Current instructor

Sara Hotchkiss

Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 2.63/5 from 27 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

ECOLOGY460 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 3/5
Good professor who explains things well, but the class is a lot. There's a semester-long group project, student-led discussions, and outdoor labs in any weather. The final is replaced with a big project with multiple parts, which can feel overwhelming. Not hard material, just a heavy workload.
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ECOLOGY460 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 1/5
Literally the slowest talking, most monotone speaker possibly ever. I literally could not sit through the lectures because I was so depressed by the time they were over. You can put recordings on 1.5 speed and they sound normal.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 3/5
Prof. H is not a very good professor, but ecology is very easy, so easy that most will be ok even if they study themselves. PS: BIO152 is a disorganized class. You will be tricked by the credits, and the IP will force you to work beyond the time designated to 5 credits, messing up all your schedules. Labs are meaningless. Disappointed.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 2/5Difficulty 4/5
cares about the material but has BAD lectures. she doesnt explain concepts well enough and doesnt give you time to write everything down either.
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BIO152 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 2/5
She's nice but I felt like her slides were less organized than the other 152 lecturers, maybe because her content is more conceptual
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BOT402 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 3/5
Sara is super friendly and approachable, and extremely knowledgeable about trees on campus. Vey easy to make up points on quizzes. However, the class felt disorganized and she rarely set clear expectations for certain due dates, causing me to almost miss a few deadlines. The grading criteria for weekly tree quizzes was also extremely confusing.
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with Sara Hotchkiss

BOTANY 299

Directed Study in Botany

1–3 credits

Directed study in botany that introduces students to research questions and provides guidance and mentorship in a research environment.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

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

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+13 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY 681

Senior Honors Thesis

3 credits

Senior Honors Thesis course for Botany majors involving individual research to complete an honors thesis, arranged with a faculty member.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+11 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY 691

Senior Thesis

2–3 credits

Senior thesis course involving individual research for students completing theses as arranged with a faculty member.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+12 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY 692

Senior Thesis

2–3 credits

Senior thesis course in Botany involving individual research for students completing theses as arranged with a faculty member.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2022: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=2 letter grades).

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+15 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY 699

Directed Study

1–4 credits

Directed Study: Explore research questions in botany through guidance and mentorship in a research environment.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2015: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Fall 2015: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades); Spring 2016: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades).

Simon GilroyDavid Baum+15 more

No recorded grade history

BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460

General Ecology

4 credits

General Ecology covers the ecology of organisms, populations, communities, ecosystems, landscapes, and the biosphere, focusing on interactions with the physical environment.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2023: 3.03 GPA, 44.6% A/AB (n=65 letter grades); Spring 2025: 3.38 GPA, 60.4% A/AB (n=48 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.23 GPA, 54.2% A/AB (n=59 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

Sara Hotchkiss

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Spring 2026
ENVIRST 990

Research

1–12 credits

Independent research and writing course titled RESEARCH, focused on fulfilling thesis or dissertation requirements.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Karen StrierPaul Block+56 more

No recorded grade history

ZOOLOGY 699

Directed Studies in Zoology

1–6 credits

Directed Studies in Zoology consists of selected research projects for juniors and seniors.

Offering recorded · Spring 2027 · Sources

Scott HartmanKaren Strier+52 more

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Spring 2026

Recorded teaching history

Distinct courses recorded per term

Explore courses taught by this instructor →
Browse recorded courses
TermCourseTitle
Spring 2027BOTANY 299Directed Study in Botany
Spring 2027BOTANY 499Intermediate Directed Research
Spring 2027BOTANY 681Senior Honors Thesis
Spring 2027BOTANY 682Senior Honors Thesis
Spring 2027BOTANY 691Senior Thesis
Spring 2027BOTANY 692Senior Thesis
Spring 2027BOTANY 699Directed Study
Spring 2027BOTANY 995Research-plant Ecology
Spring 2027BOTANY/ZOOLOGY 460General Ecology
Spring 2027ENVIRST 990Research
Spring 2027ZOOLOGY 699Directed Studies in Zoology
Fall 2026BOTANY 299Directed Study in Botany
Fall 2026BOTANY 499Intermediate Directed Research
Fall 2026BOTANY 681Senior Honors Thesis
Fall 2026BOTANY 682Senior Honors Thesis
Fall 2026BOTANY 691Senior Thesis
Fall 2026BOTANY 692Senior Thesis
Fall 2026BOTANY 699Directed Study
Fall 2026BOTANY 995Research-plant Ecology
Fall 2026BOTANY/F&WECOL 402Dendrology: Woody Plant Identification and Ecology
Fall 2026ENVIRST 990Research

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

Instructor identity & provenance 
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