PSYCH 3401
Biological Psychology
An introduction to biological mechanisms underlying behavior. Topics will include the physiology of nerve cells, anatomy of the nervous system, control of sensory and motor activity, arousal and sleep, motivation and higher mental processes. PREREQ, PSYCH 100B
Instructors
Reviews
2-4 hrs/week
If you're interested in Biological Psych or neuroscience this is an epic class. With regard to exams, prof bergstrom gives you practice quizzes that are incredibly helpful. His exams are super fair and as long as you spend some time studying you're gonna be fine. You get to drop one exam (you can drop the final).
10/24/2025
2 or less hrs/week
Cooper is genuinely one of the best lecturers I’ve ever had. Hands down. In an 80 minute lecture she kept me engaged and focused for like… 95% of the time which is really good for me lmfao! Content was super cool!!! A lot of it was pretty hard and you had to wrestle with, but Cooper uploads her recordings online which definitely helps. Exams were all encompassing of the specific unit but comprehensive studying will get you good results in that the exams were very fair. #profcoopsforever #ilovecooper
5/23/2024
2 or less hrs/week
A challenge without a biology/STEM background. Cooper is very available though and wants you to do well.
5/22/2024
6-8 hrs/week
Explains topics extremely well and clear, tests cover everything
5/21/2024
This class is definitely not going to be easy to those who lack a bio background yet it was advertised as doable for anyone and everyone and I therefore struggled A LOT. Tests are 80% of our grade which really kicked me in the ass and there was no extra credit offered or any curves. I wish I would've dropped the class before the deadline :/
12/18/2023
Prof is energetic and knows a lot about what she teaches but you will likely struggle if you are not good at science. The class is advertised to be appropriate for people of all academic backgrounds but a lack of biology will make things very hard for you. Tests were very frustrating and always had surprises no matter how hard I studied.
12/13/2023
great lectures! i never got bored or sleepy even if i was sleep deprived in a 10am. She's caring and gives advice on stuff outside of the class if you ask. Some of the exams had one or two parts that were a bit tricky but overall her tests were reasonable and FAR FAR from the hardest tests on campus. Live Laugh Love Cooper:)
12/7/2023
Dr. Cooper is seriously a top-tier lecturer. From the way she recaps, engages students, and teaches the material in a manner that's easy to grasp. Responsive and accessible after class too. You'll have a couple of quizzes and only a few exams for the grades. But that should be enough if you go to class, put in the work, and study. #profcoops4ever
8/17/2023
Dr. Cooper is the best professor I have had at WashU so far! I thought the exams were more than reasonable given the amount of information we were expected to know. We were not asked questions on content that was not explicitly covered in the slides (I would highly recommend throwing everything from the slides on a Quizlet to prepare).
5/26/2023
There weren't many assignments. Shes a great teacher and I loved meeting with her after class or during office hours. The topics were similar to other psych classes but interesting. Difficult exams though,
4/26/2023
Difficult exams but nice teacher. She speaks really slow and breaks everything down.
4/25/2023
Lectures are just amazing. Dr. Cooper is the best lecturer I've met at WashU so far.
4/25/2023
The class had few assignments so it was hard to do well in. The exams were pretty specific from the slides and I took a lot of psych classes already and found it hard. She teaches really well though and is super nice.
4/25/2023
Dr. Cooper might be the best lecturer I've ever had. I found that she did a phenomenal job breaking down complex, relatively difficult biological/neurological processes into bite size pieces that simply made sense. She makes it clear what you need to know for the exams (unlike many other profs). Some of the tests were a bit nitpicky, though.
4/24/2023
Professor Cooper is easily one of the best professors I have had at WashU so far. She explains difficult concepts in a well-paced and understandable way, and she is responsive to questions on Slack. She is also very friendly and engaging, and I hope I can take more classes with her.
4/24/2023
The lectures were interesting but the tests were so specific. She doesn't have open office hours so you have to make an appointment which is sometimes annoying.
4/24/2023
She makes really tough exams for easy concepts. I would not take a class with her again. Also participation heavy in terms of attendance and poll everywhere attendance.
4/20/2023
In terms of psych classes, hers is on the better end of the spectrum. Still very lecture and content heavy, but what really got me is that she wouldn't really test on the stuff from class. The exams were hard and very specific. Sweet person though
4/20/2023
Dr. Cooper is the best person at this school. She is so cool and so nice and I have gone out of my way to take every class she teachers. This class was one of my favorites.
2/24/2023
Dr. Cooper was very accessible outside of class, and the exams are very fair. As long as you study the powerpoints and know the review questions well, you can succeed. Enjoyable course material and great professor.
11/30/2022