This class is very easy and is organized very well. The content is super interesting too. Would recommend it to anyone.

This class had me working a lot. I would spend most of my time on the labs which would end up being over 1000 words long until my TA asked for the max to be 750 words. I think the TAs were all grading a bit harsh on the labs because the professor set up a strict rubric for them to follow and since we didn't get a midterm, this fell on the labs. The readings would also sometimes be really long. I started to skim the readings towards the end of the quarter and I still did good on the quizzes. Participation is important. My TA would mark every time we talked in class and that made it a bit difficult because everyone in the class was trying to get a word in for a 50 minute class with group activities. Despite all of the work, I enjoyed the course and I do recommend it if you're interested in the subject. It might not be an easy GE if that is what you are looking for.

This class was actually a bit more difficult than I expected. It was mostly because of the workload as opposed to the actual difficulty in terms of the material. You have to do a lot of work every week and the final paper takes a lot of time, but if you do all the work you should get an A easily enough. My TA was pretty harsh on participation and it kinda screwed me, but overall not a bad GE.

Honestly one of the best classes I have taken at UCLA so far! The lectures were pre recorded and very engaging. In office hours, Prof Cavanaugh was extremely helpful and always eager to engage with the students and have conversations regarding the week's material.
There was no midterm or final, but there were weekly reading/lecture quizzes (you were allowed to attempt each quiz twice) and weekly lab reports. The lab reports were graded very strictly following the rubric.
In place of a final, we had a final report which we could do on any topic of interest that related to the class.
Despite the fact that grading was very strict, I wholeheartedly recommend this class. If you put in the work and are diligent with all your assignments, it is not that bad.

Prof. Cavanaugh and the TAs for this class are SUPER helpful. The course itself is really interesting and the lectures are really easy to watch. There was no final or midterm for the class. We only had weekly labs, had to answer discussion questions to make sure we were keeping up with the lectures, and had VERY easy quizzes. There is definitely a lot of work you have to do each week but compensating that with no final or midterm is definitely worth it!

I actually really liked this class. I thought the content was interesting and the professor had good lecture videos. I found that I could skim the textbook after I watched the videos and still do well on the weekly quizzes. But this class was a fair amount of work--we had weekly quizzes, discussion posts (due by wed), and short lab essays/assignments. We didn't have a midterm or final but there was a big final essay project that took a fair amount of time.

Well structured class, so you are good as long as you keep up with the weekly assignments. Enjoyed this especially because of my TA Sammy Feldblum!! Such a chill, helpful, and understanding dude!! 11/10 would recommend.

Honestly, this was an APES class with a little bit more work. That's all. Really not difficult material. Professor Cavanaugh clearly loves what he does and I appreciated how he laid out this course in COVID times, as I was able to pace myself with the recorded lectures and such. Also LOVED the absence of tests and quizzes, I actually felt like I could learn without stressing over a test grade. The workload itself isn't too bad but in conjunction with other classes it did sometimes get annoying, so try to turn things in early. My TA (Furnaro) really engaged with us, too. Note that medical notes are required for discussion absences to be excused.

I took this class asynchronously. The lectures were great, fun and interesting. The discussion sections were super helpful. It is a lot of info but nothing too crazy. I recommend this class.

You were expected to complete five things each week: reading, lecture videos, discussion posts, lab assignments, and weekly quizzes. The lectures for this class were entirely asynchronous, pre-recorded, in my quarter. The lectures were very concise, resonating with the readings. The weekly quizzes came from both readings and the lectures and were not too hard because it was all open books, open notes. You have two attempts to do the weekly quizzes. For the discussion post, I felt like the first half of the class was a lot heavier than the second half. The discussion posts were graded based on completion. The lab assignments were the heaviest workload of the week. Sometimes I spent 5-7 hours completing them. Overall, you might spend five up to 10 hours for this class a week. This class had such a heavy workload compared to my other class; however, you did not have any midterm or final. You'll have a final paper that is quite long, but you will have three weeks to start constructing and thinking about your paper.

This class has a heavy workload, especially as a GE class. But, the content is very interesting; you'll learn from physical to human geography and their interactions. So, it is very comprehensive if you want to study more in geography; this would be a great beginning course. My TA wasn't very prepared for my discussion session, but it was very chill, just sitting in the class for participation points. My TA graded quite harshly, so hopefully, you get a good TA. Read instructions for the lab assignment carefully, especially the rubric if they have ones if you expect a good grade. Overall, take this class if you are interested in geography. If you do work (read instructions carefully) and complete everything by deadlines, you can expect good grades in this class.