IF YOU TAKE SOCIOLOGY 1, TAKE IT WITH PROFESSOR ANDERSON!!!!! SUCH a great class omg. Keep in mind that I took it asynchronously. It was still super engaging and interesting. I came in with no sociology class experience (but with knowledge and opinions on the social matters we discussed) and honestly, I thought that this class would just be "common sense" and I know that with other professors that's basically how it is. Nevertheless, Professor Anderson had a very interesting approach. She thought of Sociology as a way of seeing society and the examples that she gave were very helpful to make the concepts more digestible. Super light workload. TAKE IT!!!!!

First of all, Dr.Anderson's lectures were so easy to follow along. Since this class was set up to be asynchronous the lectures were recorded and discussion was not mandatory (which is nice). Anderson seemed incredibly concerned about students and reminded us to inform her of any mishaps or such that interfered with our work. That said, the workload for this class is not light for a GE. Usually a week consisted of maybe two lectures, chapter readings from the sociology book required, additional readings (some of which were like 20+ pages yikes), and towards the end of the class , some films. This material would then be used to form a discussion post due on Thursday and responses to peers due on Sunday. All of that said, the material was usually very interesting, but still a lot. HOWEVER, all of this eventually helps make the final 7-8 page paper pretty easy. Essentially, your discussion posts are preparing you for that paper. This is reinforced by the huge weight participation (the discussion posts) has on your grade.

Selling:
-This Book Is Not Required ($10)
-Course Reader ($30)
Email me for details! *************

Don't take this GE unless you plan on pulling all nighters. She was a good professor, she made me interested in the topic and she knew what she was talking about. Very monotone though and that bored me. She had funny moments though. The workload was SO BAD. I stayed up so late doing her readings for the pop quizes and still failed them. Its an easy class, just a LOT of work. I had a good TA and discussion so that made me want to learn more about sociology. But Prof. Anderson isnt very helpful. She gives take home essays vs in class finals so that is nice. Grading is based on 2 essays, participation, attendance, and pop quizes. The pop quizes can really screw your grade over so naturally you want to do good, but that means reading about 200 pages a night, and soon the material gets repetitive.

Selling:
This

Seems relatively easy to get an A if you do all the work really. But so far, it just feels like constant, painfully boring busywork. I'm a south campus major so writing two 600-700+ word discussion posts asking the most absolute niche prompts about sociological theories every week, while trying to juggle 3 other courses, makes me wanna pull my hair out. I've written less in my writing II class and some upper div humanities classes. I guess the problem is not the word count, it's just that the prof expects us to address too many prompts and include too many different points in each discussion post/essay. It also doesn’t help that my ta is pretty anal with grading. This class is the ultimate bane of my existence this summer, I give it a 1/10, there are other GE's you can take.

I wasn't a fan of Anderson's teaching style - she has a lot of "required" reading, which is essentially just assigned so she can give you a pop quiz on the smallest and most random details. Her lectures are also just a rehash of the reading. I'd say over 70% of what she says in the lectures can be found directly in the course readings. Of course, you still have to attend lecture or you might miss a pop quiz. Unfortunately, the pop quizzes are difficult, even if you do the reading. My quiz grades did not correlate with how thoroughly I read the material.
My best advice to you would be to participate in discussion/be nice to your TA, because they will be grading your essays (which are the most significant portion of your grade). Also, don't waste your money buying ALL of the course texts. I just borrowed the textbook (albeit, an older edition, but it was basically the same) from the library and read the library reserve copy of "This Book is Not Required".
That said, I'm selling the course reader (with notes in the margins) and "Brave New World". (Okay, "Brave New World" is not worth the buy, but please take it off my hands.) Contact me at **********. I'd be happy to tell you more about my experience in this class.

I enjoyed this class but would have enjoyed it a lot more if the workload was cut in half. Anderson is an amazing lecturer - she's very engaging and I really liked going to class. I was scared to take this class because of the bad reviews below but it honestly was a lot better than I thought it'd be. That said, this class really does require more work than other classes. There's a lot of readings to do and 5 essays which are basically due every other week. You have to do the readings because there are 5 pop quizzes - a lot of people I know failed them, but honestly they're manageable and if you do the readings and actually pay attention to them (don't skim) you'll be good. Reading definitely took a decent amount of time but it wasn't the worst thing ever because the material was usually interesting, albeit a little redundant at times. Essays were frequent but not hard, they had rubrics that told you exactly what to do, and it's not too difficult to get good grades on them. You have to go to discussion bc participation is part of your grade, which is fine bc the TA's were all pretty cool. I loved my TA Ashton, he always facilitated great conversations and was super helpful for the essays. Aside from the workload, I really enjoyed this class. If you put in the effort it's not impossible to get an A or even an A+ so don't let the other reviews scare you. You basically just have to go into class knowing it's not gonna be an "easy a" GE.

NOT AN EASY GE
-pop quizzes are based off readings, so you have to do them all to get those quiz points
-grade is very TA-dependent... (I had Diya Bose and she was tough)

Selling package of books:
-Course Reader
-This Book Is Not Required (thats the title...actually)
-Sociology: A Brief Edition
email me at: ************* if interested

DO NOT TAKE. Your academic career may be put at risk. She created a hostile learning environment reporting hundreds of students for academic dishonesty without evidence. She accuses students of using AI on essays and assignments even when disproved. She accused cheating on exams even with the webcams showing otherwise. She tried requiring us to find a large mirror to place behind us during our online final to show our entire work area or else she would report us to the dean's office. She doesn't respect accommodations. She's not helpful. She went undercover as a student in a groupchat to report her students. Many staff and faculty are aware of her abuses and she's currently under investigation but no action has been taken. I urge everyone to sign the petition for UCLA to hold her accountable. These accusations are not taken lightly and put our entire academic careers on the line.

I’m convinced Anderson is writing all the past good reviews herself because if you ask any other student in the class they would say not one positive thing. Anderson is manipulative, loves to spy on her students and invade their privacy and she is an awful professor

WARNING: Potential Misconduct and Harassment – Dr. Terri Anderson, Sociology

If you are considering taking this class, be aware that there are open misconduct reports against Dr. Terri Anderson with the UCLA Sociology Board. Several students from past classes were reported to the Dean for issues related to AI use, collaboration, or academic integrity, and even some TAs have filed reports.

Professor Anderson is extremely rigid and unapproachable. There is little to no room for discussion regarding grading or clarification. She strictly monitors AI usage, requiring Google Doc edit histories for every assignment, which feels invasive and excessive.

Grades can be deducted randomly in tiny increments (0.1–0.3 points) without explanation. She may call students out publicly on Canvas for “using AI” or “not engaging,” even when no proof exists. Time on Perusall readings is tracked and assumptions are made based on those numbers.

TAs have limited grading authority, and contesting a grade is nearly impossible. Office hours often do not resolve issues, as all final decisions are subjective and at her discretion.

Expect weekly proctored quizzes with only four highly specific questions, multiple readings, discussion posts, video lectures, an essay midterm, and an oral final. The workload is heavy, and the structure feels more like surveillance than education.

If you are facing harassment or faculty misconduct, see the UCLA Academic Senate charge process here: https://www.senate.ucla.edu/committees/charges
and consider supporting the Spring 2025 students’ petition: https://chng.it/Kx7V4WGXx2

Avoid this class at all costs unless you are prepared to navigate a highly controlled and stressful environment.