People take this class because it is easy, and it lives up to that reputation. 3 non-cumulative, 25-question, multiple choice exams determine your grade. Most people do well on them (means/medians in the 90s) but if you struggle with high-stake (each Q is 4%) multiple choice exams be wary. I will say that her exams are not very tricky and it’s clear she writes them herself (e.g., you can eliminate 2-3 answers most times because of how ridiculous they sound). Course content is relatively interesting and not too difficult to study for; I created Anki flashcards and only spent 1-2 hours after each class without any additional studying before exams and only missed only 1 pt the whole quarter.

As for Zaidel, she communicates poorly (e.g. speaks slowly with illogical pauses; her slides randomly indent points without any seeming underlying logic) but this is mitigated by the easiness of course concepts. She seems to be nice in person, congratulating students on high exam marks and bringing us snacks, but is oddly very rude/curt over email. Strange woman. Funny in her own way.

It's not a very easy A if you are taking it in the summer, in my opinion...
2 exams, each contains 30 questions, and you can't miss more than 4 questions if you want an A. The exams cover lecture and readings, however, reading material that is not covered in lecture could be in the exam (there were like 2 questions like that). Most questions are fair and easy. Around half of the class got A, so it's not a very challenging class over all. My point is that it's very very very easy to end up with an A-, so be careful...

This was one of my favorite classes that I have taken at UCLA. Professor Zaidel is a great professor, and you can tell that she genuinely cares about her students' success in the class. The class is graded only on 3 25-question exams, so you need a 69/75 or higher to get an A (class is straight-scale). The tests are extremely fair. Everything in them is clearly covered in the lectures or in the assigned readings. The assigned readings were scientific studies relating to what was covered in class. There were only 2-3 readings assigned per exam.

Lectures were clear and easy to understand. They are not posted online, so you need to make sure that you come to class everyday and take notes. Zaidel lectures at a steady pace, so getting all the information is not a problem at all. A lot of the material is actually quite interesting. Zaidel is passionate about the material, which makes the lectures more engaging. A lot of the material is supplemented by videos and references that help you remember. Outside of class, Professor Zaidel is helpful and welcoming of any questions you may have.

I recommend taking this class. As long as you show up to class, take notes, and memorize everything covered, you will get an A.