I think this class is an excellent overview over all the most common drugs that are available out there. By the end of it, you will know the basic mechanisms of actions of all drugs. One thing to note is that the textbook will be your lifesaver because her lectures will be based off the textbook. Sometimes word for word. Also, there are no lecture slides, just a speech so you either need to record her speaking or pay close attention and take quick notes because from time to time, there will be novel material which was not covered by the textbook. This class is primarily based on memorizing information, instead of applying these concepts to novel situations (expect just one question on the midterm). The midterm and finals are all reasonable and fair. It is completely possible to get an A straight scaled, but it was never clear if there was some sort of curve. 25% of the class grade is based on the midterm, 50% is on the final, and 25% is on a final paper and project that as long as you complete it, you will receive full credit. Definitely take this class if you have a chance. Do not expect an easy A. However, as a student who received a B as his highest grade in the core neuroscience classes, I got an A, to give you a gauge of the difficulty of the course.

Take this professor! She is very funny and engaging, and the material itself is pretty doable. You need the textbook because there is some material that she doesn't discuss in lecture but tests on. Also, so doesn't use powerpoints so you need to take good notes. Whenever she draws diagrams or makes lists/tables for things, WRITE THEM DOWN.

Her tests are very recall based, in that she'll ask questions like "list 5 symptoms of [insert drug] withdrawal" or "what are the peripheral effects of [insert drug]". As a study guide I made spreadsheets with name of drug, category of drug, mechanism(s) of action, central effects, peripheral effects, long term effects, withdrawal symptoms, etc etc for every single drug we talked about in lecture or was discussed in the textbook. This covered about 95% of her test materials and ended up being very helpful!

The paper/presentation was easy because it could be anything related to a drug. Topics people had ranged from the history of opium, to LSD and rock music, to The Wire and heroin. Just have fun with it!