AHhhh, DR PHELAN IS AMAZING!! Take his course!
He goes on a point system instead of percentages, and gives a curve! This helps because I got a C on the midterm and I am still in line for an A in the class (I haven't taken the final yet).
He makes lectures very interesting. And when he asks the class to do something (like be nice to a stranger) DO IT! He gives that person a boost in the grade-book.
My TA was amazing! Dom Gonzalez! If you get him, stay in his discussion!..
There are quizzes in discussion, one gets dropped and he gives you the possible questions ahead of time.
There is a midterm and a final (do not be discouraged if you didn't do so hot on the midterm, you can still pass!)
And a debate in discussion. The debate and quizzes really aid your grade in the end.
Overall great professor! I am thinking about taking him again just because, and I am a sociology major lol

I'm a hardcore north campus major who dreads science GEs and I got a solid A in this class! Loved it. I would recommend it to anyone, GE or req, because Phelan is the definition of what every UCLA professor should strive to be like. Here's a breakdown for LS 15...

Professor:
Entertaining, relatable, thorough lectures. Gets students engaged. Podcasts the class, ~80% of people still show up.

Class Points:
150- Midterm
250- Final
15- Online Prep-U Questions
40- Section Debate
20- Section Attendance
84- 8 Section Quizzes, 12pts each, drops lowest quiz score

Midterm and Final:
Curved generously. I got a rawscore of 74% on the midterm (which ended up being a B+) and an 80% on the final. With a perfect score for everything else, I landed an A. Get your hands on past tests from the test bank to get a feel for his midterms. Do Prep-U questions to prep for MC sections--he uses 3-4 of the same ones on the tests. Short answers are free responses that are graded harshly/leniently depending on your TA.

Quizzes/Section: find past quiz answers. He does not change the questions. Easy 12 pts to get weekly along with the 10 pts just for showing up.

Book: Read "Mean Genes." You don't really need to read the "What is Life" textbook. TA's go over those chapter pretty well in section (try to get Randy Reyes, he was great.) Mean Genes references come up in Phelan's tests.

Amazing professor!
Everyone should take him if they get the chance
Class wasn't particularly hard
There is a lot of work but its fun work so it is okay!
A lot of the questions on the midterm were from old tests! so def have a look at them!
Highly recommend him! he is absolutely amazing

Phelan was FABULOUS.

Life Science 15, dare I say it, may change your life. You'll learn more useful stuff than the life science majors do. Being able to take his class is a great opportunity, almost a privilege -- don't miss out on it!

That said, it's a little more difficult than most other GEs out there -- but DON'T let that stop you from taking it. His personal anecdotes will make you laugh, his teaching methods will help you learn, he will never make you memorize something without a good reason, his pictures will make you smile, and his take-home messages will stay with you forever and help you live a better life.

Oh, yeah -- when he tells you every lecture that you should go to his office hours, even if it's just to say hi...even if you don't consider yourself the office-hour type, you should actually go. I waited till the end of the quarter and I'm now kicking myself because he's not only a fountain of knowledge, but he'll talk to you like an old friend. If I'd visited him earlier, I would've come back every week. Professors like this are becoming increasingly rare, so don't pass him by.

Well, that's all...nothing I write here could possibly do Jay Phelan and his class justice.

TAKE LS 15.

Best course I have taken so far. Everything you learn in this class is relevant and memorable after the class. There isn't a lot of work required for this class as a Life Science course and you can pass easily by just listening in lecture and passing the more than manageable weekly quizzes. I highly recommend this class to anyone interested in learning something valuable at UCLA.

Best class I've taken so far at UCLA.
Dr. Phelan is phenomenal and really knows his stuff. Coming to lecture was actually enjoyable!
Normally I shy away from South Campus like a slug from salt, but I really, really loved this class - it was practical, informative, and - dare I say it - fun.
There is quite a lot of material, but if you put the work in you'll do fine. I ended up with an A.

Professor Phelan is by far one of greatest professor ever at UCLA. Being an undergrad himself at UCLA, he understands what students go through moreso than other professors. This guy can really make life sciences more interesting and applicable to life. Take his class. You won't regret it.

TAKE PHELAN! This man changed my life. Amazing class, amazing book, amazing lecturer, awful tests (but he can't be perfect, right?). I DEFINITELY recommend him for any LS class. Amazing.

Professor Phelan is a professor that I would recommend to ALL students thinking about taking life science. His lectures are very interesting and humorous at the same time. He explains things VERY clearly and makes lectures so fun that I actually WANT to attend lectures. I haven't missed any one of his lectures! I look forward to going to his lectures. The class itself (life science 15)is not too difficult. On my first midterm there wasn't a question that I didn't know, and he curves the grades generously! In discussions, the TA (his name was Asif) that I had was really lenient and not at all strict. We had quizzes every discussion but the quizzes were VERY easy. On lectures before the discussions, we were given a problem set packet with about 5 to 7 questions and any one of those questions was going to be the question of the quiz. So as long as you know the answer for all the of questions, you'll ace the quiz. And plus Asif went over all of the answers to the questions during discussion before the quiz so literally you can't not pass. Overall this class was really helpful and pretty easy to pass if you do the reading which isn't much, just one chapter after each lecture.

I TOOK HIM FOR LIFE SCIENCE 15. (SO IGNORE THE MCDB 89, I JUST HAD TO PICK ONE AND LS15 WASNT ON THERE)
EVERYONE LOVES HIM. HIS PERSONALITY IS BOMB! BUT NO THAT MIDTERM OR FINAL. THERE ARE ALOTTA SHORT ANSWERS SO DON'T JUST TRY TO MEMORIZE STUFF. KNOW CONCEPTS AND THEN THE MULTIPLE CHOICE SHUD COME EASILY. I DID MEDIOCRE IN HIS CLASS (C+) BUT I'M SURE THATS A MISTAKE SO HE'LL BE SEEING ME NEXT YEAR :) BUT YEA HE'S EASY BUT HIS FINAL IS HARD. BUT IF YOU ACE THE FINAL YOU AUTOMATICALLY GET AN A N THE CLASS REGARDLESS OF OTHER GRADES