This class would have been interesting, but the main reason I had issue with this class is because this professor picks favorites. She is clearly bias towards certain students, and treats other students like shit. Also be careful if you plan to record lectures because she will call you out. She is rude and honestly seems like she hates her job. Obviously take this with a grain of salt considering I got a C in the class. If you're looking for an easy A, don't come here. Her exams are multiple choice, but are so detailed, its impossible to know everything. And her final paper asks you to come up with an original research topic, without really having time to do the research. Also, this class was much more STEM based than I had anticipated, and I am a north campus major soooo yeah, not for me.

This is a review for Food Studies 159 since it is the new Soc Gen 134.

Pros:
Her lectures are really fun to listen to and very interesting.

She's pretty cool to talk to in office hours and does go over tips on papers and exams.

Cons:

Her exams are pretty hard. They're hard because her answer choices can be pretty confusing. Although it does require you to know your stuff very well, often times, I don't really know whether to go off of the reading or to go by the lecture. I also feel like I miss key information in lecture and when I ask her about it, she told me to ask someone else in the class. Whether that's bad or not is up to you.

She grades the writing assignments pretty hard. She's a stickler when it comes to good grammar, proper tone, and the content that you talk about. You would have to be a really really good writer in order to get an A on the writing assignments. I normally get A's on all my writing assignments for other classes, which are mainly upper division sociology classes, but this is the first class where I got a C+ on a big essay (the final research paper), so unless you are super insanely confident in your writing skills, I wouldn't depend on the writing assignments to raise your grade.

She doesn't allow computers in class, so you're going to have to write all the notes out, so you're going to have to be very vigilant in writing everything down. Make sure to ask someone around you if you miss anything (due to my point above).

Takeaway:
I really like this professor, but her grading scheme is pretty difficult. I wouldn't take this class if you are looking for an easy A, but if you don't care about grades and are looking for an interesting lecturer, this class is for you.

okay look. she's great as a person. really makes you want to be liked by her. but it's a HARD class if you're not an HBS major or stem or if you're hella north campus. the amount of reading is insane and you need to do it to do well on the exams, which are vague and hard. she didn't give much direction for the research paper either. she had this high standard she wanted us to live up to but treated us like idiots with her extra resources she put online about how to write an email. idk, i wish the class was paced more realistically.

Class and lectures are interesting, but the topics of the class are run into the ground. Shes an interesting lecturer, but theres so much participation by people in the class trying to get credit with the most inane crap, it made me really dislike the people in the major. The amount of times people volunteered information we had learned in another soc gen class only to act like they came up with it is way too high. And I just dont care that you have a vegan friend or that your grandma drinks raw milk or that you've traveled the world with your parents money and saw that some people have some random dietary difference we all already knew about

Tests were really hard because they tested on technicalities, and there were many times when I was debating if the answers go by reading or what she said in lecture which diverge slightly, or where I felt the right answer was more of an opinion than a fact. Other times i was just like, what?? Why is this random tidbit of info what were getting tested on?? 2 multiple choice tests, plus a final paper.

If your interested in the material, the basis of this class is mostly stuff you already know, but that doesnt make it easy.

Shes really nice in office hours, but not very helpful

I really enjoyed this class and would consider it my favorite class I have taken at UCLA. The material is not too difficult and is very interesting. Professor Kim is very funny, engaging, and personable and creates a classroom environment where students get to know one another and feel encouraged to share any thoughts or insights. There are two 50 question multiple choice exams, two short documentary responses, a final research essay, and participation points. The tests are rather simple and you will do well on them if you review the material closely. The only thing that bothered me about this class was that there were a lot of participation points and during certain classes Professor Kim would only give students full credit if they raised their hand to share or answer a question. It sometimes became difficult to get called on when every other student was also trying to get called on and it would also be hard to participate if a student did not have any prior background knowledge in the subject. Overall great class and I still 100% recommend taking it!

I enjoyed Prof. Kim's class so much. I'm surprised she doesn't have any reviews so I thought I'd add the first one. I would definitely recommend taking this class. She teaches so much about food systems and how they came to be. She also isn't biased when she teaches about food. She always presents both sides. Definitely take this class with her!
Her tests are very detailed so take good notes. Also, participation matters so don't miss class. She gives a couple assignments during the quarter which are based on films. She also assigns a paper on a topic of your choice that is 1/3 of your grade so definitely start early and go to her office hours for help.