Great professor, excellent lectures, everyone applauded at the final lecture. Very easy class with little work, two essays that aren't graded strictly at all and weekly readings which are gone over in class. "Celebrations of Knowledge" (final and midterm) are basically open note. Definitely would recommend as a GE. I personally did not find the content extremely interesting or impactful, this course actually dissuaded me from taking more courses in anthropology. The course is very much centered around Alim's research and interests which focus on Black, Latino, and gay communities and South Africa. If you are part of or interested in these communities you will love the class. If not, it's great to learn about others and at least the class is easy and Alim is funny and truly gives great lectures.

I loved this class and loved the energy I would 100% take again barely any homework!

If someone were to ask me what is my idea of the perfect professor, I would say it's Professor Alim. Alim is one of the best instructors I have taken at UCLA and in my entire academic career. From the moment the first lecture started to the end of the quarter, he was always exuding passion for linguistics and sharing his knowledge. In addition to his enthusiasm, his lectures are very engaging and welcoming. Before taking this class, I wasn't that interested in anthropology in general and thought it would be just another GE. However, Professor Alim's great communication skills and openness to have conversations with students gave me a new perspective on linguistics and made me much more interested toward the end of the quarter. If I had more GE's to fulfill, I would definitely take more classes taught by Professor Alim if I could.

Definitely recommend this class. Super easy GE!! Professor Alim definitely knows what he is talking about. Both midterm and final exam are online and he had mentioned exams would be online regardless of the protest/strikes. He gives study guides that basically have all the answers to the exams. There is heavy reading, but honestly if u read the first 10 pages of each article, you'll be fine.

First of all, besides the class, Professor Alim is a genuinely interesting and charismatic man who is obviously incredibly smart, but not in the way where professors forget that they are an expert in their field and their students are not. I recommend going to office hours or talking to him before / after class, even if it’s not course related, because he is very welcoming and listens to his students’ feedback and opinions. Anthro 4 was overall a very easy course - the two tests were online and open note, and the questions don’t try to trick you. The two essays (although paper #2 was cancelled due to strikes / protests / cancellations) were very short and to the point, and really helped you to actually understand main course ideas. His lectures are very dynamic - he uses slides, but doesn’t post recordings or the slides onto BruinLearn, so if you want to learn, you’ll actually have to go to lectures and take notes. He also expands on written slide ideas and will tell you aloud which things will be on the exams. The topics were very interesting and made me think a lot about my own role as a speaker in social settings, so this course is something I will take with me for the rest of my life. I would seriously recommend this class, it was probably the least stressful class I’ve taken so far at UCLA, the Professor is amazing, and the content actually matters.

TAKE THIS CLASS! Anthro4, especially with Professor Alim, has been one of the most interesting, thought-provoking, engaging, and easy classes I have taken thus far at UCLA. It delves into conversations about the overlap between language, race, and gender, and opens conversations about how these dynamics play out in Hip Hop, rap, and even politics. Lecture attendance is pretty mandatory, as slides are not posted after lecture nor are they recorded... but that being said, going to lecture is really fun! Professor Alim is funny and informative -- and he tells you exactly what is going to be on the midterm and final exams (which he calls "celebrations of knowledge"). These exams are online and multiple-choice, and if you go to lecture and understand the topics covered, you will have no issue getting an AMAZING grade. There are also 2 essays in this course which require some quotes from the assigned readings. These weekly readings are pretty heavy - I did all of the readings, but some of my classmates never did them and got by just fine. There are also weekly assignments called 321s, in which you write 3 things you learned from the readings, 2 discussion questions, and 1 critique of the readings. Super awesome! I loved this class and could not recommend it enough.

Overall, I really enjoyed this class and found it really enriching. Professor Alim is a great professor but also a great person. He was always helpful and passionate, and genuinely cares for his students' success. After class or during office hours he was always available if anyone ever had a question or just wanted to chat. He was also really adamant about getting students who were on the waitlist into his class.

The class is structured so that there is your first “celebration of knowledge” (midterm), midterm paper, second “celebration”, and final paper. The papers were both very manageable, and Alim and the TAs covered all the material that was on the “celebrations”. He makes it a point during class to specifically point out important content that will be tested. Based on the title of the course alone which is “Culture and Communication” I initially thought that the course would be a more communications-centered class. However, the course explores a lot of diverse and interesting topics, especially pertaining to race and marginalized groups as they relate to communication. Although some of the readings were a little dense and confusing, the professor and TAs are really helpful at clarifying concepts. I took this class for my major, but this is a great course as an easy GE where you also gain knowledge about a really interesting subject. SIDENOTE do NOT purchase the textbook. The professor provides a pdf of the online version, and the UCLA store currently will NOT buy the textbook back.

Professor Alim was an amazing professor to start the year off with. His lectures were interactive and he always had something knew for us to learn. We watched a movie in class and a Netflix Original where the producers came and answered all of our questions. The tests are multiple choice online and there were two essays that were due. Apart from that my TA was great, he was super well spoken and made everything clear. I will say there are a lot of readings and vocab to learn which is important to study. Professor Alim loves to interact with his students which made the lecture feel like a discussion. Overall, I recommend this class for anyone looking for a good starter class at UCLA.

Professor Alim was an amazing professor to start the year off with. His lectures were interactive and he always had something knew for us to learn. We watched a movie in class and a Netflix Original where the producers came and answered all of our questions. The tests are multiple choice online and there were two essays that were due. Apart from that my TA was great, he was super well spoken and made everything clear. I will say there are a lot of readings and vocab to learn which is important to study. Professor Alim loves to interact with his students which made the lecture feel like a discussion. Overall, I recommend this class for anyone looking for a good starter class at UCLA.

This was the best intro survey course I've ever taken at UCLA. Professor Alim is clearly dedicated to his students' success. He explains concepts clearly, introduces multimedia content into lecture, and provides review guides for each and every exam. His office hours are extremely helpful, and the TAs also review lecture in section so be sure to attend if you are confused. The weekly readings are often dense.

For the class breakdown: Section attendance is 20%, there are 2 short papers worth 10% each, and each exam is worth 30% (midterm and final). Professor Alim refers to his exams as "celebrations of knowledge" and does his best to alleviate any stress over these exams. Exams are multiple choice and straightforward so a brief review of lecture will review if you've attended every class. If I were looking for an interesting GE to take, I'd choose this one!