Dr. Illes has hands down been my favorite professor at UCLA. I am so excited to take another class with her next quarter. This class was 3 hours long, but she made the time pass quickly. She is a great speaker with a good sense of humor - always a plus. I learned so much in this class about invasive plant and animal species and found the topic quite interesting. She has very strict rules and a very clear set of expectations; however, as long as you follow them, you'll have no trouble in her class. I received an A in her class, but it is vital that you show up to every single class so you don't miss any information.

I'm not going to lie, Dr. Illes is abrasive and sarcastic; which many people seem to have a problem with. Dr. Illes is not willing to baby her students and she makes it very clear during the first week that her students need to be proficient with what was taught in geog 7 in regards to ArcGIS. She is always helpful during class and during office hours; her advice might be slightly sarcastic but that is just her. As college students that will be entering the workforce we need to be able to work with people who rub us the wrong way. I will admit that the midterm and final (which are both practicals) are very hard relative to the assignments. However, Illes does hint to her students what will be on them. Moreover, they are worth very little of your overall grade. I got a b on both and still managed an a+ in the class. Dr. Illes gets a bad wrap because she rubs people the wrong way, but she is a very good professor. And really, if you have a basic knowledge of ArcGIS, the class will be easy. I would take Illes again, even outside of the GIS courses.

I definitely agree with the two evaluations below me. Taking Geog 168 with Illes was just the worst nightmare.
1) In her lecture, she often says things like "you guys should have learned this in Geog 7, and so you should know how to do this". Are you kidding me? You are here to help your students learn regardless if it is something new or from geog 7.
2) Whenever someone asks her a question in class 9 out 10 times that person gets made fun of by her sarcasm which some find it humorous.
3) She offers no tangible guide lines on the group project which happens to be the assignment that weighs the most in your final grade. Her excuse is that when you are working with professionals you are often not given any clear instructions and still expected to solve problems. Hello? This is our second GIS class, and we are not your graduate students. Her expectations of the class is unrealistic.
4)She is so difficult to communicate with. She has refused to help me with my questions twice through email and just told me that it is my own responsibility to find the answer. I've never missed a class or an assignment. There is no reason for a professor to not help a student
5) She does leave early in every lecture while the TA runs around trying to help everyone. Seriously, if she stays with the TA and treats her students more respectfully and acts more approachable I think this class would have been 100 times better and people would have been able to learn 100 times more.

This is my first bruinwalk review and will be my last one.
I am currently taking geography 168 with Prof. Illes. Please do not take her classes. AVOID AT ALL COST.
I had to miss the first lecture to attend preview days for the grad school programs I got in. This class is only once a week. So I emailed Prof. Illes to politely let her know that I will be missing the first class because of grad school matters. She replied "As a student planning to pursue a graduate degree, I am surprised by your choice to miss the entire first week of classes in a 10 week quarter. You may find it worth noting that in graduate school, such a choice may have far broader consequences than just your ability to complete one week's assignments. " How condescending.

Then we all had to join a group online to submit our homework assignments. She told the class about this online group thing in the first lecture but since I had missed it I emailed her and asked her if she can let me know how to join this group to submit my assignment. She replied "You were made aware that it is your responsibility to obtain all information provided in the first class from a classmate."

I can tell you that Illes does not care about her students at all. She also likes to make sarcastic comments in class towards people who ask her questions. Her instructions on how to do the weekly assignment are extremely vague sometimes you spend more time on figuring out what her instruction means than doing the assignment itself.

The midterm is the same way. You are asked to make 4 maps which must contain specific information. There is no instruction at all and the TA was told not to help us with any questions we have during the midterm. I have always enjoyed geography courses and liked our geography professors, but Illes is just unbearable. My stomach cringes every Thursday when I have to go to her class.

I think there is a huge misconception regarding professor Illes. She is a much, much better professor than the reviews on here make her out to be. In my opinion, it seems that most of the negative reviews about her are coming from individuals in Geography 5, or other lower division GE courses. And I believe it is because many of these students are either straight from high school or early on in their college careers, therefore, in my opinion, they may not be used to the teaching style of a college professor like Illes. She doesn't hold your hand every step of the way, she doesn't accept late assignments or lame excuses, and she certainly does not give out A's. But that's the way it should be in college, especially at a place like UCLA.

Illes is a great professor. She truly cares about what she is teaching, which makes the class so much more interesting and entertaining. And yes, she can be sarcastic, but those who get offended by it are taking it way too seriously. I personally like her sarcasm and wit because it keeps the class interesting. She does it to keep your attention and it works.

Also, she is really fun to talk to outside of class, especially during her office hours. She will sit and talk to you for as long as you want, and she gets so engaged in the conversation, it's just great. I've never felt more comfortable talking to a professor.

I've taken 5 classes with Illes. I have no complaints about a single one. She is an incredibly versatile professor as well. You can take a GIS class with her one quarter and a class on Wildlife Conservation the next. She is knowledgeable about so many different topics, both geography related and not. You can ask her a question about pretty much anything, and she'll have an answer.

All in all, I think all the negative reviews on here are very surprising, to me. I would not have taken 5 classes with Illes if I did not like her as a professor, and enjoy the way she teaches. She keeps class interesting, throws in a lot of anecdotal and personal stories, and you will honestly learn something of value, in my opinion. Great classes, great professor.

Geog 126 Geography of Extinction

Quite possibly one of my biggest personal wastes of money at this school taking this professor.

Not only did I basically just review things I had learned from animal encyclopedias when I was a kid, they were 'taught' by an extremely low quality instructor with in of the most caustic personalities I have ever seen on a person.

Everything in lectures is in the exams so the class is practically an excercise in mindless typing for most students. The quiet sound of the class is penetrated by the monotonous clacking of keyboards. His is what college has become.

All you need to do for the exam is memorize facts and have some kind of opinion for the essay.

I can recall community college professors that were light years ahead of Dr. Illes. What a disappointment at a school that is supposedly renown for its world class academics.

Illes is such an egomaniac that I wouldn't be surprised if half the positive reviews were written by her,

It was an interesting GIS class. I learned a lot from professor Illes. She makes my morning class fun with her sense of humor.

In order to do great in her class, you must attend every lecture because she will go over the process of the assignment. When you need help, she will be able to assist you. Sometimes there are so many students who need help that she won't be available to help everyone.

I recommend taking her class.

Professor Illes is my favorite professor at UCLA. She is very knowledgable, and more than willing to help you. Ive taken 5 of her classes and they never disappoint. Her readings are not a waste of time, her teaching style is entertaining, and her tests are fair. There are never any trick questions or anything like that.

Advice: Go to office hours! Not only is she hilarious, but she's great at reteaching for you if you don't quite understand the material.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND

Professor Illes is one of my favorite professors in the Geography department! She is passionate about teaching and the material, and I love her sense of humor, which is sometimes dark. Not a class for those who are sensitive, because she has strong opinions about certain topics (although she is happy to discuss opposing opinions). Attendance is not mandatory but recommended. She does not post lectures online. If you go to class and take notes of everything on the slides and the videos she shows, you will do fine. You have weekly assignments which is a one-page single spaced response paper, and they are basically easy points for the class. There is one paper about 6 pages single spaced long about an invasive species in California that you choose. It is very easy to do because you follow a certain format, and not that time consuming like you might think. Just show up to class and be engaged with the lecture and you will be a-okay. Professor Illes is funny and the class is not boring at all. The tests are a mixture of multiple choice, short answer, and a couple essays (no minimum length for those). They can be hard, so study up on the notes and make sure you know every detail mentioned on the slides and what she's said in lecture.

Professor Illes is hands down one of the coolest professors in the Geography department. She is funny and extremely passionate about this class, considering that she has done a lot of field work in Africa. For summer, there are weekly assignments which are a one page, single-spaced response paper to readings she posts (easy points). There are two field trips, one to a small zoo (Wildlife Learning Center), and a large zoo of your choice. The tests are very easy if you go to class and take good notes on the slides and things she says. I would take this class again. The topic is very depressing though, so be prepared.