Class record · ECON · MCAS

ECON 3393

Computational Methods in Macroeconomics · 1 instructor on record · 5 sections

What the course score is made of

86BC evaluations5 records · weight ×1.0 · Spring 2025 – Spring 2026

—Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute

—RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

That is the class itself, averaged across everyone who taught it. Who taught it, and how each of them scored, is the board below — that is what a student picking a section is actually choosing between.

What the challenge rank is made of

33rdMore challenging than 33% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

88BC — “Intellectually Challenging”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question for this class only — students answer it positively about courses that stretched them, so it measures intellectual challenge and NOT grading, workload or quality. Almost every BC class scores high on it, which is why it is shown as a rank rather than a score.

What the workload rank is made of

28thMore work than 28% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

44BC — “Workload”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload for this class only as one of five bands, not as a number of hours, and it does not publish what the bands mean — so this site will not translate it into hours. Higher means more work, which is not the same as worse.

This course examines how to construct and estimate dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) models for comparative policy analysis, interpretingthe relative importance of key policy variables, as well as exogenous forces as key drivers of economic cycles and growth.The course will start with linear models with forward-looking expectations but will also take up nonlinear methods for understanding the zero-lower bound on interest ratesand external borrowing limits of small economies for understanding economic adjustment in times of crisis.

The only instructor on record

5 sections · nobody else has taught itFull record

Instructor	Overall	Workload	Challenge
Paul D McnelisEconomics	895 records	28th	33rd

There is no ranking to read here: Paul D Mcnelis is the only instructor with evaluation records for ECON 3393, so the number is a record, not a position.

Also taught by Paul D Mcnelis

1 other class

Class	Instructors	Course score
ECON 8873Empirical Methods in Macroeconomics and Finance	25 records	84

Other ECON classes

All of them

Class	Instructors	Course score
ECON 1101Principles of Economics	46223 records	73
ECON 2228Econometric Methods	33131 records	71
ECON 1151Statistics	2797 records	72
ECON 2202Macroeconomic Theory	2072 records	69
ECON 2201Microeconomic Theory	1967 records	71
ECON 9900Third Year Thesis Workshop	1440 records	91

The line

All 13 items · means across 5 records

The Professor4 items

Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.

9346th pctl

Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.

9457th pctl

Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.

9138th pctl

Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.

9340th pctl

The Course3 items

Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.

8935th pctl

Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.

8935th pctl

Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.

8925th pctl

Assignments & Feedback3 items

Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.

8936th pctl

Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.

9358th pctl

Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.

9043rd pctl

Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings

WorkloadHow much work the course took outside class, on Boston College's five-band scale — the band boundaries are not published, so this is not a number of hours.

4428th pctl

Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.

8833rd pctl

Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.

798th pctl

Bar length is the rank against every comparable record we hold, not the raw score: BC's questions all have a median around 4.5, so a raw-scale bar would be nearly full on every row and would tell you nothing. Every bar is one ink colour — nothing here is graded green or red. The hatched bars are not ratings at all: a higher number on either describes a different course, not a better one.

Game log

5 sections · newest first

Instructor	Term	Sec	Instr	Course	Work
Paul D Mcnelis	Spring 2026	01	83	83	60
Paul D Mcnelis	Spring 2026	02	83	79	40
Paul D Mcnelis	Fall 2025	01	96	90	40
Paul D Mcnelis	Fall 2025	02	92	90	40
Paul D Mcnelis	Spring 2025	01	91	85	40

How to read this boardInstructors are ranked on their record in this class only, never on their average across everything they teach. Scores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Workload is BC's own five-band figure, not a number of hours, and is shown as a rank. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero.