Exploring COVID-19’s Impact on Computer Science Education Using Student Reviews

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted higher education, forcing a rapid shift to remote learning and profoundly impacting teaching and learning environments. This study evaluates the effects of the pandemic on computer science education using student review data from Rate My Professors (RMP) between 2018 and 2023. By analyzing trends in quality scores, difficulty scores, review tags, and comment sentiments, this research highlights the changing perceptions of students before, during, and after the pandemic. The findings reveal that quality ratings dropped significantly during the pandemic, while difficulty scores peaked, reflecting the challenges of adapting to remote education. Tags and sentiments also shifted notably, with increased emphasis on workload and instructor accessibility during the pandemic. These insights provide valuable implications for educators and institutions, offering strategies to enhance teaching practices and improve resilience in future disruptions.