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 · Law · Fall 2025

Mark Macdougall

Law · 1 evaluation record across 1 class

On this class's board
LAWS 3356only instructor on record Provisional
What the overall is made of
91BC evaluations1 record · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2025
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
68thMore challenging than 68% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
91BC — “Intellectually Challenging”1 record · 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
BC — “Workload”1 record — does not contribute

Boston College's workload question was not reported in these records, so there is nothing to show. That is missing data, not a light class.

The line

All 13 items · means across 1 record
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9253rd pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8310th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9146th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9460th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8631st pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8522nd pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9586th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9589th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8423rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9581st pctl
Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9168th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9271st 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.

Class by class

1 class · 1 section

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.

LAWS 3356 Sentencing Law and PolicyOvr91Chal52ndWork
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 85 out of 100. See the full board for LAWS 3356.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 2025019185
All 13 items for LAWS 3356
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9242nd pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
837th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9135th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9445th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8625th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8517th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9571st pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9575th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8420th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9571st pctl
Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9152nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9254th 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.

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.