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 · Physics · Fall 2022 – Spring 2026

Michael Naughton

Physics · 9 evaluation records across 3 classes

On each class's board
PHYS 15012nd of 3 instructorsPHYS 41002nd of 2 instructorsUNCS 2245unrated · 32 instructors on record Provisional
What the overall is made of
73BC evaluations9 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2022 – Spring 2026
—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
87thMore challenging than 87% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
94BC — “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.

What the workload rank is made of
82ndMore work than 82% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
63BC — “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.

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.
8010th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
817th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8010th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8313th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
7911th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8111th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8417th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8635th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8424th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8114th 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.
6382nd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9487th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8221st 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.

PHYS 1501 Foundations of Physics IIOvr64Chal74thWork78th
On this class's board2nd of 3 instructors

4 sections on record · course itself rated 58 out of 100. See the full board for PHYS 1501.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202601605860
Spring 202501646260
Spring 202401645860
Spring 202301675560
All 13 items for PHYS 1501
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
741st pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
793rd pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
731st pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
772nd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
744th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
764th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
772nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8211th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8215th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
743rd 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.
9474th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
755th 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.

PHYS 4100 Classical MechanicsOvr83Chal69thWork81st
On this class's board2nd of 2 instructors

4 sections on record · course itself rated 80 out of 100. See the full board for PHYS 4100.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202501838280
Fall 2024018480—
Fall 202301706860
Fall 202201949060
All 13 items for PHYS 4100
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8718th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
826th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8720th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8920th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8316th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8620th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9030th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9150th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
8626th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8728th 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.
6781st pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9369th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8937th 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.

UNCS 2245 First-Year Topic SeminarOvr—Chal—Work—
On this class's boardunrated · 32 instructors on record Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 69 out of 100. See the full board for UNCS 2245.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202403—69—
All 13 items for UNCS 2245

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.