I felt that this class was definitely tougher than 7A. Before I took the course, everyone told me that this class would be easier. I definitely disagree. The exams were not very straightforward and quite tricky (they often try to trick you with the slightest details in the wording of the questions to throw you off). On the first mid term (the genetics unit), I did not do so great (got a C minus). Later on, I started studying more and ended up doing better on the mid term and final (got a B and B+). Though I expected to end the class with either an overall B plus or A minus, I somehow ended with an A. I think that the professors of this class really try to help students with the extra credit opportunities (teacher evals and syllabus quiz) and with the weighed point structure. My advice to do well in this class is to just really understand the lecture material (sometimes Marcot will slip in something that is very important and could show up on the exams). Also I think that the pre-reading materials are quite important to help understand certain concepts more thoroughly. So my tips for success are just to always study the slides (maybe rewatch some lectures you get confused on) and study some of the main concepts from the readings. Overall, though this class is quite material dense and a bit tricky, the professors did a good job ensuring that everyone got a fair grade.

Just a bit of effort is enough. Tests only make up around 30% of the grade. Rest is clickers, discussion, etc

Marcot's lectures were helpful and informative, but he would sometimes be a week or class behind where other instructors are at. Also, during some lectures, Marcot will focus on one topic for a longer amount of time than the other, which would cause him to rush the class time.

The learning goals were always made clear on a weekly basis, however I feel that the work that went along with the class did not accurately reflect what exactly we were learning. There was only a small amount of work that was done and when I did have work, I felt misguided.

Having gotten an A in LS7A, this class was harder than LS7B by far. I didn't find the content to be necessarily hard and lectures were fairly easy to understand. However, the tests were extremely tough. Nothing in lecture could really prepare you for those kinds of questions they ask. Often, questions I got wrong were because of issues with the wording of the questions and not the content itself, which was very frustrating. The wording of questions can really trip you up and make it really easy to get a bad grade. The discussions in this class I also did not find very helpful for the tests either. I only found discussions helpful earlier in the quarter when we go over genetics, but as we get into ecology and evolution the discussions were no help and honestly a waste of time. We had a few take home labs that were unnecessarily long and took hours to complete that had content that wasn't even tested.

However, since this is a pre-req for many majors and a pre med class, unfortunately we don't have much of a choice taking this class. What I can say that did help a lot when it came to studying for the final was going back over both the midterms because the midterm questions are the kinds of questions you will see on the final. Also, doing the practice midterm/final questions before each midterm or final with a study group is super helpful because those are the kinds of questions you will see on the tests and since they don't provide an answer key it is good to do it with a group so that everyone comes to a consensus. Do not waste your time going over PCRQS, PEQs, or clicker questions as those kinds questions will simply not be on the tests. I also found problem solving sessions to be helpful when learning the content, but those kinds of questions will not show up on the tests either. In regards to Marcot himself, he was a good lecturer. I honestly don't think the professor really matters in the 7 series since everything is pretty standardized among lecturers.

About the professor:
- I don't know what the other professors were like, but I personally wouldn't have a problem retaking LS 7B with the same professor.
- Professor Marcot was okay. Not the worst, not the best.
- Often ran out of time to finish all the slides and didn't have the answer to some student questions, but didn't affect my learning to a big extent.
- Lectures aren't very engaging but not too boring, just okay. Not crystal clear, but not confusingly unclear either. Really just okay.

About the course:
1. I personally found the class content to be much easier than LS 7A. I think the concepts that most people struggled with were pedigrees & non-disjunction. Watching Youtube videos really helped me, especially this one which is about non-disjunction with Klinefelter syndrome (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cf7bgMrHNzA&ab_channel=FaaizahAcademy),

2. However, I think it's relatively harder to get an A than 7A because there's no group portion of the exams which is helpful in boosting exam scores. I felt that the final was more difficult than the midterms.

3. Unlike 7A the pre-class reading guides were optional, so I felt that the workload was lighter and more manageable. Launchpad readings & weekly practice exam questions were similar to 7A in terms of workload.

4. The practice midterm/final questions provided before each midterm/final were SO helpful. Definitely a must to perform well in the exams. For some reason, the professors never provide an answer key, but Campuswire is helpful in comparing answers among students.

5. Close to 0 extra-credit opportunities D:

6. Overall a decent course. Better than 7A in my opinion!

Marcot is a really nice guy and looks like a young version of Santa Claus. He's very passionate about paleontology and always answers students questions thoroughly. With that being said, it is definitely a difficult class with a lot of content. However, I feel like Marcot does a good job explaining content. The only thing is that tests are shared through the department, so I'm assuming Pires writes them. For anyone who has taken her for 7A, you know how weirdly worded and difficult her tests are. It's exactly the same in 7B. I say just do the test reflections for extra credit, submit your labs and Launchpad assignments on time, and you should be good. Don't get it twisted, this professor is great, but the class is just so hard.

Marcot seems very nice/approachable. His lectures are clear & easy to understand. He explains things well. The class moves quickly and the tests are somewhat difficult, but that I think is the case for all 7b classes. He is a good bet for a professor.

Like many of you, I had to take this course because it is required for my major. Not to cause extreme worry, but this was my least favorite course this quarter for several reasons.

Labs - which are really just discussion sections that require you to wear closed-toe shoes, were either way too long or way too short. Usually, we just do a worksheet in pairs or groups which doesn't take too long, but eventually these worksheets became small packets. It became a task just to finish all the questions, but at least it wasn't difficult. A couple weeks required us to walk down to the UCLA Botanical Garden (which imo is quite a trek) which was fun to get outside of ugly South Campus, but had no real practical purpose. In short, labs are easy but are a little tedious, and the straightforward questions that we went over in lab aren't like the ones on the exam. My TA Jess was very sweet and helpful, but with evolution some topics are a bit broad and tricky, which was not her fault, but it's difficult for anyone to get a concrete answer if every time "it depends".

Exams - jfc these are actually the worst part of this class. Apparently the head of the LS7 series heard complaints that the tests were too easy...and as a result she made them almost impossible to get an A on. I thought the first midterm on probability/meiosis went *okay* and I got an 85, the class average was an 81. There were so many probability questions that there really wasn't any time after calculations to check your answers, and I heard some people couldn't even finish the exam. The second midterm on evolution was absolute trash, no joke, it was so hard (for me). I scored a 77, the class got a 84. :(( This was probably my fault, because I didn't study as much as I could've and taking this class at 8am didn't help me to focus.

Launchpad wasn't actually a huge sore spot this quarter, and you should be used to doing it if you've taken LS7A. This quarter, only the pre-class review questions and practice exam questions are graded, which makes it easier to keep track of things and not accidentally miss points. Although if you're one of those people who just skims Launchpad and doesn't read and magically does well on exams - yeah, that might be a little harder. Especially considering how concept-based this course is, it's rally important to read the boring paragraphs and the examples, because some of same examples from the textbook were on the midterms and final!!

Bottom line - it IS possible to get an A in this class, or at least an A-. I calculated my grade and I was actually supposed to get an 89%/B+, but my professor decided to extend the range down so I got an A- (much to my pleasant surprise). As long as you complete all your launchpad assignments, attend class (or at least don't miss more than 3 days for participation), and generally study as best as you can, there should be nothing to worry about. YOU GOT THIS!!

Overall, Marcot was the most eh professor I've taken in my time here. However, he wasn't too bad. The LS 7 series is set up in a really annoying format, so he didn't have much to do with that. However, I felt that he could have helped us out by having more than one one-hour office hour each week. Also, there was a mistake on my midterm score, and when I emailed him about it, he just chose not to email me back, which I think is just not a fair response. Honestly, the class content is extremely dry, but I think he did the best with what he had.