I had a genuine interest in the topic of this class before taking it, but I got less interested as the weeks passed. The assignments were stupid, but there were no tests so no memorization of all the information (there was a lot of information). You kind of have to do the readings, and there were a lot of them. Participation is important in discussion and you need to show that you know your stuff. I went to Thies' office hours and he seemed like a nice guy, he has a sarcastic humor which I like, but he also definitely thinks he's the shit.
Overall, if you are super interested in this class, an A is possible and you will learn a lot. If not then don't take it!!

This class is probably the worst ever, not the class itself but THIES specifically. The assignments are stupid, he's mean AF, and the workload is ridiculous. There was a kid from the previous class who forgot his backpack, so he interrupted our lecture to get it back. Embarrassing right? Forgetting your backpack and then having to interrupt a whole ass lecture. WELL IF THAT ISN'T EMBARRASSING ENOUGH, Thies had the audacity to not only mock the student, but literally stop the entire lecture as the kid nervously retrieved his backpack. This happened at the beginning of the quarter, and ever since then it became blatantly obvious that Thies thinks he's above everything and everyone. Don't take this class :)

He redesigned the class for this quarter so he eliminated the impossible tests that everyone else had written about. His assignments during my quarter were ridiculously hard, as everyone else has described, and he gave very little guidance for what he was looking for. The way the class worked was that most of your grade (something like 80%) was based on 4 assignments due every 2-3 weeks and these assignments were huge papers that required very thorough research.
However, I have taken multiple classes with him and I must say that he is very responsive to feedback so I think it is fair to assume that there is a good chance that he has adjusted his course to provide more guidance/flexibility for his assignments for upcoming quarters.

Do not take this class. Unclear and competitive grading. Pretty much a nightmare. Harder than all my upper-division classes, and grading was so harsh. The class average on most assignments was 56%. Not great and not worth the stress.

The professor is energetic and really cares about Poli sci 50. That said, his lectures really aren’t mandatory at all if push comes to shove; you could probably get away with skipping a few. However, the discussions and the book are 100% mandatory, and participation is important.
The reading quizzes, personally speaking, are rather fool proof, along with the little assignments here and there. There are quite a lot of readings though, and they can be unnecessarily long.
The professor has apparently changed PS 50 this year. There are no tests, but instead they’re replaced with papers. They’re not graded easily, but fairly. The deadlines are pretty reasonable, but the papers can be unnecessary long. Just remember to answer every. Single. Question

This is without a doubt the absolute worst class that I have taken in my three years at UCLA. The workload gives me the thought that Theis truly does not consider other potential classes one might be taking and the grading is some of the harshest I have seen for any class. Nobody got above a C during the 2019 Fall Quarter Final. This is not indicative of an issue within the students, but rather the professor. The papers given to you throughout the course require more time than what is given to complete with the several hours if not days of research and then articulation of said information, and the midterms make you question whether youve actually been learning what you're supposed to in this class. I cannot say I have had a negative experience with Theis, he has always been a stand up guy when I've interacted with him, despite the fact I hate this class with a burning passion. AVOID THIS CLASS AT ALL COSTS, IT IS NOT WORTH THE SAKE OF YOUR MENTAL HEALTH AND SANITY.

Idek where to start, but this is one of the hardest classes I have taken at UCLA. I'm a stem major and took this as a GE, but Professor Thies purposely makes some questions on tests or essays extremely challenging in order to make sure that the kids who get A's KNOW the subject. As an introductory class, this should not be case. It should introduce topics that aren't to crazy to comprehend, but by Thies structuring activities this way, he makes it very hard to do well. I wouldn't take this class as a GE

DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. He assigns crazy amounts of reading for 2 point quizzes. He will not work with you if you have extenuating circumstances and he is not nice. The final project is horrible too; he expects you to find everything online, yet several of the questions do not have findable answers. Take this class if you like busy work and do not ever need to contact your professors.

This class sucked the soul right out of my body. I took this class during my first quarter at UCLA, and boy oh boy was that a mistake, because I was convinced that I was too dumb to be here and that I would really have to struggle to get my degree. It honestly makes me sad thinking about this class and how much time I wasted over working on brutally tough assignments, doing readings that were irrationally long, and trying to reason with professor who made me feel dumber than a person who says Taylor Swift doesn't write her own songs. You can and should take other Political Science classes at UCLA, but stay away from this class like it's 3 week old spoiled milk. Professor Thies mocked me a lot when I asked him for help during office hours, and when I didn't know the answer to a question he asked me in the process of me seeking help, he would bitterly respond to the question himself and act all cold and reclusive, as if I had seriously disappointed him. I wanted to tell him to get off his high horse, but I just bit my tongue and got through it. He was actually really nice to me in the first couple of weeks, but when I started showing signs of struggling he flipped. What kind of professor bases how they treat students on how that student is able to grasp the course material? Please, for the sake of your soul, don't take this class.

This class was very engaging and a lot of material is definitely covered/analyzed. That being said, the world load is very heavy (lots of reading, approximately 3 pretty long paper assignments). Professor Thies is a great professor, but it is a pretty difficult course that requires much time and effort.