Definitely my favorite prof in the Earth department. I've taken both 104A and 115 with him online, labs are very difficult in both classes but important for the courses. Start them early and go to office hours for help. He is very approachable, always answers emails in a good amount of time and seems like he really wants to help. 10/10 recommend!

He's such a sweet, helpful guy who made me genuinely interested in Earth Science! Lab sections often tricky but just ask the TA for help & be detailed in your answers. Lecture slides, your main study method, are uploaded after class but you might need to look up some definitions. iClicker partially graded on correctness so be alert during lecture!

Such a sweet guy! Clear on what's expected, uses iclickers, but they're easy points. Used the textbook maybe twice, definitely not necessary if you take good notes during lecture. Midterm and final multiple choice/one word answers, not hard. He actually made ma care abt geology and you can tell hes enthusiastic, and cares you understand

Matt Rioux is one of Earth Science's real gems. He is so caring and in the field he really wants you to learn and helps along the way. (He even climbed behind me as we scaled a mountain to make me feel safe). You learn so much from him and he really cares about his job and students. Also, he climbs mountains like no other, in Matt we trust.

Really nice & you can tell how interested he is in the subject matter! Engaging lectures & really wants to help you out if you just ask. Tests are based more on lectures than on textbook.

Matt is one of the kindest professors Ive had. He is genuinely a good person and a concise, effective, clear lecturer. He cares deeply about his students success and will go out of his way to help you. The class is intense and requires 10-15+ hours/week outside of class time to complete the labs. Prep for late nights hanging with your microscope

Matt is an amazing teacher that wants his students to pass. He goes above and beyond to help everyone understand what is a tough subject that requires many hours of outside work to finish. Matt has even come in on the weekends to work on his own projects but stopped to help student. I wish he taught more classes.

Matt is a fantastic lecturer. He clearly states what theory hed like you to know and is extremely helpful when it comes to identifying minerals. His labs are time consuming but straightforward. Be prepared to work hard outside of class. Hes also incredibly kind- I had a serious family issue keep me from completing a lab and he was very generous.

Great guy! Really knowledgeable and wants students to understand, but also understands not everyone is a geology major. Mandatory field trip to the mountains--turned out to be really interesting and helped with material. Walks around asking for questions before exams. Very clear about what's expected. Wish he taught more classes in Earth dept!!