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.

Instructor record · Physics · Fall 2022 – Spring 2023

Christian Kahn

Physics · 3 evaluation records across 2 classes

On each class's board
PHYS 21017th of 13 instructors ProvisionalPHYS 205019th of 37 instructors Provisional
What the overall is made of
81BC evaluations3 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2022 – Spring 2023
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
42ndMore challenging than 42% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
87BC — “Intellectually Challenging”3 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
3rdMore work than 3% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
33BC — “Workload”3 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 3 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8935th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8827th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8726th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8725th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8320th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8421st pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
797th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8525th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9154th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
789th 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.
333rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8742nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9161st 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

2 classes · 3 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.

PHYS 2101 Introduction to Physics II (Calculus)Ovr80Chal24thWork0th
On this class's board7th of 13 instructors Provisional

2 sections on record · course itself rated 75 out of 100. See the full board for PHYS 2101.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202303767020
Spring 202306857920
All 13 items for PHYS 2101
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8822nd pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8613th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8514th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8713th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8214th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8313th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
815th pctl
Assignments & Feedback2 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8415th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
712nd 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.
200th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8624th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8831st 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.

PHYS 2050 Introductory Physics Laboratory IOvr82Chal41stWork78th
On this class's board19th of 37 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 67 out of 100. See the full board for PHYS 2050.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202201826760
All 13 items for PHYS 2050
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9134th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9345th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8926th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8920th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8727th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8727th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
741st pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8622nd pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9148th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9147th 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.
6078th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8941st pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9678th 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.