Yes, this course is challenging; however, there has been significant improvement from what I heard the class was like last year. This was my first economics course ever and I felt like I was actually gaining something from the course and that it wasn't as terrible as previous reviews had made it seem. Professor Bau does go quite fast in her lecture, but everything is very on par with what is in the textbook so if you even skim the readings or read the summary at the end of each chapter, you'll understand her lectures a lot better. There is also a free PDF of the textbook online, albeit a different version, but it didn't make a difference to me. Her problem sets are difficult; however, she encourages group work and the midterm and final is basically the same thing as the problem sets, just with different numbers. 9 people got perfect scores on the midterm, pre-curve, which just shows how the course is not impossible. Also, there is extra credit on the problem sets and I went to my TAs office hours a lot, and she basically helped me do every problem set. Furthermore, she is so helpful during office hours and even has a tutor if anyone needs the extra help. I would take the other reviews with a grain of salt regarding the whole final exam thing because her hands truly were tied when the Academic Senate first released the statement that professors had to give a final exam. She has been really understanding and flexible the entire quarter and ended up letting us choose to use our midterm exam grade to be our final exam grade as well. Honestly, if you walk in knowing that you will have to actually work hard in the course, you'll do well. The curve is also really good like she understands that the course is hard and tells us that if we get around a B on the midterm, we're in a good spot.

Professor Bau is honestly a great professor who obviously cares about her students, feedback, and student learning. I have never left a review on BruinWalk, but after reading the other reviews I decided to share a different perspective. She definitely moved quickly through material, but she also allowed questions and would explain concepts multiple times, especially if people were asking questions. She also paused a lot and made sure she asked if anyone had questions. Also, the slides basically followed the textbook so it was helpful to read the book before lecture so you had some background knowledge about the topic going into it. Honestly, the problem sets were very doable. They got harder as the course went on, but she also singled out which questions were harder and gave hints for the harder ones during lecture. I went to my TAs office hours which was super helpful for the problem sets and also you are allowed to work with other people when you do the problem sets, so they are not a big nightmare. The exams are very similar to the practice test she gives and she was very responsive to student requests during the COVID-19 situation. She listened to students and changed what she was doing with the final exam after admin allowed her to. I would take a class with her again because she explained concepts fully, allowed questions, and allowed students to see TAs or herself to get help with homework. Microeconomics isn't a super fun topic and if you do not have economics background the course might not be easy, but Professor Bau works hard to make sure students are fully understanding concepts and is responsive to student feedback. I think the course has changed a lot for the better since she first started teaching it.

Professor Bau is an excellent economics professor. She makes the complex topics of the course relevant and accessible. If you've taken a regular econ class at UCLA, you'll see that her teaching style indeed makes econ much more accesible.

Topics are difficult, but tips to succeed are to
- follow along during lecture (engage in class)
- attend Bau's office hours!! she can be veryy helpful at this time
- attend group TA office hours
- ask questions as soon as they come up. If you're confused, addressed that before you fall behind.

A lot of people complain about this class, but that's just because Microeconomics is not easy for everyone. I think this prof. tries her best to explain the concepts, but it is often difficult to follow along during her lectures because she tends to speed up and when she asks questions she waits for like 2 seconds before moving on, so students can't even think if they have any questions. She requires textbook readings, but I didn't do any of them and it was fine. I basically learned all of the material on my own and went to my TA to clarify some concepts I didn't understand. I know that the prof. also created an option for students to consult a tutor, but I didn't use that resource so I can't really comment on that. If you took AP Microecon in HS and did really well, this class should be super easy for you. If not, you can still get an A if you utilize the available resources and your TA.

Oh lord, where do I start. The $200 mandatory textbook? The way Professor Bau would speed through her slides until the entire class was overwhelmed with anxiety and imposter syndrome, only to follow up with a rhetorical "Make sense?" before jumping to the next subject? And with COVID-19 shutting down the whole campus, the fact that she won't make the final optional even though students don't know where they're going to live or what they're going to eat tomorrow? Really?
I went to this class through about Week 3 and then ended up self-studying. Professor Bau thinks our lives revolve around academics and made the problem sets, which make up 40% of our grade, unnecessarily hard and time-consuming. I do think she genuinely cares about the subject, but she wasn't very intent about listening to student voices and meeting our needs. Everything was made way more confusing than it needed to be. Even the TA's would get thrown off during section. Bau did provide us with a tutor for the problem sets, and she was a godsend. But isn't that indicative that your class is a bit excessive?
This quarter is ending on a rough note because Bau is sabotaging every student who isn't privileged enough to relocate easily and quickly to a quiet studying environment. We are going home to broken families, we are out of our jobs...and yeah, we are supposed to put all of our effort into econ this week. The marginal social cost is WAY higher than the benefit, professor! Let us preserve our health and give students an equal chance of being successful if they are struggling with basic needs insecurity/traveling internationally/taking care of a loved one right now!

Everyone who is complaining about this course just didn't put in the work and are paying the price for their own mistakes (ie: taking an Econ class thinking it would be easy since it's under Public Affairs). Professor Bau is extremely helpful when you ask her for help, as were the TAs. While the problem sets were extremely difficult, it was very easy to go to office hours and get help on them (plus they're curved, so your final score will be better than your raw grade) and if you could get through the first two sets and just study them, the midterm will be a breeze. No one is going to hold your hand in this class, but if I could go from not taking math in over three years to getting an A in this class, anyone can insofar as you're willing to put in the WORK. If you're expecting an easy class, this is not for you. However, if you have genuine interest in microeconomics and public affairs, Professor Bau is brilliant.

This class is extremely annoying and pretty much a waste of time unless you are in the major. Professor Bau speeds through her lectures and does not allow students time to understand the material. I stopped going to class altogether week 4 because her lectures were difficult to follow and I would pick up on very few key concepts. The most annoying part of the class was definitely the problem sets. They were extremely difficult and required attendance to TA office hours to complete. In conclusion, try to avoid taking this class at all costs!

This class is extremely overwhelming to people like me, who had no background in Econ. Bau's slides have good info, but honestly everything else about the class is really messy. Her problem sets are ridiculously based on you teaching yourself the mathematical aspect of the material when the only things she goes over in class are easy conceptual problems. The TAs are no help; my TA would take a long-winded approach to math problems that are a) easier than the problem sets and b) could have been solved in a much simpler manner. Also, on the grading: the inconsistencies in grading are what I would consider unacceptable. Many of us got docked points on our problem sets for no apparent reason, and then we go to another TA and end up getting a lot of points back. In addition, Bau promises a generous curve for the class but anecdotal evidence appears to conflict such a statement. Interesting material, but the professor makes it unnecessarily harder.

Taken online during COVID-19. Horrible class. If you want to do well, DO ALL THE READINGS and go to your TA's office hours. If they still have group tutoring sessions, I HIGHLY recommend you go. Your TA is really important for this class!!!

I'm not great at econ but dear lord this class was something. I took it with Prof. Manisha Shah. Lectures went over a lot of conceptual topics that were easy to understand (supply and demand, free rider problem, public goods, etc.) but discussion drop kicks you into full math problems that you probably won't know how to do. I spent over $200 on private individual tutoring, and my tutor would look at my practice problems and highlight the sheer amount of errors Shah would make in them. Whether it be typos, the most confusing wording you've ever seen, or my tutor flat out saying "with the way she worded this multiple choice problem, none of her solutions are correct," thank god I'm done. Midterm was easyish but I fully got a 58% on the final. Again, lectures are conceptual, problem sets (work 40% of your grade) and discussions are ONLY math-based and are SO hard and complex, and then exams are a bit of both. I just wish there was more of a balance between the two because there wasn't, and that the problems we did before exams moreso reflected the ones IN exams because they also didn't. Overall, I'm so happy I'm done with this class because I hate econ and did not enjoy how I was taught in this class. If you're taking it, good luck and find a tutor (I got mine on Wyzant.com).