Professor
Steve Margulis
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2023 - Margulis is a pretty nice guy. His lectures are organized and the slides are well-put-together, but the content itself can be very dry as the class covers iterative/numerical methods of mathematical processes. Overall, the class is very manageable and pretty easy as long as you don't procrastinate on PSETs, collaborate with peers, and do well on the midterm. Even though MATLAB is used a lot, there isn't any actual coding; it's mostly setting up parameters and calling pre-written functions and plotting. The final project is longer and more confusing (so pay attention to the wk 8, 9, 10 topics) but as long as you work on it steadily and meet with the professor/TAs, you should be good.
Spring 2023 - Margulis is a pretty nice guy. His lectures are organized and the slides are well-put-together, but the content itself can be very dry as the class covers iterative/numerical methods of mathematical processes. Overall, the class is very manageable and pretty easy as long as you don't procrastinate on PSETs, collaborate with peers, and do well on the midterm. Even though MATLAB is used a lot, there isn't any actual coding; it's mostly setting up parameters and calling pre-written functions and plotting. The final project is longer and more confusing (so pay attention to the wk 8, 9, 10 topics) but as long as you work on it steadily and meet with the professor/TAs, you should be good.
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2023 - This course is as rewarding as it is demanding, with a comprehensive workload that spans a wide range of material. Each week, we dive into a new chapter, complemented by mini-projects and weekly homework that keep you on your toes. The key to navigating this course successfully lies in diligent organization and timely completion of assignments. Particularly time-consuming are the mini-projects, which can take upwards of 15 to 20 hours each. They underscore the importance of choosing your project partners with care; the collaborative nature of these projects means that the effort of each member directly impacts the collective outcome. It's an aspect of the course that can significantly sway your grade, especially if you're paired with less committed partners. Professor Margulis stands out for his enthusiasm for the subject and genuine care for his students. He's approachable and invested in our learning, although he sets the bar high, expecting us to match his commitment. The course's challenge isn't rooted in the complexity of the material but in the volume and pace at which it's covered. Absorbing such a breadth of content within the 10-week timeframe is daunting, making it difficult to grasp the nuances of each topic fully. It's worth noting that student reviews may not always provide a complete picture; there's a tendency for those who excel to share their experiences more so than those who don't. This skew can paint an overly positive image of the course difficulty. Another word of caution: if your background is in MATLAB rather than CS31, prepare for a challenging adjustment. MATLAB's syntax is notoriously user-unfriendly, adding an extra layer of difficulty to the course. Margulis goes above and beyond to equip us with the tools for success, offering an array of resources like past exams and homework assignments. Despite this support, I found his exams challenging. Given the intense workload, I'd advise against taking this course alongside three other engineering classes. It demands a significant investment of time and energy, particularly for civil and environmental engineering students, and balancing it with a heavy course load is a formidable task.
Fall 2023 - This course is as rewarding as it is demanding, with a comprehensive workload that spans a wide range of material. Each week, we dive into a new chapter, complemented by mini-projects and weekly homework that keep you on your toes. The key to navigating this course successfully lies in diligent organization and timely completion of assignments. Particularly time-consuming are the mini-projects, which can take upwards of 15 to 20 hours each. They underscore the importance of choosing your project partners with care; the collaborative nature of these projects means that the effort of each member directly impacts the collective outcome. It's an aspect of the course that can significantly sway your grade, especially if you're paired with less committed partners. Professor Margulis stands out for his enthusiasm for the subject and genuine care for his students. He's approachable and invested in our learning, although he sets the bar high, expecting us to match his commitment. The course's challenge isn't rooted in the complexity of the material but in the volume and pace at which it's covered. Absorbing such a breadth of content within the 10-week timeframe is daunting, making it difficult to grasp the nuances of each topic fully. It's worth noting that student reviews may not always provide a complete picture; there's a tendency for those who excel to share their experiences more so than those who don't. This skew can paint an overly positive image of the course difficulty. Another word of caution: if your background is in MATLAB rather than CS31, prepare for a challenging adjustment. MATLAB's syntax is notoriously user-unfriendly, adding an extra layer of difficulty to the course. Margulis goes above and beyond to equip us with the tools for success, offering an array of resources like past exams and homework assignments. Despite this support, I found his exams challenging. Given the intense workload, I'd advise against taking this course alongside three other engineering classes. It demands a significant investment of time and energy, particularly for civil and environmental engineering students, and balancing it with a heavy course load is a formidable task.
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Most Helpful Review
Really good professor. He is incredibly fair and will NOT ask you random questions on exams. Margulis is very organized and he gives very thorough notes so you will always know exactly what to study. How well you do is simply a matter of how much time you're willing to put into studying. The homework can get lengthy at times, but if you can do it on your own, you're pretty much set. Every homework has some matlab in it (and homework is worth a LOT), so either know it well, or find a classmate that does. Margulis is a great guy, and is very patient and soft-spoken. Take advantage of his office hours because he's probably one of the nicest professors we have at UCLA. I took CEE 150 with him as well, and all of the comments above also apply. I recommend you take 150 if you're interested at all in water resources because you learn a lot of interesting things that you may not get from your general required classes.
Really good professor. He is incredibly fair and will NOT ask you random questions on exams. Margulis is very organized and he gives very thorough notes so you will always know exactly what to study. How well you do is simply a matter of how much time you're willing to put into studying. The homework can get lengthy at times, but if you can do it on your own, you're pretty much set. Every homework has some matlab in it (and homework is worth a LOT), so either know it well, or find a classmate that does. Margulis is a great guy, and is very patient and soft-spoken. Take advantage of his office hours because he's probably one of the nicest professors we have at UCLA. I took CEE 150 with him as well, and all of the comments above also apply. I recommend you take 150 if you're interested at all in water resources because you learn a lot of interesting things that you may not get from your general required classes.
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