Class record · PHYS · MCAS

PHYS 5550

Applied Optics · 1 instructor on record · 2 sections

What the course score is made of

71BC evaluations2 records · weight ×1.0 · Spring 2024 – 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

48thMore challenging than 48% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

90BC — “Intellectually Challenging”2 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

85thMore work than 85% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

70BC — “Workload”2 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.

The only instructor on record

2 sections · nobody else has taught itFull record

Instructor	Overall	Workload	Challenge
Alexander AunerAssistant Professor of the Practice and Undergraduate Program Director · Physics Provisional	812 records	85th	48th

There is no ranking to read here: Alexander Auner is the only instructor with evaluation records for PHYS 5550, so the number is a record, not a position. It rests on 2 records, which is thin — read it as provisional.

Also taught by Alexander Auner

6 other classes

Class	Instructors	Course score
PHYS 2100Introduction to Physics I (Calculus)	1134 records	67
PHYS 2200Introductory Physics I (Calculus)	59 records	71
PHYS 1100Structure of the Universe I	37 records	68
PHYS 1500Foundations of Physics I	46 records	67
PHYS 1501Foundations of Physics II	36 records	59
PHYS 2201Introductory Physics II (Calculus)	25 records	68

Other PHYS classes

All of them

Class	Instructors	Course score
PHYS 2051Introductory Physics Laboratory II	34109 records	58
PHYS 2050Introductory Physics Laboratory I	3796 records	59
PHYS 2101Introduction to Physics II (Calculus)	1343 records	66
PHYS 2100Introduction to Physics I (Calculus)	1134 records	67
PHYS 2200Introductory Physics I (Calculus)	59 records	71
PHYS 1100Structure of the Universe I	37 records	68

The line

All 13 items · means across 2 records

The Professor4 items

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

8820th pctl

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

9028th pctl

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

9351st pctl

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

9770th pctl

The Course3 items

Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.

8520th pctl

Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.

786th pctl

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

8615th pctl

Assignments & Feedback3 items

Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.

8516th pctl

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

8729th pctl

Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.

8111th 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.

7085th pctl

Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.

9048th pctl

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

9781st 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

2 sections · newest first

Instructor	Term	Sec	Instr	Course	Work
Alexander Auner	Spring 2026	01	96	96	80
Alexander Auner	Spring 2024	01	67	47	60

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.