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 · Philosophy · Fall 2021 – Fall 2023

John Sallis

Professor Emeritus · Philosophy · 4 evaluation records across 4 classes

On each class's board
PHIL 7230only instructor on record ProvisionalPHIL 7231only instructor on record ProvisionalPHIL 7630only instructor on record ProvisionalPHIL 7716only instructor on record Provisional
What the overall is made of
94BC evaluations4 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Fall 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
90thMore challenging than 90% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
94BC — “Intellectually Challenging”4 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
80thMore work than 80% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
60BC — “Workload”4 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 4 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9575th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
818th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9469th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9787th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9368th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9367th 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.
9274th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9049th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8735th 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.
6080th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9490th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9692nd 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 · 4 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.

PHIL 7230 Heidegger 1Ovr84Chal62ndWork
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 87 out of 100. See the full board for PHIL 7230.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 2021018487
All 13 items for PHIL 7230
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9136th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
710th 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.
9338th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9358th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9255th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9141st 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.
8937th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8212th pctl
Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9262nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9145th 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.

PHIL 7231 Heidegger IIOvr100Chal79thWork
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 100 out of 100. See the full board for PHIL 7231.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202201100100
All 13 items for PHIL 7231
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9669th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
848th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9670th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
100100th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8832nd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8830th 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.
100100th 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
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9579th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
100100th 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.

PHIL 7630 HegelOvr97Chal84thWork78th
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 93 out of 100. See the full board for PHIL 7630.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202201979360
All 13 items for PHIL 7630
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9986th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8923rd 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.
9983rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9785th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9786th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9356th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9260th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9251st pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9146th 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.
9684th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9989th 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.

PHIL 7716 Kant's First CritiqueOvr93ChalWork
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 91 out of 100. See the full board for PHIL 7716.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 2023019391
All 13 items for PHIL 7716

Nothing reported

None of the evaluation questions were reported for these records.

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.