Stopped going to lectures after week 1 because all the slides are uploaded and they are pretty self explanatory (especially with practice questions given to us each week); that being said the lecture itself was well taught, I just didn't want to sit through the entire ~2h. There were 2 exams (so midterm 2 and final kind of combined), and both were online 40 MCQ - but backtracking disabled (you can't check your work after you proceed). The tests were quite easy, which made up for the lab assignments I did slightly less well on.

I really enjoyed this class and Professor Firstenberg! She was a really good lecturer and very engaging and outgoing so lectures were never boring. The midterm and final were online and open note, however, some questions could be confusing based off of wording but overall they both were not bad. Lab attendance and lecture attendance are not mandatory, but I highly recommend going to all of the labs, as there is a homework assignment each week that your TA discusses in lab and you do a practice worksheet almost identical to the homework in lab so you know exactly how to complete the homework. This is important because some of the homework assignments were graded based off accuracy, and the grading for these are very strict, but as long as you follow closely along to the rubric you should be fine.

I never went to lecture as the lectures were all recorded. Discussion is mandatory, though. To succeed in the class, I reviewed the slides and corresponding textbook sections. The exam is remote and very easy as long as you've reviewed the slides.

Overall, the class was an easy A, but I also didn't really retain much of value, sadly.

I liked Professor Firstenberg. I think she's brings a lot of charisma(?) to her teaching so it's not monotone and she's always open to people asking questions. Definitely, depending on your TA, go to lab. You don't have to go to lecture because it's recorded, but go to lab. I think some TAs grade easier than others. I was graded harshly on my assignments because of a few errors, but because the rubric isn't very flexible, your grade is affected a lot. When I asked my TA about it, they said that I had a good understanding of the material, but the rubric wasn't lenient toward the errors I was making. Maybe if I attended lab I would have had a better grasp of what was expected on the assignments. That's my bad. The two exams also took up a major chunk of your grade so just try to be proactive about your learning in this class. To be fair, I took 18 credits this quarter and since I'm in research I thought I didn't need to spend a lot of time on this class. Boy was I wrong and regret it. Take this class seriously. The work isn't hard but you need hard work.

I never write reviews but seeing other comments I felt that I should write something about this class. This is by far the best class I have taken at UCLA (transfer). I was so stressed out after reading previous reviews but after my first exam I knew I am going to get A (if not A+) in this class no matter what. Materials get stressful at times but I enjoyed going to every single labs and doing the poster at the end. My lab TA (Xizi) made sure to tell us what exactly she wants and if you follow rules, you will get perfect score. I promise, Dr. Firstenberg wants you to do well so do the practices questions ( I solved those twice) and know the rationale for why your chose that option. Please, don’t get scared seeing other comments.
I made a mistake by buying the textbook though. I wish I could return it. $86 on waste. Listen to the recording. You’ll be fine. I don’t wanna brag but I have finished this class with over 99% and this is only because of the Dr. Firstenberg and her team’s organization skills. Also, my TA is the best!

This class is honestly one of the easiest classes I have taken at this school (and not in a bad way!). Although the midterm and final can have a few tricky questions, the test is entirely open note and there is absolutely nothing on the exams that has not been taught in lecture (looking at you CS 35L). Some people have said that the exam difficulty is way different from the practice ones but honestly the formatting and question type are similar even if slightly more difficult.

Lab assignments are very strict and they're quick to mark you off, but make sure you read the rubric carefully and address every single portion of it and a full score is assured. Also, I recommend attending lab sections even though its not required since your TA will be grading your assignments. My TA (shoutout to Manco Funes) told me exactly what he wanted so that we could guarantee a full score. I did not attend lecture a single time after the midterm since it was recorded and I just ended up watching them remotely. Make sure you have all your lecture notes open for exams and you'll be fine.

The class is weird. Half of the exam is from lecture and the other half is from lab, so things you learn in lab are expected to be know for the test but are not taught in lecture. Lab is grade very strictly and one mistake can cost you a lot of points. The tests are way harder than the practice she gives

I've taken Research Methods back at my CC and I thought it was easy then, but looking back it was probably my professor. Professor Firstenberg is not bad by any means -- the lectures are okay, they're optional as she posts recordings of them too. Lab attendance is not required either, but my TA would walk us through how to do the homework assignments and review the material, so I attended all of them.

You have lab assignments every week (not very difficult esp if you went to your section), ALMs (more homework and reflection assignments), and 2 open-note/open book online exams, one of which is the final. The workload wasn't bad and neither was the material per se, and she does give extra credit opportunities.

Honestly the exams were the worst part. They make up most of your grade (3 points per question, 120 points total) and weren't necessarily super difficult, but they were dense and required a lot of attention to detail, and were confusing as times. It's also the kind of exam where you cannot go back a question, so you can't change any of your answers after moving on to the next question. They were also nitpicky af about grading the lab homework assignments, so make sure you put in a bit more effort for that.

Overall, not a bad class, but I wouldn't take it again especially during winter quarter. Also do not buy that textbook you will not read it trust

First of all, do NOT buy the textbook!! I promise you you do not need it and you can ace the exams without it. I would just watch the lectures and do the exam practice problems.

I never went to lecture in person and I would watch the lectures later in the week. Lab attendance is not mandatory and I never felt the need to go after the first one. I will say, I could have gotten an A if I hadn't done an assignment last minute, so don't be fooled, every single point matters!

The midterm was really easy, but the final was slightly more difficult. The concepts after the final are a bit tedious, but honestly still not bad at all. I would say to just put a little more time and effort in the assignments. They are very particular in grading. Overall, this professor was super nice and helpful and I would recommend this class!

Honestly I'm not sure why so many reviews seem to say this is a difficult class. The exams were very easy as they were MCQ and open-book. Still, I think the exam questions were designed in a way to properly test our understanding so I think their format worked well for the class. Homework was relatively tedious but quite helpful in really checking your understanding. Attendance was not mandatory for lectures or labs, which was great because I learned better by reading the slides or watching recordings at my own pace. Great TA team too, super nice TAs.