I took this class online during Covid. It is solely based on one midterm (35%) and one final (65%), which is ridiculous. The notes he provides are very sloppy and handwritten in cursive. He has things scribbled out and arrows pointing to where things should be written. He just reads off his lecture notes but he jumps around when talking so it's hard to figure out what he's saying. He assigns about 20-35 HW problems per chapter but they are not graded and are not too helpful when it comes to preparing for the test. His tests are ridiculously hard and nothing like the HW problems. His office hours aren't of much help as he just explains everything the same way he does in the recorded lectures. Class averages on tests are around 50-60% and he seems to be proud of that as all he does is brag about that and tell us that we need to be prepared because the tests are "hard."

Having taken Chem 113A with him, I came to this class prepared for how ineffective he is, and he did not surprise me. Just like what he did in 113A, he simply reads off his notes in the lecture. AND the notes are recycled because he is apparently not familiar with the notes, as he often loses himself when reading them. His material throughout the class is much more and much harder than the previous quarter's 110A, as I borrowed notes from a friend who took 110A in the fall, and they look like GE compared to this class. He apparently overestimates our motivation to do homework in this 3rd online quarter (not to mention with the least effective lectures), and does not grade our homework.
All these could have been mitigated if he gives fair exams and fair grades, but no. His midterm is way harder than the homework problems, and there is no practice midterm of any form. This means you can never reach the level of real exams before the exam. As for the final grades, look for yourself. That's 10% of A and A+ combined. He can singlehandedly kill your summa cum laude if you are pursuing one.

Professor Felker does not know how to teach during COVID.

His lectures were extremely hard to follow and (as stated by others) were just him going through his incredibly rough notes, which included scribbles and corrections that made it harder to follow. While the problems helped with understanding the material, they were not ample to prepare for his test. I don't mind challenging tests from professors, but then there's ill-preparedness with unhelpful lectures. Also, only two grades for the course total- you have no room for error, even if the curve is generous. I screwed up on the midterm and that just added a lot more pressure on the final.

If you need to take this guy during COVID ( or in general) look up supplemental information (if not taking him is not an option). MIT OCW lectures help, use the book, anything to just help you learn the material yourself.

Avoid this professor at all costs. Take the class with Gelbart in the fall quarter (or whenever he is teaching it).

This was my first time taking Felker because I managed to avoid him for lower divs. All I can say is I regret taking this class early to get it out of the way because this class was a mess.

Felker is not a good lecturer. A review down below says you won't understand what he's talking about and that's true. He loves deriving stuff so he dives right into the derivations and almost immediately loses like half the class. Your notes will probably be filled with nothing but partial derivatives that don't make sense to you at all. Be prepared to teach yourself. I recommend watching the MIT OCW lectures on thermodynamics on youtube.

The material is very, very boring and math heavy. If you are awesome at math then you'll probably do well in this class. If you're an ochem person like me you might hate this class with every fiber of your being. Another thing I hated about this class were Felker's tests. The midterm, in hindsight, was actually pretty easy. But his final was on another level. Even the smartest people in class were surprised by what he asked. The worst part is that the homework he assigns is nowhere close to the level of his questions. Also his grade breakdown is awful. 20% HW is great. 20% midterm is also fine. 60% final? That is terrible.

TL:DR Felker is an awful lecturer, his grade breakdown sucks, his final is hard as shit. Don't take 110A with him. Take anybody else unless they're somehow worse than Felker

Felker gets a bad rep about this class but it really isn't as bad as everyone says. His tests are difficult but definitely doable. Do as many book problems as you can, he pulls The harder ones and puts them on his tests. Also recommend googling practice problems. His lectures are actually pretty straight forward if you pay attention and write everything down. The tests will kick your ass but they'll kick everyone's ass so don't feel too badly after you take one, the curve is your friend. Also, READ THE TEXTBOOK. All together it was a decently interesting class.

If you want to learn something about chemistry, take Felker. It's not an easy A, but you're here to learn, no? Read the text, go over his notes, and most importantly, DO A LOT OF PROBLEMS (beyond just the homework...the tests will look NOTHING like the homework). Exam average was like 50, but it was actually very doable if you just looked at old exams and problems in the text (the harder ones). He seems serious a lot of the time and might make you look dumb, but he's actually pretty nice.

Chem Thermodynamics 110A

Selling: Student Solutions Manuel for Thermodynamics Statistical Thermodynamiccs, & kinetics 3th edition by Thomas Engel + phillip reid.

Contact: *************

I took professor felker for 110A.

Honestly people were freaking out about this class because you seriously will not understand half od what he is talking about in lecture, but his midterms are very doable. After you see the solutions, which are usually only a few steps, you'll be kicking yourself when you realize that it really wasn't that bad.

Just do the book problems and make sure you understand the homework.

I went to his office hours once and he seems like a pretty nice guy and I loved those rare moments he would smile in class and joke around a little. (I mean look at the picture of him, doesn't he just seem jolly? LOL the contrast of what he looked like back then and what he looks like now is pretty funny)

I think much of the negative stuff that is said about him he is pretty undeserving of. He really does try and teach the class, and if you ask questions, he'll answer them. He might make you feel like an idiot, but that's okay. Remember you're there to learn.

Make sure you go to tutorial if you have questions, and ask them even if you think they're stupid. You never know, it could end up being a question on the midterm.

The final was a little ridiculous though, even the TA said it was hard, haha but don't worry you'll do fine if you just follow my advice.

Chem 110A is one of the most challenging, yet applicable courses in my career. Plus, prof. Felker made it super exciting. I cannot understand why a lot of people complained about him. He is the one who teaches you straight and make you think during his exams. Possibly those complains came from bio related area people who try to memorize 110A but they failed. His exams are more on conceptual and math-based, so cannot be memorized. You just need to understand the concepts, do the basic calculus math and take his open book exams. Make sure you understand partial derivatives since he loves those and like to put on the exams. Overall, prof. Felker is one of the best Pchem prof at UCLA, train his students to "think" properly, "not to memorize." After his course, you will be leaving feeling confident about Pchem and ready for the next course.