Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ about enrollment and the wait list

In the first two weeks of each semester, everyone enrolled in the course must attend where registered. People who are on the wait-list should attend the section they are holding for, and sign in. We use Instructor Drop: We remove people from the roll who failed to attend section and immediately process the wait-list. You should know by the beginning of Week 3 if you've made it into the class.

I am on the wait-list, what should I do?

While you are on wait-list, it is important to go to lecture and to the section where you are wait-listed, and to keep up with the reading. Check InfoBEARS frequently to see whether you have cleared. If you do not clear before the first module exam, then you will not make it into the class. Occasionally there is a greater chance of getting into some sections (for example, early morning sections) rather than others. Check the Online Schedule of classes to see if there is space available. Note: The Online Schedule is only updated once a day: The space may have been filled by the time you try to enroll. You can switch section that you are waiting for (see below).

You must attend the section for which you are enrolled. If you have not cleared wait-list by the end of the third week of instruction (when TeleBEARS ends) you will not be admitted to the course.

If your plans changes and you don't want to be added in to ugba-10, make sure you remove yourself from the wait-list. (If the computer automatically adds you, but you changed your mind and are not attending, you risk getting an "F" on your transcript).

The Schedule of Classes says this courses is on "Manual" but you say that you fill automatically by TeleBEARS--why is there a discrepancy?

We do indeed use the TeleBEARS computer to automatically fill the course fairly by Lecture wait-list number. However, it is set to "Manual" so that we can process the instructor drops, and then only fill from wait-list people who've actually attended section and signed in. This is to prevent wasting a space on a wait-list person who's not attending.

When I try to enroll through TeleBEARS, it says the wait-list is full. How do I get on the wait-list?

You may not be able to. We used to allow a very large wait-list, but now we capped it. It doesn't make sense to have someone hold a wait-list position in the 400's when there'd be no chance that person would make it into the course. If you can't even get on wait-list you should interpret this as there is no chance that you could take ugba-10 this semester.

Will I clear wait list?

We cannot predict this. If InfoBEARS tells you that you are still on the wait-list, this means that the class is still full. Filling from wait-list depends on two things: First, another student has to decide to drop the course and second, that student must call TeleBEARS and process the drop. Until the student drops, we have to keep their place in class. Unfortunately, there tend to be fewer drops in impacted classes.

I’m number 1 on wait-list for section, but number 100 for Lecture—will I get in?

We fill by Lecture wait-list number. If there is space in the Lecture, we check to see if there is a space in the section you are waiting for. If yes, you get in, no matter what your section wait-list number. If "no" you remain on the main, Lecture wait-list. For this reason, someone with a higher wait-list number may be admitted ahead of you, if they happen to have chosen a section with space. Unfortunately, TeleBEARS does not allow you to wait-list for more than one section, or "any open section."

I'm in my section but not yet in the class …

Can't happen. If you are admitted to the Lecture, you are also admitted to a section. You can not be admitted to one and not the other.

There’s room in my section—why won’t you take me off wait-list?

The number of people admitted to each section, depends on the number of students each GSI can teach (36), not the number of chairs in a room. Although it may appear that people are not attending, someone may be out ill, or otherwise excused. Only TeleBEARS determines whether there is room.

I’m a graduating senior—how do I get off wait-list?

We process wait-list strictly by TeleBEARS Lecture wait-list number and do not give preference to any students. There is no special preference for any group of students.

I didn’t clear wait-list, but I took the first exam, how do I add the course?

You can’t. If you have not cleared wait-list by the time TeleBEARS ends (at the end of week 3) you will not be enrolled in the course. We will not add anyone after TeleBEARS ends.

FAQ about Special Accommodations

How do I arrange for special accommodations?

To receive special accommodations you must have a plan developed by the Disabled Students Program. They will provide you with an electronic notification of the "Request for Accommodation". Once you you have an RFA for this course, please follow these instructions (click through for details).


FAQ about Summer School

Can I take ugba-10 in Summer School?

No, we only offer ugba-10 in Fall and Spring semesters, but you may be able to take other Summer School classes which get you ahead on your academic career. Check with the online schedule of classes to see what is being offered.

FAQ about sections

What if I drop the course and attempt to re-enroll for another section through wait-list? 

Don't do this. Once you drop a confirmed seat in the course you may be unable to even get on wait-list, and you won't get back into the course. See "keep trying," above. 

Can I swap sections with my friend?

No. Here's our rationale: All too often the "friend" has a complication and wants back into the original section. We do section changes strictly through TeleBEARS with no private deals. However, in the first week of the semester, many other people want to switch so keep trying.

What happens if TeleBEARS drops me from the class while I am trying to switch sections?

Can’t happen! TeleBEARS will only be switching a "secondary section" and cannot drop you from the course during this process or change your lecture wait-list number if you are on wait-list. You confirm all transactions before they are final.

FAQ about exams and grading

Please see Exam Policies (click link)

How will I know how I am doing in the class?

We publish exam statistics on the course website. You can get a rough estimate of where you are in the course by comparing your score with the Quartile points. We publish in advance our planned grading and we grade by class rank.

There's a clerical error in the published gradebook--whom do I see to get that fixed?

You should be careful to check that your scores have been correctly recorded when we publish the gradebook during the semester. If you detect a recording error, see your GSI at once, with the original (Scantron or paper) and ask for the score to be corrected. You should make sure this has been done as corrections sometimes get overlooked. Your GSI keeps the gradebook for your section.

My GSI grades tougher than the others, won’t I lose out?

No. We smooth across GSIs (and also between exams).

How do I challenge the grade my GSI gave me for a paper?

If you believe there's been a mistake in grading your paper, you should take your paper to your GSI in his/her office hours. Make an "appeal to reason" (e.g. "You docked me points for failing to mention X, but here it is on page 2"); an emotional appeal ("I tried so hard on this paper!") is unlikely to be effective. Grading papers depends on some judgment as to what is "Good" or "Excellent." We use a combination of our expectation plus the GSI's comparison of your paper with what other students were able to accomplish. If you have a irresolvable disagreement, you can ask for your paper to be reviewed by the Course Manager. However, the Course Manager will be unlikely to over-rule the judgment made by a GSI who has graded 60 or more papers and who has been able to compare your work with your peers.

I did poorly on the last exam—can I do some kind of extra-credit work?

No. There is no option for extra credit in this course.

What should I be doing to prepare for the mod exam?

1. Consult the module syllabus: Have you missed anything in terms of reading or lectures? If so, begin there. Complete assigned readings; download lecture notes.
2. For the lectures, think about the video examples: What was the point? (It may help to sit down with a friend and go over this.) Think about the purpose of each company that was used as an example. Be sure you understand where the lecture differs from the text book (lecture always wins). If you missed a lecture—review it with someone else in the class to note what was labeled as "important".
3. Review all the readings in the textbook. Most—but not all—questions come from the "side bar" definitions, so you should be sure you know them. (If there is an apparent disagreement between text and lecture, lecture wins.)
4. Go over all the articles assigned from the Reader. The questions will be fairly simple, so a good way to prepare is to study with a friend and make sure you can answer the question: "What was the main point of this reading?"
5. Beware of copies of old exams. It's always best to study answers rather than questions, and there are some very old exams out there which may be completely irrelevant to the course as it's being taught this semester.

E-mail policies

E-mail is very important for the efficient administration of the course. Through your own InfoBEARS you have registered one e-mail address with the Registrar. This is the one which we will use for this course. If it is an account that you are no longer using, you should change your information with the Registrar (through InfoBEARS, online).

• We will use the registered address to contact you, including announcements of important course updates. Even if you don't read the e-mail, we consider you to have been informed.
  

Haas runs an e-mail "listserve" service called "Majordomo." Majordomo automatically adds your registered e-mail address to an alias for both the whole class (big lecture) and for your section. The e-mail aliases are "open"--if you are on a list, you can use it to contact all the members of that list. Please use section e-mail aliases for legitimate course-related business only (e.g., you left your wallet in the room where your section met--did anyone pick it up?). Do not "spam" the ugba-10 aliases for any social, cultural or personal purpose. 

• If you misuse a course alias we will initiate disciplinary proceedings against you.

If you need to reach any member of the instructional team, use the click-through from the "Contact" page of this site. Please try to use good judgment about whom to contact.

• Your Proper Name must show on e-mail messages to the instructional team.

Many people use e-mail accounts with nicknames as the account name. Please make sure that your e-mail messages show your full proper name, e.g. Tom Smith <calbunny@uclink> and not just the nickname. We may delete without reading any e-mail message that doesn't show your name. Rationale: There are many worms and viruses that send out e-mail in other peoples' names and we want to protect our computers. You make sure your name shows by editing the settings on "Preferences" or "Options" on the e-mail program you are using--not on your account. 

• Please make sure your Subject line is informative

"Subject: Lost textbook, need to study for exam" is likely to get a very fast (and helpful) response from the Instructional team, but hitting the reply button to a broadcast message "Subject: Reminder--exam Monday" may be ignored or deleted as a "bounceback" from an undeliverable message.

Exam Policies

We do not offer makeup exams in ugba-10. Rationale, ugba-10 exams take a long time to write (about one day of professional effort) and it is not reasonable to write two exams. There is no guarantee that two exams on the same material will be equally difficult. Finally, in a class of more than 500 people, it is likely that people who take an "alternate" exam may have had access to a regularly scheduled exam.

If you miss an exam, you may be excused one exam on the course and in that case, the score will be replaced by the average of your scales scores on the other exam. The criteria for an excused absence, are:

1. The absence must be beyond your control (illness and bereavement count, non-refundable airline tickets and over-sleeping do not)
2. The absence must be documentable: If you feel ill you must provide documentation from a healthcare provider.

On missing an exam, notify your GSI and the Course Manager by e-mail so we know why there is a missing score. The exam is not excused until you have presented your documentation to the Course Manager in Office Hours.

• Note: We never excuse more than one exam. Rationale: The remaining three exams are insufficient to say that you have mastered the material in the course. 
   
• Note: If you are unwell at the time of an exam, you should seek medical attention. We cannot void an exam once you have sat the exam. Rationale: Anyone who came to an exam and found the questions too hard could claim to feel unwell.

If you engage in any activity which is likely to jeopardize the academic integrity of an exam, you will be asked to leave, will receive a zero score and will be reported to the office of Student Judicial Affairs. It is your responsibility to behave in a way that demonstrates respect for the academic integrity of an exam including:

• Please make sure you have all books and notes away before you enter the exam room
• Do not talk during an exam
• Do not wear earphones
• Make sure your cell phone is switched off.

If you arrive after the start of a module exam you may be refused entry to the exam. Rationale: We permit people who have finished the exam to take the question paper with them and we want to preserve the academic integrity of the course.

Policy on Documentation of Sources

For your module papers,  you do not need to annotate information from the course: papers handed out with the syllabus, articles in the reader, ideas from the text or lecture. However, if you do additional research, you should add an endnote (beyond the page limit) and document your sources. Undocumented quotation from the Internet or other sources will be treated as plagiarism. Your paper will receive a zero score and will be reported to the office of Student Judicial Affairs.

Grading Policies

We award final grades in the course grades according to class rank, based on the sum of the scaled scores from exams, papers and class participation. We have a planned distribution of grades based on your class rank at the end of the semester.

We smooth across the exams to make them "equally difficult" and we smooth across sections so that no student is disadvantaged by having a "tough" grader.
 

Request for Absence from Class

You are expected to be in class during the University's official scheduled days of instruction. If your family has purchased airline tickets that conflict with the University's semester your absence from class, section or exam will not be excused.

Policies for Student Athletes

Match Conflicts with Scheduled Exams and Papers Due

The module-format for ugba-10 means that we have five different exams. If you are representing the University (or a National Team) at a time that directly conflicts with a scheduled ugba-10 exam, you may request to be excused from one module exam, and absence from attendance at section during competition. When an athletic commitment conflicts with the due date of a module paper, the paper should be submitted early (i.e. before the student leaves campus.)

When an athletic obligation conflicts with one of the five scheduled exams, the Course Manager will make a decision concerning an accommodation to the conflict taking into consideration the individual needs of each student athlete based on: the length of absence proposed, the nature and importance of the work the student will be missing, and the individual's performance in the course to date. The student athlete will be offered one of the following:

1. Excused exam: If you are granted an excused absence, your missing score will be replaced by the average scaled score of your other four module exams.
2. Permission to take the exam late at a time agreed, at Cal.
3. No accommodation: you must stay at Cal and take the exam as scheduled.

Procedure (It's simple, but please follow this exactly)

1. Name, SID
2. Your Section Number and Section GSI name
3. Exact dates you will be gone
4. Tell us exactly what you are asking to be excused (e.g. miss section? miss exam? take exam late?)
5. Affirm that you are going to be available for all other parts of the course
6. A specific plan for how you will make up missed lectures (e.g. plan for how long you will meet with your tutor, etc.)

Week-end Travel Schedule

Policies concerning the main lecture

We do not permit any in-class announcements as we want to preserve as much of the class hour for instruction as possible.

Please turn off your cell-phone (and anything else that may beep or ring).

• If your cell-phone goes off in class, you will be penalized by being asked to leave that class.