branstetter is the hardest professor to get, and that just says everything about him. political theory is hard to understand, but branstetter breaks it down in such a way that it feels like you are having such a fun conversation with him. he is so passionate about the readings, and the way he teaches makes you want to be so passionate about them as well. his class was only 2 papers, and they are fun prompts, too. i will say they feel fairly long (4-5 pages SINGLE SPACED), and because it is theory, it can be hard to get the ball rolling. once you do though, you just gotta yap over and over (hence it feeling a bit long). THE BEST PART: you get 100% on both as long as you show you really put thought in the papers. because the prompts are fun, you actually enjoy writing them a bit, so it is nearly impossible to NOT get an A. the point of this, as branstetter puts it, is that grades weigh down on us and so we often worry about writing what the grader wants to hear and not what we really think. so by removing the looming threat of a grade, we get our true thoughts out unrestrictred. it's the best philosophy ever for a prof to have. luv him, wish his classes would stop filling up so fast so i could have a chance to take him every quarter fr.

I LOVED THIS CLASS!! HE IS AN AMAZING PROFESSOR!!! I WOULD DEF TAKE THIS COURSE AGAIN IF I COULD

There's a reason why Branstetter's classes fill up so quickly. Branstetter is a passionate, light-hearted, and overall very engaging lecturer. He is very academically progressive, understanding the cost of textbooks and the meaninglessness of grades, making for a very unique and easy grading system.

It was a bit writing intensive. There were two 4-5 single spaced papers (~10 page double-spaced papers). Don't let this deter you, however. While the topics were very open (which to some people may make it difficult), I thought the topics were interesting. Furthermore, they are graded on COMPLETION and REVISION. Aka as long as you turn in a relevant 10 page paper you get a B, revise if after a TA leaves comments, and you get an A+. It is ridiculously easy to pass.

There is one complaint I have with him, however. Besides being very academically progressive, he is politically very progressive. There's nothing inherently wrong with this, however, he often makes either subtle or non-subtle remarks against conservative values. One time, he subtly shamed people who don't donate anything to impoverished communities. So, yeah. If you're conservative you may feel uncomfortable unfortunately.

Professor Branstetter is probably one of my favorite professors I have had at UCLA so far. He genuinely cares about his students and stresses the fact that placing such a high importance on grades can create a stressful culture in college, and that he cares more about making sure we engage with the course content and share our honest ideas. If you have the chance to take a class with him, do it! You will not regret it. The class grade was entirely structured around 2 papers (4-5 pages single spaced) on interesting and mostly open ended topics. By submitting your papers you automatically receive a B+, and by making substantial revisions on your papers you receive an A. Also, we got to watch the Barbie movie in class and discuss. Would recommend to anyone!

This is one of my favorite classes I have taken at UCLA. John is such a nice person and genuinely cares so much about his students. The classes are engaging, and the workload is super manageable. There are also no tests which is a huge bonus.

Professor Branstetter is by far the best professor I have had at UCLA. He is so engaging and passionate about political theory that it inspires his students, even in a subject which many would consider dry. He is also extremely helpful in office hours and, because your grade in this class is composed of 3 essays that your TA grades, it never hurts to go over your essay with him if you're not happy with your grade because he's not averse to bumping you up a few points if he feels that you deserve it.

This was the best (and easiest) GE I have taken at UCLA.
Grading scheme = 10% discussion, and 3, 3-4 page essays (30% each).

There is a lot of reading assigned for this class, but I only really read one of the assignments to its full extent. Each essay only requires two of the readings each (I only used one reading for the last essay).
You don't really need to go to lecture, as it is not super relevant to writing a good paper, but if you are confused with the material, it may help.

I went to every lecture because Branstetter is such a personable, and engaging guy who is clearly passionate about the subject matter and his students' success.

Your TA does the grading, so who you have matters. My TA (Kris) was an extremely cool and thoughtful guy, who gave good feedback and graded on the easier side.
we were given 2% extra credit for doing the evaluations, which bumped my grade up. Clutch.

10/10 would recommend to a friend.

PS 10 with Branstetter 100% depends on your TA. Personally, my TA was really full of herself and graded pretty harshly. But other friends in the class had better and nicer TAs and ended up with better grades even with the same amount and quality of work. Branstetter is kind of a boring lecturer but he's entertaining enough. Lectures really aren't that necessary, but the reading definitely is. I've heard this was the hardest PS lower div and it was to me.

This professor is among the best in the school. He is engaging, funny, always positive, creative and interesting, and certainly very knowledgeable. I would recommend this class to anyone and everyone.

I took the Confucian Political Theory class with him, and Branstetter is an amazing professor. He clearly loved the material he was teaching, and his passion came through in every lecture. The readings were pretty dense and hard to understand, but the professor did a great job explaining them and providing clarity about the subject. I thought the exams were reasonable, and while there are a lot of pop quizzes, it's not hard to consistently get 4/5 right if you read. Overall, Branstetter is one of the best instructors in the department, and I'd highly reccomend taking a class with him if you have the chance.