Strongly agree with the other reviews, this was one of my favorite classes I've taken so far. I wouldn't say that history is my favorite subject in general, but this cluster was still very compelling to me. I think this is because the lecturers are so knowledgeable in their respective subjects (Prof Robinson on Indonesian Mass Killings, Prof Sengul on Armenian Genocide, and Prof McBride + Prof Rothberg on Holocaust). The TAs are also all very knowledgeable and helpful (Yair = very cool guy). As one might expect the subject matter can be pretty heavy sometimes, but the class didn't feel overly negative or depressing. I have to also mention that people were more engaged in the discussion section than in any other remote class I've been in (at least for Yair's).

Homework in first quarter consists of weekly readings for discussion and short response papers, though the response papers stop in the second quarter. There is one longer essay (~5 pages double spaced) on Indonesia at the end of the quarter. No rewrites, just a first draft and then a final draft, but plenty of time to think about subject between lecture and discussion. Normally there would be two essays on the other two cases in the second quarter. I would say that lecture attendance is important since the lecturers are so good. Overall, not a bad workload, especially for a 6 credit class. There are even a few chances for extra credit watching films.

All in all, big props to this class. Would recommend to anyone looking for a cluster to work on GEs, or even just for the opportunity to take such a consistently quality history class.

Love Professor McBride so much!! He's an amazing professor and a really really great lecturer. All his lectures were so engaging and he really makes learning fun. He goes a LITTLE fast sometimes so there's no time to zone out during lectures. He also tries to arrange casual meetings with students outside of office hours and I really appreciate that. I was so emotional when this cluster ended because it genuinely was the best part of my first two quarters at UCLA. The workload for the class is a bit heavy because of the readings, but you can get by with skimming through them. Take Julia as your TA, she is quite literally the best thing that will ever happen to you. Overall, the class was really easy for me.

I found the lectures for this class very interesting and I liked the topic itself, but discussions were painful. I had heard so much good things about this cluster but I really got messed up with my TA. I had Sharon as my TA. The discussions are nearly 2 hours of boring hell. Luckily it’s just once a week and you can easily bullshit your way through it, but still. She expects you to of read the readings, and when no one has, the class is just silent while she asks questions about them. It might of just been my specific discussion section not vibing, but Sharon herself lacks a lot of enthusiasm, too. For our major grade paper I had asked her in class about my thesis, which she said was good. But when she graded my paper, she gave me a B and said my thesis had problems. You said my thesis was good when I showed it to you and I didn’t change anything????? I never consider myself to be a great writer so I’ll take my B like a champ but it still sucks. Besides the weekly readings that aren’t assigned (but really are if you don’t want to look like a fool in discussion), at the beginning of the quarter there are 4 response papers over the readings where you basically just talk about the readings and note about something interesting (1 is a rewrite). Don’t overthink these, I got too analytical on one and my grade was worse for it. These response papers are worth 25% of your grade. Participation is 25%, the paper I mentioned earlier is also 25%, but you get 4 whole weeks to work on it with a part of it due each discussion section, so it’s really not a lot of work in the short term. Then our final was 2 essays we picked from 3 prompts worth 25%, but we got a whole week to do it and it was based just on lecture and reading content. Overall, if you get a good TA and a vibey section you’ll be fine.

I would take this class again 100 times over! If you want to take it, make sure you are ready to read as there is a good amount of reading. They are not boring readings though! Everything you read is interesting but I am sure that if you miss some readings it won’t affect how you do in the class. There is a midterm and 2 essays, all of which the professor adequately prepares you for. The lectures are detailed and engaging. I suggest taking as many notes as you can. I have no qualms with this class or professor at all.

Professor McBride is a fantastic teacher in lecture. He is really engaging and often adds elements of comedy into his slides, for example he brings his dog onto zoom sometimes. He finds very interesting readings for the class and has a unique perspective to the material. Highly recommend.

I had my qualms with Cluster 48A but went ahead and continued on to 48B because I didn’t know what else to do. My TA Rebecca was a lot better than my 48A TA Sharon. She really cared about her students, her discussions were a lot better structured, and she was an easier grader (still hard, but slightly easier). There were 2 6 page essays this quarter, each 25% of your grade, participation 25%, and your final, which is 2 4 page essays, worth 25% as well. This quarter in general was a lot more conceptual and literature based than 48A since in 48A you were learning a lot of the history but in 48B the focus is more on memory, justice, and representation (films, books, etc.) of political violence. The first essay of the quarter came really easy to me, but the second essay was based on the Armenian genocide and Prof Sengul’s lectures are really hard to understand and digest so the essay was really hard to write. This definitely was not my favorite class and I wish I had picked another cluster but it is ok to get by with some half assed effort.

Professor McBride is a great lecturer and knows what he is talking about. I never find his lectures boring, and think that his workload is perfectly reasonable. I personally did a majority of the readings but think that not reading some of the novels would not hurt you, as the work in the class is mainly contingent on the lecture material. Would suggest taking this class!

I really love this cluster series and the way the seminars are taught is far less boring as I would have suspected from a three hour class. The material is engaging and not too hefty, just do the readings and you will be fine.

McBride is a solid professor. The films we watched were mostly very heavy and difficult to get through, and mostly not that interesting. The papers aren't too hard to write but do take some effort, though I would not do the readings until you start writing the paper (they're just not worth it for a class like this). Definitely pay close attention to the thematic lectures, as they're easy points for the quizzes. Overall a fine class that I would take if you need some credits.

Professor McBride was great but this is more of a review of the class itself. Definitely not as easy as the previous years of reviews make it seem like. WOULD NOT RECOMMEND UNLESS YOU WANT TO GET SWAMPED WITH WRITING AND READING. Readings aren't used until the end when the final paper requires you to use past readings. The cluster also traps you by making you take all three quarters to get the extra GE and writing II, but in the end its not worth it, so go with the freedom and take GEs whenever you want. If you get a good TA like Cucharo, then class is manageable but with a worse TA like Glasberg, it's definitely not worth it. Honestly, one of my most regretful decisions so far in college is taking this cluster.

More details about the class if you want to read:
Fall quarter - about 60-100 pages of readings a week along with 4 one page response papers every week in first half, one 5-6 page paper in second half, and two 3-4 page papers given and due within finals week (hated my life when I was writing these).
Winter quarter - roughly the same amount of reading, two 5-6 page papers for each half, same thing for final
Spring quarter - not done yet but its been alright compared to the past two quarters, but still wish I hadn't even gotten to this point.