Fall 2026

Modern Algebra 1

MATH 541 Modern Algebra 1 covers groups, rings, ideals, homomorphisms, and abstract vector spaces.

offering recorded3 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Mikhail Ivanov3.3/5Isabella Scott

Summary

1 / 6

Homework and exam difficulty is described as perfect and very doable, with a good textbook provided.

Grade history

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

Prerequisites

Course map

(MATH 234 or 375), (MATH 320, 340, 341, 345, or 375), and (MATH 341, 375, 421, 467, or 521), graduate/professional standing, or declared in Mathematics VISP (undergraduate or graduate)

MATH 541 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

Professors

Fall 2026
Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 3.14/5 from 44 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: 5.0/5 raw quality · 3.0/5 difficulty · 2 reviews

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

Mikhail Ivanov delivers clear, engaging lectures with ample examples and participation, which reviewers find interesting and enjoyable. He provides strong organizational support and resources, though one student notes he is not very helpful on Piazza.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 3.07 GPA, 49.1% A/AB (n=57 letter grades).

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Isabella Scott has no reviews in this dataset. Historical reviews for Alexandra Kjuchukova describe arbitrary grading and insensitivity, but these do not apply to the current instructor.

ALEXANDRA KJUCHUKOVA is recorded teaching in Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Fall 2017. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

FEDOR NAZAROV is recorded teaching in Spring 2010. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

MIKHAIL IVANOV is recorded teaching in Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

ROBERT HARRON is recorded teaching in Fall 2012. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SEAN ROSTAMI is recorded teaching in Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2015. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SERGUEI DENISSOV is recorded teaching in Fall 2006. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

SHIVA CHIDAMBARAM is recorded teaching in Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

STEFFEN LEMPP is recorded teaching in Spring 2020, Fall 2022. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

ZEV KLAGSBRUN is recorded teaching in Fall 2011. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

ZIQUAN YANG is recorded teaching in Spring 2023, Spring 2024. 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 002Classroom Instruction38 / 400
LEC 003Classroom Instruction32 / 401

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

Mikhail Ivanov is praised for clear, enjoyable lectures and doable work, though his Piazza support is limited.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.03 GPA, 49.3% A/AB (n=75 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.37 GPA, 66.3% A/AB (n=86 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.06 GPA, 53.7% A/AB (n=95 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

Homework and exam difficulty is described as perfect and very doable, with a good textbook provided.

The class is organized with helpful resources, but the instructor is not very helpful on Piazza.

Topics

  • Group theory and Cayley's theorem
  • Ring theory and homomorphisms
  • Polynomial rings and abstract vector spaces

Skills

  • Understanding group theory, ring theory, and homomorphisms
  • Analyzing abstract vector spaces

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 · 0.18 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
MATH 541 · Fall 2026

Modern Algebra 1

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": "1272:600:011685",
    "course_id": "MATH 541",
    "course_uid": "course_7e12e6bf6be7a81f7ca74420",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "011685",
    "source_subject_id": "600",
    "title": "Modern Algebra 1",
    "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

View the dataset on Hugging Face
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": "2401a36b060347d9949935010d93ec2f91267345c508d0f79fa2aa88b031d670",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}