AI Rate Professor

Biology

Mary Nolan-Riegle

BIOL170 · BIO100 · BIO101F · BIOL101 · BIOLOGY170 · BIO100OL · 100F · BIO170 · BIO101 · 127 lifetime ratings

AI rating
75/100
RMP rating
3.5/5
Take again
60.87%
Difficulty
4.2

The decision

if you want a rigorous biology class that can build real skill, but if you need a gentle or low-effort experience.

Best fit · Hardcore LearnerDemanding MentorFast LecturesHeavy ReadingTough But FairPolarizing Style
  • Students describe her as deeply caring and inspirational when they can handle a demanding, fast-paced class.
  • , and strong exam preparation.
  • A small online sample is much more negative than the large in-person sample.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

HardWork

38/100

An A is possible, but students repeatedly , and detailed exam preparation.

, while in-person evidence says hard work can earn strong grades.

Is the course easy?

Challenging

32/100

The biology content is challenging because , and students must read before class.

Both formats describe difficult content, but to real learning.

Is attendance flexible?

Mandatory

15/100

Attendance is effectively required because students say skipping class leads to failure and .

In-person reviews strongly support strict attendance, while as attendance.

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

68/100

because she teaches deeply, but the negative reviews are intense and consistent.

, while online reviews are not recommendable.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Strict

32/100

Students call her tough but usually fair, with grades tied closely to preparation and detailed answers.

Format shift

Online reviews describe harsher grade mechanics, while as earned.

Workload

Heavy

25/100

The class , and exam preparation.

Format shift

Both formats mention heavy work, with online reviews especially critical of Connect assignments.

Teaching experience

Good

78/100

Teaching is highly polarized, but many students praise her clarity, passion, mentoring, and long-term impact.

Format shift

and richer, while online reviews describe poor support.

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

82/100

, and finals more than projects or papers.

Format shift

as central, and the online BIO100 review explicitly mentions on-campus 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

48 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

In-person reviews are polarized but mostly show a .

Main concern

The main risk is a fast, intimidating lecture style with demanding exams and reading.

What students said

“She's tough and she makes you work harder than you've probably ever worked before but it's to prepare her students for their major.”
BIOL170
“took her for bio 101 and had an extremely difficult time keeping up with her lectures.”
BIO101F

Remote format

Online

2 reviews

Low confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

Online reviews are , and poor treatment.

Main concern

Students felt unsupported and judged while and assignments.

What students said

“Took her online class only to find out that the connect assignements DO NOT count towards improving your overall grade from the 2 on campus exams she requires.”
BIO100
“She teaches one way, if you don't learn from her way, you probably won't pass.”
BIO100

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Exams appear demanding and detail-heavy, with essay questions and lecture material playing a major role.

Lecture ExamsEssay QuestionsMultiple Choice ExamsLab QuizzesOn-Campus Exams

Assessment risk

Strict

34/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

In-person reviews describe multiple lecture exams, essay , and a final, but do not clearly prove closed-book rules.

Lecture ExamsEssay QuestionsMultiple Choice QuestionsLab QuizzesFinal
“Has 4 lecture exams, which are 2-3 essay questions and 75-100 multiple choice questions.”
BIO101F
“ , but just make sure that !”
BIO170

Online

Online reviews mention required on-campus exams, but do not clearly prove webcam, proctoring, Lockdown Browser, or open-book rules.

On-Campus ExamsTest Heavy
“the connect assignements DO NOT count towards improving your overall grade from the 2 on campus exams she requires.”
BIO100

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“She's tough and she makes you work harder than you've probably ever worked before but it's to prepare her students for their major.”

Voice snapshots generated from 50 reviews, highlighting key themes in , and format differences. Credibility rating: High.

🎯 Teaching Quality

78/100

“She changed my entire learning experience for the better!!!”

📚 Workload Reality

25/100

“Read before lecture and be ready to WORK”

⚖️

32/100

“You had to work incredibly hard in order to do well in the class but the grade you got is 100% the grade you earned.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • She is tough, but in the end you get the grade you deserve.
  • Her lectures are fast but if you've skimmed the reading and her posted powerpoint then you'll keep up.
  • Lectures and and pedantic; very poor communicator.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Definitely not an easy class.
  • She really makes you work for your grade.
  • if you read the txt book, show up to class, and study the notes.

Theme 3

❤️ About Character

  • She invests a lot of time into her students.
  • She likes to act mean and strict, but stick around and you'll find she's one of the .
  • If you answer something wrong during lecture she will make you feel dumb.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

50

Recent reviews read by the AI

127

Lifetime ratings

92/100

Evidence confidence

The analysis is based on 50 reviews across many years with detailed and consistent themes despite polarized opinions.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 552
4 out of 529
3 out of 513
2 out of 520
1 out of 513

Course coverage

BIO17014 reviews
BIO101F11 reviews
BIO1019 reviews
BIO1008 reviews
BIOL1704 reviews
Show 4 more courses
100F1 review
BIO100OL1 review
BIOL1011 review
BIOLOGY1701 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

33 reported outcomes

A range

13

A 12 · A- 1

B range

10

B+ 6 · B 4

C range

4

C+ 1 · C 3

D range

1

D 1

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

5

Drop/Withdrawal 3 · Not sure yet 1 · Rather not say 1