Clay McShane is a History professor at Northeastern University rated 3.4/5 by 39 students, with 2.5/5 difficulty (TRACE + RateMyProfessors + Reddit, updated July 2026).
Clay McShane professor reviews and ratings: 3.4/5 from 39 student reviews at Northeastern. TRACE + RateMyProfessor + Reddit.
I took history of Boston expecting a fun, easy course that would help me get to know my new city better.... could not have been more wrong. McShane is a nice old man who knows a lot but in all honesty should not be teaching anymore. Frequently off topic and rambling on and on about nothing, the walking quizzes are almost impossible to well on.HIST1232 2010-11-17 14:52:02 +0000 UTC
He is a lecturer. If you do the reading you will get 8/8 on every reading quiz. If you listen in class you wont have to study for the midterm. Honestly the hardest part of this class was the walking tours but they don't count for much. He guides you through the class and it is easy to get a good grade. Go to class and you'll do fine in this class.HIST1231 2010-08-23 15:38:42 +0000 UTC
You will likely not get above a C in this class. There are like 100 people in the class and less than 10% will get a B or above due to his system of grading. Pretty much everyone is ranked from best to worst and there's only so many slots per letter grade. Theoretically you could do well in the course and so long as everyone is doing better, youfaiHST232 2009-01-20 23:06:19 +0000 UTC
Class=History of Boston A good enough guy, very knowledgeable...a human encyclopedia of stories/facts/dates ect. GRADE DEFLATION, UNACCEPTABLE. Incredible hard elective, my calculated 84 average gives me a C right now...such BS. I don't know why he makes this class so difficult grade wise, but so lax in every other aspect. NOT WORTH YOUR GPA.HISBOS 2008-12-12 19:52:30 +0000 UTC
nice guy & he really knows his stuff, but he gets confused & tells the same stories over and over. lots of books, but there is no reading on a regular basis. 1 easy paper, walking quizzes mandatory, which are a pain, but not awful. midterm and final, but he gives the questions ahead of time. interesting class, but a little more work than expected.HIST232 2008-12-09 12:16:30 +0000 UTC
I love this man. He is energetic, passionate and dedicated both to his topic and his students. He saved me in so many ways. He does leap from topic to topic but his classes are always interesting and fun. Always left feeling as if I learned something.HIST701 2008-04-24 12:57:55 +0000 UTC
Really nice guy who knows his stuff. He tends to ramble a lot, and my notes were all over the place. Walking quizzes aren't bad if you read the guide and pay attention to street names. Midterm and final are easy if you outline your essays beforehand; he gives you the questions. Do the extra credit! Up to 10 extra points on your final grade! Easy A.HSTU232 2008-01-02 11:49:38 +0000 UTC
easy A, even though i'm terrible at history. walking quizzes are easy, but you have to read the walking guide book and pay attention to street names when you're taking the tours. lectures are extremely boring, i don't think there's one class i haven't fallen asleep in. study guides literally give you the questions on the midterm and final.HSTBOST 2007-11-08 12:13:04 +0000 UTC
Professor McShane is a funny lecturer. His jokes about his cardiologist are priceless. As an advisor, he is a godsend. Very helpful and generous guy. Any bad reviews most likely are coming from obnoxious CJ majors who whined and cheated their way through History of Boston.Clay McShane is the manHSTBSTN 2007-05-18 22:46:12 +0000 UTC
clay mcshane is one of the best profs i've ever had at NU. knows everything about everything, and if you have a question he's definitely there to help you. great guy, good classes, even better if you can get him in a smaller class than history of boston.MANY3 2006-08-17 19:54:19 +0000 UTC
A fun class. You learn a lot about boston. Good chance for extra points too, look for animal statues. In addition to walking tours, also study online for the quizzes, should be cake thoughHISTOFBOSTON 2005-12-19 22:34:13 +0000 UTC
This guy is wicked old and rambles on alot. However the class is easy and you learn about the city you live in.HS 2005-12-16 17:51:22 +0000 UTC
An example of how this guy lectures --- let's talk about the Chicago fire. Boston is a great waterfront city. New York has exceptional steaks. And did I mention all the immigrants in Miami? It's frustrating, esplly when he brings up something worth talking about, then he rambles on elsewhere.SEMINAR 2005-10-28 14:49:46 +0000 UTC
McShane is a great guy. He's really nice and a pretty easy grader. Just show up to class and you're pretty much all set.SOCIALHISTORY 2005-09-08 09:06:05 +0000 UTC
Great guy. Knows his stuff. I wish I took more of his classes.HSTBOSTON 2005-09-06 14:46:12 +0000 UTC
Clay McShane has an average rating of 3.4/5 from 39 student reviews.
Clay McShane's classes have a difficulty rating of 2.5/5 based on student reviews.
Data updated July 2026.