Steve is providing really great lecture and is really nice to talk to after class. He is really knowledgable and gives very great introduction to how optimization works. This is a class that you don't want to miss if you are interesting how optimization works. The project are in julia code, which is super nice to use.Rate My Professors ↗
Current instructor
Stephen Wright
What students say
Original student reviews · all captured dates
If you just want to get an A in this course, then the difficulty of this course is 2-3, but the content and the topics of the lectures are more difficult than average. Those topics are insightful and will help you succeed in future CS learning (especially for algorithm and machine learning). Prof. Wright is very kind and generous in grading.Rate My Professors ↗
This class was so much more difficult than it needed to be. That being said, aside from general disorganization in lectures, he does a good job of presenting the material during lectures. My only qualm with this prof is that his grading criteria is very (and unnecessarily) harsh.Rate My Professors ↗
Professor Wright's lectures involve little more than transcribing the textbook on the board. Their focus is on rigor over intuition. Logistics are not managed well. TA contact information and grading criteria were never provided. This is a notoriously difficult course. In a class full of math and CS PhD students, the average grade is about a B.Rate My Professors ↗
Stephen is a good teacher and certainly is respected by every student. He has written several books and usually lectures from them, which makes it easier to catch up if you missed lectures. The assignments were graded in an insanely harsh way, though, and the professor doesn't seem eager to answer questions during office hours.Rate My Professors ↗
Prof jbr is very forthright and a real joy to work with. Your trust is not preserved only to be broken soonRate My Professors ↗
Personal experiences, not a representative survey. Profile matching and captured coverage are shown in the source details.
Classes with Stephen Wright
Directed Study
1–6 creditsCOMPSCI 699 offers directed study projects for junior and senior students arranged with a faculty member.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Master's Thesis
1–9 creditsCOMPSCI 790 is a Master's Thesis course for graduate students, focusing on independent research and thesis completion.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Master's Research
1–9 creditsOffering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Pre-dissertator Research
1–9 creditsCOMPSCI 899 is a pre-dissertator research course for master's graduates preparing for doctoral dissertation work under faculty supervision.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Dissertation
1–6 creditsCOMPSCI 990 is an advanced mentored reading and research course for students with dissertator status.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Covers theory and algorithms for nonlinear optimization, focusing on unconstrained methods like quasi-Newton and trust-region techniques.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Stephen Wright is respected and uses his textbooks for lectures, aiding review. However, reviewers note harsh assignment grading and limited office hour responsiveness.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Pre-dissertator's Research
1–9 creditsISYE 890 is a PhD-level course for conducting directed research projects arranged with a faculty advisor.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Research and Thesis
1–6 creditsISYE 990 is a PhD-level course for conducting directed research projects arranged with a faculty advisor.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
No recorded grade history
Directed Study
1–3 creditsMATH 698 offers directed study projects arranged individually with a faculty member.
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 699 | Directed Study |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 790 | Master's Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 799 | Master's Research |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 899 | Pre-dissertator Research |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI 990 | Dissertation |
| Fall 2026 | COMPSCI/ISYE/MATH/STAT 726 | Nonlinear Optimization I |
| Fall 2026 | ISYE 890 | Pre-dissertator's Research |
| Fall 2026 | ISYE 990 | Research and Thesis |
| Fall 2026 | MATH 698 | Directed Study |
Teaching history may be incomplete. Course pages contain course-specific feedback and citations.
Instructor identity & provenance
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