Javier Apfeld is a Biology professor at Northeastern University rated 3.57/5 on Rate My Professors by 23 students, with 2.5/5 RMP difficulty and 65% who would take them again (RateMyProfessors + Reddit, updated October 2026).
Javier Apfeld professor reviews and ratings: 3.57/5 from 23 RMP ratings at Northeastern (65% would take again). RateMyProfessor + Reddit.
Dr. Apfeld is probably the sweetest professor ever. He's always posting cute animal memes, which make the class feel much less stressful, and he's always available and willing to help you during his office hours. Exams, including the final, are all online, which is absolutely sweet because it means you can be in bed taking an 8 am exam.BIOL2301 2026-05-05 01:06:10 +0000 UTC
He is the nicest professor ever and extremely leniant with late assignments and absences. He really cares about the subject and preparing his students for the real world. I would definitely reccomend taking him if you want to learn useful skills in a low stakes environment.BIOL5593 2025-04-15 17:29:39 +0000 UTC
Dr.Apfeld isn't the best lecturer, but it's easy to succeed if you review lectures, teach yourself, and complete all homework and review materials. Tests are online, open book, and not hard with a good understanding of the material. He drops the lowest of 3 exams (each 25%) and the final is cumulative (35%). He's kind and wants students to succeed.2BIOL301 2024-12-15 04:03:25 +0000 UTC
good!BIO2302 2018-08-18 07:40:30 +0000 UTC
Prof Apfeld is one of the best professors I've ever had. I loved the lectures and he was very deliberate to mention how the field interacts with societal bias. Expectations were clear, I learned a lot, and I thoroughly enjoyed the class as a whole. Couldn't ask for anything more from a professorBIOL2301 2026-04-28 12:14:57 +0000 UTC
Javier was a wonderful professor and truly passionate about his students learning in class & out (service learning). Classes are small group discussions based on a variety of aging papers. There are no exams and he is flexible with assignment deadlines. I would definitely recommend taking this course!BIOL5593 2025-04-15 15:20:29 +0000 UTC
Just a ppt reader, boring.2BIOL301 2020-04-16 00:55:57 +0000 UTC
DONT TAKE G TAKE JAVIERBIOL2301 2026-04-15 17:23:21 +0000 UTC
Dr. Apfeld is an extremely caring and kind professor, and is very understanding about personal issues and willing to be flexible with deadlines. The class itself is a lot of reading, but very discussion based and helpful in learning how to approach reading research papers. He is very passionate about this topic and cares about his students.BIOL5593 2025-04-15 15:18:06 +0000 UTC
Great teacher for genetics. lectures in person and on zoom which is great because I find it easier to pay attention on Zoom. All the tests are online open-book but need studying to do well. He is very passionate about his content and seems to love teaching. does tophat questions for attendance credit in class, but gives 75% credit even if wrong.BIOL2301 2026-03-04 17:29:37 +0000 UTC
Dr. Apfeld is so kind, flexible, and passionate about the content.BIOL5593 2025-04-15 15:10:33 +0000 UTC
He is not so great at lecture/oral presentation skill, but he is a GREAT teacher, he cares about you and gives you good grade and a lots of extra credits, he is always there if u want to reach out outside of class. I had to admit that he so far the only prof who actually cared about their student and their grades after high school.BIOL2301 2024-12-11 15:54:07 +0000 UTC
For starters, he is an amazing guy who is very caring. I had a lot of family stuff going on during the semester and he was supportive and would excuse me when I missed class. That being said, his lectures are hard to follow and it was easy to get lost. I did not learn much. Class is graded through in-class question, open note quizzes & testsBIOL2301 2024-12-09 17:33:53 +0000 UTC
Apfeld was a good guy, however, I never understood his lectures because he would mumble. His exams were hard, but open note. And he would always give pop quizzes and questions throughout class, which you had to be there for to receive credit. He was a caring guy, but I never got much out of his class and therefore wouldn't take him again.BIOL2301 2024-12-09 00:58:37 +0000 UTC
Such a sweet guy but unfortunately a bad lecturer. I tried to follow his train of thoughts until I realized he gets lost in his own logic, and I stopped paying attention. Uses Tophat for in-class questions, quizzes, and exams. Not hard to get an A, but you won't learn anything unless you study all the materials yourself.BIOL2301 2024-12-04 17:52:14 +0000 UTC
Javier Apfeld is rated 3.57/5 on Rate My Professors from 23 ratings. 65% of RMP reviewers said they would take them again.
Javier Apfeld's classes have a difficulty rating of 2.5/5 on Rate My Professors.
Javier Apfeld has taught BIOL5593, BIOL2301, BIOL5100, BIOL8420 at Northeastern.
Data updated October 2026.