AI Rate Professor

Foothill College · Computer Information Systems

Thomas Riordan

CS10 · 35 lifetime ratings

AI rating
22/100
RMP rating
2.3/5
Take again
29.63%
Difficulty
4.2

The decision

Avoid Thomas Riordan unless you strongly want a demanding computer architecture course and can teach yourself under pressure.

Best fit · Hardcore LearnerExtremely difficultTest heavyHeavy readingKnowledgeable but unclearHarsh curve
  • Students repeatedly say CS10 is very hard, fast-paced, reading-heavy, and , and finals.
  • Riordan is often described as knowledgeable, but many reviews .
  • A small group of strong or highly interested students value the challenge, but most students warn against taking him.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

HardWork

28/100

Getting an A appears difficult because students , and low class averages even when they work hard.

Both formats are difficult, with online reviews emphasizing auto-graded tests and , and hard finals.

Is the course easy?

BrainBurner

18/100

The course content is advanced, fast-paced, and reading-heavy, with computer architecture topics that many students find hard to connect to assessments.

Online students describe hard wording and self-paced confusion, while , and tough in-class assessments.

Is attendance flexible?

Recommended

35/100

as formally mandatory, but students say , and office hours are important for survival.

Online reviews recommend Zoom lectures and office hours, while in-person reviews warn that missing .

Is this professor recommended?

Avoid

30/100

because the class feels overly difficult, poorly taught, and harshly tested despite his subject expertise.

Both formats include a few positive reviews from strong learners, but .

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Harsh

18/100

Students repeatedly mention tough , and tests that feel disconnected from instruction.

Format shift

Online reviews warn about auto-graded tests and curves, while and difficult quiz or .

Workload

Overwhelming

12/100

Reviews describe 6 or more lecture hours, , and finals.

Format shift

Online reviews describe weekly reading, quizzes, and labs, while , and frequent tests.

Teaching experience

Poor

36/100

Riordan is respected for knowledge, but many students say , and gives assessments beyond what was taught.

Format shift

Online reviews mention trouble adapting and , while in-person reviews more often criticize lectures and .

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

85/100

Grades , and labs, with repeated comments that exams drive the course experience.

Format shift

Online reviews highlight auto-graded tests and quizzes, while , and labs.

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

26 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

In-person reviews mostly describe a knowledgeable professor whose lectures and and .

Main concern

Students frequently , and grades damaged by the .

What students said

“ . SERIOUSLY.”
CS10
“His lectures are terrible, and .”
CS10
“CS10 was probably the hardest and most time consuming class i've taken at foothill.”
CS10

Remote format

Online

10 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

Online reviews are sharply mixed but mostly warn about difficult , and communication problems.

Main concern

Online students may struggle with , and limited support.

What students said

“Almost all of the , and difficultly worded.”
CS10
“It is very heavy work, so be prepared.”
CS10
“Dropped him and got a different prof next quarter.”
CS10

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Exam risk is high because reviews repeatedly describe difficult, confusing, heavily weighted tests and .

Difficult TestsTough CurveAuto-Graded Online TestsMidterm and FinalFrequent Quizzes

Assessment risk

Strict

18/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

and finals, low final averages, and tests on barely covered topics, but do not clearly prove closed-book rules.

Frequent QuizzesHard MidtermHard FinalLow Exam AveragesCurve Risk
“his midterms and class get under 50%.”
CS10
“Class average on the final was below a 60%, so good luck.”
CS10
“The in-class quizzes and .”
CS10

Online

Online reviews clearly mention auto-graded, difficult tests and , but do not clearly prove webcam, Lockdown Browser, or open-book policies.

Auto-Graded TestsDifficult WordingOnline TestsMidterm and FinalCurve Risk
“Almost all of the , and difficultly worded.”
CS10
“ and going to his lecture but had no idea what most questions were asking”
CS10
“His tests, especially the midterm and before.”
CS10

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“ . SERIOUSLY.”

Voice snapshots generated from 36 reviews, highlighting key themes in , and assessment risk. Credibility rating: High.

⚠️ Recommendation Risk

30/100

“If you have a and run.”

🧠 Course Difficulty

18/100

“CS10 was probably the hardest and most time consuming class i've taken at foothill.”

📝

18/100

“His tests, especially the midterm and before.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • It's obvious that he knows what he's talking about, but he shouldn't be teaching.
  • His lectures consists of and he isn't exactly the .
  • He doesn't prepare for the class.

Theme 2

📚 About Workload and Difficulty

  • 180 pages of ?
  • It is very heavy work, so be prepared.
  • Every week you have 6+ hours of lectures and a lot of

Theme 3

🧪 About Tests and Grades

  • Beware the !
  • The in-class quizzes and .
  • It is also impossible to get an A in the class because of the .

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

36

Recent reviews read by the AI

35

Lifetime ratings

92/100

Evidence confidence

The analysis uses 36 reviews across a long time span, with unusually consistent comments about difficulty, testing, workload, and teaching issues.

Inside 36 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 57
4 out of 52
3 out of 56
2 out of 52
1 out of 519

Course coverage

CS1036 reviews

Reported outcomes

B range results lead the reported letter grades.

27 reported outcomes

A range

6

A 2 · A- 4

B range

14

B+ 7 · B 4 · B- 3

C range

2

C+ 1 · C 1

D range

0

No reported values

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

5

Drop/Withdrawal 3 · Not sure yet 2