Professor Kipen was an amazing instructor. The workload was manageable. There were movies listed on the syllabus that we had to watch weekly and then read reviews about them from critics to discuss during class. Before class, you are required to send in a quote from the reading that stood out to you to explain during class why it did. The discussion is minimum and although it works with the timeframe of the class, there were times when I wanted the class to engage in further discussion about the movie. Kipen gives 5-6 minutes to write about a prompt and has you email it to him so he can display it for the class. He critiques it and gives advice, something I found very helpful. There are 3 essays in the quarter (3 pages, 5 pages, 7 pages) with no midterm or final. After each submission (excluding the final paper), Kipen has grading conferences where he reads the paper and does a live grading either on zoom or in person. Overall, it was a great class taught by an even better professor.

I absolutely loved this class and at the same time would say it's definitely not for everyone. Kipen is extremely passionate about writing, and if you're also passionate about writing, this is great. If you don't enjoy writing and just want to get your English requirement fulfilled, I wouldn't recommend this class. The first half of every class is spent discussing the week's reading (my class was centered around film reviews, so watching a movie and reading about 2-5 pages in film reviews every week, but this curriculum could change.) In the second half, he gives a writing prompt, usually personal, and you have about five minutes to write a few sentences. He then displays people's writing one by one and honestly critiques it. I loved this format because I really enjoy receiving feedback on my work and I appreciated his honesty, but if you have any anxiety around sharing your work, I imagine this would be hell.

Overall, I feel like I'm a better writer leaving this class and his genuine passion for teaching, reading, and writing was refreshing and made this my favorite class I've taken at UCLA. The workload was fairly light as well (three papers, all of them fairly open to creative interpretation, seven pages at most) and I genuinely enjoyed most of the readings. However, if you don't care about or enjoy writing, go with any other professor.

This class is nothing like your other typical freshman ones. It's 20 people in a room where Prof. Kipen talks for an hour and 15 mins. Yeah, it gets boring. Most people are on their computers playing games or avoiding a deep slumber. If you consume a stupid amount of caffeine before (or just lock in), it will help you grasp his writing style, which will be useful for your papers.

Kipen is a really good, funny and wholesome teacher. He cares about his students, even if he's a bit old fashioned in the ways that he does it. If this class didn't have grading, I think everyone would like it a lot more. But the harsh grading stresses people out, which makes sense.

Grading: Kipen is a harsh grader. Most people get a B+ in this class. But Kipen likes to see upward trajectory in your writing. He gave me a B+ first, then an A-, and then an A on the final paper. It's a little bit weird that you don't earn good grades with good writing. Rather, good grades come from catering to Kipen's style and humor. If you pay attention during class, you'll pick up what Kipen likes and what he doesn't, and then you should use that in your papers. Honestly, I was surprised to see that I got an A. I didn't think anyone in that class would get an A. My best advice is: be kind and nice to Kipen! Respect his time and teaching by thinking through your sentences and putting a lot of time/effort into your papers, and the rewards will come. He likes it when you are passionate about the material and put effort into your in-class work + essays, so definitely lock in.

The way class is structured, you watch a movie or two every week (most people didn't actually watch them) and read a movie critique that Kipen picks. At the start of each class, you email Kipen a sentence that stood out to you from the critique/review. For the first 45mins, Kipen puts his email on the screen and goes through your quotes, one by one. It can feel very pointless at times, but it's ok just power through. Then, Kipen gives you 5 minutes for an in-class writing exercise where you email him about a vague prompt. And he reads those aloud too on the board, which is where he really critiques your writing. Honestly, I got a lot out of it. 25% of your grade is also class participation so make sure to be engaged and give good answers when your email pops up on his screen. It can be intimidating for a lot of people, especially if you're a quiet or shy person by nature.

he was really funny, and I enjoyed writing in the class. There were 3 major essays due, but I enjoyed learning about different concepts and objectives the class had to offer. def take this class for your english requirement.

This class was the highlight of my Mondays & Wednesdays! The class has 3 essays due in the term, the 1st essay being a 4 page double spaced journal entry from week 1-3 of the quarter, the 2nd essay is a 4 page double spaced movie review on any movie of your choice & the 3rd essay is a 4 page double spaced movie review on any movie of your choice. There 1-2 movies assigned to watch per week as well as 1-2 movie reviews of those movies you are expected to read & pick your favorite sentence from for class that day. Mr. Kipen was super passionate about the class & the workload was overall very manageable.

Kipen was nice but grades essays kind of harsh. Make sure to listen to what type of writing style he wants to see, because he will tell you in class. If you write in the way he likes you’ll be fine!!!

Professor Kipen is a very interesting guy. He is a pretty funny character, and has a lot of passion for writing and his students. His class will definitely make you a more confident writer and will have you thinking critically on a higher level. The amount of creativity that his class has to offer is incredible. My fall quarter was shaped around his own book, Dear California, and was a very easy read. Each class session, you are expected to email a quote from his book and write a couple sentences about a rhetorical question he asks you. Pretty easy participation points on your part, but be creative and go beyond your comfort zone because he will share your response in front of the whole classroom. For the papers, he grades hardly. He doesn’t give out any easy A’s at all, so you have to work very hard to get to that point. He starts many of you and your classmates below an A- or B+ on your first paper, and you are to use his feedback to build up to an A. All you have to do is write 3 essays: a diary, a argumentative essay, and a research paper about two authors. I really loved writing in this class more than ever before because his paper prompts are very creative and he gives you no rubric, allowing you to write in your own creative way. Lastly, professor Kipen is a very helpful and open guy, as he is willing to helping you improve as a writer inside and outside of the classroom. But, be ready to get lost a couple of times because his clarity isn’t the best when he gives feedback or direction; it kind of is a bizarre combination of a theme statement and a comment. That’s my honest review :)

Professor Kipen's class is great if English is not your forte - he really pushes you to go above and beyond in your writings, even in our biweekly in-class mini prompts. The class begins with talking about the reading assignment and ends with a writing prompt, but the majority of class time is listening to Professor Kipen talk. His grading is fair, gives great advice on how to improve for the next paper and is honest about any feedbacks.

This class was just horrible. This class was so disorganized as well as making it very boring to go through. His grading was harsh and also gave very vague feedback. I had read the previous reviews for this class and they didn't make the class out to be so bad, but once you're in it, it's definitely not at all what the reviews make it out to be. I just finished this class last spring of 2022 and I recommend trying to avoid this professor at all costs if you can. I used to love writing essays but taking this class made me feel small and tanked my confidence in writing. My friends took the same class with different professors and got easy A's. Also, if you don't participate very often, he WILL call on you and participation is a huge part of your grade and impacts your grade a lot as well as the essays.

Alright, let me tell you about Professor Kipen for EngComp 3. This dude is something else! He's got this amazing energy and passion that radiates in the classroom. You can tell he genuinely loves the subject and wants the absolute best for his students. Brace yourself, though, because he can be a tough grader.

Professor Kipen's class can be a bit of a challenge. He sets the bar high and expects you to reach it. He pushes you to think critically, analyze deeply, and come up with your own ideas. It's not always easy, but trust me, it's worth it. You'll come out of his class having improved in your writing.

He wants you to become a better writer, a better communicator. So yeah, it might sting a bit when you get your papers back, but it's a learning experience. Plus, when you see that improvement, it's a great feeling.

All in all, Professor Kipen is an awesome instructor. He's charismatic, passionate, and he genuinely cares about his students' success. You'll learn so much from him. Just be ready for some challenges along the way. But trust me; it's totally worth it. Take a class with Professor Kipen, you will not regret it. Plus, he reads all his bruin walk reviews, make of that what you will...