University of California-Los Angeles Top Questions

Tough- depends on major. Social sciences can be a breeze depending on professor, math/science are in a diff part of campus.

Whenever it comes to academics, there is only one word in my mind: stressful. Every student is so smart here and you have to put all your hearts into one class if you want to get an A! However, that's not to say they are not doable, and everyone, if he work hard enough, can of course earn what he deserves! And for example, I work really hard here and my GPA now is 4.0.

I'll be honest, classes here are ridiculously large, especially the science classes. My freshman general chemistry class was 300 people. The professor doesn't know your name (how can he?), and people really don't care if you show up or not. Because we're on the quarter system, classes go by really fast. It's good if you don't like a class, because you're done with it after 10 weeks, but if you don't actually know what's going on, then you can fall behind really quickly. As a biochemistry student, I haven't taken many humanities classes, so I can't speak for them, but as far as the science classes go, they're competitive. My classmates study all the time. They go to office hours whenever they're available, and they're constantly trying to get a good grade in the class. Our classes are all lecture-based, so there's absolutely zero participation (unless you have a question to ask), but I know that in the English classes, it's all discussion-based. While all the professors are extremely accomplished, some are simply better at teaching than others, at which point, it's up to you to figure out the material. Lack of funding has cut tutoring programs on campus, making it harder to get help, but the TAs are always there if you need help.

UCLA is divided, colloquially, into 'North Campus' (the humanities majors) and 'South Campus' (the sciences majors). South Campus majors are generally understood to be more academically time-consuming, but that's not to say North Campus majors aren't challenged. You get out of your classes what you put into them - lecture attendance is rarely required, but going often, and developing a relationship with the professor in office hours, will ensure a more worthwhile use of your time and money (and a better grade). Most large lectures also have TA-taught discussion sections to better refine and explain the material.

North campus is where all the liberal arts classes are, and South campus is where all the science classes are. It really is strange how different classes are between campuses. South Campus- huge 300 people lectures. Want to get to know the professor? You need to WERK! You need to take initiative, take advantage of his office hours, ask questions! Usually, math classes SUCK and the professors are too smart for their own good and don't know how to explain theories to us normal folk. But the science classes like chem and bio are organized and students know they have to form study groups. North Campus- smaller lecutures (100-200?) and VERY intimate and helpful discussions. Discussions are the smaller division of student classes lead by a teachers assistant, and you really get to know everyone in your discussion, but each discussion heavily depends on the TA. You definitely should try asking around to see which TAs grade better or teach better- it can make or break you! I'm pre-med and switching between psychobiology or psychology major. I was considering minoring in spanish linguistics, but I realized I would need to be a super senior in that case =/. I've only recently switched from undeclared to phychobio to psych... and now I'm considering switching back to pyschobio! I've talked to the graduate counselors and they were very helpful in figuring out what classes I need to take when and what the differences were between majors.

Academics here can be tough, especially if you are a science major aka south campus major. I've taken GE classes in many north campus classes, and the majority of them have a lot of reading. So be prepared to read at least 200 pages a week. For science classes, you take the core classes with hundreds of other students, and depending on the professor, they can be your most favorite or worst nightmare. Each professor has a different style of teaching, what they want to emphasize on, how hard they want to make the exams, how much homework they assign, and show if they care about student learning or not. It really all depends on the professor. I've had some so-so and some very awesome professors; how much you like the class really depends on the professor who teaches it. Some professors will make an effort to know your name, that is, if you try to know them yourselves and go to office hours. Students who go here, worked hard in high school to get here, so they will definitely make sure they stay here and graduate. Everyone is studious, to some extent. Science classes are where you will find the most competitive students--mainly because the majority of them are pre-med, pre-dent, pre-pharm, etc. The student atmosphere also depends on which class you're taking. Some classes promote collaborative student learning while some others just end up being that you're learning on your own (if you have friends taking the same classes, then form study groups! They help a lot!).

Great professors, inspiring TAs, academics are the only thing I can say nothing negative about. I had a marvelous time here learning and it made me want to stay in academics. A small dust up has been made over USC beating UCLA in the (possibly arbitrary) USN&WR rankings for National Colleges (undergrad). This might matter to you if you did no other research into the matter. Further study into the academic programs at UCLA prove that the Science and Humanities are almost ALL top 10, and rank in direct competition with only Ivies (English, Engineering, Sociology, Psych, Anthro, History, Econ, Chemistry, Computer Science, Applied Math). Therefore, asan undergrad in say physics, you are studying under a professor from one of the greatest physics departments in the country, and your being tutored by TAs who are themselves proteges of the top programs available to their discipline. Think about that. UCLA doesn't just have great Med/Law/Business schools, its individual programs are even HIGHER ranked. So, regardless of your major, you're highly likely to be studying with the most esteemed intellectuals in that field, and under the tutelage of the most competent graduate students in the country. Check mate USC, get back on the football field where you belong and stop trying to compete academically with the greatest school in southern California.

SOME professors actually do know your name, contrary to popular belief... it's all up to you whether or not you want to make yourself memorable by taking part in class and talking to your professor during office hours. A lot of my professors have had coffee and donuts hours, and other social events to better get to know their students. I'm currently taking one class that has 7 students, and another that consists of 15, so the myth that our classes are always huge and impersonal is not true, although the big lecture halls have their advantages, too. The academic requirements cover a wide range of topics and subjects, and sometimes there are things you'd think that were totally unrelated to your field that you have to take, but then later you realize why you needed to take them (or not!). Most of the classes have given me useful knowledge for the future, but a few have been a useless waste of time.

The academics are outstanding. They are so outstanding that despite everything else I've said, the professors, classes, and material here more than make up for everything else. I am gladly going into debt to sit at the foot of the masters here. Of course to get the experience, you have to plan and prioritize it. My major is in the social sciences. If you're like me, the best way to get a good experience is to enroll in more seminars than lectures. These classes are small and discussion based, somewhat student guided, and generally culminate in a substantial paper at the end. You get to have great interaction with professors and students at a higher level than in other classes. This is important because in larger classes, students tend to desperately swarm the professors at the end of every class in the vain hope that they will differentiate themselves and receive a letter of recommendation for law or grad school.

UCLA is a very competitive school when it comes to academics. Students study very often, especially the many pre-med kids, and class participation is fairly common. Students carry on intelligent conversation outside of class, ranging from class topics to politics to philosophy. The most unique class I have taken is Art and Archeology of Ancient Greece, which was really fascinating. I loved learning about classical and bronze age Greeks, especially how the cultures developed over time. Many major-specific courses are designed towards getting a job, but the wide variety of other classes enables learning for pleasure.