AI Rate Professor

Geology

William Phelps

GEO4 · OCE1 · GEO1B · GEO1 · 31 lifetime ratings

AI rating
64/100
RMP rating
3.8/5
Take again
72%
Difficulty
3.2

The decision

if you like lecture-driven science with humor; online can feel rigid and homework-heavy.

Best fit · Effort For RewardHilarious dad-joke lecturesLecture and test heavyNo late work toleranceOnline vs in-person splitLab workload heavy
  • In-person students often , and .
  • Online sections draw more complaints , and large exams.
  • Success usually means taking notes, studying daily, and never missing deadlines.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

FairEffort

56/100

Many A grades , and study daily, but and online policies leave little slack.

In-person feels more fair-effort; online closed-note and no-late-work policies make an A harder.

Is the course easy?

Standard

52/100

if you study notes, but labs and memorization can raise the challenge.

Online labs and long homework raise difficulty; .

Is attendance flexible?

Varies

48/100

Online attendance is often optional while as important or required.

; in-person more often marks attendance mandatory.

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

70/100

About three-quarters recommend him overall, especially for .

.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Fair

52/100

and , but hard graders, precise wording, and no late work pull fairness down.

Format shift

; online complains of tough delayed grading.

Workload

Heavy

38/100

Labs and and frequent, and lecture sections still demand daily note review for quizzes and tests.

Format shift

Online and ; pure in-person lecture can be lighter.

Teaching experience

Good

72/100

Many students call him funny, clear, and caring in lecture, though .

Format shift

In-person teaching praise is stronger; online instruction quality is more contested.

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

72/100

Quizzes, midterms, and assignments in lab sections.

Format shift

Both formats are test-heavy; and timed tests.

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

23 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

In-person students more often praise and tests come straight from notes, with occasional .

Main concern

Still need consistent note study; a minority report unresponsiveness or .

What students said

“lots of dry humor but super direct lectures and labs”
GEO4
“Everything on the and ”
OCE1

Remote format

Online

8 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

closed notes, heavy labs or , and zero late-work tolerance.

Main concern

Rigid deadlines, long labs, and .

What students said

“RUN, HE HAS NO TOLERANCE FOR DELAYS IN TURNING IN WORK”
GEO1
“ , no warning. no late work”
GEO1

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Exams usually track lectures closely but can be long, precise, and less flexible online with closed notes and short windows.

Lecture-based quizzes and testsClosed note onlineFill-in-the-blank and spelling strictCumulative final possibleExtra credit sometimes

Assessment risk

Standard

45/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

and tests are repeatedly described as straight from lecture notes if you study them.

Straight from lectureFill-in-the-blankExtra creditDropped lowest quiz sometimes
“Everything on the and ”
OCE1
“ class”
GEO1

Online

Online students report closed-note policies, short test availability windows, large exams, and no late work.

Closed notesShort test windowsLarge finalsNo late work
“I respected him for his closed note policy but I swear to God it kills me”
GEO1
“80 question exams and a 200 question final exam”
GEO1

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“Turn things in on time, keep up, and give honest effort and you will do okay. !”

Voice snapshots generated from 31 reviews, comparing stronger in-person lecture experiences with stricter online sections. Credibility rating: High.

🎯 In-Person Teaching

78/100

“He is probably the coolest teacher I've ever had & I've loved all his classes”

🖥️ Online Friction

35/100

“RUN, HE HAS NO TOLERANCE FOR DELAYS IN TURNING IN WORK YOU WORKED SO HARD TO COMPLETE”

📝

45/100

“Everything on the and ”

👍

70/100

“If you have to take oceanography phelps is probably the ”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • lots of dry humor but super direct lectures and labs
  • He has good dad jokes
  • and easy to understand

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty and Grades

  • !
  • This class is easy as long as you attend and study your notes
  • closed note policy but I swear to God it kills me

Theme 3

⚠️ About Workload and Deadlines

  • The
  • assigns an absolutely ludicrous amount of homework
  • no late work

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

31

Recent reviews read by the AI

31

Lifetime ratings

82/100

Evidence confidence

Thirty-one reviews across years and formats show a stable in-person strength and online friction pattern with rich detail.

Inside 31 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 515
4 out of 56
3 out of 53
2 out of 52
1 out of 55

Course coverage

GEO119 reviews
OCE18 reviews
GEO42 reviews
408171 review
GEO1B1 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

23 reported outcomes

A range

13

A+ 2 · A 10 · A- 1

B range

4

B+ 1 · B 2 · B- 1

C range

1

C+ 1

D range

1

D 1

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

4

Incomplete 1 · Not sure yet 2 · Rather not say 1