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 · Theology · Spring 2023 – Spring 2025

Peter Vale

Theology · 5 evaluation records across 3 classes

On each class's board
THEO 14213rd of 18 instructorsTHEO 14206th of 18 instructors ProvisionalTHEO 14227th of 11 instructors Provisional
What the overall is made of
93BC evaluations5 records · weight ×1.0 · Spring 2023 – Spring 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
35thMore challenging than 35% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
86BC — “Intellectually Challenging”5 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
26thMore work than 26% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
40BC — “Workload”5 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 5 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9569th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9681st pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9573rd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9463rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9370th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9368th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8937th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8845th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9473rd pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9371st 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.
4026th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
8635th 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

3 classes · 5 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.

THEO 1421 Inscribing the Word: The New TestamentOvr95Chal19thWork25th
On this class's board3rd of 18 instructors

3 sections on record · course itself rated 85 out of 100. See the full board for THEO 1421.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 202401969240
Fall 2023039687
Spring 202302947540
All 13 items for THEO 1421
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9778th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9881st pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9671st pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9659th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9676th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9677th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8719th 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.
9784th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9573rd 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.
8419th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9674th 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.

THEO 1420 The Everlasting Covenant: The Hebrew BibleOvr93Chal27thWork25th
On this class's board6th of 18 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 90 out of 100. See the full board for THEO 1420.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202505939040
All 13 items for THEO 1420
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9346th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9774th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9667th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9552nd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9680th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9575th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9243rd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9040th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9569th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9674th 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.
8627th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9678th 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.

THEO 1422 The Sacred Page: The BibleOvr85Chal34thWork25th
On this class's board7th of 11 instructors Provisional

1 section on record · course itself rated 83 out of 100. See the full board for THEO 1422.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202402858340
All 13 items for THEO 1422
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9135th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9238th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9134th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9127th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8420th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8519th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8824th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
9047th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9040th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8727th 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.
8834th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9253rd 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.