ECE-270DL
FIELDS AND WAVES
Offered Fall 2026
Term
Instructor
Overview
Feedback is mixed. The clearest upside is that teaching clarity stands out. The ratings are softer than the more upbeat comments might suggest. Best for students who want a structured class rather than chaos.
DepartmentELEC&CMP
Terms offeredSpring, Fall
Typical enrollment18–41
Semesters of data4
5.5
Hrs / week
96
Responses
176
Enrollment
55%
Response Rate
Evaluation Scores
Overall quality
Teaching, content, and experience combined.
3.1
Intellectually stimulating
Challenges students to think deeply.
3.4
Instructor effectiveness
Explains concepts and facilitates learning.
3.5
Difficulty
Higher means harder.
4.0
Feedback Analysis
Feedback Analysishigh
Analysis based on student evaluations
Based on 261 comments across 6 sections
Feedback is mixed. The clearest upside is that teaching clarity stands out. The ratings are softer than the more upbeat comments might suggest. Best for students who want a structured class rather than chaos.
Student Reports
How hard is the A?
A is doable but not automatic
The signal here is more do-the-work-and-you-should-be-fine than easy-A chatter. Students do not describe the A as automatic, but the evidence also does not paint grading as punishing.
Homework Load
Moderate homework load
Homework load looks moderate. The recurring signal is steady weekly work, but not a course that turns every assignment into a grind.
Lecture Load
Lecture-heavy
Lecture load looks real. Students talk about dense or central lectures, and staying on top of them seems necessary rather than optional.
Strengths
• Teaching clarity stands out; students repeatedly say the material is explained clearly and effectively.
Tradeoffs
• Difficulty runs high even when comments do not settle on one dominant complaint.
Best fit for
Best for students who want a structured class rather than chaos.
Student Responses
I learned about waves, interpret waves in terms of circuits, and transmission lines.
Spring 2025 · Smith, David
Transmission lines, understanding the wave nature to electronics, solving the wave equation with boundary conditions.
Spring 2025 · Smith, David
Learned a few equations thats about it
Spring 2025 · Smith, David
Learned about waves, different mathematical formulations, and theorems.
Spring 2025 · Smith, David
how transmission lines work, how electricity and magnetism can be extended to cover the topics in this class
Spring 2025 · Smith, David
Rating History
Rating history
Error bars show \u00B11 std dev
| Term | Instructor | Overall | Difficulty | Hrs/wk | Enrolled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2025 | Smith, David 3.7Rate My ProfessorsQuality3.7Difficulty3.3Would retake74%Based on 22 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 2.6 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 36 |
| Fall 2024 | Cummer, Steven 4.6Rate My ProfessorsQuality4.6Difficulty3.2Would retake100%Based on 20 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 4.6 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 39 |
| Spring 2024 | Gehm, Michael 4.0Rate My ProfessorsQuality4.0Difficulty3.6Would retake80%Based on 5 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 3.0 | 4.1 | 5.7 | 79 |
| Fall 2023 | Monroe, Christopher 4.3Rate My ProfessorsQuality4.3Difficulty1.8Would retake50%Based on 4 ratingsClick to view on RMP → | 2.5 | 4.8 | 6.9 | 22 |
Instructor
Smith, DavidELEC&CMP
Also teaches
ECE-110L FUND OF ELEC AND COMP ENGR3.8ECE-590D ADVANCED TOPICS IN ECE4.6