Students in Foundations of Biology Laboratory Spring 2020, Fall 2020, and Spring 2021 were asked: What advice would you have for students who plan to take this course in the future? Their unedited answers are below.

I would advise students to take careful notes during class and paying close attention to details when completing labs.
I would recommend taking this course during the first semester. I felt pressured to only take 4 course my first semester, but I wish I had taken this one during my first semester. This course has a lot of assignments and projects that require time investments, and semesters after your first generally have classes with larger workloads, so it’s just easier to complete a course like this when your workload is less strenuous. If not, I would recommend only taking a maximum of one additional lab class with this one in the same semester and never more than 5 total classes. If a student is a higher year and intends to take this class, try, if possible, to take statistics ahead of time. If already in the class, make sure you have time to attend a TA session at least once a week, especially leading up to quizzes. It may be confusing what you should study for a quiz the first time, but the TAs are helpful and knowledgeable. Also, make sure to run projects or larger assignments by TAs.
My advice to future students is to at least start the assignment about a week before it’s due. I recommend sending a draft of assignments to your professor and your TA before turning in a final product to receive pointers on it, and have time to adjust it accordingly. I also advise future students to read your textbook. The textbook is so helpful when it comes to writing. This class is very focused on scientific writing, so knowing what you’re doing is important. Another suggestion I have for this class is to write in your lab notebook as you go through each lab; if you wait to fill in the notebook until right before it’s due, there’s no way to satisfy the notebook check. It’s much more beneficial to just take the time to get it out of the way. My last suggestion would be to ask for help when it’s needed, and if you’re struggling with something outside of school that can affect your performance, reach out to your professor. New College professors are all interested in seeing students learn and master material; if there is something hindering that process, most professors are very understanding, and will work with you to make sure you are doing what is expected, but in a way that isn’t overwhelming.
I would tell them to know statistics beforehand and buckle in for a lot of work.
My advice would be that as a student in this course you need to stay on top of your assignments and make sure you manage your time effectively to have enough time to do your best work. You need to put in the effort to do well in this class and if you need help go to the TA sessions. All in all, don’t slack off and make sure you are always prepared for class, especially always have your lab notebook ready to be turned in and make sure you are thoroughly prepared for the quizzes.
Be detailed in your work and make sure to spend time with the material so that you fully understand the concept. If you can’t write out a few sentences explaining it, then you may not understand it completely. Also focus on making a study plan; it will be very handy.
For students who plan on taking this course in the future I would recommend having some background in statistics or other advanced math. Also, complete assignments in a timely manner instead of waiting until the last minute, especially the longer assignments that take a while to complete. Take good notes and don’t forget to title and date every page.
Well, first my advice for you would be to make more TA sessions mandatory to encourage students to use them more. My advice to students would be to set aside more time for assignments so that they can think about them more critically about their homework and to not through those assignments away by not putting enough effort or time into them.
Going to the TA sessions enhanced my understanding of a lot of material and I would really recommend taking advantage of those!
Look at things as soon as they are posted so they are at least in your mind. Keep track of dates because its all about perspective, its much closer than it appears to be.
My advice to future students would be that this course may be rigorous and sometimes stressful, but if you put in strong effort you will benefit greatly. The knowledge gained throughout this course is a great stepping stone or reinforcement for future courses.
I think students should know that this is not like a regular lab class with experiments and lab reports. There is a lot more to this course than labs. Be prepared for lectures, labs, writing, quizzes, etc.
A statistics course would be useful to take before or while taking this class.
Be ready for a genuine lab experience, this class is not about just simply checking boxes. You must be prepared for the coursework, and have some level of interest in the content, otherwise this class will feel like an arduous chore.
Just make sure to give yourself time, and plan when you will do certain tasks because that’ll give you a better schedule and set times. This helps a lot including when it comes to the online portions.
For students who plan to take this course in the future, I would recommend taking a statistics and scientific writing class prior or along to Biology Laboratory. I think that the tasks in this class become easier if you have previous knowledge on these.
Do you know statistics? It would help.
Talk to Dr. Doan or a TA early if you have problems with group work. If it’s your first time in college, a strong course like this can be intimidating, but your TAs and professors want to help you learn and succeed, and they understand you don’t have much experience with this stuff. So do your best, but don’t feel the need to struggle on your own if you’re having trouble. Also, at the end - be proud of your accomplishments! Regardless of whether your final project rocked or wasn’t all you’d hoped it would be, it’s a huge accomplishment that you should be proud of, and a great learning experience moving forward.
It would definitely be beneficial for them to at least have some prior knowledge of the scientific process before taking the course, otherwise they might be a little overwhelmed. I would also recommend making frequent SWA appointments if they have trouble with their papers. They’re gonna need it. I would also recommend only taking the course if they actually want to pursue a career in Biology. I don’t think this is the kind of class you can take to fulfill a course requirement.
I would advise students who plan to take this course in the future to be bold and have fun in labs. It feels much better to take an active role in your group than to wait for everyone else to finish the complicated parts because you’re afraid of doing them wrong.
My advice to future students taking this course, would be to expect a lot of reading, be able to adapt to different varieties of writing, and be consistently active with the TA sessions as well as the office hours provided in the class. I also would tell future students prepare for this class by looking up how to properly create and capitalize CSE citations in a bibliography page.
I advise you to frequently visit the student success center to help you get everything in order and planned out so that you don't fall behind with the workload. The amount of work from this class along with all of your other classes will pile up and getting help for that is really useful.
Take this course as soon as possible and do not fall behind with deadlines.
Do not underestimate the time that assignments take make sure you do not wait until the last minute because if you have a problem you won’t have time to get help. Don’t be scared to ask for help the professor and the TAs are here to help you. You are going to get overwhelmed and stressed at some points but it is possible to complete the work.
For future students taking this course, I strongly recommend that you finish all assignments before Thursday, particularly on the weekend. Since the coursework is mildly spread out, assigning one day to just focus on it all is very helpful for getting the work done.
If you can, go to TA sessions and office hours. Assignments are going to be more challenging and time consuming than you’re expecting for a lab class. If you haven’t taken a lab at New College yet, it might be a pretty big change from a community college or high school lab. It can be pretty involved and some of the assignments can be a little challenging so ask questions and get help if you need it. Also, don’t put anything off until the last minute. Start your assignments early so you have time to work on them because some of them are pretty time consuming and you don’t want to be doing it last minute. It’s a lot of work, but you’ll get really great feedback and important skills.
I would definitely enjoy this class because you genuinely learn really good material which will help your scientific writing enormously in the long run. I would say to not be afraid of taking this course, it can come off as difficult but Dr. Doan definitely prepares you for every single assignment.
Set aside time for this class, and do not get behind! The assignments are challenging but very doable, but allowing a few appropriately challenging assignments to stack up makes them seem way more intimidating. Also remember there are usually deadlines on Sundays, not just class days.
My advice Is to always turn in your assignments on time and always go to tutoring, TA sessions, office hours, and to see a SWA whenever possible. This class is difficult and should not be taken lightly. The workload for the beginning of class might not seem like a lot but as the term moves on you have a lot more to do. You should always dedicate a large amount of your homework time to this class to make sure your work is the best it can possibly be. Laziness will lead to your downfall here.
It is important to spend some additional time outside of class practicing the in-lab activities. If you found a particular aspect of the lab difficult, reach out to Doan so she can help improve your understanding.
I would advise future students to make sure you’re in good communication with your project group members, because I often failed to communicate in a timely fashion and it caused some really unnecessary stress.