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'RateMyProfessor'; useful metric? Or just plain mean? While popular among students searching for professors, the website fluctuates between reliable and crass

Since 1999, the website RateMyProfessor has allowed University students to anonymously review their teachers in an public online forum. Since its creation, the site has been a subject of controversy. Is RateMyProfessor a useful metric? Or is it just plain mean?

Syed Naqvi, a member of the faculty senate and a UT Dallas professor for the School of Interdisciplinary Studies shared some his thoughts on RateMyProfessor potentially being, “a place where people with grievances that are oftentimes a result of getting in trouble for academic dishonesty can go and try to extract revenge.” He said when the website is mentioned between teachers, “it’s almost a way to explain what a bad metric would be.”

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Reviews do not disappear on the website over time. Past comments are viewable to the sites visitors years after the review is posted. One such comment on a professor from the College of Business, Michelle Connell reads:

"Proffesor Connell is honestly the best proffesor I have had at UTD so far. She goes out of her way to help us and truly cares about her students. You must attend class in order to understand homework, review, and exams. 4 exams that are not too difficult if you study, and several homeowkr assignments on pearson. She's also HOT."

RateMyProfessor initially offered the ability for students to select a ‘chili pepper’ to indicate if the professor they were reviewing was attractive. Due to criticism, this function was removed but the same courtesy was not extended to reviews on the site. As it is, a professor’s career and the subsequent ratings allow zero nuance overtime.

Finance senior Zack Nguyen shared his own thoughts on the site, “I use RateMyProfessor every time I need to pick classes for the semester,” he said.

For Nguyen, RateMyProfessor has been a useful tool during his college career. Students looking to have a level of control

“Support from family and friends, and also finding happiness in things like dance or singing. I realized that when I was depressed, upbeat music really helped. It boosted my energy to get me through though tough times. So I think music is a really big part of my life, and my name actually means ‘a little song’ so its kinda ironic.”

- Geetika Vedula, Computer Engineering, senior

"I guess it’s the people around me. Knowing that I have a community at UTD and that I’m involved also helps to have that strength to go on.”

- Nathan Simanjuntak, Finance Major, senior

“Having other people around you who suffer, who have been though it, and hearing their stories. When I hear in people’s pasts, looking back on your own personal struggles and how you got through them. Surrounding yourself with people who started somewhere difficult and ended up somewhere awesome."

- Sarah Gifford, Business Administration, senior

“Seeing people honestly. Just seeing people do their things: doing whatever they can, whatever they want, trying whatever they can. They’re doing their best, and if they’re doing their best I might as well too."

- Zayan Hossain, Computer Science, senior

“I have to say, well, for background I live on a farm. So every day I get to go out to work with the horses, the cattle, and the chickens-it reminds me there’s great things in the world both natural and manmade."

- Becca Whitten, Psychology, junior

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