Fluitt is by far the best life science teacher I've had at UCLA. She's really funny and engaging in lecture and makes it really easy for you to get points in the class - clicker questions, easy online homework points, an extra credit homework quiz at the end, and discussion is just attendance graded and typically lets out early. The first midterm had an average of about 85 and the second was just a little lower than that. Each test is NOT cumulative, not even the final. Even though she gives a lot of easy points I feel like I've really learned the material in this class; she doesn't force rote memorization on her students like a lot of life science professors tend to. If you can take a class with her you really should! Your GPA will thank you and you'll actually really enjoy the course!

Fluitt is super young, cute, and extremely passionate about science. I used to love when she would nerd out about certain things in molecular bio. She's not hard to pay attention to but she does speak REALLY fast, so I recommend both going to class and also watching the bruincast later. Being able to pause her lectures and rewind a bit helps a lot when studying. Attendance in discussion is mandatory, but all they do is give you a worksheet, let you work on it, and then give you the answers. My TA said participation AND attendance mattered, but I never participated and got full credit for my discussion section grade. Her tests are by no means easy, but they are much more doable compared to other professors, based off what I've heard. Ours were multiple choice, T/F, and matching, with the TF and matching being worth less points than the multiple choice. Excessive studying is very necessary to get a good grade, which I did by rewatching her lectures and redoing the worksheets from section. Overall, I loved taking this class with her and I recommend her to all my south campus / bio friends!

Fluitt was a great professor, though she does speak really fast i found the lectures very engaging and how she roasts her students to be funny. She also provides extra credit at the end along with launch pad which can improve your grade. Tests were easy and mostly NOT BASED ON MEMORIZATION. She's a cool professor and would recommend.

Out of all the life science courses I have taken, LS3 with Fluitt is my favorite. She has a lot of passion for the material she teaches, and really cares about how her students do. Though the class covers a large amount of material, she does a great job of condensing the info. in her slides and provides study guides for each midterm. Launchpad, clickers, and discussion sections were pretty straightforward (launchpad quizzes are graded, while clickers and discussions are mainly completion-based). I do have to say, however, that I did take some time after class and going to office hours to clarify topics she taught in class, but that'll be a given for any class. It was definitely manageable, and I enjoyed the class very much, to the extent that I joined a lab related to topics she covered in lecture. I would definitely recommend going to office hours (I went to almost every one, and she's super approachable and kind! It's a great way to not only test what you know, but ask questions about topics you may not have understood when she first taught them). If I had to give one piece of advice, really draw out everything when you can. It's easier to understand certain concepts when you draw it out, and it's definitely helped me. Work hard, and you can definitely do well in her class. I wish she taught more courses so I can take them!

Professor Fluitt's lectures are very helpful. She explains a concept in detail and then recaps it immediately afterwards before moving onto the next topic, which really helps solidify concepts in your mind. I think the people who are saying that she speaks fast actually mean that she progresses from one topic to the next quickly without breaks (which is necessary because there is a lot of material to cover), because she speaks very clearly and is easy to understand. Her tests are definitely fair and pretty straightforward as long as you have a good understanding of the material. Like any other science class, you have to STUDY a good amount outside of class and use any of the countless resources available to you (TA/professor office hours, Bruincast, the online textbook, Piazza, YouTube, Google, etc) to do well instead of expecting the professor to magically bestow knowledge upon you so you can leave each lecture with 100% understanding of all the content. Clicker questions, homework, and discussion attendance are all significant portions of your grade, so these will definitely help your overall grade if your test scores are not what you'd hoped. She also posts study guides prior to the exams which I highly recommend filling out to aid in your studying. There are no trick questions. Basically, professor Fluitt structures this class in such a way that if you are a hard-working student you will do well, and if you choose not to put in the work your grade will reflect that.

Professor Fluitt is a great professor! She is super helpful and always makes additional office hours. Contrary to what a previous student said, she does not get her clicker questions wrong! Her clicker questions are super helpful and useful when studying for the exams. Additionally, her discussion worksheets help clarify the difficult concepts. Yes, the material is challenging but Professor Fluitt makes the material very interesting and encourages students to ask questions so that everything is well understood. Also, Professor Fluitt returns her tests very fast and holds extra office hours to go over the exams with her. She is very fair and her tests are doable as long as you put in enough time and effort into the class. I would definitely retake this professor! Definitely recommend!

Dr. Amy Fluitt is an amazing professor!! By far one of the most helpful and clear professors I have ever had. She is really fun, relatable, and cool!! She really cares for each individual student and is always open to make additional office hours if you can't make hers. I had a class during her usual office hours this quarter and she created extra office hours that I could attend. No Professor has ever done that!! As for lecture, material is a bit challenging, but she really makes sure you understand a topic before moving on by constantly reviewing it and asking if there are any questions. She really makes sure to review the tricky concepts over and over, which was really helpful for me because they do appear on exams. The pace of the class is a bit fast, but that is true for all LS courses!! It was no faster than my previous ones. In order to do well in this class you should attend lecture AND go over bruincast to really solidify some of the tricky concepts. She maintains a very comfortable environment and keeps you engaged in lecture through cracking funny jokes, encouraging questions, and applying various clicker questions to keep you on point (that she does not get wrong by the way). She is really passionate about the material and thus explains concepts in a fun and intriguing manner. She always keeps class interesting and really strives to make the material as clear as possible. As for the exams, they are extremely fair. She doesn't try to trick you and she makes sure to cover material learnt in class. Exams are designed to test your understanding of the material, rather that just memorizing a bunch of nit picky stuff. Additionally, for the specific things that you do have to memorize, she will make sure to tell you that and write it on the study guide as well so there is no surprise on the exam. She takes the time to analyze student's responses and will always throw out a question if it could have been misinterpreted. She really aims to test comprehension and thus if she sees that a question doesn't do that, she will make sure it won't effect your grade! In order to do well on exams, make sure to go over clicker questions, discussion worksheets, and the study guides that she kindly provides students with. The study guides are extensive and very helpful!! Again this course is fast and challenging, but if you put in the time and effort, you can really succeed. She really loves teaching and it truly shows. I really enjoyed this course and hopefully you will too!! Highly recommend her!! Wish she taught LS4!!

TREMENDOUS curve. Believe me, no one is better at curving than Dr. Fluitt. She is the best curver this school has ever seen! Listen, folks. She will work for YOU. and YOU. and YOU! She is the best lecturer and the best curver God has ever created.

Together, we will make Life Science fun again. Together, we will make Life Science easy again. And WE WILL MAKE LIFE SCIENCE CURVED AGAIN.

On a serious note, thank God for that curve. Because ughhh I would have gotten an A- but I ended with an A+. thanks fluitt! ahhh she' such a kind lady.

How to get at least an A or A+ at least
-get at least 95% (or more!) on your free points. attend discussion, get 95% (or more!) on launchpad, and get clicker points
-tests are straightforward. i was nooooot putting in enough time studying. really just memorize her powerpoint and you will get an A. THERE IS A RIDICULOUS AMOUNT OF WORDS ON HER POWERPOINTS. MEMORIZE EVERYTHING = GUARANTEED A... fantastic...
-study guide: FORGET this. never helped. it covers things we don't need, and misses things we do need. don't rely on this. in fact, i wouldnt even look at it. focus on her pwrpnt

First of all, I saw a couple of students posting reviews on this forum at around December 5 for the Fall 2017 quarter, indicating they got As or A+s. However, such is impossible because the final exam(which is worth 24 percent of the course's total grade) wasn't even administered at that point.

I don't know why people would be motivated to post fake grades. Either way, I would take those reviews with a grain of salt.

Having taken the class and received a final grade, I personally think Dr. Fluitt is a wonderful lecturer who genuinely cares about her students. It is true that her lectures are very fast-paced and thus a little hard to follow at times. However, I think such is required given the amount of material she needs to cover. Moreover, she generally speaks in a very fluid, concise, and logical manner. As a result, if you rewind the Bruincast a couple of times, you should be able to understand everything she says.

Grade-wise, it will be tough to make an A without at least an A- average on your exams. The class average for these exams are typically at around a B-. 28 percent of the class grade, however, do come from what Dr. Fluitt called " fluff points". These fluff points compose of homework, discussion, and clicker points.

I personally find her a little intimidating during office hours. However, all in all, I think she's a great resource if you have trouble. Be sure to go to TA and LA office hours as well.

I received good grades in this class, but almost entirely through my own extensive efforts in reading the textbook and participating in discussion.
Fluitt is a horribly inefficient lecturer for the following reasons:
1. Spits out as much as information as possible in an extremely short period of time. It is physically impossible to learn 5 mechanisms with 10 catalytic proteins in the span of 4 minutes, much less take notes on everything said.
2. Poses clicker questions on the material you didn't learn 2 minutes ago. The point of clicker questions is to have you evaluate and learn, not try to regurgitate random terms you barely understood.
3. Constantly gets her own clicker questions wrong. This is ridiculous. She has to go back and review the question and reevalute her answer. Leaves students 10x more confused and degrades the amount of respect you can have for her.
4. Spends excess amount of time on certain topics, therefore leaving next to no time for other important topics. For example, we went through all the mechanisms of protein translation in about 30 minutes, but spent about 3 lectures on molecular tools.
In summary, lectures felt like a waste of time and just decreased my interest in the material. Its pretty discouraging when your notes are half empty, with just (Review!) written next to half the terms. If you lose your place in lecture, it is near impossible to keep up for the rest of the time. While you were trying to understand a term, she already moved onto 3 new ones.