Professor
Louis-Serge Bouchard
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2021 - I was afraid to take this class with Professor Bouchard due to negative past reviews. However, I did not pickup on any rudeness at all. He seems to be a pretty nice person from what I could see. Online, this class was very manageable. All of the homework and tests are given on a website called OWL. Professor Bouchard set homework to the hardest level (level 4). Midterms and the final were set from levels 1-3, so they were much easier than the homework. You can do very well on tests if you do the homework, learn the formatting of the questions, and learn how to use OWL. There are a few programs in OWL that can be confusing to use at first so make sure to know how to use them before the tests. Bouchard does not lecture. Instead he treats class like "office hours," which I personally disliked. I often skipped class and never felt like I was missing out on anything important. He made prerecorded lectures but I found that they were too repetitive with the textbook so I did not watch them. You do get points for attending discussion however. The way I learned in this class was very simple. I read all of the assigned textbook chapters and took notes. Then I filled in any gaps in my knowledge by watching videos on Youtube and taking more notes. The content is not difficult in my opinion. The most difficult topic for me was the quantum mechanics section but it was manageable and there honestly was not much use for the complex formulas on the tests. If you want to test your knowledge in the class do the end of chapter problems in the textbook. They are more complex and difficult. I don't think this is necessary, but a good option if you have some extra time.
Winter 2021 - I was afraid to take this class with Professor Bouchard due to negative past reviews. However, I did not pickup on any rudeness at all. He seems to be a pretty nice person from what I could see. Online, this class was very manageable. All of the homework and tests are given on a website called OWL. Professor Bouchard set homework to the hardest level (level 4). Midterms and the final were set from levels 1-3, so they were much easier than the homework. You can do very well on tests if you do the homework, learn the formatting of the questions, and learn how to use OWL. There are a few programs in OWL that can be confusing to use at first so make sure to know how to use them before the tests. Bouchard does not lecture. Instead he treats class like "office hours," which I personally disliked. I often skipped class and never felt like I was missing out on anything important. He made prerecorded lectures but I found that they were too repetitive with the textbook so I did not watch them. You do get points for attending discussion however. The way I learned in this class was very simple. I read all of the assigned textbook chapters and took notes. Then I filled in any gaps in my knowledge by watching videos on Youtube and taking more notes. The content is not difficult in my opinion. The most difficult topic for me was the quantum mechanics section but it was manageable and there honestly was not much use for the complex formulas on the tests. If you want to test your knowledge in the class do the end of chapter problems in the textbook. They are more complex and difficult. I don't think this is necessary, but a good option if you have some extra time.
Most Helpful Review
He teaches the hardest class I've ever taken, but also the best class. The material he teaches is well above the standard general chemistry level (more on the order of graduate level), but he makes it all very understandable. Furthermore, he writes you a fantastic textbook of lecture notes (and does NOT charge you for it). Perhaps the best thing about his class is his teaching style, there are no hand-wavey explanations. Everything is derived, so it makes sense. He is very nice in office hours and answers all questions very fully. tl;dr: if you can put in a lot of work it's the best class available.
He teaches the hardest class I've ever taken, but also the best class. The material he teaches is well above the standard general chemistry level (more on the order of graduate level), but he makes it all very understandable. Furthermore, he writes you a fantastic textbook of lecture notes (and does NOT charge you for it). Perhaps the best thing about his class is his teaching style, there are no hand-wavey explanations. Everything is derived, so it makes sense. He is very nice in office hours and answers all questions very fully. tl;dr: if you can put in a lot of work it's the best class available.
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2017 - If you are reading this, then more than likely you have heard horror stories about Bouchard and 114. And, you also probably don't have much of a choice about taking this class. But, let me address a few things. The class is very difficult, no lies here. On top of the lab reports, Louie gives the hardest homework assignments I ever had at UCLA, and exams aren't a walk in the park (although if you study and do the hw they actually aren't all that bad). Ultimately, however, I ended up appreciating the class. Louie is very rigorous, derived, and straight forward in his lectures, and ultimately the lectures are clear. He also provides incredibly detailed notes, which are long but you MUST study them to do well. Be sure to go to the TA's to make sure your lab reports are well written, as you shouldn't lose sight of the fact that they are the biggest portion of your grade. The class is hard, and you will have to work your tail off, but Bouchard is actually a cool guy, he just enjoys challenging people.
Winter 2017 - If you are reading this, then more than likely you have heard horror stories about Bouchard and 114. And, you also probably don't have much of a choice about taking this class. But, let me address a few things. The class is very difficult, no lies here. On top of the lab reports, Louie gives the hardest homework assignments I ever had at UCLA, and exams aren't a walk in the park (although if you study and do the hw they actually aren't all that bad). Ultimately, however, I ended up appreciating the class. Louie is very rigorous, derived, and straight forward in his lectures, and ultimately the lectures are clear. He also provides incredibly detailed notes, which are long but you MUST study them to do well. Be sure to go to the TA's to make sure your lab reports are well written, as you shouldn't lose sight of the fact that they are the biggest portion of your grade. The class is hard, and you will have to work your tail off, but Bouchard is actually a cool guy, he just enjoys challenging people.
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2020 - I think finally the time has come to write the review for this class. CHEM 114H is very different from CHEM 114 such that you are required to complete an independent, term-long project instead of writing regular lab reports. This process can be extremely complicated and life-draining if you do not know what you're doing. I got an incomplete, an extension to the incomplete, a lapsed F, and another extension to the incomplete before I finally got my letter grade, completed in Winter 2022. I would describe the whole story was a "wild journey", to say the least. Anyway, the professor can be a little flakey and blunt, but at the end of the day, he is truly patient, caring, and forgiving inside the mind. I cannot really recommend anyone to take this class especially if you are unprepared, but at the end of the day, Professor Bouchard was truly my life saver.
Fall 2020 - I think finally the time has come to write the review for this class. CHEM 114H is very different from CHEM 114 such that you are required to complete an independent, term-long project instead of writing regular lab reports. This process can be extremely complicated and life-draining if you do not know what you're doing. I got an incomplete, an extension to the incomplete, a lapsed F, and another extension to the incomplete before I finally got my letter grade, completed in Winter 2022. I would describe the whole story was a "wild journey", to say the least. Anyway, the professor can be a little flakey and blunt, but at the end of the day, he is truly patient, caring, and forgiving inside the mind. I cannot really recommend anyone to take this class especially if you are unprepared, but at the end of the day, Professor Bouchard was truly my life saver.
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