Rachel Kennison
Department of Life Sciences
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4.3
Overall Rating
Based on 15 Users
Easiness 4.8 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 4.3 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 3.9 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 4.9 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

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  • Engaging Lectures
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Reviews (12)

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Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: P
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
March 16, 2021

Overall I liked the class, and the Professor was very invested in student learning. I am a graduating senior, so this class was less helpful for me- but I think many of the assignments are helpful for undergrads early on (i.e. drafting a cover letter, resume, applying for a position, interviewing etc). I did like the reflective assignments, especially taking the Myers-Briggs and Strong Interests Inventory.

The only drawback of this class is that there is a lot of busy work in the first 5 weeks (especially considering it is a 2 unit course.) This class filled a requirement for my minor, but I would suggest taking it just to fill units if you don't have the time or interest in the topics.

Also - attendance in class is "mandatory". This was a little unclear for some students later on in the class, as there was no clear points breakdown for how much each class was worth to your grade. If you are unable to make it (for online class), she was very accommodating if you emailed with an excuse.

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Quarter: Fall 2019
Grade: P
Dec. 11, 2019

So, I'm not gonna explain as much in-length because explaining my experience as super great by taking this class is all that's really needed. Also, the fact that it helped affirm what I have felt like I wanted to do with my time at UCLA, especially being a transfer student, shows just how impactful this class could be, especially if you are what I was like my first couple weeks at UCLA. I was depressed and confused about what I wanted to do now that I had finally gotten into the school I spent two long years to achieve. Yes, it is exploring careers AND doing self-inventory but nothing hurts having that validation about your strengths and weaknesses in order to give you a much clearer view on your suitable options e.g., type of career, major, extracurricular, etc. This class was really monumental for me in the way it allowed me to really feel reenergized and inspired, especially by listening to really cool and relatable guest speakers!

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1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: P
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
May 3, 2023

Took this class for the units and since it had no final exam. I was told by others before that they dropped it because it was too much work, but it's overall fine. My least favorite part of the class is that you have to do work with others (on zoom), so the five of us would have to find a time in which we all could talk and write on our weekly paper talking about what we learned and our opinions on things that we were asked about. The class is fine, if you want to learn about others' career paths and how they got to where they are, but be aware it is more work than you may be used to (for example, in a fiat lux), so be prepared for weekly assignments. Overall, it's good and not a waste of time, though I would've liked for them to also have a wider range of careers (since most of them were doctors or something of the sort).

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0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2022
Grade: P
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
March 20, 2022

Take this class if you want some easy upper-division credit :)

The BruinLearn page for this course was incredibly unorganized and annoying to navigate. The material is all "bs" work. It will take you probably 3 hours a week maximum to complete. Some assignments were helpful, others not so much. Easy class, just do the work (even if you don't put in much effort at all) and you will pass.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: P
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
March 9, 2022

This class is certainly helpful in that it teaches you valuable career development skills, such as building a resume, crafting a cover letter, practicing interview skills, and growing a network of connections within your field of interest. This class forced me to do those things I knew I SHOULD be doing (like making resumes, applying for opportunities, networking, etc.), so that was very helpful to give me that extra motivation nudge in the right direction. This class it provided information on many resources UCLA offers that I had no idea even existed-- we received presentations on the biomedical research minor, how to navigate the UCLA Career Center & the services it offers, insights into graduate school admissions, & how to get into research as an undergraduate. We also saw guest speakers from many different fields, from epidemiology, nutrition, to medicine, and were given the opportunity to ask them questions about their careers & the paths they took to get where they are today.
Also, this class really allows you to explore yourself. We took a variety of personality & strength assessments that provided information on what kinds of careers are best suited to our interests and skills.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2021
Grade: P
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
June 23, 2021

Very helpful class! Definitely take it if you're questioning your life. You get to learn more about yourself, the professional world, and new careers in the life sciences. Networking!!!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2021
Grade: N/A
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
June 1, 2021

I took this class not as a life science major but I still learned a lot! You only have synchronous class weeks 1 and then 6-10 so it is really not bad. There is also a lot of really interesting guest speakers throughout the quarter! My favorite part was for sure the affinity groups. A pretty straightforward class that doesn't require that much work.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: N/A
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
March 20, 2021

This class was great and fun to take. I didn't know what I was doing with my career and it gave me a deeper look into the kind of person I am and where I would thrive. It depends on how much you put into the class and how you take the assessments and worksheets. I agree with the other reviews that there is a lot of work in the first few weeks for a 2.0 unit class, but it's not terrible. I also enjoyed the guest speakers that came. Rachel is a great professor and she is super kind!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2020
Grade: P
March 25, 2020

If you don't know what you're doing as a bio major or you want a back up career to going into medicine, then this class is for you. I learned how to make my resume and cover letter better. There were guest speakers on different careers, such as health admin, doctors, environmentalists, etc. It was a great experience to hear about the different careers. The workload is nothing and it is an easy upper divison. Highly recommended.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2019
Grade: P
May 28, 2019

The class is easy but don't take it if you're actually looking to explore careers. Most of the class is about discovering who you are and what you want out of a job. You have to follow an arbitrary rubric for a resume and cover letter. Its more helpful to lowerclassmen as they have guest speakers that talk about programs on campus. As a third year, I'm not eligible for them anymore so long portions of lectures were wastes of time for me.
For paid materials, you buy a small paper textbook that you barely use and 2 personality tests. For most of the class, you spend "discovering yourself" with said tests and basics that setting up a resume and a LinkedIn profile.
The most interesting aspect was probably the interview assignments but that can simply be done without the need of the class

Frankly, unless you have no idea how to do the things above, this class is not worth the work. Spending the afternoon googling careers would be more useful.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: P
March 16, 2021

Overall I liked the class, and the Professor was very invested in student learning. I am a graduating senior, so this class was less helpful for me- but I think many of the assignments are helpful for undergrads early on (i.e. drafting a cover letter, resume, applying for a position, interviewing etc). I did like the reflective assignments, especially taking the Myers-Briggs and Strong Interests Inventory.

The only drawback of this class is that there is a lot of busy work in the first 5 weeks (especially considering it is a 2 unit course.) This class filled a requirement for my minor, but I would suggest taking it just to fill units if you don't have the time or interest in the topics.

Also - attendance in class is "mandatory". This was a little unclear for some students later on in the class, as there was no clear points breakdown for how much each class was worth to your grade. If you are unable to make it (for online class), she was very accommodating if you emailed with an excuse.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2019
Grade: P
Dec. 11, 2019

So, I'm not gonna explain as much in-length because explaining my experience as super great by taking this class is all that's really needed. Also, the fact that it helped affirm what I have felt like I wanted to do with my time at UCLA, especially being a transfer student, shows just how impactful this class could be, especially if you are what I was like my first couple weeks at UCLA. I was depressed and confused about what I wanted to do now that I had finally gotten into the school I spent two long years to achieve. Yes, it is exploring careers AND doing self-inventory but nothing hurts having that validation about your strengths and weaknesses in order to give you a much clearer view on your suitable options e.g., type of career, major, extracurricular, etc. This class was really monumental for me in the way it allowed me to really feel reenergized and inspired, especially by listening to really cool and relatable guest speakers!

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Spring 2023
Grade: P
May 3, 2023

Took this class for the units and since it had no final exam. I was told by others before that they dropped it because it was too much work, but it's overall fine. My least favorite part of the class is that you have to do work with others (on zoom), so the five of us would have to find a time in which we all could talk and write on our weekly paper talking about what we learned and our opinions on things that we were asked about. The class is fine, if you want to learn about others' career paths and how they got to where they are, but be aware it is more work than you may be used to (for example, in a fiat lux), so be prepared for weekly assignments. Overall, it's good and not a waste of time, though I would've liked for them to also have a wider range of careers (since most of them were doctors or something of the sort).

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Winter 2022
Grade: P
March 20, 2022

Take this class if you want some easy upper-division credit :)

The BruinLearn page for this course was incredibly unorganized and annoying to navigate. The material is all "bs" work. It will take you probably 3 hours a week maximum to complete. Some assignments were helpful, others not so much. Easy class, just do the work (even if you don't put in much effort at all) and you will pass.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Verified Reviewer This user is a verified UCLA student/alum.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: P
March 9, 2022

This class is certainly helpful in that it teaches you valuable career development skills, such as building a resume, crafting a cover letter, practicing interview skills, and growing a network of connections within your field of interest. This class forced me to do those things I knew I SHOULD be doing (like making resumes, applying for opportunities, networking, etc.), so that was very helpful to give me that extra motivation nudge in the right direction. This class it provided information on many resources UCLA offers that I had no idea even existed-- we received presentations on the biomedical research minor, how to navigate the UCLA Career Center & the services it offers, insights into graduate school admissions, & how to get into research as an undergraduate. We also saw guest speakers from many different fields, from epidemiology, nutrition, to medicine, and were given the opportunity to ask them questions about their careers & the paths they took to get where they are today.
Also, this class really allows you to explore yourself. We took a variety of personality & strength assessments that provided information on what kinds of careers are best suited to our interests and skills.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Spring 2021
Grade: P
June 23, 2021

Very helpful class! Definitely take it if you're questioning your life. You get to learn more about yourself, the professional world, and new careers in the life sciences. Networking!!!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Spring 2021
Grade: N/A
June 1, 2021

I took this class not as a life science major but I still learned a lot! You only have synchronous class weeks 1 and then 6-10 so it is really not bad. There is also a lot of really interesting guest speakers throughout the quarter! My favorite part was for sure the affinity groups. A pretty straightforward class that doesn't require that much work.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
COVID-19 This review was submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your experience may vary.
Quarter: Winter 2021
Grade: N/A
March 20, 2021

This class was great and fun to take. I didn't know what I was doing with my career and it gave me a deeper look into the kind of person I am and where I would thrive. It depends on how much you put into the class and how you take the assessments and worksheets. I agree with the other reviews that there is a lot of work in the first few weeks for a 2.0 unit class, but it's not terrible. I also enjoyed the guest speakers that came. Rachel is a great professor and she is super kind!

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Winter 2020
Grade: P
March 25, 2020

If you don't know what you're doing as a bio major or you want a back up career to going into medicine, then this class is for you. I learned how to make my resume and cover letter better. There were guest speakers on different careers, such as health admin, doctors, environmentalists, etc. It was a great experience to hear about the different careers. The workload is nothing and it is an easy upper divison. Highly recommended.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Spring 2019
Grade: P
May 28, 2019

The class is easy but don't take it if you're actually looking to explore careers. Most of the class is about discovering who you are and what you want out of a job. You have to follow an arbitrary rubric for a resume and cover letter. Its more helpful to lowerclassmen as they have guest speakers that talk about programs on campus. As a third year, I'm not eligible for them anymore so long portions of lectures were wastes of time for me.
For paid materials, you buy a small paper textbook that you barely use and 2 personality tests. For most of the class, you spend "discovering yourself" with said tests and basics that setting up a resume and a LinkedIn profile.
The most interesting aspect was probably the interview assignments but that can simply be done without the need of the class

Frankly, unless you have no idea how to do the things above, this class is not worth the work. Spending the afternoon googling careers would be more useful.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 2
4.3
Overall Rating
Based on 15 Users
Easiness 4.8 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 4.3 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 3.9 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 4.9 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

  • Engaging Lectures
    (7)
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