Go into this class with some vague idea of what you want to research, a short list of professors you have in mind that you may want to advise you, and some work ethic, and you'll be rewarded.

Professor James is great. UCLA is lucky to have him. If you've taken him in another course and think you know his deal, you don't. He really puts his all into this course, cares about every single student, and advocates for you to succeed. Working with him was awesome.

The workload might seem like a lot on paper (5 4-page papers, combined for a 12-15 page final), but when you write about stuff you're interested in it makes it way more manageable (sounds corny but it's true).

I recommend this class to anyone interested in grad school, legitimately interested in political science research, or just wants a break from the redundancy of undergrad poli sci coursework (midterm, final, prompt-response paper, etc).

Professor James is extremely helpful in this class. The class was graded on five assignments, participation, your thesis agreement with your mentor, a presentation, and the final proposal. Don't take this class unless you are interested in writing a senior thesis. The class is challenging but James is more than willing to help students during office hours so don't hesitate to communicate with him. Just make sure to participate in this class as well as the student's presentations during the last few class meetings. James keeps an EXTREMELY close eye on participation (more than any other professor I've had) and your grade depends on it!

Definitely a lot to consider before taking this course. I'd recommend finding someone who has done the PS honors program and talk to them before. Professor James will be extremely helpful in refining your topic and working on the proposal. Course consists of 5 biweekly assignments that are about 3-4 pages each, which you combine into your final 10-12 page research proposal at the end. Very different and interesting experience - would recommend.