Professor
Nadja Hempel
1 of 1
AD
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2018 - I would not recommend Hempel for 31A, especially for anyone who did not take AP Calculus in high school. The class has two midterms and a cumulative final. The first midterm had errors in two questions, one of which made the problem unsolvable. She kind of adjusted our grades, but her main solution was saying that we could have corrected the problem by changing one of the numbers and solved it like that (which almost no one did because of how the problem was written). The second midterm did not have any errors but was also quite difficult. The final was far easier than the midterms. I got an A on the final but the midterms brought me down to a B+. This was after having taken IB Math SL which my teacher taught the same as AP Calc. Hempel does allow cheat sheets on all the tests for equations you need to know. In lecture, she would often start out concepts by showing the proofs, which took time away from learning how to do example problems. To me, the proofs were irrelevant for this math class because there were no proofs on the exams, and the lack of example problems make it much harder to do the homework and understand the material. Homework is assigned, but you don't have to turn it in. I highly recommend doing the homework and also additional practice problems. If you're a total math whiz, this class will probably be easy for you, but it may be challenging even for people who thought they were great at calculus in high school. I would really avoid this professor if you have no background in calculus.
Fall 2018 - I would not recommend Hempel for 31A, especially for anyone who did not take AP Calculus in high school. The class has two midterms and a cumulative final. The first midterm had errors in two questions, one of which made the problem unsolvable. She kind of adjusted our grades, but her main solution was saying that we could have corrected the problem by changing one of the numbers and solved it like that (which almost no one did because of how the problem was written). The second midterm did not have any errors but was also quite difficult. The final was far easier than the midterms. I got an A on the final but the midterms brought me down to a B+. This was after having taken IB Math SL which my teacher taught the same as AP Calc. Hempel does allow cheat sheets on all the tests for equations you need to know. In lecture, she would often start out concepts by showing the proofs, which took time away from learning how to do example problems. To me, the proofs were irrelevant for this math class because there were no proofs on the exams, and the lack of example problems make it much harder to do the homework and understand the material. Homework is assigned, but you don't have to turn it in. I highly recommend doing the homework and also additional practice problems. If you're a total math whiz, this class will probably be easy for you, but it may be challenging even for people who thought they were great at calculus in high school. I would really avoid this professor if you have no background in calculus.
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2018 - This review is for MATH31A since she is not listed under that category. My first response to anyone taking her class, is don't. I like to believe she is somewhat knowledgeable in this subject but her teachings do not reflect it. Her lectures are confusing, her midterms are not similar to anything she gives. Overall I will most likely fail this course but I want to emphasize that if you are good at teaching yourself, you might be able to pass this class, but don't expect any help from the professor like I falsely did.
Fall 2018 - This review is for MATH31A since she is not listed under that category. My first response to anyone taking her class, is don't. I like to believe she is somewhat knowledgeable in this subject but her teachings do not reflect it. Her lectures are confusing, her midterms are not similar to anything she gives. Overall I will most likely fail this course but I want to emphasize that if you are good at teaching yourself, you might be able to pass this class, but don't expect any help from the professor like I falsely did.
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2018 - I had an AWFUL experience in this class, and that says a lot considering I'm a math person. 33B doesn't have very hard material, but this professor was so inadequate it ruined the entire course. She came to lectures unorganized and unprepared. The lectures were so confusing, it sounded like she did not even understand what she was teaching. She would constantly make mistakes in the lectures and say "Uh, sorry" over and over again. The concepts were not clearly split up, so at any point in time the class was not *exactly* sure what they were even *trying* to learn. Don't get me started about the tests.. first of all, this professor REFUSED to upload the practice test solutions online. Instead, she would do them in the last 10 minutes of class, but this was NEVER enough time for her to finish or give reasonable explanations for the answers. In the case of the final, she gave us a set of practice problems and did not even finish giving us the answers to half before the final. When asked if she would put them online (considering it was our last day of class and our final was a few days away) she simply shrugged and said "Well if you don't know this by now its your fault". Not to mention, our midterms were trivially easy but the final was RIDICULOUSLY hard in comparison and seemed to touch of concepts outside the scope of the class. A lot of students got screwed over because of that. Last things: she doesn't collect homeworks. Instead she gives weekly quizzes, so discussion is mandatory. The TA I had was almost as bad as the professor... Also, she wasted about 10-15 minutes of each midterm passing out tests because she seems to be the only professor who can't figure out how to do it...
Winter 2018 - I had an AWFUL experience in this class, and that says a lot considering I'm a math person. 33B doesn't have very hard material, but this professor was so inadequate it ruined the entire course. She came to lectures unorganized and unprepared. The lectures were so confusing, it sounded like she did not even understand what she was teaching. She would constantly make mistakes in the lectures and say "Uh, sorry" over and over again. The concepts were not clearly split up, so at any point in time the class was not *exactly* sure what they were even *trying* to learn. Don't get me started about the tests.. first of all, this professor REFUSED to upload the practice test solutions online. Instead, she would do them in the last 10 minutes of class, but this was NEVER enough time for her to finish or give reasonable explanations for the answers. In the case of the final, she gave us a set of practice problems and did not even finish giving us the answers to half before the final. When asked if she would put them online (considering it was our last day of class and our final was a few days away) she simply shrugged and said "Well if you don't know this by now its your fault". Not to mention, our midterms were trivially easy but the final was RIDICULOUSLY hard in comparison and seemed to touch of concepts outside the scope of the class. A lot of students got screwed over because of that. Last things: she doesn't collect homeworks. Instead she gives weekly quizzes, so discussion is mandatory. The TA I had was almost as bad as the professor... Also, she wasted about 10-15 minutes of each midterm passing out tests because she seems to be the only professor who can't figure out how to do it...
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - I was originally intimidated by the harsh comments here about Prof. Hempel, but they are not true. (Which I think is partly because she’s also changed since first several quarters here?) Prof. Hempel gives engaging lectures, though we didn’t get to finish the last part due to UCLA canceling classes. But her notes are neatly arranged and provide you full guidance in the process. She is a ‘magician’ who demonstrates complicated theorems and proofs in a straightforward, clear and sometimes novel way. She’s also very helpful through the course, and you can tell she has so much passion about the subject. The homework grading policy has changed since this quarter: if you get 50% more on the homework, she will give you full credit for the homework, which accounts for 10% of the course in total. The two midterms are, to be honest, a bit hurry for majority of the people, having an average around 70%. But it’s bearable and somehow trivial if you do the homework diligently and have a clear understanding of the subject. I can’t speak of the final because it’s take home this quarter due to the corona virus situation, but it’s by no means hard given the time limit is not enforced and you have access to everything you want. Above all, this is my personal experience. If you are considering taking 115A, Prof. Hempel is a good teacher who can lead you through. But I definitely recommend auditing different lectures before you make the decision. Experiences vary for different people.
Winter 2020 - I was originally intimidated by the harsh comments here about Prof. Hempel, but they are not true. (Which I think is partly because she’s also changed since first several quarters here?) Prof. Hempel gives engaging lectures, though we didn’t get to finish the last part due to UCLA canceling classes. But her notes are neatly arranged and provide you full guidance in the process. She is a ‘magician’ who demonstrates complicated theorems and proofs in a straightforward, clear and sometimes novel way. She’s also very helpful through the course, and you can tell she has so much passion about the subject. The homework grading policy has changed since this quarter: if you get 50% more on the homework, she will give you full credit for the homework, which accounts for 10% of the course in total. The two midterms are, to be honest, a bit hurry for majority of the people, having an average around 70%. But it’s bearable and somehow trivial if you do the homework diligently and have a clear understanding of the subject. I can’t speak of the final because it’s take home this quarter due to the corona virus situation, but it’s by no means hard given the time limit is not enforced and you have access to everything you want. Above all, this is my personal experience. If you are considering taking 115A, Prof. Hempel is a good teacher who can lead you through. But I definitely recommend auditing different lectures before you make the decision. Experiences vary for different people.
AD
Most Helpful Review
Fall 2017 - This is the review for Math 33A, as the school is not giving the slot for writing review for her in 33A, I will have to do the review here. I'm an Engineering Major, I used to got straight A's, hopefully is the case for this class too. As for this class, she is really not good at all. She has a very wired tone and makes kind of a questioning tone when making a statement, which makes the lecture always sound really wired. Moreover, her lecture was all over the place, not organized at all. However, it's just a math class, you don't need any attendance and you just need to go to the sessions to take the quiz, just 5-10 mins and they are all very easy. If your time cannot accommodate other sessions, just take her, but don't go to lectures. I would say only 40% of the people actually go to the lecture. lol. Anyway, suggestions are go to the Khan Academy website, and they have the exact linear algebra course, which is a easier version of the class. You watch all the videos, do 1.25, 1.5 or 2X normal speed, cuz Khan speaks a little bit too slow for my brain. And do the HW she posted on the website, you are good to get an A. As I am taking 5 classes in total this quarter, I basically finished the whole course in 2 days in week 10. Hopefully this works out for you guys. 别去她的课，讲得稀烂，我怎么说就怎么做，反正课很简单，好好做作业就可以保A.然后尽量别惹她，这个女人态度超差，感觉有点种族歧视。
Fall 2017 - This is the review for Math 33A, as the school is not giving the slot for writing review for her in 33A, I will have to do the review here. I'm an Engineering Major, I used to got straight A's, hopefully is the case for this class too. As for this class, she is really not good at all. She has a very wired tone and makes kind of a questioning tone when making a statement, which makes the lecture always sound really wired. Moreover, her lecture was all over the place, not organized at all. However, it's just a math class, you don't need any attendance and you just need to go to the sessions to take the quiz, just 5-10 mins and they are all very easy. If your time cannot accommodate other sessions, just take her, but don't go to lectures. I would say only 40% of the people actually go to the lecture. lol. Anyway, suggestions are go to the Khan Academy website, and they have the exact linear algebra course, which is a easier version of the class. You watch all the videos, do 1.25, 1.5 or 2X normal speed, cuz Khan speaks a little bit too slow for my brain. And do the HW she posted on the website, you are good to get an A. As I am taking 5 classes in total this quarter, I basically finished the whole course in 2 days in week 10. Hopefully this works out for you guys. 别去她的课，讲得稀烂，我怎么说就怎么做，反正课很简单，好好做作业就可以保A.然后尽量别惹她，这个女人态度超差，感觉有点种族歧视。
AD
1 of 1
