Kit Mao
3 courses · 36 reviews
Courses
All Reviews
This class make sense. If you get the professor, it is all good. One thing to remember is that if you put effort into the class, you'll probably do okay, all right, okay, mhmm?
3/26/2014
Well if you want to take Chem Lab you really have no choice but to have Kit Mao. She is obviously an incredibly brilliant person but an awful lecturer. Although I liked the format of the class and thought that the labs were set up so you would truly "learn," her exams were too ridiculous. But she is hot.
11/6/2013
Kit Mao claims her class corresponds to Chem 111, but it does not. AT ALL. This course is entirely self-taught. Mao is nearly impossible to understand, the TAs are not helpful, and the material is confusing for everyone. Nothing is taught, you are expected to know science. She's a great person, but her class is physically impossible.
11/1/2013
Funny and gives interesting lectures. Chem 151 is relatively easy but it gets much more difficult when you get to chem 152.
4/9/2013
Mao is entertaining, but a terrible teacher. She expects every student to have taken AP chem and remember every aspect of each lab. I recommend going to TA office hours for help with lab reports, and memorize as much as you can before tests (look at previous tests to know what to memorize). Funny lectures at least, and labs can be kinda fun.
12/30/2012
Absolutely adorable, hilarious, interesting. She's a bit hard to understand but it isn't a problem if you pay attention. I had to work really hard but I felt driven to do well because I enjoyed her class so much. Lab is hard and it sucks but TA help sessions make it doable. Kit Mao is amazing, definitely one of my favorite professors.
11/20/2012
This class is overly difficult and unnecessarily so. Kit Mao's lectures barely correspond to the labs and she is barely helpful at best.
12/21/2011
Chem lab is hard and she teaches assuming you already know a lot. Also not in sync with 111 at all which is frustrating. Tough grading and mostly self taught. Glad to be over with it.
11/29/2011
Kit Mao's English is very bad so it is difficult to understand her lectures. She also forces the TA's to grade really hard and her lab sections are NOTHING like working in an actual lab. Don't take this unless you absolutely have to, and even then I wouldn't recommend it...
11/18/2011
One of the best professors I've had at Wash U. She expects a lot out of her students, but in doing so, her students learn a lot. Neither 151 or 152 are easy (both require a lot of work considering that they are only 2 credits apiece), but it's not hard to get a good grade if you're willing to put forth a bit of effort. Lectures are hilarious.
4/30/2011
CHEM 151, 152 professor. Lectures the lab section. Lot of help when writing lab reports!
3/28/2011
CHEM 111, 112 professor. Lectures the lab section. Lot of help when writing lab reports!
3/28/2011
Dr. Mao is a frighteningly intelligent professor who expects a lot out of her students. She provides you w/ all the necessary info needed for labs-although she does expect at least a modicum of intelligence & ingenuity- she makes herself easily available for questions. I found her to be approachable and amiable while others found her intimidating.
1/17/2011
Kit Mao yells at you for an hour and then expects you to go into a ridiculously hard and long lab and be successful. I have weekly nightmares about her labs. If you have AP credit in chem, DO NOT take this class!!!
11/19/2010
Dr. Mao is one of the greatest assets to this university. She provides you with all the materials to do well in the course. There is always help available and you will learn a lot in this challenging class. If you study hard and do you best in her class you will be very prepared for future coursework.
5/13/2010
Class is very stressful. She talks very fast in lecture, but ends up communicating very little - the lectures emphasize stuff we've already learned in 112 or random formulas that will help you with the calculations for that lab report but will be useless if you want to actually understand the material or do well on the exams, which are hard.
5/12/2010
The course is a too hard and very stressful. She expects students that haven't had AP chem will be able to attend office hours or help sessions yet they aren't always conveniently timed.
1/31/2010
Very difficult class, even if you had an awesome high school chemistry course. Very good teacher though. Kit Mao is clearly passionate about teaching. She wants you to understand. Very fair and generous grading method. Labs are tiring. Study hard for the tests; they are harder than they sound. Prepare alot for labs.
12/29/2009
Good professor, tests are pretty hard despite what that db below said. However, it is not impossible to get an A without taking ap chem in high school as i did not and did fine in this class. Weekly labs are arduous.
1/29/2009
Hilarious. The labs are tiring, but she's fine. And it's not like you have a choice whether to take her or not, premed.
12/24/2008
I think everyone at Wash U should get to experience Kit Mao...you have to see her in action...demos, lab patrol, taking away your points. Lab is kind of annoying (4 hours) and the tests were not kind to me, but it's not terrible.
12/16/2008
as helpful and dedicated a professor you'll ever meet. put effort into the labs, and your grades on those will make up for your dismal test scores (exams are impossible). overall, not a lot of work, but a pain sometime (4 hour labs; tutorials). not like you have a choice to take chem lab with anyone else, though... haha. 152 is harder than 151.
5/6/2008
Lectures are boring. She's very difficult to understand. Moves too fast for those who have not had AP Chem. But she tries. She really wants you to succeed- workshops are offered, has many office hours, etc. But I still felt kinda lost. Labs will boost your grade, but tests are IMPOSSIBLE.
12/29/2007
Have no grudge against her but still think she made the class way too hard. The labs shouldn't be designed to be that long and complex. Her lectures aren't particularly helpful because she has trouble articulating. But she is a nice and a helpful person and has passion for what she is teaching.
11/5/2007
This lady is my hero. Don't let her appearance fool you, Prof. Mao is brimming with humor and lighthearted fun. Her subject is difficult, and may be fast paced for those who do not have a strong high school background in reactions-based chemistry; but her powerpoint- and demonstration-based lectures are precise and concise. She's fantastic!
10/15/2007
Kit Mao is one of the worst teachers I have ever had. She doesn't actually teach anything. Her lectures are incomprehensible and if you understand them, you still haven't gained anything. Not attending lecture is the best way to avoid serious headaches in Chem151 and 152. You can still do well in the course w/o going to the waste of time lectures.
5/24/2007
She's very nice, and helpful in lab, but she doesn't really teach much during lab lecture, other than going over what's already posted on her slides.
2/8/2007
151 is a pretty easy class, and Kit can be pretty funny during her lectures, but sometimes she makes the material way more complicated than it actually is.
12/24/2006
I'll be honest, when I attended class I did the crossword puzzle/sudoku in StudLife. She's a highly entertaining lecturer, but doesn't really teach that much and what she covers is usually on slides that are posted online. She does try to ensure that students understand the material and is pretty accomodating, though. She's quite adorable.
12/13/2006
Dr. Mao always try to help students who are having trouble with lab. The problem is that her English is terrible. Otherwise she is an excellent teacher and most people appreciate the boost to their GPA (to counter chem class).
12/8/2006
Dr. Mao really works hard so that we all learn. Lab is requires a lot of prep, but its not too hard if you put in the time to understand what's going on. The manual, experiments, and tutorial assignments are all very organized. You'll learn a lot and end up with great lab technique... Just realize that this is a very time-consuming 2 units!
11/29/2006
Kit Mao is very organized and helpful -- she tells you everything you need to know.
11/29/2006
Dr. Mao does a really good job teaching her classes. She gives lots of practice problems to help out her students, and really wants everyone to learn. She gives lots of opertunities for her stundents to make good grades, and there are enough grades that a couple bad ones won't hurt your grade. Dr. Mao is pretty much awesome, alright ok!
7/6/2006