Brian Doan

PHOTO31AB · PHOT10 · ART80 · PHOTO43 · PHOT42AD · PHOT32 · PHOT32AD · PHOT37 · PHOTO10 · 30 lifetime ratings

AI rating: 86/100
RMP rating: 4.1/5
Take again: 76.19%
Difficulty: 2.9

The decision

if you want a passionate mentor who will push your creative work and reward genuine effort.

Best fit · Effort For RewardInspirational working artistParticipation-driven gradingProject-focusedStrict on attendanceMixed online delivery

Passionate working artist who pushes students to think like artists, not just photographers.
In person is widely praised; online Canvas and Zoom delivery draw more complaints.
Grades lean high if you show up, participate, and .

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

EasyA

80/100

Most reported grades are A or A+, and many say you pass if you try and make real art, though participation and projects still matter.

Online and in person both report high grades; online complaints are more about structure than grade difficulty.

Is the course easy?

Beginner

68/100

and art electives, but conceptual work, critiques, and faster sections can still challenge beginners.

In person advanced classes feel more conceptual; online intro photo is easier content but .

Is attendance flexible?

Mandatory

28/100

, and several note he is strict about showing up or cameras on Zoom.

Online PHOT10 especially stresses attendance and cameras; a few older reviews say skipping is possible.

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

78/100

Strong in-person loyalty and passion outweigh online structure complaints, with .

In person recommendation is much stronger than online.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Lenient

76/100

Students often say he grades few things, values effort and participation, and will be understanding if .

Format shift

Both formats report lenient grading when work is submitted and .

Workload

Light

72/100

Many mention , and no textbooks, with stress mainly from pace or deadlines.

Format shift

Online but more frustration with organization.

Teaching experience

Good

80/100

He is widely seen as passionate, respected, and inspiring in person, with weaker structure and delivery notes for online sections.

Format shift

In person teaching praise is consistently higher than online.

Assessment method

FocusOnAssignments

28/100

Assessment centers on projects, critiques, participation, and a .

Format shift

Both formats emphasize projects and participation over 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

24 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

In person, students repeatedly call him one of : , and strong on critiques and conceptual growth.

Main concern

, and occasional fast pace or stressful deadlines.

What students said

“Brian is a working artist. He has first person experience in the art world and is inspired and passionate about photography and art.”
PHOT42AD

“ . He's great if you understand his type of humor.”
ART80

“seriously one of the . he helps you see things through a more conceptual level”
PHOT32AD

Remote format

Online

6 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

students like his passion but flag unstructured , and strict camera or .

Main concern

, and lectures that feel like personal stories rather than clear photo basics.

What students said

“He goes on tangents a lot and thinks teaching basic photography is beneath him. Boring and unstructured.”
PHOT10

“ . He had wrong zoom links and would make us go to his Blog to get the correct link.”
PHOT10

“Laid back teaching style & pretty funny if you catch his dry humor. He cares about his students & their success.”
PHOT32

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

; several students report little to no exams and .

Few or no examsProject-based assessmentQuestions given in advanceCollaboration allowed

Assessment risk

StudentFriendly

84/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

In person students emphasize projects, critiques, and .

Little to no examsProjects and critiquesQuestions in advance

“ , and allows you to work with others.”
PHOTO43

“We had maybe 2-3 assignments that and thats only towards the .”
PHOTO10

Online

Online comments focus on quizzes if and .

Doable quizzesAttendance gradedCanvas-based work

“Quizzes are doable if .”
PHOT10

“Must attend but it's about the only grade he is strict about.”
PHOT32

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice
“I can't say enough good things about this man. He truly cares about students investing their time, energy and and pushes students to not be photographers, but artists.”
Voice snapshots generated from 30 , and online versus in-person gaps. Credibility rating: High.

🎨 Artistic Mentorship

80/100

“Brian is a working artist. He has first person experience in the art world and is inspired and passionate about photography and art.”

👍 Recommendation Strength

78/100

“ ”

📅

28/100

“ and turning cameras on in zoom meetings.”

📝

80/100

“As long as you try to make good art you can pass.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

He is so passionate about his craft and wants students to be equally interested in the work they produce.
He finds the positive in every situation.
He creates opportunity for all of the students to learn from each other with critiques of the work.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

As long as you try to make good art you can pass.
!
You have to work for your grade though, and put some effort into your photography.

Theme 3

💻 About Online Experience

as organized as I'd like it.
He talks a lot about himself. maybe he's different in person.
Uses personal stories way too much to teach.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

Recent reviews read by the AI

Lifetime ratings

86/100

Evidence confidence

Thirty reviews span many years and courses, with rich detail and a .

Inside 30 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 517

4 out of 56

3 out of 53

2 out of 53

1 out of 51

Course coverage

ART809 reviews

PHOT325 reviews

PHOT32AD4 reviews

PHOT42AD4 reviews

PHOT103 reviews

Show 4 more courses

PHOTO432 reviews

PHOT371 review

PHOTO101 review

PHOTO31AB1 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

21 reported outcomes

A range

A+ 10 · A 7

B range

B+ 1

C range

No reported values

D range

No reported values

F

No reported values

No letter grade reported

Incomplete 1 · Not sure yet 1 · Not_Sure_Yet 1

Brian Doan

x x x x if you want a passionate mentor who will push your creative work and reward genuine effort.

Four answers before you build your schedule.

EasyA

Beginner

Mandatory

WorthIt

See how this professor fits your week.

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

In person

Online

See what students actually said.

🎨 Artistic Mentorship

👍 Recommendation Strength

📅 x x

📝 x x x

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

💻 About Online Experience

See exactly what the AI read.

Quality ratings

Course coverage

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

A range

B range

C range

D range

F

No letter grade reported

if you want a passionate mentor who will push your creative work and reward genuine effort.

📅

📝