Marc is just not a very good lecturer, and I sometimes thinks he actively hates teaching. He clearly likes the material, but I would not use him as a resource to ask questions. Grading is overall very generous if you actually complete the bonus points, just takes some time.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Marc Renault
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
Not bad, just spend a well amount of time to obsorbRate My Professors ↗
This will be an extremely difficult class, no matter who teaches it. Marc does a decent job with the material; I think people are upset they have to actually think critically and not ChatGPT everything. The Star Wars theme is a nice touch, and if you do the work and pay attention, passing is guaranteed, and an A is well within reach.Rate My Professors ↗
An absolute piece of (fill in the blanks). Doesn't explain what he teaches and instead if someone asks for clarification, he would start denigrating them for asking "basic and obvious" questions. A bit suprising why the university still lets him teach this course given that it's a compulsory course for a lot of students.Rate My Professors ↗
Unlike most I actually enjoyed Marc's lectures and I feel like I learned a lot in this class. However I hate the way the class is organized. The final is so hard, every question is unnecessarily confusing, and they're not similar to the practice questions. It just measures your ability to write down random stuff and pray for partial credit.Rate My Professors ↗
People here blurr the lines between content and professor. Yes, Marc's lecture style is a bit bland and is pretty poor for people not strong in math. But the subject itself is notoriously difficult, heck you briefly talk about unsolved CS problems who said this would be easy? I flunked the final but everyone passes the class in the endRate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Marc Renault
COMPSCI 298 is an undergraduate directed study course in computer sciences.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Introduction to efficient algorithm design paradigms and analysis of computational intractability.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Marc Renault is described as kind and reachable, with clear expectations and well-structured course materials. Reviewers note he explains topics well, though the class content itself remains difficult.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Senior Honors Thesis
3 creditsCOMPSCI 681 is an individual study course for senior Computer Science majors to complete honors theses under faculty supervision.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Recorded teaching history
Explore courses taught by this instructor →Browse recorded courses
| Term | Course | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 298 | Directed Study in Computer Science |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 577 | Introduction to Algorithms |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 681 | Senior Honors Thesis |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
{
"instructor_uid": "instructor_5b07ff954db288ff1052dd87",
"source": "enrollment",
"source_instructor_id": "mrenault",
"identity_basis": "netid",
"identity_status": "source_identified",
"name": "Marc Renault",
"email": "MRENAULT@WISC.EDU",
"first_observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"last_observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"ratings": {
"review_count": 168,
"quality": 2.33,
"difficulty": 4.2,
"quality_count": 168,
"difficulty_count": 168,
"profile_id": "rmp:2316450",
"source_url": "https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/professor/2316450",
"match_basis": "exact_name",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 16:21:19.997838+00:00",
"courses": {
"course_de12e29109d0c90ee086fcec": {
"review_count": 124,
"quality": 1.77,
"difficulty": 4.5,
"quality_count": 124,
"difficulty_count": 124
},
"course_9a1a7bf1933981bcbaca47ac": {
"review_count": 6,
"quality": 2.33,
"difficulty": 3.67,
"quality_count": 6,
"difficulty_count": 6
},
"course_9b1d5f832c492d1c4a3ce19c": {
"review_count": 35,
"quality": 4.09,
"difficulty": 3.23,
"quality_count": 35,
"difficulty_count": 35
},
"course_37a551eb9007bebe6a41c6b3": {
"review_count": 2,
"quality": 5,
"difficulty": 4,
"quality_count": 2,
"difficulty_count": 2
}
},
"bayesian_quality": 2.4714559344198506,
"prior_mean": 3.6596857835465957,
"prior_weight": 20
},
"current": true,
"courses": [
{
"course_uid": "course_a495c0d9f6ed226e1fc144ee",
"course_id": "COMPSCI 681",
"title": "SENIOR HONORS THESIS",
"credits_min": 3,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": null
},
{
"course_uid": "course_ab3594f7de436ad02e0bd6e1",
"course_id": "COMPSCI 298",
"title": "DIRECTED STUDY IN COMPUTER SCIENCE",
"credits_min": 1,
"credits_max": 3,
"gpa": null
},
{
"course_uid": "course_de12e29109d0c90ee086fcec",
"course_id": "COMPSCI 577",
"title": "INTRODUCTION TO ALGORITHMS",
"credits_min": 4,
"credits_max": 4,
"gpa": 3.04
}
],
"revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
"instructor_url": "/instructors/MARC_RENAULT"
}