Jewitt doesn't teach ESS 15 very often (I think he was just substituting this quarter for a professor who couldn't do it), since his primary area of focus is in Astronomy, but nevertheless ESS 15 was made extremely enjoyable and fun because of Jewitt.

He's really the coolest guy ever. His lectures are straightforward, and he gives you interesting tidbits all the time. He might be one of the most renowned scientists in his field, but his class is very down-to-earth (no pun intended).

Jewitt's midterms were very tough (make sure you study specific numbers), but his final was insanely easy. He released all the questions beforehand, so you just need to memorize the answers. Someone mentioned this previously, but his final was literally just a test to see who can fill in bubbles the fastest. And yeah, don't bother buying the textbook. I guarantee you'll never touch it -- just study the slides.

Lab was also very chill. The TA's were all cool, and the assignments weren't graded very harshly at all. So long as you did the assignments and took the quizzes, you should be fine.

I recommend Jewitt's classes to anyone. Not a lot of pressure, and you end up with new knowledge and a good grade.

Professor Jewitt is a god amongst men. Seriously, this guy is a leader in his field and literally proved Pluto isn't a planet through his discoveries. But he still goes out of his way to make the class enjoyable. The lecture slides are posted online; since a lot of them consist of simple bullets or miscellaneous pictures/graphs, you need to attend lecture to get the necessary context. The discussions are very straight-forward and open with a quiz reviewing the previous week's material. Jewitt values students learning the material without worrying about their grades, so he offers a crazy amount of extra credit throughout the quarter. The midterm is pretty specific, but if you took half-decent notes and factor in the extra credit, you'll be fine. He also pulls a good portion of the final from list of review questions he hands out a week in advance. If you get stressed out during your quarter, it won't be because of this class.

If you are a very North Campus person looking for an easy way to complete one of your physical science GEs, look no further than EPSS 9 with Professor Jewitt! He is a great professor and super famous for his scientific contributions (professors like him are part of the reason we should be proud to go to UCLA) and the lectures are pretty interesting, especially when he starts ranting, but you don't really have to go to them and I skipped quite a few. I failed both of the midterms (the average was a D and F) but then I memorized the questions he gave us for the final, did the extra credits, showed up to discussion each week and got an A. Even though what I learned in this class has nothing to do with what I'm going to study in the future, it was still cool and I highly recommend EPSS 9!

Never thought that astronomy can be so much fun - a must-take class!

This class was a joke. I don't recommend it.

I originally felt I did not learn much in this class because I got an F on both midterms but I went to all the lab sections, did all the extra credit,and studied the final review test before the final and still ended up with an A+
15% of extra credit is insane. DO ALL OF THEM people. The more I think about now that the class is over though, I ended up learning a lot more about the material than I originally thought. Take this class with Jewitt and Jewitt ONLY!!!!

If anyone says don't take this class, ignore them. Professor Jewitt is one of the coolest professors you will ever have at UCLA.
Here is the breakdown of his class: He has a textbook for the class, but you are absolutely not required to buy it. Even the professor said it is supplemental reading, and is not required. There are 2 midterms, each worth only 10% of your grade (I received a C- and a D on each midterm). Labs/lab quizzes are 30%, he drops your lowest 2 lab grades. The labs are completion only, so you get an automatic 6 points for just showing up and doing the labs, then the quizzes are 4 points each based on the labs from the previous week. The final is 50%, but he gives you about 90% of the final in advance. These are his "review questions" which essentially, is the final. In fact, 75% of the questions on the final are straight from the first 2 midterms, so you have already seen them before. The best part is the 15% extra credit. He gives you 3 assignments, each 5%. DO ALL OF THEM. It takes you from a 78 to a 93 real fast.
Aside from his grading scale, Jewitt himself is hilarious. He makes his lectures engaging by showing funny videos during class and telling stories about his previous students. Honestly, I think I went to lecture twice after the first midterm (week 4), but he's still funny. Plus he is the scientists that said Pluto isn't a planet. He is basically one of the most famous scientists in his field. Even my dad (who is super into astronomy) fangirled when I told him that David Jewitt was my professor. Not making that up.
All in all, take his class. If you're like me and just trying to get through your science GE's in one piece, take it. It's one of easiest A's you will ever get at UCLA.

easiest fucking class, try your best to take it. i didn't go to class but from what i could tell jewitt is mad chill if you care to go. just go over his powerpoint slides for the midterms, and for the final he gives you majority of the questions before the test. there are 3 extra credits, which are fun, and which i recommend - they're each 5%. labs are kinda annoying but that's it.

I LOVE DAVE! take him, I'm a north campus major but I love space and this class delivers a well-rounded education of the solar system, while giving enough extra credit to get you an A in the class.

Amazing professor and a fun class. The one homework assignment is fun and easy, tests are easy as well. I got a B+ (92.994%, where 93 was an A-), but that's only because I forgot to turn in the homework and declined to do several of the many, many extra credit opportunities he gave the class. If you are willing to put in even a medium amount of effort it's quite easy to end up with over 100% in the class.

I highly recommend Jewitt and EPSS 9.