I cannot even begin to tell you how amazing Professor Garg is. He saved my UCLA experience. Often in undergrad classes, your professors do not show much passion for the subject they are teaching, and they are willing to leave someone behind. Garg is completely different. He searches for subjects that will interest his students and integrates those subjects into his curriculum. For instance, for my quarter, we had a Star Wars theme. We were all competing to become the next Jedi master (student with the highest grade in the class!), so we could be lucky enough to receive a light saber and periodic table beach towel! He also has an awesome extra credit music video project! Do yourself a favor and take Neil Garg's class! If you study, you can defiantly get an A in his class! I'm used to getting C's when trying my best, but with help from his office ours and a lot of practice, I was willing to get an A! Organic Chemistry is no longer scary! Take Neil Garg's class, "just do it".

Professor Garg, or as he introduces himself to us as, Neil, is the best overall professor I have ever taken at UCLA, for both North and South campus. Even with a difficult subject such as o-chem (because in that class you learn concepts that students in the o-chem 30 series absorb in a span of 3 quarters and we learn it all in just 1 quarter) he always makes the class engaging and fun. Never a dull moment, he just knows what to say or do that keeps the class perked up and eager to move onto the next concept. Neil doesn’t just make it a class, but also puts in a fun family filled vibe in there. He jokes with the TA’s and the students all the time without losing focus on what we’re learning.

When you go to his office hours it feels very welcoming, there’s no pressure or tension that you might ask a ‘useless’ question (unlike some professors). He goes over the time limit on his OH frequently and doesn’t make a word about time being an issue with him but just keeps on answering the student’s questions with ease and no rush. And he’s also willing to set up personal appointments with individual students too. He doesn’t try and trick you on the exams and creates questions that are very fair and straightforward. The more challenging ones just require some extra thinking but believe me; if it’s on the exam then he must’ve gone over that concept multiple times in lecture, OH, or the problem sets (optional homework) and put it on that test to make sure we’re paying attention. And if the majority of the class messed up on that specific question, it’ll pop up in some mild variation on the final (if not the exact question itself) because he’s concerned that we understand what we missed and wants us to learn from our mistakes.

In case you’re wondering, his grading system is very much the same as Professor Hardinger’s, where the class is out of 400 points (100 pts from MT1, 100 pts from MT2 and 200 pt final) with getting an 85% is an A- and a 90% is an A…you get the drill. The only ‘negative’ thing I can say about the class, and it’s not a jab at Neil’s personality or style, but it’s that the midterms are held during lecture time, so there’s only 50 minutes to take them. The good thing is that he designs the exams where they can be done in 20-30 minutes, with no rush, and you can spend the rest of the time checking them over.

The class may or may not be curved based on the class average but Neil tries his best where everyone can get all they can grade-wise. And he does give out extra credit! And it’s completely doable and fun to earn too! Just check out Neil’s youtube channel playlist and you’ll see what I mean…

He mentioned several times that he’ll be ecstatic if everyone, all 350 students, got an A and would argue to the administration that each of us deserves that A if they give him a hard time about distributing those grades. That tells you that he genuinely cares about us, both at an academic level and on a personal level, he’s not trying to screw with your GPA or make your quarter miserable. He’s trying to do the complete opposite.
Like all the previous comments, I can find no faults to his teaching style or to his personality whatsoever, just good things to say.

Seriously, taking this class could be the highlight of your academic career, like it was for me.

Professor Garg is amazing. Devoted, witty, intelligent, and above all - caring regarding the progress and success of his students.

I have never had such an enjoyable and informative time with organic chemistry.

That's all I can say. He's brilliant.

One of the best professors I've ever had at UCLA along side with Dr. Phelan. He makes learning a very hard topic of organic chemistry fun, easy, and exciting.

I HIGHLY recommend waiting to take 14D with Garg in the spring and skip Hardinger's class. While I did manage an A- in Hardinger's 14C, I understood the material better with Garg, was taught it better, was easier, and got a better grade (A).

Take 14D with Garg, you won't regret it!

If you do not have a problem going to class and do not have to rely on podcasts, Garg is the professor for 14D. Hardinger is a great teacher and does podcast and does give about 7 past exams for each midterm and finals, but Garg has a much more ENTERTAINING class. He does very cool things during lecture and makes a class of abou 350 seem like 20. He is a wonderful teacher and is really concerned with student learning.
As for the book, I wouldn't buy it, just go to lecture EVERY DAY! do not miss, or at least make sure to get the notes. I never looked at the book and managed a high grade.
If you do all the problem sets and review things he gives you, you should be fine for the exams.
Once you hit synthesis, just stay on top of it and practice a lot. Once you get it, it's easy breezy :)

Neil Garg is so freaking awesome! If any of you have a chance to take him for 14D, go for it. His lectures are all chalk-talk - there is no thinkbook or lecture supplement, you just take notes on your own. He has suggested Problem Sets on his website every week or so, they are not very long and are good examples of what will be on the exam. You can tell he really cares about student learning and he makes the lecture hall feel like more of a classroom. His tests are reasonable - they aren't impossible and if you study well and thoroughly understand the material you're guaranteed a good grade. His extra credit music video assignment is a great opportunity for points and also ends up being pretty fun.

Garg is a great guy. He's very nice and easy-going. That said, he DOES expect you to think and work hard in his class. Make sure you go to class and take good notes, because everything he expects you to know will be covered in lecture.

The first midterm will cover a few basic reaction mechanisms. After that, he'll give you a bunch of reactions for turning one type of molecule into another. If you just put in the time to memorize the reactions well, you just need to worry about the synthesis reactions. Basically, he gives you some small molecules and asks you to use reactions with them to make the big molecules. That comes down to sheer problem-solving ability, so make sure you practice them a lot.

It can be a challenging course, but if you memorize the reactions AS the week he gives them to you, you should be fine.

Garg is a great guy. He's very nice and easy-going. That said, he DOES expect you to think and work hard in his class. Make sure you go to class and take good notes, because everything he expects you to know will be covered in lecture.

The first midterm will cover a few basic reaction mechanisms. After that, he'll give you a bunch of reactions for turning one type of molecule into another. If you just put in the time to memorize the reactions well, you just need to worry about the synthesis reactions. Basically, he gives you some small molecules and asks you to use reactions with them to make the big molecules. That comes down to sheer problem-solving ability, so make sure you practice them a lot.

It can be a challenging course, but if you memorize the reactions AS the week he gives them to you, you should be fine.

Wow, what can I say about this class... Let's just say that after 10 weeks with Neil, I officially love Ochem. Everyone told me that I should wait until Spring to take 14D with Professor Garg, and now I understand why... and by end of the course, you will too.

---CLASS & OFFICE HOURS---
GET THERE EARLY. By early, I mean AT LEAST ten minutes before. By the time his lecture starts, there won't be any seats left. Neil doesn't podcast, and his lectures are very important so make sure you go to class. He lectures very clearly and thoroughly, and what I loved about his teaching was that he constantly asked the class if they had questions. And he somehow seemed to know all the students' names... I really don't know how he does that. The clicker questions are helpful, too, and he throws silly/funny questions here and there which are always fun to answer. You will definitely be engaged throughout the entire class, I guarantee it. I learned SOOO much about organic chemistry in this class – and I say this with full certainty. Not only do I understand reactions to a new level, I have learned the necessary skills for synthesis problems, which is something beyond rote memorization. Going to office hours will always be a plus, as he reemphasizes concepts and goes over questions that you have (especially helpful for exams). Not only are they helpful, he definitely notices students who make the effort to come. You also learn more than just chemistry in this class! Neil makes you think about different graduate paths, planning your future, and simple life skills that you will appreciate learning about.

---EXAMS &STUDYING---
His exams are really straightforward, and getting an A on the exam shouldn’t be hard if you study. MAKE FLASHCARDS, and DO THE PROBLEM SETS he gives you. Doing these two in consistent and daily basis was the key to doing well on his exams. I went over my flashcards every day, and the content gradually increases as the quarter goes by and studying these made sure I wasn’t behind. The problem sets that Neil puts up were very helpful as well, and if you have any question he will answer them in great detail in his office hours. As for the synthesis problems, don’t think about memorizing everything – you won’t be able to. Instead, think about it step-by-step on how you would be able to make the product that’s given in front of you. Neil gives you access to his previous exams, which are very representative of what will be on his test. Make sure you go through them and know how to do them without looking at the answer key, and you should be good to go!

---EXTRA CREDIT---
First, do the basic: Go to your discussion section and actively participate, do the clicker questions, and attempt the extra credit questions on the test. In addition, do the extra credit projects! Honestly, they are so fun to do – who doesn’t want to make a ringtone or a video? Choose your group wisely, as you will have to arrange your schedules and work together (I was the only girl in mine, but the boys were all my closest friends at UCLA so it wasn’t a problem). Go above and beyond, as this year’s videos were awesome! I loved filming across LA such as Bradbury Stairs, Sixth Street Viaduct, and cool places around UCLA such as CNSI and Jules Stein Eye Institute. Let’s be real here, when will you ever get another chance to sing or film a music video about organic chemistry? ; )

Overall - amazing professor, amazing class, amazing experience. You will not regret taking the class. Wait until spring to take him, and good luck in getting into the class (haha… but really)!

TAKE PROFESSOR GARG! HE IS AWESOME!
You seriously won't regret it.

Personally, I really really do not enjoy chemistry. NOT my forte at all. Suffering through Lavelle, Pang, and Hardinger made Garg seem EVEN more cool haha. He really cares about his students and he's really accessible and welcoming during office hours (he also responds to VOH fairly quickly). He makes you feel cared for, unlike a lot of other professors who don't give a crap about their students. Tests are super super fair and totally doable if you put in the effort. Just do the problem sets and make sure you understand how to do each problem and you'll be fine.

I have never written a bruinwalk review before but I just HAD to after taking Garg for 14D. Best professor I had at UCLA, hands down.