I came in thinking I was pretty good at physics. I came out a broken man.

Professor Corbin is by far my favorite teacher at UCLA. There isn't a dull moment in his 2-hour lectures--his organization and presentation is phenomenal. Lectures are fast-paced, and new topics are introduced by deriving equations from first principles. Corbin makes the mathematics behind physics intuitive by relating new ideas to similar things experienced in real life or previous concepts taught, and he does it with the most enthusiasm of any teacher I've seen.

If you have the opportunity I 100% recommend you take Corbin. He is the best lecturer I have had at UCLA so far. It is very clear that he passionate about teaching from the way he can consistently lecture with enthusiasm at 8 am and tries to answer every question he gets in office hours (they would often only end when students ran out of questions). He builds the understanding of concepts from the ground up, always beginning from first principles. To have more time for charge, electricity, and magnetism he completely skips fluids.
His tests are challenging, there is no doubt about that, however, he has a generous curve (maybe one of the best in the physics department). The challenge in the tests pushed me to get out of my comfort zone by forcing me to truly understand the ins and outs of material.

MY SHAYLAAA

I was definitely nervous going into this class - some of the online reviews made it sound brutal - but I’m really glad I went for it.

Here’s what to expect: you’ll probably score somewhere between 50–65% on all the exams (and yes, that’s normal). The tests are tough, but strangely impressive - Corbin somehow comes up with totally unique questions for every midterm and final. No recycled problems, ever. It’s like watching a genius at work.

As for lectures, he shows up every day with zero notes or slides, just vibes and a blackboard. And yet, it somehow works. You sit there and watch him build up the whole topic in real time from his head - it’s wild. He explains things in a way that actually sticks, and I walked away feeling like I understood the concepts, not just memorized stuff.

There’s barely any work outside of class. The homework doesn’t really help with the tests, so most people just look up the answers and move on.

Also, he’s got this dry, hilarious way of storytelling and roasting students, and it just makes class more fun. You get to know him a bit as a person, not just a professor, and that honestly made the experience way better.

Did I hate the class, panic, and almost drop it in the beginning? Yes. (and 40% of the class actually did, leaving only 50 of us by the final) But looking back, physics 1B is going to be hard with whoever you take it with, and I would 100% suggest Corbin if you are looking to truly understand concepts and want a teacher who really cares about his students and has a passion for physics.

What even is this class. I have never had to try so hard for an A before.

essentially this class is "what doesnt kill you makes you stronger" but the physics version, as in, you might die, but if you dont youll grow a lot from his approach to physics. tests are notorious and for good reason, be a partial credit merchant and use old tests and youll probably still be praying for curve

ignoring the test difficulty he's a funny and engaging lecturer, very thoughtful and genuinely cares about what he's teaching although if you have the misfortune of taking a section where he's lecturing for 2 hours prepare to get mentally shafted every day because the lectures are super dense and he never circles back to old stuff, you can go to office hours and he is helpful there

Ok, before I took this class I had already heard horror stories about Corbin being a difficult professor and I won't lie in some ways that is true. His tests are extremely difficult and are about as fun as getting your teeth extracted while being slowly roasted on a spit, not only because of the difficult content but also because of the time crunch. However, what they failed to mention is that Professor Corbin is an excellent lecturer. When he lectured, everything was extremely clear and every formula was meticulously derived. Essentially, there was no memorization involved as the professor clearly explained exactly why every formula was the way it was. I truly feel that my understanding of physics has improved as a result of this class. There is also a generous curve (I got an A woohoo)

When it comes to exams, throw all expectations of getting a good score out the window. I understand that many students who will take his class are used to getting consistent 100s and 90s on tests. Throw out that expectation or burn it, whatever. Aim to score higher than the average (which is about 48% for every test). If you are able to consistently place higher than average, you should get an A no problem.

All in all, the tests are extremely difficult but if you want to really learn about physics, this class is the right way to do it because nothing good ever comes easy.

i got cooked but at least i got a b. still dont get electric fields tbh

Loved this class and hated it. This class is based on UNDERSTANDING, rather than pattern recognition like we're all used to studying for. Doing practice problems isn't going to help you predict what's on the exam, so you have to really know the concepts to perform well and apply it to any random problem he gives you.

Go to office hours, and ask him every single possible question you have without worrying about if you look dumb; it's not worth not knowing what he's talking about. He's a lot nicer during office hours, too.

The homework is all due at the end of the quarter. There's the textbook answer key online, so just copy them because the hw doesn't help you with preparing for the exam. There are 2 midterms + 1 final. He somehow manages to construct brand new problems for each exam, so past exams are somewhat helpful, but just because you can do those doesn't mean you're good to go. Take notes like a madman during class and make sure to jot down of course what he writes down, but more importantly what he SAYS---that's the stuff that is going to tie together your understanding when you review your notes. He also does a lot of mathematical operations in his head, so you'll spend a lot of time looking back at your notes to figure out what he multiplied, distributed, or added to get from one line to the next.

Overall, have fun and enjoy. You're probably not going to get an A, so the best you can do is just have fun and enjoy his knowledge. He has a lot of hobby experience with electronics, so make the most of it :D

This was the most challenging class I've taken at UCLA--and I had Ebert for 32A haha. But, Corbin makes it incredibly interesting and rewarding, which says a lot when it's 8 AM four days a week. And, roughly 30% of students get A's, which is a pretty good grade distribution. The tests are hard but manageable. The averages for the midterms were in the low 40s but you can get a C if you thoroughly understand the examples and derivations gone over in class. The homework is worthless. Don't waste your time when you can find the solutions manual online. Office hours are nice for enrichment but aren't critical to doing well in the class. Don't stress if you can't make it. They only helped me when I missed a week of classes and needed to catch up. The same goes for discussion. Past exams are the best study resource. You’ll be fine.