It is really hard to get an A in this class, but Wormington is a great professor. He is a good lecturer, really helpful, and cares about his students.

I really enjoyed taking this class with Wormington. He changed up the course a little by adding Warm-ups before every class. These warm ups were pretty difficult, but they helped a lot when it came time to study for the tests. He lectures well and his tests come from material he goes over in class, so there are no surprises.

I hated this class. I think if you REALLY love cell bio as a subject, you'll like this class. Otherwise, it was pretty bad. I kept up with most of the readings, went to every lecture and discussion and studied harder than I'd ever studied before. What I ultimately hated the most was that my friends and I would study for days and would really know the material but we'd still fail the tests. Wormington was an ok professor but I just didn't really like him. It was like he expected all of us to just know all the material he was teaching rather than really trying to make sure we learned it.

This class was really interesting, but Wormington changed up the material so there was a lot of emphasis on phagocytosis. He wants you to understand the material so don't just memorize stuff because you're pretty much screwed if you do. With that said, only 14 students pulled an A in the class this past semester out of the 250 we had. Basically, you have to think through the questions logically and really understand the chimaera concepts because he really loves those. Most of his questions are application-based and require analysis of data (at least for us Fall 2012). I found the book to be detailed but helpful because sometimes Wormington says stuff like "this guy here" and "that molecule" so you can get confused with which protein/gene is doing what so the book was helpful in clarifying that. Record his lectures and pay attention in class because this class is worth it - it's interesting and fun and Wormington's one of the best lecturers at UVA.

He helps you understand the fundamental theories

the class is not easy, but learn a lot.

Chances are you don't have a choice taking this class and are just curious what you're in for, so my advice is TAKE THIS CLASS SERIOUSLY. I don't know what you can see in terms of grades but the average grade for my semester was a C+ and it sounds like the trend is staying around there. The grades are entirely composed of four midterms, and even if you do slightly better than average either expect to lower your standards or be disappointed with your grade. Study HARD and read the test questions really carefully- they're tricky!

You don't need to buy the book. Just write down everything he says during the lecture and go over them word for word for the exams. He is a very approachable and knowledgeable professor! The class is not boring but demands very good attention to details~

Good class

I agree with the consensus that Wormington's a great lecturer, and the material was certainly interesting (esp. the examples relevant to medicine). The one time I attended his office hours.. it was a bit of a disappointment; I think I enjoyed the course more at a distance. Still, I'd recommend the course if you're even remotely interested in cell bio.
I'd also recommend going to every single discussion section if you can - you'll get a good idea of what types of questions will be on the test, and they're really the only practice you'll get.
I actually liked the text for its detail/clarification, but yeah, I'd say it's not really essential.
And our TA (Manisha) went through the review sessions a little quickly, but you'll be fine if you've been following the lectures. She's a lot more helpful during office hours, at least.