University of California - Los Angeles - Academics

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College Prowler Take

The teachers at UCLA are qualified, as many of them earned their graduate degrees at some of the most prestigious American colleges, including the Ivy Leagues. Many of the professors are so involved that they’ve devoted their lives to their subjects, and not to teaching. However, many professors cannot communicate their innovative ideas clearly enough in one quarter of a class. Luckily, most of them are available for office hours at least two or three times a week. Contrary to popular belief, most of the professors at UCLA want to help the students in their classes, but for the most part, the student will have to make the first step.

The quality of professors at UCLA is so sporadic that students cannot help but be a bit skeptic upon selecting courses. Yes, the professors are knowledgeable, but there is no set way to know a professor’s style of teaching, or how much the professor cares about student learning. The only thing concrete regarding academics at UCLA is that the deeper a student descends into a major, the more attentive and enriching the professors become. There are fewer teaching assistants (TAs) in the upper-division classes, especially on North Campus. Information on professors is pretty easy to find, and it helps to tap multiple sources to create a fuller image of a professor. You can always check out www.uclaprofessors.com, a Web site that lets the students grade the professors. For the most part, the reviews you’ll find here are accurate, even though the teachers and advisors may tell you otherwise.

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Students Speak Out

UCLZZ says: University of California - Los Angeles 2011 Engineering

Teachers are hit or miss. There... Teachers are hit or miss. There are some great ones but also a lot of mediocre ones. UCLA is known for providing a well-rounded education. 12345 Academics: April 29, 2009 Report

UCLJH says: University of California - Los Angeles 2015 Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics

The classes at UCLA differ in... The classes at UCLA differ in quality according to the department. The science departments have 300-student introductory classes that all the pre-meds must take. While this may seem intimidating, the professors are always available for office hours, but it becomes easy to fall behind in these classes because the student must be very responsible about staying on top of homework. The humanities and social sciences often have much smaller classes with a more interactive structure. The professors and TAs are often very liberal and outspoken, and this creates an uncomfortable environment for those who disagree in class. 12345 Academics: March 02, 2009 Report

Anonymous says:

I’ve fortunately had great... I’ve fortunately had great experiences with most of my professors. One, however, was terrible. He was out for half the quarter, and we hardly learned anything, yet we were tested on all of the materials that we had to ‘study.’ 12345 Academics Report

Anonymous says:

The teachers here come in a wide... The teachers here come in a wide variety. Some are boring, some are fun. Some are easy, some are hard. I haven’t had many problems with my professors, but that’s just me. We have a Web site where you can look up other students’ comments about a particular professor and rate his or her performance, www.uclaprofessors.com. 12345 Academics Report

Anonymous says:

Professors cover the whole range... Professors cover the whole range from very good to very bad. I’ve probably had more mediocre/poor professors than good professors. Many are preoccupied with their own research and put minimal effort into teaching, and some are simply old and disorganized and unable to convey the material. On the other hand, I have also had several excellent teachers who go above and beyond the course requirements, put in a lot of extra time and effort into the class, and give very good lecturers. One more thing, a good TA is exceedingly rare in the sciences—most are hard to understand and not very helpful. 12345 Academics Report

Facts

Did You Know?

You can create your own major by running it over with your counselor and pushing through a lot of red tape. Some of these majors catch on and become entrenched in the curriculum like the new international development major.

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The Powell Library Dungeon, fourth and fifth floors of the Young Research Library, on the hill next to the Jan’s Steps

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