Fall 2026

Introduction to Programming Languages and Compilers

Introduction to programming languages and compilers, covering theory, practice, and language feature implications for implementation.

offering recorded3 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Aws Albarghouthi3.7/5

Summary

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The course involves six cumulative programming projects, each requiring approximately 20 hours, which some students find tedious, vague, or overly complicated.

Grade history

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average GPA
letter grades
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All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors

Prerequisites

Course map

E C E/​COMP SCI 354 and (COMP SCI 367 or 400) or graduate/professional standing or declared in the Capstone Certificate in Computer Sciences for Professionals

COMPSCI 536

This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree

Professors

Fall 2026
/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 3.67/5 from 12 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

Aws Albarghouthi delivers clear, engaging lectures that make abstract compiler theory accessible, and reviewers praise his passion and ability to break down complex concepts. He provides comprehensive online notes and fair assignments. Conversely, some students find the material unupdated or boring, while others criticize projects as tedious and vague.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2020: 2.99 GPA, 46.9% A/AB (n=81 letter grades); Fall 2021: 3.21 GPA, 57.7% A/AB (n=71 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.11 GPA, 50.0% A/AB (n=52 letter grades). Includes jointly taught sections.

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Current instructor Aws Albarghouthi has no reviews. Historically, Charles Fischer and Drew Davidson were praised for clear explanations and helpful office hours. Loris D'Antoni received mixed feedback, while Beck Hasti made difficult material digestible but faced criticism for slow grading.

ANDREW DAVIDSON is recorded teaching in Fall 2014. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

AWS ALBARGHOUTHI is recorded teaching in Fall 2015, Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

BECK HASTI is recorded teaching in Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

CHARLES FISCHER is recorded teaching in Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2018. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

LORIS D'ANTONI is recorded teaching in Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2023. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SOMESH JHA is recorded teaching in Spring 2012. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

Calendar & sections

Fall 2026

Schedule loads here as you scroll.

SectionModeEnrolled / capacityWaitlist
LEC 001Classroom Instruction65 / 750

Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.

Meeting source records
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Student experience

the class

Aws Albarghouthi receives high praise for clear, engaging lectures that make abstract compiler theory accessible and interesting to students.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.29 GPA, 67.5% A/AB (n=126 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.11 GPA, 50.0% A/AB (n=52 letter grades); Spring 2026: 2.99 GPA, 44.6% A/AB (n=65 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

The course involves six cumulative programming projects, each requiring approximately 20 hours, which some students find tedious, vague, or overly complicated.

Experiences vary, with some citing outdated materials and boring lectures, while others appreciate the manageable workload and engaging teaching style.

Topics

  • Compiler design theory and practice
  • Programming language features and implementation implications

Skills

  • Compiler design theory and practice, analyzing language features for implementation, and software project development.

Grades

Historical instructor

Fall 2026 · Projected

Before grades are released

– average GPA

Approximate 80% prediction interval

About this estimate

The course’s semester-average GPA, not an individual student’s grade. The center uses 6 recent terms, weighted toward recent results.

The range uses the finite-sample 80th-percentile rank of absolute errors from earlier same-season forecasts. Each forecast uses only records from earlier terms. At least four forecasts are required; bounds are rounded outward and limited to 0–4. This is an empirical estimate: changing instructors or grading policies can reduce its coverage.

8 earlier forecasts · 0.26 GPA average error.

Grades over time

Through Fall 2026

More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data

Where this course fits relative to

Latest available grades · Spring 2026 · all course levels

GPA

Higher than % of other courses in this group.

Course GPAs · red marks this course’s range

letter grades

More recorded grades than % of other courses in this group.

Typical course in this group: letter grades.

About this comparison

1283 courses over the same term, each with at least 30 recorded letter grades. Cross-listed courses count once. GPA is not a measure of difficulty or teaching quality. The typical course is the median by recorded grade count; tied values are not counted as lower. Grade counts describe course scale, not unique students or typical section size.

Descriptions compare GPA with this group’s average: at least 0.20 higher or lower; otherwise close to average. Section size uses median recorded enrollment: small up to 30, mid-sized 31–99, large 100+. Lectures and discussion/lab sections are described separately.

Sources & history

UW–Madison

Catalog & offerings

Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.

Catalog observation history

Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.

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Selected offering source records
COMPSCI 536 · Fall 2026

Introduction to Programming Languages and Compilers

Recorded 2026-09-07
Raw records
[
  {
    "run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
    "semester": "1272",
    "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
    "offering_id": "1272:266:004276",
    "course_id": "COMPSCI 536",
    "course_uid": "course_20918224366f6bbd226f8ec0",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "004276",
    "source_subject_id": "266",
    "title": "Introduction to Programming Languages and Compilers",
    "credits_min": 3,
    "credits_max": 3,
    "typically_offered": "Fall, Spring"
  }
]
Rate My Professors

Student reviews

Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.

Read original reviews
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Madgrades

Grade history

Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.

Explore recorded grades
Dataset & model

Recorded 2026-09-07

Download the original dataset
Model outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Download part 1
Full model traces

Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.

Download part 1
Model & dataset provenance
{
  "model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
  "model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
  "task_version": "14",
  "output_id": "63f3fc0134b3ebe468d230b58b91f4e1033d0ddedd3b24e9a300b48c26a78163",
  "requirements_status": "needs_review",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}