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 · Biology · Fall 2021 – Spring 2025

Timothy Connolly

Biology · 8 evaluation records across 2 classes

On each class's board
BIOL 4890only instructor on recordBIOL 5430only instructor on record
What the overall is made of
79BC evaluations8 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – 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
75thMore challenging than 75% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
92BC — “Intellectually Challenging”8 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
51stMore work than 51% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
52BC — “Workload”8 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 8 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8519th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9468th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9039th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8724th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8115th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8113th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9261st pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8526th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9368th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
8841st 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.
5251st pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9275th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8948th 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 · 8 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.

BIOL 4890 Investigations in Cellular Re-ProgrammingOvr83Chal62ndWork39th
On this class's boardonly instructor on record

4 sections on record · course itself rated 79 out of 100. See the full board for BIOL 4890.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Fall 20240110093—
Fall 2023016868—
Fall 202201847240
Fall 202101808460
All 13 items for BIOL 4890
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9240th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9670th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9559th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9663rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8215th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8518th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9351st pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8834th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9677th 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.
5039th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9262nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9361st 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.

BIOL 5430 Genomics and Personalized MedicineOvr74Chal56thWork43rd
On this class's boardonly instructor on record

4 sections on record · course itself rated 75 out of 100. See the full board for BIOL 5430.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 2025016570—
Spring 202401808360
Spring 202301808240
Spring 202201716660
All 13 items for BIOL 5430
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
804th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9347th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8616th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
804th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
8112th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
796th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
9242nd 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.
9044th 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.
5343rd pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9156th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
8521st 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.