Great class! Professor Erisir is such a sweet person, and she really wants you to learn and do well in her class! I learned a lot from this class, but it took some time. Professor Erisir goes through material kind of quickly and her slideshows are a little bit jumbled, so it takes a while to sort out everything while studying for exams. I recommend studying for exams by just memorizing the slideshow content. She gives review guides, and doing them helps, but I wouldn't just rely on that content. Fyi, her exams are short answer, which is good for knowledge dumping, but pretty bad if you have no knowledge to dump on your paper... Anyway, very few outside assignments. Be aware this is a neuroscience based course, so a lot of science. If you have prior knowledge about cell biology and neural mechanisms, you'll be just fine!

Let me start off with the fact that Alev is an awesome person! She is quite helpful and really nice. Her office hours can be really helpful is you have very directed and specific questions.
That being said, this class was unnecessarily tough. All of the exams were free answer, and she could ask practically anything, so studying was extremely difficult. The exams were based off of the lecture and there were some topics she taught that were not in the book. So you HAVE to show up to lecture..reading the book will not help you on the exams. You have to take really good notes as well, as she goes in depth into most of the topics..especially when you go over diseases.
Practicuum is a waste of time. It does help somewhat in understanding the lecture material but overall, it's pretty useless. You have to write a term paper on a cortisol experiment (this might change, but I'm pretty sure it won't); the cortisol experiment is a classic experiment and it's been done A LOT, so writing a term paper in research paper format was frustrating and irritating.
The final is an actual final; it's long answer, but if you do well on the other exams, then it isn't too bad.

I really like Professor Erisir, but this class was not great.

There has been a little change to the class overall. The final is a real final now, which kinda stinks, but the material is fine. This class is pretty bio-packed, but it is just a lot of things to memorize. She gives you study questions most of the time to help out. She really promotes self-sustained learning. She will lecture and give you just enough information, but she really wants the individual student to learn for zerself. Overall, a sweet, decent upper level neuro class. Def recommend!

This class is a more intricate approach to the material Hill taught in his Psyc 2200 course, so it should technically belong in the Bio department since there isn't much behavior involved and more the neural pathways of behaviors such as audition, vision, etc. There are rehash assignments and pre-lecture assignments due every Friday and Sunday and are really helpful for the material covered in class. Erisir is very enthusiastic and always wants students to participate in the lectures because the material can seem droll at times. The practicum is more work than actual lecture but Kaycie's great and probably one of the best TA's I've ever had. She really prepares you for Erisir's exams which are all essay-length analytical questions and experimental creation. The final is a take-home analysis of three papers, so it wasn't too bad. Pretty interesting course that I would definitely recommend.

I wouldn't call this an easy class, but it certainly isn't that difficult. Professor Erisir is a great lecturer. She has an Eastern European accent, but she's never hard to understand. She likes to use test questions that were major examples or studies covered in lecture, so pay attention! Pre-lecture quizes and rehash assignments can be annoying, but they're a good way to know if you understand the material (and can also end up being test questions). The practicum activities were also pretty fun. Kaycie is one of the best TAs I've ever had! She makes practicum really interesting and provides fantastic exam reviews. If liked PSYC 2200, you will love this class!

The practicum is pretty useless, and a time sink. As are the extra credit assignments. Class is good if you want to see the interface of cell bio and psychology, and the ptsd/pharmacology stuff was very interesting. For me at least, and easy A(+).

great prof, really easy material.

Not TOO hard of a class if you enjoyed (and remember) topics from PSYC220. Just make sure you answer and UNDERSTAND all the questions she gives you on the study guide and you're set. Pay attention in class and you won't have to read the book. Also, Prof. Erisir is one of the nicest teachers at UVa; she's always willing to help you out in office hours. Highly recommended if you're interested in neuroscience and/or enjoyed PSYC220.

Prof. Erisir can be hard to understand in class and the lectures can get very dry--however she is very helpful during OH and really wants to get to know the students. The 1 credit practicum lab had unnecessary (time consuming) group projects and assnts every week, but were easy As. Midterms got much harder and was difficult as slides only showed pictures not explanations. Careful note taking and preparation necessary. Although difficult and sometimes dry--recommended for anyone interested in higherlevel neuro.

Dr. Erisir is a great professor. She really knows what she is talking about and the topics she talks about are very interesting. The second midterm is harder than the others, but I would still take this class if you are interested in neuroscience!