AI Rate Professor

Mathematics

Dave Ellingson

MATH106 · MATH121 · CALC220 · MATH232 · MATH222 · MATH108 · MATH120 · MATH221 · MATH55 · MATH94 · 93 lifetime ratings

AI rating
62/100
RMP rating
4.0/5
Take again
60%
Difficulty
2.7

The decision

if you need a low-effort math grade and are fine teaching yourself; avoid if you want strong lectures or .

Best fit · Easy A HunterLecture heavyGraded by few thingsSelf-teaching requiredCaring but unevenHilarious
  • Many students get easy As with , but say .
  • Lectures often run long, go off-topic, or focus on one problem instead of .
  • and test-heavy; online/COVID .

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

EasyA

82/100

Many students report easy As with little or and few graded items, though higher calc .

Online reviews stress end-of-semester tests as an easy A; but more mixed for advanced courses.

Is the course easy?

Beginner

68/100

Lower courses feel light, but several students say and you must learn outside class, especially past intro math.

Both formats mention self-teaching; online adds weak structure that can raise perceived difficulty even when content is basic.

Is attendance flexible?

Recommended

72/100

and notes are posted, but quizzes and lecture content .

; in-person is frequently non-mandatory but still advised for quizzes.

Is this professor recommended?

Depends

55/100

About 60% would take again; fans praise kindness and easy grades, critics say he cannot teach and .

; online has more frustration about late work and organization.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Lenient

78/100

Many As reported with , and graded-by-few-things setups that favor students who complete tests.

Format shift

Both formats lean lenient on grades; online students still get As while complaining about process.

Workload

Light

80/100

; workload centers on a handful of quizzes and exams.

Format shift

Online ; in-person similarly light on practice work.

Teaching experience

Average

58/100

Students split between caring funny lectures and long off-topic classes that force self-teaching.

Format shift

In-person is stronger for personality; online and COVID formats draw much weaker teaching reviews.

Assessment method

FocusOnExams

78/100

, and finals with .

Format shift

Both formats are test/quiz heavy with few graded practice assignments.

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

44 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Easy A Hunter

In person he is often described as caring and funny with posted notes, but lectures can be long-winded and off-topic, with and exams and .

Main concern

You may need to self-teach for higher-level math, and grades or .

What students said

“The class , so get all of them done and you'll be fine.”
MATH106
“Easy A, but he's a terrible teacher. and off-topic for most/all of the .”
MATH222
“Easy A and I have always been bad at math... . 2/3 tests were take home.”
MATH94

Remote format

Online

6 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

Online sections are often asynchronous with , and tests or quizzes dumped late in the semester; success depends on self-management.

Main concern

Late-posted work, weak structure, and heavy self-teaching make online especially risky if you need guidance.

What students said

“ progress) roughly 4 quizzes, and 4 tests are sent out damn near the end of the semester.”
MATH108
“He does not assign homework, only the are super easy. Do the work and you'll get an easy A.”
MATH55
“ , and no textbook.”
MATH120

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Exams and ; several reviews mention open notes, take-home tests, or .

Open note optionsTake-home testsFew graded itemsQuizzes and exams drive grade

Assessment risk

StudentFriendly

72/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

In-person assessments are mostly quizzes and exams; open notes, take-home exams, and .

Test heavyOpen notebook sometimesTake-home examsOptional homework as extra credit
“2/3 tests were take home. Gives study guides and .”
MATH94
“ (if your class uses a book) but that doesn't necessarily make them easy.”
220
“Quizzes and so .”
MATH121

Online

and tests released late with multi-week windows and no clear proctoring mentioned.

Few tests and quizzesLate release of workMulti-week completion windows
“He grades by only a few tests and quizzes but he did give us a few weeks to complete each one.”
MATH120
“He does not assign homework, only the are super easy.”
MATH55

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“If you're looking to just get a calculus class out of the way this should be easy but If you plan to actually use calculus a lot in the ”

Voice snapshots generated from 50 reviews, highlighting teaching quality, easy grades, and . Credibility rating: High.

🎯 Teaching Quality

58/100

“He is a nice man, however he lacks as an educator. He does not ensure that , yet he focuses on the history or background of a problem.”

🅰️ Easy Grades

82/100

“He is the easiest teacher you will ever have... Do the work and you'll get an easy A.”

📚 Self-Teaching Load

40/100

“You will have to teach yourself because he can't teach. .”

❤️ Caring Personality

75/100

“Really thoughtful and kind... He provides so much to his students and and accomodating.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • Talks more than he does math. Overexplains every single problem and .
  • Sitting in his class for 3 hours is very difficult, beware if you don't want to have to learn yourself.
  • Lectures were pictures in a dropbox...

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • This course ended up being very easy due to the fact that he hardly assigned any work.
  • Easy A, but he's a terrible teacher.
  • After exam 1, 60% of the class had Fs, but I was coasting at a low A-.

Theme 3

❤️ About Character

  • He's a super genuine guy... Super easy class and sweet professor
  • Ellingson truly cares for his students and tries to accommodate them as much as possible
  • Really a gem of a teacher! Great sense of humor and plays classical music during class.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

50

Recent reviews read by the AI

93

Lifetime ratings

88/100

Evidence confidence

50 detailed reviews spanning many years and courses with consistent themes , and uneven teaching.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 550
4 out of 519
3 out of 511
2 out of 56
1 out of 57

Course coverage

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Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

39 reported outcomes

A range

25

A+ 2 · A 22 · A- 1

B range

7

B+ 1 · B 6

C range

1

C+ 1

D range

0

No reported values

F

1

F 1

No letter grade reported

5

Drop/Withdrawal 1 · Not sure yet 4