TLDR: Lavelle's 14A is a manageable course for those with some previous chemistry experience, but with some tricky exams.

I'm writing a longer review because it is so important for incoming freshmen to know what they are getting into. I went into this class pretty much blind, but in hindsight it really would have helped to do some research on the mythical creature that is Lawrence Lavelle.

The content: Chem 14A is a rite of passage for every premed and pre-research major at UCLA, and for most is a straightforward physical chemistry class. This material covers stoichiometry, an introductory quantum unit, VSEPR and molecular geometry, inter-molecular forces, coordination compounds, and an introductory acid/base unit. Overall, the concepts are no more complicated than what is taught in a rigorous AP chemistry course; the hardest part is honestly staying focused on the material the entire time.

The work: This class really doesn't have THAT much work to it. I highly recommend going to lecture (as Lavelle does a fairly good job of delivering material), but there is no mandatory attendance. Homework is collected in discussion every week, but only consists of any 7 textbook problems selected from a list on the syllabus. Lavelle also expects all students participate with at least 3 questions and/or answer posts on an online message board he developed, called Chemistry Community. This was honestly the most annoying part of the class, as the interface (at least for me) was fairly glitchy and prone to erasing your posts as you submitted them, forcing you to start all over again.

The man: Lawrence Lavelle is a chemistry icon at UCLA, and for good reason. With a sporty baseball cap upon his head, Dr. Lavelle has transcended the fourth wall of meme culture, living his days as a living, breathing meme. He always has a smile on his face and likes to sprinkle in weird little motivational sayings every now and then. Lavelle delights in the basic chemistry knowledge he provides his students, so much that it crosses the line to borderline narcissism. He will take every opportunity (including on exams!) to flex about his Chemistry Community message board, despite it being an AOL knock-off with mandatory participation.

The exams: WARNING: this man is a master of sneaks. There are 3 exams hosted throughout the discussion as well-- the first exam should be a very basic overview of stoichiometry, but do not let this lull you into a false sense of security! The other two exams are much more difficult in content, and you WILL need to study to get passing grades in them.

The midterm is a tough, but fair assessment of the first 6 weeks of material. If you attend one of the LA review sessions (shoutout to Lyndon!) and study, you should have the potential to do very well.

The final was bad. It is only once you enter the final examination room that you realize that Dr. Lavelle's omnipresent smile results not from his love of chemistry, but from his delight in the absolute sneaky he waits to pull off. The final goes beyond testing direct applications of the material and turns it into something else. That shit hits differently. There are no real practice finals, so do your best to understand EVERYTHING. Some of the smallest concepts (maybe only a sentence in the notes) were responsible for entire pages in the final.

Good luck y'all.

As a student who has not taken AP Chem, he expects us to know a lot from high school. Even though he teaches very well, he skips some of the basics that people with a lower level of chemistry don't know. I wish I took him as 14B because I got stuck with Scerri, who is the worst. If you have a good background, I recommend him.

Professor Lavelle was been teaching this subject for a very long time, and it shows. His class policies and slideshows are stagnant and because he's been at it for so long, I believe a part of him understands that his lectures are not quite engaging enough to keep students' attention. Assigns lots of excess work and provides many other resources for students to get more help from

I had Lavelle for both 14A and 14B, and I liked 14A wayyy better. My high school's chemistry was really subpar and I didn't even take AP Chem, so I was worried to take this class, but it was totally fine.

Lavelle's lectures are not too helpful because he reads straight from the slides and the lectures are quite dry, but I went anyways and copied my notes straight from the slides.

My biggest advice for 14A: get your hands on old tests (many people have taken this class so it shouldn't be *too* hard to find), DO THE HOMEWORK (he puts EXACT questions from HW on the tests sometimes), and go to the LA review sessions (these practice tests are good preparation for the real tests). And if his lectures aren't helpful, try to skim the textbook (this helped me for 14A but not 14B) or look for other resources online. Also, do Chem Community and turn in HW... it's easy points.

Take Lavelle! He only teaches 14A in fall (he teaches 14B in winter). His lectures can be a bit dry but he's very clear and starts from the fundamentals. He's also a very funny guy! He doesn't bruincast though so attending lecture is important. He also provides the most resources to assist in learning than any other professor I've had. In addition to his and his TA's office hours, his undergraduate assistants (UAs) have around 20 hours of weekly learning sessions on campus and on the hill. Before the midterm and final, he has a review session in lecture and the TAs and some of the UAs have their own review sessions too. The resources to do well in this class are there; it's up to you to take advantage of them. In addition to the midterm and final (which are cumulative), there are also 3 smaller tests in discussion that focus on specific topics. The midterm is pretty straightforward and the final is a bit more exotic but manageable. The key to do well is to do ALL the homework problems he assigns and understand the concepts behind them even though he only requires you to do 7 problems a week. Also make sure to post on Chemistry Community which is free points. The class is graded on a straight scale although he may curve a percent or two.
Grade Breakdown:
Chemistry Community - 3 pts x 10 wks = 30 pts
Homework - 7 pts x 10 wks = 70 pts
Tests - 3 x 40 pts = 120 pts
Midterm - 110 pts
Final - 170 pts
Total - 500 pts

I struggled with this class but it might just be because I had a hard time understanding. Dr. Lavelle is a great guy who cares about his students more than any professor I have had so far. He has many weekly sessions hosted by the LAs that can be extremely helpful in understanding. His midterm was hard but doable but his final killed me. If I had to take chemistry again I would do it with Dr. Lavelle because he is a great guy but his tests can be pretty hard so study hard and make sure you work on a lot of problems and don't just look at the solutions because a huge part of the tests is being able to problem solve when you are stuck.

I was scared coming into this class because I had not taken chemistry since my sophomore year of high school. However, Dr. Lavelle did help make 14A less daunting. He is not a particularly interesting lecturer, but he really cares about his students and is very good at providing the resources that you need to do well in this class. I'd say that Chemistry Community (which is usually reliable) and all of the outside hours that he provides through the TAs and UAs are all useful resources. To succeed in this course, you need to read the textbook, do the homework problems (try to do the most challenging ones if possible), and see a TA if you don't get something. His tests aren't easy, mainly because they are generally harder than the homework problems and he can put in a trick question or two, but if you go to a couple of review sessions for the topics that are the hardest for you before the midterm and final, you should be fine.

The class was a little tough, but its doable with the effort and resources available to you. Chemistry Community is pretty helpful and reliable. Plus there are countless TAs/UAs willing to help if you take the initiative to earn a good grade in the class. I would recommend it - it's not as bad as people make it out to be....just practice, practice, practice to get the concepts down. Lavelle also seems genuinely nice and caring for his students.

Tests and midterm are pretty easy but the final is extremely difficult. Would definitely recommend this class though because Lavelle provides many, many resources for success. There are review sessions and practice problems available at all times throughout the quarter. Lavelle genuinely cares about the success of his students.

read the textbook! his slides are easy enough to understand but sometimes they are worded weirdly and you have to teach yourself sometimes. i know other profs say not to read a textbook but you should in this class. I got a B- based on how many stupid mistakes I made, but usually, this class is pretty nice. don't do what i did! study and do the hw questions as practice problems and you should be fine