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 · Studio Art · Fall 2021 – Summer 2025

Mary Sherman

Studio Art · 18 evaluation records across 2 classes

On each class's board
What the overall is made of
75BC evaluations18 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Summer 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
24thMore challenging than 24% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
84BC — “Intellectually Challenging”18 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
83rdMore work than 83% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
63BC — “Workload”18 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 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 18 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8213th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
8311th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8111th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8212th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8115th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8215th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
808th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8740th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8631st pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8527th 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.
6383rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8424th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9586th 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 · 18 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.

ARTS 1101 Drawing I: FoundationsOvr72Chal15thWork81st
On this class's board10th of 10 instructors

16 sections on record · course itself rated 67 out of 100. See the full board for ARTS 1101.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 2025018577
Spring 202503858560
Fall 202401777560
Fall 202402837860
Spring 2024016252100
Spring 202403676260
Fall 2023016053
Fall 2023027675
Spring 202301605560
Spring 202303828760
Fall 2022016865
Fall 202202676060

Showing the first 12.

All 13 items for ARTS 1101
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
817th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
836th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
806th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
815th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8112th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8110th 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.
8725th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8625th 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.
6581st pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8315th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9568th 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.

ARTS 1180 Drawing from the City of LightsOvr97Chal48thWork25th
On this class's boardonly instructor on record Provisional

2 sections on record · course itself rated 94 out of 100. See the full board for ARTS 1180.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Summer 202501939340
Summer 20230110095
All 13 items for ARTS 1180
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9349th 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.
9351st pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9343rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9043rd pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9363rd 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.
9367th 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.
9361st 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.
4025th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9048th 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.

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.