I've rarely had poor experiences with Luskin professors and Don Shoup is no different. He literally wrote the textbook on parking reforms and is hence extremely knowledgeable on subject material. I found the workload heavy (weekly reading notes, two 2000-word memos and one final) and wished there was more guidance on what to expect for the final. However, I appreciated everything else: the readings came from a wide variety of sources, TA Nolan Gray was great, Prof Shoup was very responsive to emails and during office hours, and he invited many policymakers / consultants / academics studying different niches within parking policy to deliver guest lectures. Prof Shoup is definitely a one in a generation professor that consistently goes beyond the bare minimum to deliver quality lectures in the hope of educating the next gen of policymakers!

Professor Shoup is one of the most passionate professors I have encountered at UCLA. Can you imagine dedicating more than 20 years of your lifetime to discussing Parking, a topic people mostly overlook? He is super sweet, funny, and caring; I am lucky to have him as my professor this quarter. My friend and I burst into laughter at least once during every lecture. The class structure is simple: 25% First Policy Memo, 25% Second Policy Memo, 25% Reading Responses, and 25% Final Exam.

You are expected to write a 2,000 policy memorandum two times over the quarter (with or without a partner). The topics are about Parking, and I love the creative prompts. Typically, the second one is required to go out and conduct fieldwork, collecting data to be discussed in your paper. You also have a chance to present in class. For the reading response, you need to read at least one required reading/ one optional reading and write 200 words responding to it. It could be about anything, but it allows me to reflect on the content and keep me accountable. The final exam is a written exam, choosing 4 out of 6 questions to be answered within 3 hours in person. Overall, the workload is very reasonable, considering it is also a graduate class for urban planning. I highly recommend you take a class with Professor Shoup. He is legendary in Parking, and this class has changed me so much when thinking about Parking.