Professor Ward was honestly one of the best professors I have ever encountered at UCLA (and I have taken many classes with many instructors). He is super knowledgeable about the material, but he's also funny, lighthearted, understanding, and approachable. The class breakdown was as follows: final (40%), midterm (30%), short paper (20%), participation (10%), possibility of 2 EC points through SONA.

Both he and my peers said the exams were difficult, but I didn't find them all that tricky. He asks concept questions, but they are very detailed. So I suppose if you didn't study in a detailed, rigorous way, you might find the tests a little "unfair." Regardless, his grading system produces an UNBELIEVABLY forgiving curve: He takes your score out of 50 (e.g., 39/50), but instead of multiplying and then curving, he just adds 50 raw points (i.e., 39/50 --> 89/100). So although you may have gotten a real C+ (39 x 2 = 78), he bumps you up to a B+ (89). To study, I did testing and recall challenges for lecture slides, but I barely bothered to read the textbook. In the end, I scored a 46/50 on both the midterm and the final, a 95 on the paper, and 100 on participation, and ended up with an A+.

Some important things to note: participation in this class didn't mean just showing up. So if you showed up for everything, but didn't say all that much, you would NOT get a 100 on participation. You needed to form relationships with the TA and Professor to get full credit. Also, don't bother buying the textbook; it's a waste of money. Like I said, I barely read the textbook and got an A+ in the class. Lastly, don't miss lecture; his slides are bare, and he goes into way more detail in class. I think the consequences of missing a class are what distinguishes an A and a B in Ward's course.

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I took this class while working and along with two others (GE and psych 130) during the summer and it was the most difficult one of the three. Professor Ward is a great lecturer, super engaging and helpful, and super generous with curves. The class consists of a discussion section (attendance matters), a 1-page essay (vague instructions but quick to complete), a 50 question midterm and final. I essentially got a 36/50 and 39/50 on the exams but with his curving my scores were converted to 91% and 96% respectively. The tests were ok in my opinion; I would cram a day or two before by rewatching lectures and skimming over the textbook readings but if you're engaged during live lectures and review your notes you should have a much easier time taking the test. The questions are fair (applying concepts) but I still missed a good amount due to the confusing wording.

Overall, this class was really interesting so don't let the grades distract you too much, Professor Ward always rewards your efforts and improvement and provides max 2 pts extra credit from SONA studies. If anything, I wish I would have put more focus into this class by only taking it with one other class so I didn't feel behind.

He is the best psychology professor that I have had the opportunity of taking at UCLA, and he is only a visiting instructor. I hope that Swarthmore students are aware of how phenomenal he is.
His lectures are incredibly engaging which makes the material easier to retain. If you need help outside of class, he will make time for you. If you ask one question or answer one of his questions, he will remember your name- I do not know how he is so good with names, but he will remember it even if you mention it just once. He knows many big names in psych, but he is very humble about it. Additionally, the tests are difficult, but he is a fair grader. If you take good notes and study, you should do just fine.

Professor Ward is one of, if not the nicest Professor I've ever had during my time at UCLA. He would extend his office hours for 3-4 hours extra (5-6 hours total) just to make sure he was able to help every student with either their essay or just questions and confusions in general. Additionally, he is very charismatic and clear during his lectures. The workload is a bit hard but I took it in the Summer so it was only 6 weeks. I kind of screwed up my Final and brought my grade down from an A to an A- so please make sure you study for it well while getting at least 6 hours of sleep lol (which I didn't). It's a shame that Professor Ward mainly teaches at Swarthmore but I would highly recommend taking him during the Summer. What a breathe of fresh air compared to some regular Psych Professors here at UCLA.

Professor Ward is one of the best teachers I’ve had at UCLA. He loves the material that he teaches and really wants his students to do well in class. His classes are completely lecture based, and while he uses slides, it’s probably wise to take a lot of notes because his slides don’t cover a lot of the things he talks about. The classes consisted of two tests and a one-page short essay. The essay was incredibly easy and fun to write, but the tests were fairly difficult imo. However, the test grades are curved substantially, so even though I got B+’s on the tests, I still finished with an A. I would highly recommend taking psych 135 with Professor Ward!