College students evaluated teaching effectiveness at the end of course and one year after graduation. Results showed variance attributable to the specific instructor was much larger than that due either to course level or course type for both end-of-term and follow-up ratings, and the effects were stable. (Author/RL)

Students' course evaluations were related to 16 background characteristics for 511 undergraduate courses and 221 instructors. Each separate variable explained less than five percent of the variance. The four most influential background variables were: prior subject interest, expected grades, workload/difficulty, and percent enrolled for general…