BE100 is a rite of passage for bioengineering majors at this school, and that makes sense. The first 2? weeks of this class is like a mildly uncomfortable trainride. "Hmm, this is very bumpy, I'm a little nauseous." Problem set 1 is a fat amalgam of trivia. Can't remember much about pset 2.

If I recall, problem set 3 is when all hell breaks loose. The class is like a carcrash from there. Lots of blurry vision and text. So much text.

Kamei covers a lot of stuff in lecture. Don't be like me and take notes on the printed slides on a blank piece of paper. That's dumb. Print the slides out, and then fill in the blank spots with Prof. Kamei's examples. (Or better yet, if you have the money, buy a tablet, edit the slide pdf's on there..)

Don't do the problem sets the night before. If I could tell my naive, dumb*ss sophomore self something, it would be "READ AND THINK ABOUT THE PROBLEM SETS WHEN THEY ARE RELEASED" That isn't necessarily doing them, but get your subconscious pondering the problems before you dig into them. Start writing your solutions to these psets 3 days before they're due (or even earlier).

The problem sets are the best way to learn, so don't just go through the master folder and copy down the solutions. Think about the insight of the problem, what it means in the context of the class and lectures, and wtf the answer means. Do every single problem. Attempt them all.

Best of luck. I remember, after midterm 1, a mysterious amount of people had disappeared from lecture and I found out they became CS majors.

man writes his own positive reviews. just notice how all the dates are close together in march at times. he's been caught trying to bolster his own image. he even sends his own lab minions to defend him in public settings. it's wild. he can't handle any criticism. if this review gets downvoted, you know exactly the reason why now.
you gotta take him to survive in BE at UCLA. My advice to you is: prepare yourself mentally for the assf*cking of your life. but be tough, and don't let him be the reason you leave BE. take as few classes simultaneously as possible to get through 100 and 110, spend several hours a week on the problem sets (but not too many as to hurt your sanity), survive both classes, and then say goodbye to him forever. you'll get through this. i'm not gonna lie: it will suck. but you will get through this. the other upperdivs in BE can be very fun and engaging and incredible. it's just a shame he's gotta be the gatekeeper.

This class is definintely challenging but people only mention the difficulty in the review, so here are some notes & tips to give you a better idea of the class:

-he posts his slides so if you have an iPad it's super easy to annotate them
-this year he changed the class so there is less of a thermodynamics focus and more of a computer and MATLAB coding focus (Numerical Methods to find pI, Jacobi vs. Gaussian Iteration Methods, Protein Data Bank stuff, etc) which makes the tests less derivation heavy & gives you more freebies on exams.
-Kamei posts a practice midterm ("Additional Problems before the Exam"). There are like 40 questions and if you do all of them & understand the solutions, you'll be able to do well enough on the test. Some of the exam questions are almost exactly the same as these questions.
-Kamei will be explicit with what you need to know vs. what you don't need to know, so take note of the things he makes note of and ignore the stuff he says to ignore. In this way, he gives you hints of what to expect on the test.
-Dr. Kamei will post videos called "Office Hours Problems to help with Problem Set ___" where he goes step by step through challenging problems similar to the ones on your problem set so that you have a guide to solve your problem set problems. The discussion problems are also great resources to help guide you through your PS as these are also very similar to your Problem Sets.

Kamei gives you a lot of resources to succeed in his class and has been changing the format of the class to help his students. So if you take advantage of the resources he is giving you, it becomes a lot easier to succeed.

Dr Kamei is widely regarded as the best BE professor for a good reason. Genuinely, anyone who says he is mean or unhelpful or anything like that probably didn't go to class and didn't work hard. This class is very much you get what you put in.

Definitely a tough class, but doable if you work hard and really focus on practicing problems and asking questions. Dr. Kamei is a great professor-- personable, funny, and cares about students, and lectures are enjoyable and interesting. Keep looking at the light at the end of the tunnel, and you might find you enjoy getting Hulk-slammed by problem set questions about Italian salad dressing.

Other than 110, probably the most difficult class you will take at UCLA. Coming from someone who is not interested in these topics (100's/110's, especially after taking these classes), getting through and staying motivated was the most challenging things. I would say that a good chunk of the information you learn here will never be applied again after you graduate and move on to industry, should you choose to pursue industry. A lot of the material you learn is mostly applicational with respect to heavy R&D bench work that a lot of bioengineering undergraduates end up not pursuing. Thus, the challenge to stay motivated.

Midterm avgs: ~60-70%'s (definitely offset by some of the pre-med majors so take averages with a grain of salt)

Do the problem sets (with or without the master folder), study the old exams religiously, and learn the patterns of the answers. Start the problem sets early so you don't pull all nighters. At least 1 or 2 problems a day. Highlight and underline variables given, note down any important concepts he mentions in a problem, and highlight the questions he asks in a problem. He can give multiple questions in a single problem.

Kamei as a person is a cool individual. As a professor, he can teach, but the material itself is just so dense and fast-paced that it lowers the value of the course as a whole. Learning can often times become a chore with this class (and 110. 110 is similar format to 100, just a heavier math focus).

For those who find this course unrelated to what they want to pursue in the future, do not let this professor/class steer you away from this major. As long as you pass to be able to take the next course and graduate (2.0 gpa avg for the quarter, and no less than a D- as of this review date), props to you. You made it out and you are going to do great. No one cares about what grades you get in industry or after college. It sucks that 100 and 110 are mandatory, but if you keep your head down and grind, you will be okay.

Dr. Kamei is a great professor and a friendly guy, but this class is HARD. The exams and weekly problem sets are very challenging, so fall behind at your own risk. Exams shouldn't have anything surprising: all the main concepts are drilled in on the problem sets. Midterm averages were in the 60% range if I recall correctly.

Taken online during covid. This class is basically just doing the problem sets over and over and using the solutions as a guide in order to teach yourself will be on the exams (also do the extra practice problems before each exam they help). The problem sets take a very long time, do not wait until the night before to do them it will not be fun. His lectures were long and somewhat helpful, but they are a lot of information so it is hard to find the examples and equations you need. He's a nice guy, and definitely very knowledgeable, and his office hours are pretty helpful as well as discussions.

I imagine this is what doing an MD PhD is like. At least I feel like my brain has expanded, but at what price? All-nighters were pulled every Tuesday (problem sets were due on Wednesday) and tears were shed. I attended lecture, then went over the lecture again, still did not completely understand it, and gave up and started the homework. Basically, everything you have heard is true. But at least he curves.

He is by far one of the best teachers I've ever had. He manages to make the 2 hour class bearable and keep you engaged in the lectures. Even though he posts powerpoint slides online, you have to go to lectures! He does extra work on the board and describes the slides in more detail. The material for the class is definitely challenging, make sure you go to office hours (they're like another discussion)! Even though the class is tough he curves generously (to a B+ my year). It's definitely a good introduction to bioengineering upper-divs!