AI Rate Professor

History

Matthew Jaffe

HIST107 · HIS114 · ANYHISTORY · HIST104 · HIST108H · HIS108 · CALIFORNIAHIST · HIST · HIS104 · HIST114 · HIST108 · HIST101 · HISTORY114 · HIS107 · HIS101 · 280 lifetime ratings

AI rating
89/100
RMP rating
4.6/5
Take again
78.64%
Difficulty
2.3

The decision

Recommended for students who can , and tolerate lecture-heavy classes.

Best fit · Effort For RewardHilarious lecturerCaring professorEssay examsGenerous curveLecture heavy
  • Most students describe him as kind, funny, and effective at making history more engaging.
  • Grades are often helped by curves, dropped scores, open-note exams, or detail-focused essay formats.
  • A smaller group complains about unclear expectations, hard tests, or recent rude interactions.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

EasyA

82/100

Many students earn A grades with notes, essays, and and dropped scores, but .

and curves, while online evidence is mixed but still often manageable.

Is the course easy?

Beginner

72/100

The history content is usually approachable, though lecture detail and .

In-person reviews more often call the class easy, while online reviews .

Is attendance flexible?

Varies

55/100

it mandatory and others saying it was not required or easy to miss occasionally.

Online reviews lean mandatory, while and sometimes flexible.

Is this professor recommended?

WorthIt

78/100

, and fair grading, but recent negative conduct and exam complaints lower confidence.

, while online reviews are more mixed.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Lenient

82/100

Many students mention , and high grades with reasonable effort.

Format shift

, while online reviews also mention manageable exams but include stricter essay complaints.

Workload

Light

75/100

Work is often limited to a , though detail-heavy studying is still needed.

Format shift

In-person reviews show the lightest workload, while online and notes.

Teaching experience

Good

84/100

Most students describe him as funny, caring, knowledgeable, and engaging, despite some complaints about boring lectures or poor communication.

Format shift

, while online reviews are more uneven.

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

78/100

, and a term paper rather than frequent homework.

Format shift

Both formats emphasize exams and test count and curves.

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

39 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

In-person reviews are strongly positive overall, praising , and manageable essay-based assessments.

Main concern

Students need detailed notes because lectures.

What students said

“He's very nice, easy grader, only 3-4 essays with no minimum word or page count total for the whole semester.”
108
“The only work is 3 exams which are in the style of essay questions and 1 term paper which is not too hard to do.”
HIST108
“You have to take 5 exams in-person, without notes.”
108

Remote format

Online

11 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

Online reviews are mixed but mostly positive, with praise for caring teaching and manageable and mandatory attendance.

Main concern

Some online students say expectations for exams and .

What students said

“Studying is not needed for , and definitely look at his recorded lectures and you will pass.”
HIS114
“For online classes, there's 3 essay exams and 1 paper.”
HIST108
“ as to what he wants for examples for them.”
HIS114

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

and can be challenging, but , and some open-note formats make them more student-friendly.

Essay ExamsGenerous CurveDropped Lowest ScoreOpen Notes MentionedIn-Person No Notes Mentioned

Assessment risk

StudentFriendly

76/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

one section, curves, dropped scores, and no-notes in-person exams in another section.

Essay ExamsOpen Notes MentionedGenerous CurveDropped Lowest ScoreIn-Person No Notes Mentioned
“ and it is the only thing he grades you on but you it's open notes.”
108
“You have to take 5 exams in-person, without notes.”
108
“He takes off your lowest exam score and the semester.”
108

Online

Online reviews mention essay exams, a , and textbook-based answers, but do not clearly prove webcam, proctoring, Lockdown Browser, or open-book policy.

Essay ExamsMidtermFinal ExamPolicy unclear
“For online classes, there's 3 essay exams and 1 paper.”
HIST108
“Professor Jaffes class is easy just includes 2 exams 1 mid term 1 term paper and 1 final exam”
HIST107
“he wants you to get all the information from his class or the textbook NOT outside sources.”
HIS108

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“What a gem of a professor and a . You can absolutely tell he loves his job.”

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

🎯 Teaching Quality

84/100

“Dr. Jaffe is helpful, supportive, makes the material interesting with his sense of humor”

⚖️

82/100

“He grades on a curve and .”

📘 Course Effort

75/100

“The only work is 3 exams which are in the style of essay questions and 1 term paper which is not too hard to do.”

Theme 1

🧑‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • Dr. Jaffe is helpful, supportive, makes the material interesting with his sense of humor
  • He makes it easier to go to morning class with his humor and lecture style.
  • Lectures are long and difficult to follow.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Fun class easy A
  • He grades on a curve and .
  • .

Theme 3

📝

  • For online classes, there's 3 essay exams and 1 paper.
  • You have to take 5 exams in-person, without notes.
  • and it is the only thing he grades you on but you it's open notes.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

50

Recent reviews read by the AI

280

Lifetime ratings

92/100

Evidence confidence

Fifty reviews across several years provide rich evidence, though a cluster of recent negative reviews adds some mixed signal.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 5233
4 out of 524
3 out of 57
2 out of 55
1 out of 512

Course coverage

10810 reviews
HIS10710 reviews
HIS1145 reviews
HIST1085 reviews
HIST1074 reviews
Show 11 more courses
HIS1083 reviews
CALIFORNIAHIST2 reviews
HIS1042 reviews
HIST1042 reviews
ANYHISTORY1 review
HIS1011 review
HIST1 review
HIST1011 review
HIST108H1 review
HIST1141 review
HISTORY1141 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

46 reported outcomes

A range

26

A+ 5 · A 18 · A- 3

B range

8

B+ 3 · B 5

C range

2

C 2

D range

0

No reported values

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

10

Drop/Withdrawal 4 · Not sure yet 6