I took Dr. Johnson’s Negotiation course in Winter 2021 when it was online. The course consisted of weekly negotiations for participation, case summaries based on in-class debriefs and the textbook, an article summary, and a final capstone exercise. The class met once a week, and during each class, we would be assigned a random partner to act out a negotiation with different instructions and then debrief altogether afterwards. It was very intimidating at first because there were some realtors and lawyers in our class. Fortunately, I was paired with people who were at the same negotiation-skill level as me, so I had a good experience. It was definitely a unique, low-risk environment to practice these skills, and my favorite case was the one where I was a movie director trying to meet my targets. The case summaries were not too difficult to complete, but you want to make sure you are being clear in the way you integrate concepts from the textbook and class. For the article summary assignment given at the end of class, Dr. Johnson gave us articles to select and write about. It was not too difficult because the article I chose was interesting to me. The final capstone exercise was a little more work because I had to meet with my group and develop a negotiation strategy and plan outside of class time. We also had to find time with the other negotiation group outside of class to act out our negotiation. In addition, our TA, Jessica Shropshire, was also very available and helpful. Overall, Negotiation is one of the most practical classes you can take here at UCLA (it is similar to a graduate level MBA negotiation course), and Dr. Johnson is a very personable instructor that truly cares about what her undergraduate students are taking away from her teachings.

TAKE THIS CLASS. Seriously. This class is so applicable simply based on the fact we are all humans and use negotiation skills almost daily subconsciously. The setup of the class is once a week for three hours. Usually, Prof. Johnson will prep the week's case a little, show us assignments with other members of the class we will be negotiating against/with, and then everyone reads their "role assignment." You literally get a piece of paper that says "you are now an Oscar-nominated director entering negotiation for a new feature... you want X actor to play the lead and Y artistic director and Z amount of artistic control," might be nerdy but I found it super cool to get to flex our "acting" skills a little and take on different personas every week (and people take them super seriously it's very entertaining). Then you get put into a breakout room and negotiate with classmates for anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Sometimes it's huge groups, mostly it's you in a breakout room with one other person and an hour to get a deal. Both intimidating and engaging. This class is 100% based on your willingness to participate, and the fact that the entire class is putting themselves out there and just trying to learn how to negotiate in a safe, classroom setting really made for a great experience. By the end, I had made a lot of acquaintances/even friends in the class (and you work with different people out of the 50 every week which really gets you to meet people). Grade wise - you have to turn in 5 case summaries (out of 8 total cases, you can pick which ones) basically just describing what you learned and incorporating some textbook concepts (textbook is super helpful, VERY straightforward). I'm pretty sure everyone got 100 on these for just turning them in - just put some effort in and you will be fine (for reference, I only spent 1-2 hours doing hw for this class until the last few weeks when we were doing a project). The final few weeks you're working on a "capstone" negotiation with a larger group. While I found it annoying to coordinate group work outside of class, I actually really enjoyed getting to plan strategy and prep for negotiations and then execute them with a team (and we ended up having some great banter). We had to do a final write-up as a group, super straightforward and simple (and this was the final). There is also an article summary where you basically take some research about negotiation and comment on it. I actually found this assignment awesome (and super easy, 4 pages double spaced, lots of 'what were the methods' and 'do you think the research is valid') - I read an article about how women are perceived as easier to lie to at negotiation tables which leads them to worse deals. Depressing, but super interesting. Prof Johnson is engaging, clearly intelligent and qualified, and a GREAT professor for this course. She skillfully articulated a lot of the negotiation basics and understands how to frame the classroom to be a very safe and useful learning environment. She knows what she is doing! She also mailed me (and our entire 50 person class!) a HAND WRITTEN postcard in the middle of the quarter thanking me for my enthusiasm and participation in our online world. I thought that was really sweet. I know I've rambled here - but the best part about this class is that it will push you. It is not a challenge academically, it is a challenge because for a lot of students (including myself) you are forced to be direct and confrontational and try a new skill you really haven't explored yet. I felt really anxious a few times with some imposter syndrome, worried the entire class was pro-negotiators and I was a blatant amateur, but I was proven so wrong. It was a total community learning experience and really allowed me to progress in negotiation settings, but also just more generally as a person - which is something I really can't say for any other class I've taken.

BEST CLASS AT UCLA! Professor Johnson is the best. I highly recommend!

THE TA PRIANKA IS A BITCH. if you have her as a TA. Seriously run away. She is ridiculously strictly about case summaries which is supposed to be a free writing that reflect your application of the knowledge but she would take marks off for the smallest thing. Every time she would give a different reasons on why she took marks off without giving any clear instructions. She NEVER replies to emails and is so passive aggressive. The least understanding and unhelpful TA. The class is great and so much fun but Prianka made me HATE this class.