Professor
Mitchum Huehls
3 of 5
Most Helpful Review
I took Huehls Fall '07 and he blew me away. You know those moments you're sitting in class and you feel like you're brain's about to explode with so many epiphanies? If you don't, it's because you haven't taken Huehls. His lectures are structured very well which is very nice seeing as the class was on post-modern American fiction, a topic that isn't always easy to grasp. He introduced me to the topic and I've been hooked ever since. He's also very concerned about students and is always available for office hours to discuss anything, not just the coursework. Take his classes, he's course will change your life! (maybe)
I took Huehls Fall '07 and he blew me away. You know those moments you're sitting in class and you feel like you're brain's about to explode with so many epiphanies? If you don't, it's because you haven't taken Huehls. His lectures are structured very well which is very nice seeing as the class was on post-modern American fiction, a topic that isn't always easy to grasp. He introduced me to the topic and I've been hooked ever since. He's also very concerned about students and is always available for office hours to discuss anything, not just the coursework. Take his classes, he's course will change your life! (maybe)
Most Helpful Review
Huehls is a really great guy. He's funny, witty, enthusiastic and makes outrageously awesome comments (if you take this class, you'll hear about Jonathan Safran Foer's sex dreams about Margaret Thatcher. OMG AWESOME). He makes a point of not bashing one political party or the other, and I really appreciate that. His teaching style is great. HOWEVER, his content is a huge issue. He is INCREDIBLY abstract and theoretical, which I know really works for some people, but if you are like me and require something more concrete, this is not the professor for you. I felt like some of the topics he lectured on were so far removed from the book itself that I couldn't see the connections. At the end, that was what did me in. I didn't understand what he was talking about. His book selection also leaves much to be desired, he picks some pretty obscure books to read.
Huehls is a really great guy. He's funny, witty, enthusiastic and makes outrageously awesome comments (if you take this class, you'll hear about Jonathan Safran Foer's sex dreams about Margaret Thatcher. OMG AWESOME). He makes a point of not bashing one political party or the other, and I really appreciate that. His teaching style is great. HOWEVER, his content is a huge issue. He is INCREDIBLY abstract and theoretical, which I know really works for some people, but if you are like me and require something more concrete, this is not the professor for you. I felt like some of the topics he lectured on were so far removed from the book itself that I couldn't see the connections. At the end, that was what did me in. I didn't understand what he was talking about. His book selection also leaves much to be desired, he picks some pretty obscure books to read.
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2016 - (I actually took 174C with Huehls, not 174A, but Bruin Walk didn't list it as an option. Huehls may have been the best professor I've had at UCLA. His lectures were the most fascinating of any class I've taken here. I got excited by the prospect of going to class, as if I was going to voluntarily hear someone talk about a book I read, not to a class to hear a lecture. His analyses were incredibly insightful and interesting. He himself is incredibly intelligent, hilarious, and relatable. It was fortunate that the class material was also interesting within itself, but even when it wasn't, he made it compelling. I would recommend taking any class with him if you get the chance, I think he is one of the best the English department has to offer. Also with that being said, during the unfortunate incident this June with the murder-suicide, he was one of the professors who responded with efficiency and compassion to the situation. He didn't hesitate to stop his lecture to make sure we were safe, and walked around the class multiple times to make sure if we were all doing ok. Afterwords, he made the final optional and take home because he understood that people were having a difficult time processing the situation and didn't want to return to that room. People talk about how professors at UCLA can be frustrating when they care more about their jobs or subject than actual people, but Huehls is a reminder that there are just as many professors who care about students first and foremost. I just think he should be recognized for that.
Spring 2016 - (I actually took 174C with Huehls, not 174A, but Bruin Walk didn't list it as an option. Huehls may have been the best professor I've had at UCLA. His lectures were the most fascinating of any class I've taken here. I got excited by the prospect of going to class, as if I was going to voluntarily hear someone talk about a book I read, not to a class to hear a lecture. His analyses were incredibly insightful and interesting. He himself is incredibly intelligent, hilarious, and relatable. It was fortunate that the class material was also interesting within itself, but even when it wasn't, he made it compelling. I would recommend taking any class with him if you get the chance, I think he is one of the best the English department has to offer. Also with that being said, during the unfortunate incident this June with the murder-suicide, he was one of the professors who responded with efficiency and compassion to the situation. He didn't hesitate to stop his lecture to make sure we were safe, and walked around the class multiple times to make sure if we were all doing ok. Afterwords, he made the final optional and take home because he understood that people were having a difficult time processing the situation and didn't want to return to that room. People talk about how professors at UCLA can be frustrating when they care more about their jobs or subject than actual people, but Huehls is a reminder that there are just as many professors who care about students first and foremost. I just think he should be recognized for that.
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Most Helpful Review
While I've heard decent things about him for 173C, perhaps the seminar setting of 182C is not where his teaching style belongs. That said, I took the 182C seminar on Human Rights Literature, and his conduct of the class was perhaps further skewed by the fact that he was teaching a class he was doing his own research on. As a result, I felt that instead of allowing ample opportunity for the class to make its own discoveries, to cultivate its own interests in the material, he steamrolled us. He definitely had a direction he wanted to steer the class in, and went to great lengths to make sure we spent 3 hours working towards his personal point. To his credit, he did have moments of clarity throughout the quarter in which he made efforts to be more inclusive of what issues we were interested in addressing, but those efforts were short-lived. Throughout the quarter, I couldn't shake the feeling that Huehls is still one of those intellects with some sort of chip on his shoulder, constantly having to prove how smart he is. Overall, though, the class wasn't bad--the material was interesting, the workload a bit heavy (especially if taking other literature courses at the same time). A novel a week in addition to secondary texts, one-page response papers (which he--oddly, IMO--let people turn in up until week 9), all culminating in a final presentation and research paper. It's a bit of work, but as long as you put in a decent amount of effort in and outside of class, you should fare well.
While I've heard decent things about him for 173C, perhaps the seminar setting of 182C is not where his teaching style belongs. That said, I took the 182C seminar on Human Rights Literature, and his conduct of the class was perhaps further skewed by the fact that he was teaching a class he was doing his own research on. As a result, I felt that instead of allowing ample opportunity for the class to make its own discoveries, to cultivate its own interests in the material, he steamrolled us. He definitely had a direction he wanted to steer the class in, and went to great lengths to make sure we spent 3 hours working towards his personal point. To his credit, he did have moments of clarity throughout the quarter in which he made efforts to be more inclusive of what issues we were interested in addressing, but those efforts were short-lived. Throughout the quarter, I couldn't shake the feeling that Huehls is still one of those intellects with some sort of chip on his shoulder, constantly having to prove how smart he is. Overall, though, the class wasn't bad--the material was interesting, the workload a bit heavy (especially if taking other literature courses at the same time). A novel a week in addition to secondary texts, one-page response papers (which he--oddly, IMO--let people turn in up until week 9), all culminating in a final presentation and research paper. It's a bit of work, but as long as you put in a decent amount of effort in and outside of class, you should fare well.
3 of 5
