Carney Curve

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

Top of the board1.ECON 9902962.LAWS 8856973.PRTO 3300984.BSLW 2299975.PHIL 4932986.LAWS 8308987.SCWK 9960998.EESC 99011009.MUSP 16609610.UGMG 10109811.UNCP 55119712.SCWK 883197

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.

Instructor record · Music · Fall 2025 – Spring 2026

Ann Riordan

Music · 8 evaluation records across 4 classes

On each class's board
MUSA 13204th of 5 instructorsMUSP 16603rd of 3 instructorsMUSA 23092nd of 2 instructors ProvisionalMUSA 33421st of 2 instructors Provisional
What the overall is made of
69BC evaluations8 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2025 – Spring 2026
—Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute
—RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

Sources are averaged by how much we trust each one and by how many records sit behind it, so a handful of reviews nudges the number rather than replacing it.

What the challenge rank is made of
17thMore challenging than 17% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
82BC — “Intellectually Challenging”8 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question — 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
26thMore work than 26% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
40BC — “Workload”8 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload 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 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.
766th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8515th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
788th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8621st pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
724th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
765th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8010th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8215th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
715th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
7910th 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.
4026th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8217th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8325th 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.

Class by class

4 classes · 8 sections

How each position is worked outPositions 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.

MUSA 1320 Introduction to Musics of the WorldOvr69Chal11thWork25th
On this class's board4th of 5 instructors

3 sections on record · course itself rated 70 out of 100. See the full board for MUSA 1320.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202601787140
Spring 202602707340
Fall 202503606740
All 13 items for MUSA 1320
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
828th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8820th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
827th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9445th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
682nd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
743rd pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
772nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
818th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
652nd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
798th 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.
8211th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8521st 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.

MUSP 1660 Middle East Astaza! Music EnsembleOvr80Chal34thWork25th
On this class's board3rd of 3 instructors

3 sections on record · course itself rated 88 out of 100. See the full board for MUSP 1660.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202601———
Spring 202602608040
Fall 2025021009740
All 13 items for MUSP 1660
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
806th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8612th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8616th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8611th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9043rd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9042nd pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9675th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9468th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8420th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8417th 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.
8834th 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.

MUSA 2309 Music and Culture in the Middle EastOvr32Chal0thWork—
On this class's board2nd of 2 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 32 out of 100. See the full board for MUSA 2309.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 2026013232—
All 13 items for MUSA 2309
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
360th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
640th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
360th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
560th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
280th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
480th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
520th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
480th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
440th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
560th pctl
Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
560th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
641st 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. 1 of 13 questions were not reported and are left out rather than shown as zero.

MUSA 3342 Music and EcstasyOvr85Chal79thWork25th
On this class's board1st of 2 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 85 out of 100. See the full board for MUSA 3342.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202501858540
All 13 items for MUSA 3342
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9030th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9562nd pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9562nd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9555th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9043rd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8519th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8513th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9578th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9044th 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.
4025th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9579th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8011th 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.

How to read this pageScores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Almost every class scores high on that scale (the median is about 90), so challenge and workload are shown as a rank against every instructor we hold rather than as a score; the raw figure is in the breakdown above. Neither describes quality, and neither is ever marked better or worse anywhere on this site. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero. The position printed against each class is this instructor's place on that class's own board, computed from the same records the board itself is built from.