Fall 2026

Introduction to Cartography

GEOG 370 introduces cartography theory and map-making practice, covering scale, projections, and design.

offering recorded4 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Robert Roth4.1/5Natalie CorreaNuzhat Tabassum Nawshin

Summary

1 / 7

The course features a high workload with tough labs and project-based assignments that vary in intensity. Students are advised to start labs early and attend office hours.

Grade history

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

Prerequisites

Course map

Sophomore standing

  • Sophomore standing
GEOG 370 used by

“Used by” includes alternatives; linked courses may have other requirements. This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree
  • Sophomore standing

Professors

Fall 2026

Robert Roth

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

Raw average: 4.56/5 from 16 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.

For this course: 4.7/5 raw quality · 2.8/5 difficulty · 10 reviews

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

Robert Roth delivers enthusiastic and clear lectures that reviewers find engaging and relevant to modern cartography. He is described as organized and approachable, often using personal anecdotes to contextualize learning. While some students find exams challenging or unnecessarily difficult, others consider them straightforward if attention is paid to lecture notes.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2020: 3.43 GPA, 81.5% A/AB (n=27 letter grades); Fall 2021: 3.64 GPA, 91.4% A/AB (n=35 letter grades); Fall 2023: 3.69 GPA, 89.6% A/AB (n=67 letter grades).

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Robert Roth is the current instructor for GEOG 370. Historical reviews for Daniel Huffman describe him as an intelligent cartographer with extremely high standards and harsh grading, where weekly quizzes are frequent. Bill Limpisathian was noted for helpful TAs and accessible instruction, though lectures were dense and the class tedious.

BILL LIMPISATHIAN is recorded teaching in Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

DANIEL PATRICK HUFFMAN is recorded teaching in Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2017, Spring 2018. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

ROBERT ROTH is recorded teaching in Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2023. 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 Instruction80 / 801
LAB 301Classroom Instruction14 / 200
LAB 302Classroom Instruction15 / 200
LAB 303Classroom Instruction25 / 201
LAB 304Classroom Instruction26 / 200

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

Robert Roth is an enthusiastic and clear lecturer who uses current examples to engage students. Students report the class is rewarding, though exam difficulty is viewed differently.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.53 GPA, 82.0% A/AB (n=61 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.75 GPA, 86.8% A/AB (n=38 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.36 GPA, 61.2% A/AB (n=49 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

The course features a high workload with tough labs and project-based assignments that vary in intensity. Students are advised to start labs early and attend office hours.

Roth is extremely organized and approachable, providing regular feedback. He incorporates current examples to keep lectures engaging, and projects are viewed as strong portfolio pieces.

Topics

  • Scale, spatial reference systems, and projections
  • Data acquisition
  • Thematic mapping techniques

Skills

  • Map-making
  • Cartographic abstraction and design

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 5 same-season 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 · 0.16 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
GEOG 370 · Fall 2026

Introduction to Cartography

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": "1272:416:008272",
    "course_id": "GEOG 370",
    "course_uid": "course_4acea7da7ba501a17437b0f2",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "008272",
    "source_subject_id": "416",
    "title": "Introduction to Cartography",
    "credits_min": 4,
    "credits_max": 4,
    "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": "583999a8f9734ff291d30aed0f7b24c00c197c1dab4a8b9c28c66178a10518e1",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}