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 · Communication · Fall 2021 – Spring 2026

Donald Fishman

Communication · 24 evaluation records across 2 classes

On each class's board
COMM 4449only instructor on recordCOMM 10202nd of 2 instructors
What the overall is made of
88BC evaluations24 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Spring 2026
80RateMyProfessors16 ratings · weight ×2.0 · 69% would take again
—Student reviewsno reviews — 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
51stMore challenging than 51% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
88BC — “Intellectually Challenging”24 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. RateMyProfessors separately rates this instructor 52 out of 100 for difficulty — that IS a difficulty measure, but it is about the person across everything they teach, not about any one class, so it is shown here rather than folded into the number above.

What the workload rank is made of
41stMore work than 41% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
48BC — “Workload”24 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.

Ratings from outside BC

Not evaluation data

Collected from RateMyProfessors, not from Boston College: 16 ratings, 69% would take again, difficulty 52 out of 100. Difficulty is not a quality signal in either direction — a harder course is not a worse one.

Anyone can post there — no @bc.edu check and no enrolment check — so it is weighted alongside the evaluation data, never above it.

The line

All 13 items · means across 24 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9144th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9247th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9253rd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9355th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9156th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9049th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9152nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8843rd pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9261st pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9050th 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.
4841st pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8851st pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8842nd 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 · 24 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.

COMM 4449 Crisis CommunicationOvr93Chal58thWork43rd
On this class's boardonly instructor on record

14 sections on record · course itself rated 91 out of 100. See the full board for COMM 4449.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 2026019386—
Fall 202501878740
Summer 20250110010080
Spring 202501788040
Fall 202401847840
Summer 20240110010080
Spring 202401969460
Fall 2023019091—
Summer 202301100100—
Spring 202301938940
Fall 202201989240
Summer 202201959580

Showing the first 12.

All 13 items for COMM 4449
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9454th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9563rd pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9564th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9659th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9571st pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9466th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9462nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9152nd pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9573rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9466th 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.
5443rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9258th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9039th 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.

COMM 1020 Introduction to Media StudiesOvr82Chal13thWork26th
On this class's board2nd of 2 instructors

10 sections on record · course itself rated 78 out of 100. See the full board for COMM 1020.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202602888640
Fall 202502757440
Spring 202502717140
Fall 202402847840
Spring 202402838040
Fall 2023028379—
Spring 202302888240
Fall 202202898540
Spring 202202777240
Fall 202102797460
All 13 items for COMM 1020
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8616th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8715th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8719th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8921st pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8623rd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8416th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8717th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8312th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8731st pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8418th 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.
4226th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8313th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8520th 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.