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One reason that so many
We've partnered with RMP to highlight the top 10 professors at Stanford, as voted by its students. Professors' "Overall Quality" rating is determined by how students rate them for clarity and helpfulness.
While these professors represent a variety of subjects, more than half of them hail from Stanford's computer science department - known as one of the best programs in the country.
#1 Ruth Starkman, Philosophy
What students say:
"brilliant, hilarious, and yes, totally in your face, she wants you to learn and do something in the world!"
"Dr. Starkman is a wonderful teacher, who makes the great books of political philosophy accessible and fun to talk about. The reading is hard, but it's stuff you always wished you knew. She's got a wicked sense of humor and a great sense of style too!"
#2 Mehran Sahami, Computer Science
What students say:
"Mehran is honestly one of the best professors I from whom I have had the privilege to learn. He's very clear, and incorporates humor into his lesson. A huge chunk of material which may be confusing is cleared up after attending a lectures. He proactively asks for relevant questions and answers them meaningfully."
"Awesome guy. Was extremely funny , helpful, and clear in describing the subject."
#3 Kurt Carrasquilla, Business
What students say:
"Kurt has so much to offer. He is a very dedicated teacher with a deep knowledge of the subject and real-life experiences. I really enjoyed every and each lesson he taught."
"Excellent class, great overview, key benefit was leaving with at least a first pass on an investment plan. Getting questions answered was extremely helpful and easy. Recommend if you want an overview for wealth management."
#4 Ewart Thomas, Psychology
What students say:
"Prof Thomas is one of the best professors I have had at Stanford. If you apply yourself *a little*, you will lean a *whole lot* from him. What I like most about his classes, both the undergrad and the grad, is that you learn how to practically apply the skills that you learn."
"amazing professor! i highly recommend him to everyone. even if stats isn't your 'thing,' he makes it interesting AND relevant. rock on, ewart! :)"
#5 Jerry Cain, Computer Science
What students say:
"Jerry is the man. He's a great explainer and values fun and interesting assignment. He really cares about the class."
"One of the best teachers I have ever had. He explains everything very well, makes it fun, and is also super helpful. If you have him you are lucky!"
#6 Nick Parlante, Computer Science
"He is awesome! He helped me cross the mental barrier I had towards Computer Science and has created an interest in me for Programming. He is great! He is the Best! Thank you Sir!"
"He tells a horrible pun every lecture to break the monotony, never phased by the pained reactions of the students in the class. A funny guy. Colorful explanations of trends and techniques in object oriented programming."
#7 Eric Roberts, Computer Science
What students say:
"Smart guy! Very passionate about teaching and you can really sense he actually likes teaching undergrads. Programming assignments are fun - they can get rather time consuming towards the end of the quarter."
"I took his 'visions of utopia' introsem and it was tons of fun. there was a lot of reading, but eric is really cool and always structured class well. not to mention, he invited us over to his house to watch the movie of 1984 and eat a full home-cooked dinner. it was greatly appreciated, especially as a rest from dining hall food. he's just a really cool guy."
#8 Julie Zelenski, Computer Science
"She was a great prof. and renewed my interest in Computer Science. Is a great speaker, and helps imensely in after hours."
"Looking back (I took the class years ago) she's one of the best profs I had at Stanford. Given her work outside the University, it lends good perspective in the world of academia."
#9 Stephen Boyd, Engineering
What students say:
"Super awesome professor. Is able to given intuitive interpretations to very complicated mathematical concepts. Gives good explanation of the theory, and focuses on how to apply it to real world problems. I feel priveledged to have been able to take this course from this professor."
"Very smart, but he knows it. His lectures are some of the most entertaining, but they take a lot of work. Deffinately recomend any of his classes!"
#10 Andrew Ng, Computer Science
What students say:
"A great teacher who always explains hard-to-understand concept in a easy way. The programming exercises really helps me gain deeper understanding about ML. The course is hard, but Prof really really did a good job!"
"Professional Ng is an amazing lecturer, absolutely top notch. His notes are extremely detailed and refined. But going to his class is still a plus, he's clear, to the point and extremely good with giving examples for anything that might be fuzzy in the notes. The class is not easy however - at least for me, the homework really requires a lot work."