Finally UCLA academics are showing some character. The College
of Letters & Science’s one- and two-unit Fiat Lux
seminars allow UCLA students to branch out from the mundane
conventions of academia.
The seminars, which meet a minimum of one hour per week, are a
welcome addition to the 300-person General Education courses
students already take as basic university training in liberal arts
and sciences. The seminars let professors share their research
interests ““ from national security to the moral implications
of “Lord of the Rings” ““ with eager
undergraduates.
Juniors and seniors who want to take the seminars complain that
the enrollment restrictions ““ by which underclassmen have
three days of priority ““ make enrollment difficult, as some
of the more popular classes fill up quickly. But juniors and
seniors in most majors are already taking smaller upper division
courses or seminars in their respective departments. Rarely do
underclassmen have the opportunity to take topic-oriented courses
in small settings with professors amid their large lower division
GE and survey courses. Fiat Lux gives them that opportunity.
Additionally, the seminars allow students to fulfill the minimum
progress requirement or pursue a special area of interest, without
adding another four- or five-unit course ““ and the work and
stress that goes along with it ““ to their quarterly load.
Many UCLA students sleepwalk through their classes. They barely
keep up with their assignments for most of the quarter and then
cram feverishly for exams. After the final, they escape with a
decent grade and forget everything they were supposed to know. As
pass/no-pass classes, the Fiat Lux seminars are not about grades.
They give every student an opportunity to enrich their
education.