The best aspects of this course were the wide range of material covered, interesting lectures, and inclusion of current research. Students commented that the workload was much heavier than expected and was too much for a 3-credit course. They suggested making the two professors’ lectures more cohesive. Students who are considering taking this course should have some experience with MATLAB, as the course is programming-heavy. They should also expect to spend a lot of time on homework assignments, as they can be drawn out.

The best aspects of this course included the light course load and the focus on a variety of different branches in Biophysics that gave students an overview of the field. Freshmen found this course very helpful when they were trying to decide if they wanted to major or minor in Biophysics as the course gave them an in-depth idea of what that might entail. However, some students felt that the lectures were a bit long, or hoped for more details on some of the topics. Suggestions for improvement included providing more of an overview of the Biophysics major at Johns Hopkins, and inviting guest lecturers to speak on different topics over the semester. Any prospective students are encouraged to take this course if they are interested in pursuing a Biophysics major, or if they simply have an interest in the materials. They should know that the course does not require a lot of work and that some background knowledge in Biology is helpful but not necessary.

Students praised this course for covering interesting and relevant material and for its assignments which gave students greater familiarity with MATLAB. Perceived issues with the course included a belief that the course’s homework could be tedious and heavy. Suggestions to improve the course varied. Some students thought the course would be improved if the course’s homework was reworked; a couple students wanted the homework to focus more on concepts and less on coding skil s. Prospective students should know that students found this course was a good introduction to cel ular engineering and it required them to have a background in MATLAB.