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 · Biology · Fall 2021 – Spring 2026

Douglas Warner

Director of Laboratories · Biology · 175 evaluation records across 4 classes

On each class's board
BIOL 20401st of 2 instructorsUNAS 11991st of 9 instructorsBIOL 30901st of 2 instructorsBIOL 20002nd of 5 instructors Provisional
What the overall is made of
93BC evaluations175 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Spring 2026
92RateMyProfessors24 ratings · weight ×2.0 · 92% 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
70thMore challenging than 70% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
91BC — “Intellectually Challenging”175 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 70 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
63rdMore work than 63% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
57BC — “Workload”175 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: 24 ratings, 92% would take again, difficulty 70 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 175 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9573rd pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9573rd pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9471st pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9572nd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9479th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9477th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9472nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9270th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9365th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9261st 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.
5763rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9170th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9689th 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 · 175 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.

BIOL 2040 Investigations in Molecular Cell Biology LabOvr93Chal60thWork48th
On this class's board1st of 2 instructors

160 sections on record · course itself rated 87 out of 100. See the full board for BIOL 2040.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202601949160
Spring 202602858040
Spring 202603939460
Spring 2026041009760
Spring 202605938260
Spring 202606918560
Spring 202607938460
Spring 202608918560
Spring 202609928260
Spring 202610968760
Spring 2026119083—
Spring 202612908560

Showing the first 12.

All 13 items for BIOL 2040
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9561st 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.
9456th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9556th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9469th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9466th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9460th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9259th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9357th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9253rd 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.
5948th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9260th 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.

UNAS 1199 Gateway to the Sciences SeminarOvr96Chal4thWork1st
On this class's board1st of 9 instructors

10 sections on record · course itself rated 91 out of 100. See the full board for UNAS 1199.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202602969120
Fall 202502938320
Spring 2025021009820
Fall 202402979120
Spring 202402989520
Fall 20230210094—
Spring 202302959040
Fall 202202897720
Spring 20220210010040
Fall 202102909040
All 13 items for UNAS 1199
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9778th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9667th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9779th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9773rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9468th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9255th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9033rd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8518th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9146th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8938th 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.
271st pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
764th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8832nd 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.

BIOL 3090 Foundations of MicrobiologyOvr95Chal51stWork78th
On this class's board1st of 2 instructors

3 sections on record · course itself rated 89 out of 100. See the full board for BIOL 3090.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202601928660
Spring 202501959060
Fall 2023019891—
All 13 items for BIOL 3090
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9665th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9564th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9565th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9664th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9468th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9468th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9136th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8728th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9362nd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9044th 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.
9151st pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
787th 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.

BIOL 2000 Molecules and CellsOvr93Chal41stWork78th
On this class's board2nd of 5 instructors Provisional

2 sections on record · course itself rated 88 out of 100. See the full board for BIOL 2000.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202201928760
Fall 202101948960
All 13 items for BIOL 2000
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.
9457th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9455th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9770th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9467th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9358th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8929th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8415th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9255th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8725th 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.
765th 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.