Congratulations to the Business students who won an award at the 2016 Undergraduate Research Excellence Awards night, hosted by the UFV Research, Engagement, and Graduate Studies Office.
Under the supervision of Associate Professor David Dobson, Business students Delaney Minor, Manjot Pander, and Seth Stenner (pictured above) conducted a study titled “The Truth Behind RateMyProfessors.com“. This study sought to find the truth about the ratings of professors. The findings showed that:
- students who received A’s, on average, rated higher than students with lower grades;
- there was no significant difference between male and female professors’ average ratings;
- there was an interaction between letter grades and professor gender, as male professors gave more ‘A’s than female professors. This led to male professors receiving higher average ratings (because students who received A’s gave their professors higher ratings);
- the rater’s interest in a course was important in determining the rating of a professor (i.e., the higher the interest, the higher the rating).
The takeaway from this research is that students who are using Rate My Professors as the sole resource for choosing professors might be misled by the personal biases of raters. The group behind this study received the 2016 Undergraduate Research Excellence Award for their work.
Student winners are pictured above with Dr. Tracy Ryder-Glass, Dean of the Faculty of Professional Studies.