AI Rate Professor

Social Science

Bill Gelfeld

POLSCI31 · POLSC31 · POLISCI31 · 13 lifetime ratings

AI rating
78/100
RMP rating
4.1/5
Take again
76.92%
Difficulty
2.9

The decision

if you will do the reading and group work; skip if you need a free A or dislike group-dependent grades.

Best fit · Effort For RewardResponsive and caringGroup project heavyClear feedbackPolitically left-leaningTough on writing
  • Most students praise clear lectures, responsiveness, and .
  • Group project and writing can sink your grade if the group underperforms.
  • A few in-person reviews allege bias against conservative views and .

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

FairEffort

62/100

Many As reported if you read and complete work, but and strict writing criteria block a free A.

Online reviews ; in-person split between easy recovery options and .

Is the course easy?

Beginner

68/100

and discussions, not a brain burner but not a total breeze.

Both formats describe manageable material if you keep up; difficulty tags cluster mid-range.

Is attendance flexible?

Optional

78/100

; a minority mark it yes especially in person.

Online mostly optional; a few in-person and .

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

74/100

Strong majority would take again for lectures and and bias complaints.

Online recommendation is strongly positive; in-person is more polarized.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Fair

58/100

Clear criteria and good feedback for many, but and .

Format shift

Online mostly fair with feedback; .

Workload

Moderate

55/100

Weekly discussions, quizzes, readings, papers, and a group project; some call lots of homework and papers.

Format shift

Similar assignment mix online and in person; short sessions still feel busy.

Teaching experience

Good

78/100

Students , and the professor accessible and caring.

Format shift

Online praise is consistent; and .

Assessment method

Balanced

48/100

Mix of discussions, quizzes, midterm, writing assignments, and a .

Format shift

Both formats emphasize projects and writing over single high-stakes exams.

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

5 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

some call him amazing and caring with late-work flexibility; others say he is a .

Main concern

and strong do-not-take warnings.

What students said

“Great, until you say anything remotely conservative, then you'll be downgraded for the rest of the course.”
POLISCI31
“ . All I have to say is don't even think about taking his class.”
POLSC31
“Took him during the winter semester & he was awesome! ... 100% recommend him!!!”
POLSC31

Remote format

Online

8 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

Online POLSCI/Public Policy is organized with , and a ; most call him responsive and fair if you put in effort.

Main concern

if your group is weak; .

What students said

“He's an awesome instructor but make sure you do well with . That can tank your overall grade if you wanna keep your A.”
POLSC31
“ . As long as you put in some effort and time and show a desire to learn, you can easily succeed.”
POLISCI31
“ ... If !”
POLSCI31

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

, and a group project; reviews do not clearly prove open-book or lockdown proctoring.

MidtermQuizzesGroup final projectWriting assignments

Assessment risk

Standard

62/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

, and papers more than formal exam software rules.

Midterm study guidePapersParticipation
“His study guide for but you have to read daily.”
POLSC31

Online

, and group project; exam proctoring details are not clearly proven.

Weekly quizzesMidtermGroup project finalDiscussion posts
“ and quizzes based on the textbook, one midterm, 2-3 writing assignments, and a .”
POLSC31
“This class has , and group project.”
POLSC31

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“If ! He is so understanding and his lectures are interesting and very easy to understand.”

Voice snapshots generated from 13 reviews across online and , and group-work themes. Credibility rating: Medium.

🎯 Teaching Quality

78/100

“ ... his lectures are interesting and very easy to understand.”

👍 Recommendation

74/100

“ as a professor, as , and he is responsive.”

⚠️

55/100

“make sure you do well with . That can tank your overall grade if you wanna keep your A.”

⚖️

58/100

“the ... he has strict and and isn't very flexible.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • Prof. Gelfeld was a great professor! and provides insightful lectures.
  • He is so understanding and his lectures are interesting and very easy to understand.
  • Amazing professor. Learned so much and really cares about his students.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Not the easiest class, but it definitely helped me better understand U.S. politics.
  • If you do the and understand the concepts, you should be fine.
  • there's a if you get a bad group, you're pretty screwed.

Theme 3

⚠️ About Concerns

  • Great, until you say anything remotely conservative, then you'll be downgraded.
  • ... he is one big headache to deal with.
  • He is left-leaning just so you are aware :)

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

13

Recent reviews read by the AI

13

Lifetime ratings

72/100

Evidence confidence

13 reviews from 2018-2024 with decent detail and both formats; opinions are mostly consistent online but more split in person.

Inside 13 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 58
4 out of 52
3 out of 51
2 out of 50
1 out of 52

Course coverage

POLSC316 reviews
POLISCI315 reviews
POLSCI312 reviews

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

13 reported outcomes

A range

7

A 6 · A- 1

B range

4

B+ 3 · B 1

C range

0

No reported values

D range

0

No reported values

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

2

Drop/Withdrawal 1 · Not sure yet 1