<p>Are the classes at UCD generally large, or is there more of a high-school feel to the classes?</p>
<p>All 3 of my engineering classes are between 60-90 people each.</p>
<p>Oh, okay. Are classes like lectures? You sit, take notes then tests once in awhile?</p>
<p>Tests are given once in a blue moon. In 2 of my classes, there’s only 1 midterm and 1 final. Midterm weighs like 35%. Final weighs like 45%. </p>
<p>In my 3rd class, there’s 2 midterms and 1 final. That gives you an idea how seldom tests are given. During the quarter, assignments are assigned on a weekly basis, but they usually add up to only a measly 10-20% of your total grade. Your grade is mainly decided on how well you perform on the 1 or 2 midterms and the final.</p>
<p>What this translate to is that if you bomb any single test, your dead meat since the weight of each is so heavy. It would be nice to have more tests given to spread out the grading weight and lessen the material covered on each testing session, but that’s usually not the way it goes since the quarter is so short.</p>
<p>In lectures, you sit and take notes so you can try to gain enough info to do your homework, but the teachers always go crazy fast. In lots of the classes, they lecture off slides that are also posted online so you can print them out ahead of time to bring to class. This is why if your a good self learner, sometimes it’s not even necessary to go to lecture since you can just study the slides on your own at home. This can save you some valuable time by not having to attend class.</p>
<p>Thanks! So it sounds like pretty much the teachers leave you to yourself?</p>
<p>Yup, for the most part, your basically just a #</p>
<p>This will be the norm at all UC’s and large universities. There are tutoring services (free) office hours and discussions where you can get further help if you need it.</p>
<p>Oh, okay. Thanks for the replies ^^</p>
<p>Are tests usually scantrons or free-response type things?</p>
<p>Generally large, but it depends on the subject. My Psych class is very large (350 students) and basically he lectures, you take notes and read, and then you take the midterm/final. Tests are the only component of your grade in that class. However my English class is smaller than most of my HS classes, at around 25 students, and in that class the teacher knows everyone and expects them to constantly discuss the material we are reading and we have weekly assignments/readings/essays/presentations which he comments fully on. So I guess it depends on the class.</p>
<p>And for tests, it widely varies by subject/teacher, methinks. I personally only have one scantron test class this semester.</p>
<p>Make a study group for each class…thats the best way to study, trust :P</p>
<p>yeah, it really does depend on the subject and class. generally, intro courses have a ton of kids (hundreds), but as you move into upper division classes they get smaller. My English classes average about 70-80 students (I hear creative writing classes are very small, though…about 15). General science classes are probably the worse because every science major has to take them.</p>
<p>Let’s see…most classes are lecture-based…some of those have small discussion sections (about 20 or so people) so you can get extra help from a TA. </p>
<p>I think that typically, your science classes are not going to have discussion in class. It’s just the prof. blabbing for an hour or more. Your English/humanities/languages/social science classes have more interaction between students and the prof. </p>
<p>As far as the work goes…again, it depends on the class. I think your average big lecture class is pretty much just a midterm and a final, where your smaller liberal arts classes have lots of papers and quizzes.</p>
<p>Do teachers ever call on students or put them on the spot, even if they didn’t raise their hand or something?</p>
<p>the socratic method is uncommon but it is used in some classes</p>
<p>I’m assuming that’s what I described then?.. darn lol</p>
<p>Varies largely by major/professor. Really depends if the class is a lecture or a discussion or both.</p>
<p>For my Freshman Seminar several times the professor has put people on the spot. After a little while these people started to get smart and just talk about what they know instead of having the professor force discussion out of them on something they don’t know. Either way you always go to ratemyprofessors and make sure you don’t get the mocking or tyrannical professor. I’ve heard there are some unkind ones on campus, but it only takes a glimpse at RMP to distinguish between those and the kind ones.</p>
<p>Oh, okay. Thanks</p>
<p>Generally smaller classes or discussions will require participation.
In large classes, participation isn’t really practical…unless you want to argue with the professor in front of 400+ people.</p>
<p>Haha, true</p>