades).
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2023–Spring 2026A coordinative internship or cooperative education experience in Forest and Wildlife Ecology, guided by faculty and a site supervisor.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
No recorded grade history
Special Problems
1–4 creditsSpecial Problems offers individual advanced work in Forest and Wildlife Ecology under direct faculty guidance.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
No recorded grade history
Research and Thesis
1–12 creditsIndependent research course preparing students for a graduate thesis under faculty supervision, focusing on scientific presentation and data communication.
Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources
No recorded grade history
Recorded teaching history
Distinct courses recorded per term
Explore courses taught by this instructor →Browse recorded courses
| Term | Course | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Spring 2027 | F&WECOL 306 | Terrestrial Vertebrates: Life History and Ecology |
| Spring 2027 | F&WECOL 399 | Coordinative Internship/cooperative Education |
| Spring 2027 | F&WECOL 699 | Special Problems |
| Spring 2027 | F&WECOL 990 | Research and Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 110 | Living with Wildlife - Animals, Habitats, and Human Interactions |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 299 | Independent Study |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 318 | Principles of Wildlife Ecology |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 399 | Coordinative Internship/cooperative Education |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 699 | Special Problems |
| Fall 2026 | F&WECOL 799 | Practicum in Forestry and Wildlife Ecology Teaching |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
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