Historical instructor

Mary McCoy

Adjusted rating
RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 4.10/5 from 20 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.

What students say

Original student reviews · all captured dates

CA310 · course not matched
Quality 1/5Difficulty 2/5
McCoy went on off-topic rambles, didn't have a clear structure or plan for the class (she was sometimes surprised by the content on her own slides), didn't direct discussion well, and rarely addressed the core topic of the class (rhetoric). She is clearly kind and well-intentioned, but the course was not enjoyable whatsoever.
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CA310 · course not matched
Quality 5/5Difficulty 2/5
Really nice and caring professor! Love her so much.
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CA310 · course not matched
Quality 4/5Difficulty 3/5
She is a very caring professor and the class content is fascinating. I did not find the course reading to be mandatory, but it was generally very interesting. She is very accommodating and helpful, truly a gem. Only thing I would note is that grading can be pretty slow to turn around
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CA470 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 3/5
I am absolutely convinced that she is a very caring professor, as she is easily accessible in office hours, but she is a very nervous presenter. She seems passionate, and is clearly knowledgeable about her subject, but she reads verbatim fr… Read full reviewShow less
I am absolutely convinced that she is a very caring professor, as she is easily accessible in office hours, but she is a very nervous presenter. She seems passionate, and is clearly knowledgeable about her subject, but she reads verbatim from a script the entire class, and mumbles tangentally often. Also, incredibly long midterm & so much reading.
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CA470 · course not matched
Quality 3/5Difficulty 4/5
McCoy is extremely kind, but mumbles a LOT (which is so hard to understand while she wears a mask) and reads straight from her notes for the majority of lecture, making it feel like a nervous class presentation. Be sure you're interested in revolutions before taking--the class isn't impossible but definitely difficult due to McCoy's lecturing style
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CA470 · course not matched
Quality 5/5Difficulty 4/5
Professor McCoy is one of the best professors I've ever had. She is so passionate about all of her material. Her lectures are super interesting, it makes you want to attend class. She has a weekly short essay based on the readings that are super easy to do, two exams and a final paper.
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Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.

Classes with Mary McCoy

No teaching recorded in Fall 2026.

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Recorded teaching history

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Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.

Instructor identity & provenance
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