Current instructor

Sean Palecek

/5Adjusted rating

/5RMP difficulty

captured reviews

About this rating

Raw average: 4.31/5 from 13 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

CBE 2502026-01-23

Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5

Thoroughly enjoyed 250, as long as you pay attention in class and occasionally go to discussion or office hours when stuck or confused, then you should do well.

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CBE 2502025-12-18

Quality 4/5Difficulty 4/5

Really well explained concepts. Sometimes midterms can be a curve ball. Pay attention in lectures because Prof. Palecek doesn't post notes!

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CBE 2502025-12-17

Quality 5/5Difficulty 3/5

For the first real class in the major, I'm really glad I had Dr. Palacek. He was always a very clear explainer, was accessible out of class, and was always willing to explain areas which I had trouble with. The grading was also quite generous in the class which certainly helped. He doesn't teach 250 often, but if you have the opportunity, take him.

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CBE 2502025-10-20

Quality 5/5Difficulty 5/5

Very good professor, I'm rather surprised by how inattentive the class is given that it is chemical engineering class. I'm actually doing worse than most people even though I'm trying to pay attention, it's clear that he gets frustrated by how noisy the class is. I think he is a good professor but It's hard to pay attention when everyone is talking

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CBE 2502021-01-29

Quality 5/5Difficulty 4/5

Professor Palecek is easily one of my favorite professors here at UW. Although the course is extremely homework-heavy (sometimes taking up an entire day to do) his lectures were entertaining and enjoyable, his exams were engaging and very well written, and he cares a lot about his students. Additionally, he was very available outside of class.

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CBE 2502021-01-13

Quality 5/5Difficulty 4/5

Palecek is one of my favorite professors at UW. His lectures, homework, and exams were tough but always reasonable and helpful. He was always available & willing to help in and out of class. He was also super flexible with the challenges of a COVID semester & online learning. I highly recommend taking Palecek if you have the chance.

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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with Sean Palecek

BME 399

Independent Study

1–3 credits

BME 399 offers directed study projects arranged with an instructor.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=6 letter grades).

Peter Adamczyk Amit Nimunkar+68 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026

BME 790

Master's Research and Thesis

1–9 credits

BME 790 is a Master's Research and Thesis course conducted under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Kris Sankaran Amit Nimunkar+70 more

No recorded grade history

BME 799

Advanced Independent Study

1–5 credits

BME 799 is an advanced independent study course conducted under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

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

Peter Adamczyk Amit Nimunkar+78 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2023 · limited sample

BME 890

Pre-dissertation Research

1–9 credits

BME 890 is a pre-dissertation research course conducted under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Peter Adamczyk Kris Sankaran+66 more

No recorded grade history

BME 990

Research and Thesis

1–9 credits

BME 990 is a research and thesis course conducted under faculty supervision.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Kris Sankaran Sean Palecek+62 more

No recorded grade history

CBE 250

Process Synthesis

3 credits

CBE 250 teaches process synthesis, focusing on the invention of large-scale, low-cost processing methods for various materials.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Sean Palecek is described as a clear explainer who provides helpful examples and remains accessible outside of class. Reviewers note that while he may lack enthusiasm, he is straightforward and fair. One reviewer criticizes his use of pop quizzes and exam alignment, contrasting with others who find his grading generous and his support valuable.

Sean Palecek

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026

CBE 489

Honors in Research

1–3 credits

CBE 489 is an undergraduate honors research course where students conduct supervised research projects.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Sean Palecek Brian Pfleger+12 more

No recorded grade history

CBE 599

Special Problems

1–4 credits

CBE 599 is a special problems course focused on research or independent study in Chemical and Biological Engineering.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2013: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=8 letter grades); Spring 2016: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=7 letter grades); Spring 2022: 4.00 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=3 letter grades).

AJ Boydston Reid Van Lehn+24 more

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026

CBE 790

Master's Research or Thesis

1–9 credits

CBE 790 is a Master's research or thesis course involving directed study projects arranged with an instructor.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Sean Palecek Brian Pfleger+20 more

No recorded grade history

CBE 890

Pre-dissertator's Research

1–9 credits

CBE 890 is a directed study course for pre-dissertator research projects arranged with an instructor.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

AJ Boydston Reid Van Lehn+32 more

No recorded grade history

CBE 990

Thesis-research

1–12 credits

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

AJ Boydston Reid Van Lehn+28 more

No recorded grade history

Recorded teaching history

Explore courses taught by this instructor →

Browse recorded courses

Term	Course	Title
Fall 2026	BME 399	Independent Study
Fall 2026	BME 790	Master's Research and Thesis
Fall 2026	BME 799	Advanced Independent Study
Fall 2026	BME 890	Pre-dissertation Research
Fall 2026	BME 990	Research and Thesis
Fall 2026	CBE 250	Process Synthesis
Fall 2026	CBE 489	Honors in Research
Fall 2026	CBE 599	Special Problems
Fall 2026	CBE 790	Master's Research or Thesis
Fall 2026	CBE 890	Pre-dissertator's Research
Fall 2026	CBE 990	Thesis-research

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

Instructor identity & provenance

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