Kimberly S Boswell
Department of Economics
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3.7
Overall Rating
Based on 25 Users
Easiness 3.3 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.9 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 4.4 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.8 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

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GRADE DISTRIBUTIONS
15.3%
12.7%
10.2%
7.6%
5.1%
2.5%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

23.1%
19.2%
15.4%
11.5%
7.7%
3.8%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

25.5%
21.3%
17.0%
12.8%
8.5%
4.3%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

33.1%
27.6%
22.1%
16.5%
11.0%
5.5%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

22.0%
18.3%
14.7%
11.0%
7.3%
3.7%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

28.0%
23.4%
18.7%
14.0%
9.3%
4.7%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

ENROLLMENT DISTRIBUTIONS
Clear marks

Sorry, no enrollment data is available.

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Reviews (23)

1 of 3
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Quarter: Fall 2022
Grade: A
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Jan. 9, 2023

Professor Boswell is a godsend and made this class so incredibly painless. There are professors that care about their craft, that care about their students’ wellbeing, and that care about their students’ learning, and then there are professors who care about all three. Professor Boswell is the latter. This class has virtually no homework or busywork—everything seems intentional and purposeful in furthering our understanding of the subject and success in the class. She is concise and clear in lectures, using an abundance of real-world examples and ties in current events to every lecture to keep the subject matter relevant and show us why each concept is important. Outside of her lectures though, Cengage is a godsend for extra practice problems, and similar problems from the cengage practice sets are often on the midterms. Professor Boswell is intelligent, adept, and funny while still being firm, fair, and accommodating where need be. If you dislike this class for any reason, it’s going to be because really how interesting can macroeconomics be, but I promise you it won’t be because of Boswell <3.

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Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: A
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Jan. 2, 2024

This class is a great introduction to macroeconomic concepts and their real-world applications. Boswell does a phenomenal job of walking students through each concept in intricate detail – if you simply pay attention to the lectures, you will fully understand the concepts. The class is organized as follows:

- 2 midterms (30 questions MC, 1 page double-sided cheat sheet allowed)

- 1 final (60 questions MC, 3 pages double-sided cheat sheet allowed)

- Group assignment (everybody aces these; they are easy)

During my quarter, she dropped the lowest midterm grade as well. Not sure if she'll do this again since it was because our testing room had issues for the first midterm. People also talk about the down curve for this class -- thankfully, our class was not downcurved at all, but there was also no up curve. You will most likely have to get A's on the exams in order to get an A- or above. In order to do well in the class you should:

- Make an excellent cheat sheet. Study and understand every concept you put on it because you will have to apply these concepts.

- Do practice midterms/finals over and over until you can get A's consistently on them. She provides these before each midterm/final.

- Do MindTap practice problems. I started doing this after the first midterm and my scores improved.

- Again, go to/watch every lecture.

Overall, the class was one of my favorites at UCLA. Concepts are also useful for interviewing for finance/econ internships and just interesting to know in general.

Helpful?

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Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: B
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Feb. 12, 2024

Good teacher but lectures get very boring. The exams can be hard but overall Professor Boswell is willing to help.

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Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: A-
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Jan. 18, 2024

Boswell has great slides, and if you use her resources you can succeed. The class is graded on a curve, but she might not apply it if the distribution of grades in the class is close enough to the normal distribution. My only complaint is that she would occasionally go on tangents on topics not relevant to the coursework during lectures. However, she posts her slides promptly before or right after each lecture, streams lectures on Zoom, and posts recordings of lectures to watch asynchronously. She posts optional practice sets for each week. There are 2 midterms and a cumulative final exam. There are also 3 assignments that you do in groups, and you can either form your own group or work in the one she randomly assigns you. From what I remember, section attendance was optional. Overall solid class.

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Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: B
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Dec. 23, 2023

professor boswell was just ok. she wasn't outstanding when it came to lecturing but i got by. i feel like she used an excessive amount of curveballs in her exams but i always averaged a B. the assignments were pretty easy, which was nice to have as a cushion compared to econ 1. she allows a printer paper sized doubled sided cheat sheet for each midterm and 3 (this quarter) for our final which was very generous. overall, she's an average lecturer

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Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: C
Oct. 17, 2023

Don't get me wrong, I liked this class and Boswell's lectures and the material were super interesting, but she curves downward like crazy. I've never had a professor curve down before and it was so unexpected because she does it at the end of the class when there's nothing you can do about it. I got a B in the class and she curved it down an entire letter grade down to a C which is crazy, especially when most people in the class are trying to reach the gpa requirement for biz Econ. Be prepared to get at least an A on all the exams and homework if you want a somewhat good grade.

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Quarter: Winter 2023
Grade: B+
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Oct. 16, 2023

I do not have anything bad to say about Professor Boswell. The class was fine and was pretty manageable you just really need to study hard to do well on the finals. The thing that was very disappointing is that she downcurved the class. I never understood why professors do this, but I would have gotten an A- if she hadn't have downcurved,

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Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: A+
July 1, 2023

Overall I would definitely recommend Boswell for anyone taking Econ 2, though as others have said the downcurve is noticeable, especially at the lower grades. So while you do have to beat the curve, Boswell actually gives you all the resources you need to succeed in the class.

Grades Weights :
15% for 3 Assignments : Definitely double check your work, but overall pretty average difficulty and workload, can be done in a few hours for each
25% Midterm 1 and 25% Midterm 2 : These two are open notes
35% Final Exam : Not open notes, but you can bring a 1 sheet cheat sheet

Pros :
- Uses same textbook required for Econ 1 (Ohanian), meaning you save money and get the MindTap version as well for Econ 2.
- Mindtap (and it's practice problem and non-required homework) is extremely helpful in learning the content. You do all the sections and the practice problems, you'll be well-prepared for the exams like literally this is the absolute best way to do well in this class.
- Practice Exams, especially the Final exam are accurately reflective of the difficulty and type of questions asked in the actual exams. Doing well on these means you'll do well on the actual one, but don't slack off because of it.
- Straightforward class, there's nothing particularly out of place and the exams are reflective of the content learned, and Boswell will go as far as mention exactly which chapter, and if not the whole chapter, which sections are going to be on the exam.
- Class is zoomed and recorded, which is always helpful

Cons :
- The further into the class we got, the more confusing the lectures got not in a sense that it was some really hard stuff but rather that it was taught less methodically and more of the flow kind of thing, but mindtap will be helpful to reinforce those topics
- Downcurve
- The assignment can get a pretty confusing at times

Essentially, Boswell, is a good professor that gives all the resources you need to succeed, exams are fair and reflect what was taught, and as long as you put time into Mindtap and actually learning as you do it, you've set yourself up really well.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B-
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
June 27, 2023

This class was relatively easy. The lectures are recorded and there is also a zoom option. Grades consisted of 15% group assignments, 25% midterm 1, 25% midterm 2 (or she might've taken the highest of the two for 50%), and 35% final. There were only 3 assignments which were pretty easy and you get to choose your group. The midterms were 30 multiple choice questions online and the final was 60 multiple choice questions in-person, but she let us make a cheat sheet and she provided an equation sheet. The Mindtap is provided unless you opt out of it and I highly suggest using it. The only downside to this class is that it is down curved, so instead of ending with a B+ I ended with a B-. Anyone who ended with a 70-79% got a C-. For this reason I would suggest taking the course with another professor but other than that I thought Boswell was a great lecturer and I enjoyed this class.

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0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B
June 27, 2023

the class is downcurved!!!!
the class consists of: 3 group assignments, 2 midterms, & a final (you're allowed a cheatsheet)
- the 2 midterms are online & you're allowed your notes but I still felt that they were a bit difficult
- i def recommend getting MindTap & splitting the price with someone
- i can also tell she cares about her students & if you ask her questions about the hw she'll help you out
however.. my biggest problem with the class is that it operates on a downcurve so make sure to get good grades on the midterms & homework assignments or else you're grade is going to suffer

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2022
Grade: A
Jan. 9, 2023

Professor Boswell is a godsend and made this class so incredibly painless. There are professors that care about their craft, that care about their students’ wellbeing, and that care about their students’ learning, and then there are professors who care about all three. Professor Boswell is the latter. This class has virtually no homework or busywork—everything seems intentional and purposeful in furthering our understanding of the subject and success in the class. She is concise and clear in lectures, using an abundance of real-world examples and ties in current events to every lecture to keep the subject matter relevant and show us why each concept is important. Outside of her lectures though, Cengage is a godsend for extra practice problems, and similar problems from the cengage practice sets are often on the midterms. Professor Boswell is intelligent, adept, and funny while still being firm, fair, and accommodating where need be. If you dislike this class for any reason, it’s going to be because really how interesting can macroeconomics be, but I promise you it won’t be because of Boswell <3.

Helpful?

2 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: A
Jan. 2, 2024

This class is a great introduction to macroeconomic concepts and their real-world applications. Boswell does a phenomenal job of walking students through each concept in intricate detail – if you simply pay attention to the lectures, you will fully understand the concepts. The class is organized as follows:

- 2 midterms (30 questions MC, 1 page double-sided cheat sheet allowed)

- 1 final (60 questions MC, 3 pages double-sided cheat sheet allowed)

- Group assignment (everybody aces these; they are easy)

During my quarter, she dropped the lowest midterm grade as well. Not sure if she'll do this again since it was because our testing room had issues for the first midterm. People also talk about the down curve for this class -- thankfully, our class was not downcurved at all, but there was also no up curve. You will most likely have to get A's on the exams in order to get an A- or above. In order to do well in the class you should:

- Make an excellent cheat sheet. Study and understand every concept you put on it because you will have to apply these concepts.

- Do practice midterms/finals over and over until you can get A's consistently on them. She provides these before each midterm/final.

- Do MindTap practice problems. I started doing this after the first midterm and my scores improved.

- Again, go to/watch every lecture.

Overall, the class was one of my favorites at UCLA. Concepts are also useful for interviewing for finance/econ internships and just interesting to know in general.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: B
Feb. 12, 2024

Good teacher but lectures get very boring. The exams can be hard but overall Professor Boswell is willing to help.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: A-
Jan. 18, 2024

Boswell has great slides, and if you use her resources you can succeed. The class is graded on a curve, but she might not apply it if the distribution of grades in the class is close enough to the normal distribution. My only complaint is that she would occasionally go on tangents on topics not relevant to the coursework during lectures. However, she posts her slides promptly before or right after each lecture, streams lectures on Zoom, and posts recordings of lectures to watch asynchronously. She posts optional practice sets for each week. There are 2 midterms and a cumulative final exam. There are also 3 assignments that you do in groups, and you can either form your own group or work in the one she randomly assigns you. From what I remember, section attendance was optional. Overall solid class.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Fall 2023
Grade: B
Dec. 23, 2023

professor boswell was just ok. she wasn't outstanding when it came to lecturing but i got by. i feel like she used an excessive amount of curveballs in her exams but i always averaged a B. the assignments were pretty easy, which was nice to have as a cushion compared to econ 1. she allows a printer paper sized doubled sided cheat sheet for each midterm and 3 (this quarter) for our final which was very generous. overall, she's an average lecturer

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: C
Oct. 17, 2023

Don't get me wrong, I liked this class and Boswell's lectures and the material were super interesting, but she curves downward like crazy. I've never had a professor curve down before and it was so unexpected because she does it at the end of the class when there's nothing you can do about it. I got a B in the class and she curved it down an entire letter grade down to a C which is crazy, especially when most people in the class are trying to reach the gpa requirement for biz Econ. Be prepared to get at least an A on all the exams and homework if you want a somewhat good grade.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Winter 2023
Grade: B+
Oct. 16, 2023

I do not have anything bad to say about Professor Boswell. The class was fine and was pretty manageable you just really need to study hard to do well on the finals. The thing that was very disappointing is that she downcurved the class. I never understood why professors do this, but I would have gotten an A- if she hadn't have downcurved,

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: A+
July 1, 2023

Overall I would definitely recommend Boswell for anyone taking Econ 2, though as others have said the downcurve is noticeable, especially at the lower grades. So while you do have to beat the curve, Boswell actually gives you all the resources you need to succeed in the class.

Grades Weights :
15% for 3 Assignments : Definitely double check your work, but overall pretty average difficulty and workload, can be done in a few hours for each
25% Midterm 1 and 25% Midterm 2 : These two are open notes
35% Final Exam : Not open notes, but you can bring a 1 sheet cheat sheet

Pros :
- Uses same textbook required for Econ 1 (Ohanian), meaning you save money and get the MindTap version as well for Econ 2.
- Mindtap (and it's practice problem and non-required homework) is extremely helpful in learning the content. You do all the sections and the practice problems, you'll be well-prepared for the exams like literally this is the absolute best way to do well in this class.
- Practice Exams, especially the Final exam are accurately reflective of the difficulty and type of questions asked in the actual exams. Doing well on these means you'll do well on the actual one, but don't slack off because of it.
- Straightforward class, there's nothing particularly out of place and the exams are reflective of the content learned, and Boswell will go as far as mention exactly which chapter, and if not the whole chapter, which sections are going to be on the exam.
- Class is zoomed and recorded, which is always helpful

Cons :
- The further into the class we got, the more confusing the lectures got not in a sense that it was some really hard stuff but rather that it was taught less methodically and more of the flow kind of thing, but mindtap will be helpful to reinforce those topics
- Downcurve
- The assignment can get a pretty confusing at times

Essentially, Boswell, is a good professor that gives all the resources you need to succeed, exams are fair and reflect what was taught, and as long as you put time into Mindtap and actually learning as you do it, you've set yourself up really well.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B-
June 27, 2023

This class was relatively easy. The lectures are recorded and there is also a zoom option. Grades consisted of 15% group assignments, 25% midterm 1, 25% midterm 2 (or she might've taken the highest of the two for 50%), and 35% final. There were only 3 assignments which were pretty easy and you get to choose your group. The midterms were 30 multiple choice questions online and the final was 60 multiple choice questions in-person, but she let us make a cheat sheet and she provided an equation sheet. The Mindtap is provided unless you opt out of it and I highly suggest using it. The only downside to this class is that it is down curved, so instead of ending with a B+ I ended with a B-. Anyone who ended with a 70-79% got a C-. For this reason I would suggest taking the course with another professor but other than that I thought Boswell was a great lecturer and I enjoyed this class.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: B
June 27, 2023

the class is downcurved!!!!
the class consists of: 3 group assignments, 2 midterms, & a final (you're allowed a cheatsheet)
- the 2 midterms are online & you're allowed your notes but I still felt that they were a bit difficult
- i def recommend getting MindTap & splitting the price with someone
- i can also tell she cares about her students & if you ask her questions about the hw she'll help you out
however.. my biggest problem with the class is that it operates on a downcurve so make sure to get good grades on the midterms & homework assignments or else you're grade is going to suffer

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 3
3.7
Overall Rating
Based on 25 Users
Easiness 3.3 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.9 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 4.4 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.8 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

There are no relevant tags for this professor yet.

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