Should students trust Rate My Professor?

 Utah State University students who want to learn from the best are finding the website RateMyProfessors.com to be less than trustworthy — and sometimes sexist.

On April 11, more than 5,000 Utah State University students will complete class registration for the upcoming fall semester. With over 800 professors and thousands of classes, it can be hard to narrow options.

One valuable tool aiding students in this process is RateMyProfessors.com, an online platform that lets students submit reviews of their instructors for the benefit of future peers. Reviewers assess their professors on class difficulty, quality, and the likelihood that they would take another class with the instructor. Additionally, they can include written reviews that detail their personal experiences in the class.

“I want to switch into well-rated professors if I can,” said Abby Sherman, a pre-med student at USU, who uses RateMyProfessors. The quality of a professor can have a significant impact in a rigorous program, she said.

 However, Sherman rates the platform lower than she rates most professors, only a 5.5 out of 10 where in comes to credibility. A similar sentiment is often found among students who discuss the topic in a Reddit forum.

 “On the whole, it’s better than having no source of advance information about the professors you have to choose from,” said a Reddit user with the moniker badly_behaved. Others who post on Reddit often agree that it’s about “getting a feel” for which reviews are made in good faith.

“I think RateMyProfessors can be a good resource, but I also feel like it can exhibit bias,” said Claire Ott, a USU journalism student. Ott chooses not to rely on RateMyProfessors when registering for classes.

Credibility issues with RateMyProfessors can be attributed to several factors including: 

• Reviewers are not required to be verified as students of the class. RateMyProfessors uses the honor system.
• Students often blame the professors for low grades, which means professors who teach more challenging courses often receive harsher reviews. 
• The site can turn into a popularity contest, which has nothing to do with teaching abilities.

USU English lecturer Robb Kunz says that it’s simply a ranking system that doesn’t offer much value beyond detailing which professors are more charismatic. Kunz blames his one negative review as a prank. He said a student saw that he had a near-perfect score and thought it would be funny to give him a low rating.

The platform once used a chili-pepper rating that let students score professors on their attractiveness, but that was removed after a social media campaign, according to Inside Higher Ed. 

Many educators pointed out that it is difficult for women to be taken seriously in academia, and a rating professor’s “hotness” only fed the problem.

Gender bias remains a prevalent issue on RateMyProfessors. A database of 14 million reviews created at Northeastern University showed that male professors are more likely to be judged on intelligence, while female professors are often assessed on nurturing qualities. 

Nevertheless, many students still turn to RateMyProfessors, acknowledging that there is often a thread of truth in reviews. While a single negative review may be dismissed, the weight of a majority consensus suggests potential concerns. 

“It’s not a source I’d rely on completely, but it can give some perspective,” Ott said.