I only took this class because it was offered for free in CSI, but if it were in the regular school year, I wouldn't take this class since you end up developing these skills on your own as you progress in your education. This class focuses a lot on introspection, diversity, and building your own study skills rather than focusing on the hidden resources of UCLA (a lot of the resources presented are well-known already). The lectures were a little dry and repetitive. They are also participation-heavy (lots of breakout rooms-- so if you want to meet new people that's good for you).

On the other hand, the final project, an e-portfolio, was super helpful! I do admit that I'd definitely use it after class was over. The e-portfolio forced me to get a bit of a headstart on my prospective career journey by making me think about what I wanted in my future.

Professor Terrones herself is great! She's extremely thoughtful and considerate, and she gives helpful in-depth feedback on any assignments almost immediately (within half a day).

I recommend you take this class your first quarter at UCLA if you are looking to be in a chill low-pressure class to get some helpful tips. I honestly thought I would learn more practical things in this class, but I ended with some knowledge about how the school works and suggestions for studying and planning. The quarterly time grid was the best thing I learned and creating a personal website was quite useful. Sometimes the presentations and readings were long and unclear, but it was definitely manageable. If a little boring, this class was also informative and a good first step into college.

This class was a little underwhelming. It's got the occasional helpful resource, but the readings were pretty dry. The whole point of this class ends up being setting future career goals and creating an e-portfolio, which is kind of disappointingly simple. It's a great way to meet other freshmen who are going through the exact same struggles of adjusting to the first year in college and the struggle of getting acclimated to UCLA. I'm mainly satisfied because of the social experience I had in this course. Professor Terrones is a really sweet and caring GSI. She's definitely willing to help you find the right resources that you need or can just be someone to talk to. She genuinely cared about the wellbeing of everyone in the class. I think she could have deviated more from the class curriculum that was given to her, for a more enjoyable experience, but she probably had to report to superiors or something so who knows? Pretty simple and easy-going seminar if you're looking to beef up your units.

Alex gave a lot of engaging lectures and had shared a lot of information relating to our mental health and self-development, as well as helped us a lot during the current COVID pandemic. The workload might be heavy in the first few weeks, in which you have to hand in page-long essays, Alex provided a variety of useful feedbacks and words of encouragement. I had learned quite a lot from this course as a freshman during this special fall quarter.