Maloy is definitely one of the better professors to start the LS 7 series with. He's very well spoken, clear, and kind to his students. Because of the longevity of this series, all the materials for this class are extremely well organized and students have everything they need to succeed right from the start. Like many, I'm not a fan of the flipped classroom, but I appreciate the time in lecture to work on problems without consequences. It was very helpful to have been shown common trick questions during lecture and have misconceptions corrected early on.

The class is point based so everything is weighted the same. There are tons and tons of assignments that have various due dates throughout the week, which is annoying, but it forces you to spend time focusing on this course a little bit every day. That one study strategy that says to split learning over a long period of time is what comes to mind with this class structure. It definitely worked because I didn't have to study very hard for any of the AOLs, and I still got very decent grades on all three. The learning pod structure was also very beneficial to the course experience. Everyone is randomly placed with 3 other students to form a pod that's meant to work on assignments and group portions of the AOLs together throughout the quarter. Based on what I've seen, a good or bad pod can make or break your experience in this class. Luckily most people are nice, but I found that the people in my pod were the best resource of all.

I will start by saying that most people taking this series don't have a choice so take again/don't take again isn't really relevant. If for whatever reason you're taking this as a GE, don't. Additionally, the professor doesn't matter very much, as the professors all have to use the same materials and everyone takes the same tests. I don't like the structure of the series and neither does anyone else I've spoken to, with very complex and long exams three times throughout the quarter. Your grade is saved somewhat by the second phase when you get to take the exam again with a group, so the helpfulness of that depends on the group you are randomly assigned, which is the same group throughout the quarter. Our final was absolutely insane, with most students I've spoken to mentioning some sort of crying or other emotional breakdown during the exam (they are asynchronous). So note that this sort of shock is possible, but given the response to that exam I imagine they may reconsider before they do something like that again, and I must say most people still did fine given the grades from earlier in the quarter and the extra credit. I really didn't like this professor, he wasn't very responsive and seemed to talk a lot about mental health and caring for students well being and act not at all on these things. He brings his dog to class, however, which is a plus in my book, and as I've said, which professor you get doesn't make too much difference as they all must use the same slides and materials. The class is often annoying, frustrating, and quite a fair bit of work, but there is a lot of extra credit and the tests don't make up too much of the grade. With putting in a bit of work it is very possible to get an A, and the class is just something that must be got though in my opinion.

This class would have been an easy A if it were not due to my sheer laziness. It's structured so that as long as you don't literally fail the tests and do all of the easy/busy work and extra credit you get an easy A. That being said, the tests are disproportionately difficult compared to the material they give you in class. Seriously—it's ALL application. Don't get fooled by the weekly assignments. The discussion worksheets are closer in difficulty, but still much easier than the test questions. The textbook is overly, extremely long and detailed, but you should probably still read through it to get some few important details. I recommend looking over clicker questions (extremely important—some are repeated on the test!) and go to the problem-solving sessions.
Most importantly, don't slack off like I did and don't get fooled by what the syllabus says—they allow wiggle room so you can miss 1 discussion worksheet, 2 lectures, 2 pre-class reading guides, etc. but if you get marked off those points get counted as well. It's really easy to miss deadlines so don't plan on any just because you're lazy.

Overall: LOVE these professors, but BEWARE of the AoLs, and GO TO ALL THE CLC SESSIONS POSSIBLE.
Professor and Maloy and Braybrook taught this class, and I LOVED THEM. They are the best professors I have ever had. However, the assessments of learning (AoLs) related to class material, but only taking notes on class lectures and going to class was NOT enough to pass these AoLs. These tests threw in unrelated topics and subjects that were never discussed in class. The CLC Sessions help you be prepared for these AoLs but if you can, obtained previous classes' AoLs and study them completely. Anyways, Good Luck!

i took this course my 1st quarter freshman year and it definitely felt like i was jumping straight into a typical course at ucla (although there was definitely some hand-holding involved along the way). textbook readings were v useful but also v dense and a lot of the stuff we were tested on in the 2 midterms and final didnt appear on the reading guide worksheets or in the lecture slides but could only be found in specific areas of the reading assignments. my professors (maloy and b) were a delight: super engaging during class and very quick 2 personally respond 2 any questions via campuswire. my teaching assistant and learning assistant were the most useful in terms of learning course material although they did end up joining the strike which made the end of my quarter significantly more difficult than the start in my opinion (proof that teaching assistants and the work they do r so vital and they should be paid accordingly so!!). as mentioned, the exams were v difficult but as i am sure many people have said all of the homework assignments, iclicker participation, and 20 extra credit points makes it more than possible to earn an a in this class without getting a 93% or higher on every assessment. overall, i did not find the course material itself super interesting (it mostly focuses on atoms, cells, molecules, dna, and other microscopic subjects) but this is personal bias as I am looking forward to studying genetics and organs in life science 7b and life science 7c. i also found my learning pod super helpful as the group portions of r assessments significantly helped me raise my grades and since we all communicated effectively and participated in post-class "pod-work" together but i have heard horror stories about inaffective learning pods whose corrections have actually lowered student's exam grades so b warned!

As I had both Dr. Braybrook and Dr. Maloy, I will be putting this review under both of their names. (TDLR; Do all (if not extra) prep work before lecture, study learning outcomes/previous classwork, read AOL questions carefully, and do extra credit. Also go to office hours/CLC if you can)

Personally, I found this course's content to be similar to what I learned in AP Biology, which I took junior year. The flipped classroom format just meant that I learned everything in the textbook beforehand and then reviewed it in class. Because of this, I found the homework very time consuming, but I was making my own notes in addition to the reading guides assigned. The lectures were relatively easy to understand because I did that extra work.

Dr. Braybrook and Dr. Maloy both clearly care about their students, and they are also excellent teachers. I can't say much about how they are in a smaller group setting like office hours since I never went (lol), but I do think that they would be willing and able to answer any question. In lecture, their explanation for iClicker questions and content in general always made sense. Clicker questions are quite easy compared to the AOLs, and they aren’t graded on correctness. Discussion sections are definitely helpful, especially if you are confused on something from the lecture, so I’d highly recommend going.

Each of the three AOLs had two parts, the individual score and the group score. In the tests themselves, there were quite a few questions that would be meant to trip you up, but theoretically, you could do horribly in the individual but somewhat well on the group portion. However, the improvement from the group score will definitely depend on who you're working with.

When I studied for tests, I usually started by reviewing iClicker and PALs. Afterwards, I would write out all the learning outcomes needed for the AOL, plus all the necessary concepts needed to answer that outcome. Then I would review the CLC worksheets, recorded review sessions specific to the particular AOL, and any new graphs we learned (this last part definitely helped out a lot). Going to CLC sessions and office hours (which I rarely did) throughout the quarter would probably be very beneficial, so I'd go to those as often as you can.

Grading in this class was a point system that was quite fair (mostly based on AOLs), but take advantage of extra credit so you have some buffer. Hope this was helpful, and don’t worry too much about this class if you need to take it, you’ll be just fine!

I took LS7A with Professor Maloy and Professor Braybrook, who switched off every week. HOWEVER, LS7A is extremely standardized, with every professor teaching the exact same material in an extremely similar way. Thus, the professor you have does not matter as much as other classes.

Maloy and Braybrook are great, they have an amazing chemistry and bounce off one another very well. Maloy also brings his dog Toby to lecture every day so don't take him if you get distracted by dogs easily cough* cough*. Anyways, they teach the material really clearly and help you understand how different processes relate (very important for 7A). Their office hours are REALLY helpful, as they answer your questions and reinforce your knowledge by going over practice problems. These two professors are also unique in that they offer non-content student hours; these can be very helpful if you're new to the university. During these hours, they find a really nice area on campus and talk about things completely separate from the course, including the learning assistant program and how to find research (as well as other things). Having these two professors was a blast, and I'd recommend taking 7A with either of them.

The coursework can be pretty tough if you're new to flipped classrooms. Essentially, you have to learn the material on your own (thus professors don't matter too much), and during lecture, your professor/s will give you practice problems and help connect the dots. It is important to keep on track with the weekly readings and try your best to attend lecture, but this can be difficult with the menace known as Achieve (the textbook). If you are behind, it is not worth it to attend lecture, because the professors do not review the reading in depth.

The course and grading rubric is honestly very fair. There were 2 MCQ midterms (the first worth 12% of your grade and the second worth 16%) and an MCQ final (28% of grade). Exams are asynchronous and you are given a day to take the individual phase of the exam. The next two days is the group phase of the exam, where you will meet up with your group, share answers, come up with the correct answers, and retake the test. The group phase is the exact same test as the individual phase, meaning your group phase score will almost certainly be higher than your individual phases. These exams were not memory based, instead testing our understanding and application, and I think they did a fair job.

Finally, here are my tips for doing well in this course:
1. Understand the content and be able to explain everything.
2. If you're behind on content, skip out on your professor's lecture and attend a different professor's lecture after you've read the material.
3. Do the extra credit! This class gave out 2.8% of extra credit which doesn't seem like much but because of it I went into the final with a grade over 100% and thus took it pretty easily.
4. Don't memorize, understand. Very few questions will ask you to recite a basic fact and most of those questions will provide a diagram that has the information. The exams are about understanding and application.
5. Consider changing lecture/discussion. Put simply, you want to be in a group where you're not the smartest one so someone else can carry you. Don't be afraid to change discussions in the first couple weeks to try and roll for better teammates.
6. Don't take this class during a TA strike because the professors may or may not flake out.

Key things to know:
- LS7A is standardized so if you don't get the professor you want it's not the end of the world. I will say that if I had to choose again I'd 100% go with Professor Maloy because he's good at lecturing and has a really cute dog that he brings to class.
- There are a lot of assignments that do not necessarily take a lot of time but are easy to forget about if you're not on top of things. The points add up, and even if the professors are generous with the grading system, it's good to learn how to manage your time.
- The exams are application based. Review clicker questions and discussion worksheets, attend CLC sessions, and go to office hours. My TA was so so helpful and gave the best advice.
- Do not take this class unless it's a major requirement or you really like Bio.

Maloy was great! Definitely take this class if you could, his lectures are decently engaging.

The professor that you pick for the LS7 series doesn’t matter in terms of difficulty, but they definitely matter in terms of engagement and how likely it is you’ll turn up to lecture. I found Professor Maloy and Professor Braybrook to be engaging, so I tried not to skip lectures (I also had a really good learning pod that I sat with, which definitely helped). The assignments were really easy for this class, but the exams were much more difficult. The first two AoLs were manageable, but the final was unreasonably difficult. The professors also didn’t really reply on Campuswire when students had concerns with the final. Honestly, the professors kind of gave off fake woke vibes with how much they emphasized student mental health but then ignored everybody for a week… but they were still okay I guess.