She was probably the best LECTURER in the course, but her exams were so difficult, requiring you to know things that were so in depth or covered very briefly in very small font. I did the worst on her exams because of this, which is unfortunate because I liked her lecturing style and I found it easy to follow.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Katrina Forest
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
Prof. Forest is knowledgeable about Microbiology. Her exams on the other hand, cover things we either didn't discuss in lecture or didn't go into detail about. Average for the first exam was a C. The exam was more about being able to pick the best guess and questions were worded confusingly. The other professors for MICROBIO101 are more fair.Rate My Professors ↗
Professor Forest is very passionate about her teaching; however she doesn't provide a lot of content in class or in slides and expects you to read the textbook a lot. Her exams are also very challenging compared to the lectures that she teaches in class. She makes the questions way harder than what we've ever done or discussed.Rate My Professors ↗
Dr. Forest is a terrific lecturer. However, she also doesn't tend to use slides. This means studying off of the book that has a lot of extra information or off of your probably very messy notes taken from her whiteboard. Without the help of my friends on the problem sets, I would have struggled in this class. Confusing problems were also an issue.Rate My Professors ↗
Don't take this class in the Spring. Both professors are awful and do not give fair exams in the slightest. Exam averages were around a 60% and the material on the exam expects way too much from the students. Dr. Forest thinks we are all experts by the time the exam arrives, which is far from the case. There is no indication of what to study.Rate My Professors ↗
Lectures were long and sometimes boring but she tried to keep us engaged with in class activities. Its probably helpful to do the readings before class. Tests are pretty hard but similar to the assignments she gives.Rate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Katrina Forest
CHEM 980 is a graduate-level seminar where students engage in research discussions facilitated by faculty within their research group.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Spring 2026Research
1–15 creditsCHEM 990 is a research course where students conduct supervised research projects with individual faculty members.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
General Microbiology
3 creditsGENERAL MICROBIOLOGY surveys microorganisms, covering their structure, function, ecology, and applied aspects in medical and industrial fields.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Katrina Forest is praised for her passion and clear lecturing style, with one reviewer calling her the best lecturer in the course. However, she is criticized for providing minimal content in slides and expecting heavy textbook reading.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Independent Study
1–3 creditsMICROBIO 299 is an independent study course allowing students to conduct research in microbiology under faculty guidance.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sampleMICROBIAL GENETICS & MOLECULAR MACHINES examines modern microbial genetics and molecular processes.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Katrina Forest is criticized for assuming students are experts by exam time, leading to unfair exams with unclear study expectations. Reviewers report that the material covered on tests exceeds what was taught, resulting in low average scores and high difficulty.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Senior Honors Thesis
2–3 creditsMICROBIO 681 is an individual study course for majors completing theses for Honors degrees.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Senior Honors Thesis
2–4 creditsMICROBIO 682 is the second semester of individual study for majors completing theses for Honors degrees, arranged with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sampleSenior Thesis
2 creditsMICROBIO 691 is an individual study course for majors completing senior theses.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Senior Thesis
2 creditsMICROBIO 692 is a second-semester individual study course for microbiology majors completing their senior theses under faculty supervision.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sampleSpecial Problems
1–4 creditsMICROBIO 699 is an independent study course allowing students to conduct advanced microbiology research under faculty guidance.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026 · limited sampleIndependent Study
1–9 creditsMICROBIO 899 is an independent study course allowing students to conduct research in biological science under faculty direction.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Research
1–9 creditsMICROBIO 990 is a research course involving full lab and literature review of a microbiology problem, leading to thesis preparation and publication.
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 | CHEM 980 | Seminar: Review of Current Research |
| Fall 2026 | CHEM 990 | Research |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 101 | General Microbiology |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 299 | Independent Study |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 470 | Microbial Genetics & Molecular Machines |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 681 | Senior Honors Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 682 | Senior Honors Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 691 | Senior Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 692 | Senior Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 699 | Special Problems |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 899 | Independent Study |
| Fall 2026 | MICROBIO 990 | Research |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
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