Carney Curve

Boston College course evaluations · every published number, ranked class by class

Positions account for how many records stand behind each number, so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them. Every score shown is the real average — only the ordering is adjusted.

Class record · SOCY · MCAS

SOCY 1049

Social Problems · 3 instructors on record · 8 sections

What the course score is made of
88BC evaluations8 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – 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
56thMore challenging than 56% of BC classesranked against every one we hold
91BC — “Intellectually Challenging”8 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
25thMore work than 25% of BC classesranked against every one we hold
40BC — “Workload”8 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 five sets of social problems in the US. These include 1) Socio-economic problems such as inequality, job insecurity and poverty 2) Socio-cultural problems of individualism, isolation, loneliness and loss of community3) Environmental and public health problems of climate change and pandemics 4) Violence problems of militarism abroad and gun violence at home and 5) Political problems of democracy linked to race, gender, class and authoritarianism. While mainly focused on the US, the course also highlights how domestic and foreign policy issues, such as violence at home and abroad, are intertwined. The course examines the structural causes of these problems, technological causes related to social media, and power structures linked to class, race and gender. We examine solutions sought by social movements and legislation.

The board

3 instructors · ranked on this class onlyCompare the top 3

Scores are real averages. The order also accounts for how many records back each one — the count is under every score — so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them.

RankInstructorOverallWorkloadChallengeRMP overall
1Deniz UyanSociology953 records25th56th801 rating · all classes
2Charles DerberProfessor · Sociology914 records25th42nd8210 ratings · all classes
3Clifton McguffeySociology Provisional801 record100thno page

How this board is orderedPositions account for how many records stand behind each number, so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them. Every score shown is the real average — only the ordering is adjusted. The comparison here is the class itself: a thin record is read against how this class was rated overall, not against the university.

Every instructor with an evaluation record for this class is on this board — it is not a top ten, and nothing is hidden behind a “show more”. Overall is the instructor's blended score for THIS class only, and its one contributing source is Boston College's evaluations for the sections in the row's record count — nothing on this board is an average across the other things they teach. Workload and Challenge are RANKS against every class we hold, not scores: BC's questions all sit near the top of the 1-5 scale, so a raw number would put almost every row in the high eighties and tell you nothing. Challenge is BC's “intellectually challenging” item, which students answer positively about courses that stretched them — it is not a measure of difficulty or grading. Neither column is ever marked better or worse. 1 of 3 rows are marked provisional: fewer than 3 records stand behind the number. That is thin evidence, not a bad instructor — the record count is in every row. The RateMyProfessors column is an instructor's overall figure across everything they teach; that site has no course dimension, so it is shown for information and kept out of the ranking.

The line

All 13 items · means across 8 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9450th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9240th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9347th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9552nd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9253rd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9255th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9672nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8939th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9463rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9462nd 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.
4025th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9156th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9250th 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

8 sections · newest first
InstructorTermSecInstrCourseWork
Charles DerberSpring 202601959340
Charles DerberFall 202501908940
Clifton McguffeySummer 2025018080
Charles DerberSpring 202501868140
Charles DerberFall 202401918740
Deniz UyanSpring 202301969440
Deniz UyanSpring 202201979540
Deniz UyanFall 202101928940

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.