Cynthia: I’ll share what my Math 2B TA told my discussion in his last email to us: “please don’t expect a lot of practice midterms/finals from your future math TA’s. Most of them aren’t as resourceful as I am.” Dammit, I hate to say it, but he was right. With TA’s, it’s kind of a “you take what you can get” type of situation.
Khanh: If you are lucky, your TA will be a good teacher and someone who is easy to talk to and ask questions. On the other hand, in some of my friends’ cases, I heard their TAs don't really teach/ are not easy on grading (for those taking classes where TA helps grade writing assignments). To be honest, it is a hit or miss. Don’t hesitate and ask for help.
Britanny: TAs are very helpful in classes, especially when discussions are not mandatory because they help tailor the class to your learning needs. In most cases, you will not be able to choose your TA, but don’t be afraid to ask questions because they are helpful in preparing you for the class material.
Jessica: For non-CS classes, I’ve had mixed experiences with TAs. Sometimes they are extremely helpful in reinforcing what you learn in lecture (I’ve found that some even explain better than the professor), but I’ve also had TAs that end up making me even more confused. Again, it's not something you can control, so if you find them helpful they can be a great resource, and if not, you still have the professor and other students. For CS classes specifically, I highly recommend talking to the TAs and lab tutors if you are struggling with your code. Not many people take advantage of the help that they are willing to give, so they are usually available. Also, some of them are students who have taken the exact same courses, so they know what you are going through and will be able to help.
Michelle: TAs are assigned to you randomly. Most of my TAs have been super helpful and great sources of help anytime I have a question on any topic. My winter quarter, I took the second physics course in the Physics 7 series (physics 7D), and my professor was horrible. My TA was a life saver, because I went to all of her office hours and asked so many questions. But, she was the type to go out of her way to develop practice questions and materials as well. I would say out of the 12 or so courses I have taken so far at UCI, I have only had two TAs who were not very helpful. Most of the time, around midterm and finals season, TAs would hold extra sessions to ask questions, and if you are too shy to ask questions, just showing up is helpful because there will be others asking questions and the TAs will provide their own advice as well.
Vy: You only pick the time of your discussion; you don’t pick your TAs. I recommend going to good TAs’ office hours (OH) and asking them questions. I remember for Bio 93, I went to 2 different TAs’ OH even when they weren’t my own TA. Just scope around and see if there is an option for you to go to other TA’s OH.