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 · Computer Science · Fall 2021 – Fall 2025

Ilya Volkovich

Computer Science · 9 evaluation records across 3 classes

On each class's board
What the overall is made of
81BC evaluations9 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Fall 2025
60RateMyProfessors2 ratings · weight ×2.0 · 50% 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
93rdMore challenging than 93% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
95BC — “Intellectually Challenging”9 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 60 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
85thMore work than 85% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
65BC — “Workload”9 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: 2 ratings, 50% would take again, difficulty 60 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 9 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8518th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9038th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8623rd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8724th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8735th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8837th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8419th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8631st pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8629th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8422nd 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.
6585th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9593rd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8117th 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

3 classes · 9 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.

CSCI 3383 AlgorithmsOvr77Chal85thWork83rd
On this class's board2nd of 6 instructors

5 sections on record · course itself rated 69 out of 100. See the full board for CSCI 3383.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202501675860
Fall 202401806860
Fall 202301766980
Fall 202201827760
Fall 202101807180
All 13 items for CSCI 3383
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.
8921st pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8412th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
848th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8522nd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8622nd pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8616th 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.
8523rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8213th 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.
6883rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9685th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8111th 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.

CSCI 3381 CryptographyOvr86Chal72ndWork78th
On this class's boardonly instructor on record

3 sections on record · course itself rated 80 out of 100. See the full board for CSCI 3381.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202501908360
Spring 202401908660
Spring 2023017873
All 13 items for CSCI 3381
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8925th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9349th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8925th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9131st pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9039th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9038th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
838th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8834th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8627th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8624th 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.
9472nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8316th 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.

CSCI 2243 Logic and ComputationOvr83Chal69thWork78th
On this class's board3rd of 5 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 74 out of 100. See the full board for CSCI 2243.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202201837460
All 13 items for CSCI 2243
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8513th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9030th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8412th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8611th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9039th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9146th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
793rd 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.
8833rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8519th 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.
9369th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
744th 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.