Cheating in med school?

[huskerdye]

Getting ready to start med school in the fall and just curious how frequent people cheat (if at all) at your school?

I feel like it would take some big balls, but I know a ton of people in undergrad who did, although most got caught. =]

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[Bojack Horseman]

I don't know anyone who cheats. It would be too hard and the risk isn't worth it. Plus, our tests have 80-100 questions usually so I don't see how a cheat sheet would help very much.

 

[D elegans]

I don't know of anyone who has nor do I know anyone who has come before the honor code committee about it.

 

[Didierdrogba]

I love how accepted people change their status on sdn to "medical student" without having sit through one class in medical school, just sayin

 

[Bojack Horseman]

I love how accepted people change their status on sdn to "medical student" without having sit through one class in medical school, just sayin

Whatever, at least they're accepted and not just pre-allo trolls

 

[Oo Cipher oO]

Cheating on tests? I haven't seen it and I imagine, like RandomHero, said it just isn't worth risking expulsion for a couple answers on one test.

Cheating on things that are less likely to get you caught happens though. Like having friends sign you in at a required class, passing around old tests that you aren't supposed to, a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers, etc. I've seen those kind of things happen.

 

[Bojack Horseman]

a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers, etc.

So glad this hasn't happened in my class (to the best of my knowledge at least)

 

[Didierdrogba]

a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers

wow this is pretty malignant

 

[Bojack Horseman]

wow this is pretty malignant

I guess it only takes one bad apple

 

[Siverhideo1985]

I love how accepted people change their status on sdn to "medical student" without having sit through one class in medical school, just sayin

Please tell me you have better things to do with your life than keep track of people's SDN status.

As to the cheating...I heard rumors of someone fudging with clinical evals a couple years ago. What a waste of a quarter mil, huh?

 

[loltopsy]

I love how accepted people change their status on sdn to "medical student" without having sit through one class in medical school, just sayin

I love how med students change their SDN status to 'resident' on match day without even having been on call once.

People are excited, chill out.

 

[yehhhboiii]

I love how med students change their SDN status to 'resident' on match day without even having been on call once.

People are excited, chill out.

This doesn't happen ever.

 

[Law2Doc]

Please tell me you have better things to do with your life than keep track of people's SDN ...

It's actually a valid concern. This is an advice board, and a premed will weigh advice differently regarding med school if it's coming from a "med student" versus someone yet to start. So it makes a difference in terms of the function of the board. its not about having "better" things to do -- it's an integral component to this board being optimally useful.

This issue has come up multiple times over the years, with a consensus conceding that one really ought not change your status until orientation week (for either med school or residency, respectively). But premeds tend to be way too excited for their own good and jump the gun, claiming med student status the second they see an acceptance letter, which can be many months before they actually know anything about med school life, and thus many months each year of inaccurately weighted advice. So yeah, it's a problem.

Perhaps SDN could create an interval designation that would let you guys claim success in the admissions process without misleading premeds.

 

[Law2Doc]

Getting ready to start med school in the fall and just curious how frequent people cheat (if at all) at your school?

I feel like it would take some big balls, but I know a ton of people in undergrad who did, although most got caught. =]

Cheating in med school is high risk with low reward. You can end your professional career with cheating. But your grades in med school during the preclinical years really don't matter much -- residencies are going to focus on Step 1 and clinical evaluations to a far far far greater extent. It would be like robbing a bank at gunpoint to steal the pennies.

 

[Siverhideo1985]

This issue

is moot in this thread. OP, who openly admitted that he is starting this fall, asked a question from his soon-to-be-fellow classmates about cheating...he wasn't giving advice.

And unless mods start requiring some sort of proof of status and we can ensure that everyone on here only gives advice about things they have actually experienced, we'll all just have to contend that this is *just* an online forum on the interwebs.

 

[BrakngLyv]

One of my classmates was found cheating on a test toward the end of 2nd year. He had to repeat 2nd year.

 

[loltopsy]

One of my classmates was found cheating on a test toward the end of 2nd year. He had to repeat 2nd year.

That will be fun to explain to residency programs.

 

[tiedyeddog]

is moot in this thread. OP, who openly admitted that he is starting this fall, asked a question from his soon-to-be-fellow classmates about cheating...he wasn't giving advice.

And unless mods start requiring some sort of proof of status and we can ensure that everyone on here only gives advice about things they have actually experienced, we'll all just have to contend that this is *just* an online forum on the interwebs.

Just as premeds can change their statuses to whatever they want, we can call them out on it.

You aren't a medical student until you start orientation, bros.

 

[tiedyeddog]

My school makes it hard/almost impossible to cheat on our big exams during M1/M2. We took all of our exams on our own computers in a lecture hall together with some kind of "military grade" program that we were told was unhackable.

I have always wondered what other schools take block exams with. Paper exams? Scantrons?

 

[tiedyeddog]

I love how med students change their SDN status to 'resident' on match day without even having been on call once.

People are excited, chill out.

I can't say I have ever seen anyone do this.

 

[D elegans]

My school makes it hard/almost impossible to cheat on our big exams during M1/M2. We took all of our exams on our own computers in a lecture hall together with some kind of "military grade" program that we were told was unhackable.

I have always wondered what other schools take block exams with. Paper exams? Scantrons?

We take ours with scantrons 🙄 I mean really, we need to join the 1990s

 

[evilbooyaa]

I've heard of people at my school who would go to the bathroom during an exam and look up answers on their phones as our school's test policy is pretty much on honor code. I would personally never do that, although the thought has crossed my mind. Other people abused the "lol I'm sick AKA I don't want to take this test then have my friends feed me answers when I take it in 2 days" shpiel. I missed one exam during the first 2 years b/c I just completely overslept, and I took it in the afternoon the same day without talking to any of my classmates.

 

[calvnandhobbs68]

I can't say I have ever seen anyone do this.

Yeah me neither...

 

[SmokingMonkey]

I've heard of people at my school who would go to the bathroom during an exam and look up answers on their phones as our school's test policy is pretty much on honor code. I would personally never do that, although the thought has crossed my mind. Other people abused the "lol I'm sick AKA I don't want to take this test then have my friends feed me answers when I take it in 2 days" shpiel. I missed one exam during the first 2 years b/c I just completely overslept, and I took it in the afternoon the same day without talking to any of my classmates.

We had med students do both of these while I was in school. The only difference was they would make a cheat sheet, then go to the bathroom and pull it out since this was the pre-Iphone days. We were on the honor code as well. Just shows things never change.

 

[rodmichael82]

Getting ready to start med school in the fall and just curious how frequent people cheat (if at all) at your school?

I feel like it would take some big balls, but I know a ton of people in undergrad who did, although most got caught. =]

No one cheats in medical school. The risk is too big. In my school there's no doubt in my mind that cheating of any kind would lead to immediate expulsion.

 

[FutureInternist]

Cheating on tests? I haven't seen it and I imagine, like RandomHero, said it just isn't worth risking expulsion for a couple answers on one test.

Cheating on things that are less likely to get you caught happens though. Like having friends sign you in at a required class, passing around old tests that you aren't supposed to, a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers, etc. I've seen those kind of things happen.

We had someone do this as well. They got called out pretty badly in a full classroom

No one cheats in medical school. The risk is too big. In my school there's no doubt in my mind that cheating of any kind would lead to immediate expulsion.

You can't really believe that? Our anatomy professor would tag the bodies late at nigh & then lock all doors & disable the card access to the lab. When asked why he didn't just tag them earlier in the day, he told us that in his previous school, some students had gone into the labs THROUGH THE VENTS & photographed the tags

Most people who get into medical school have been fairly, if not outstandingly, successful in undergrad & when faced with not doing well for the first time in their lives, it is easy to see why panic & irrational thoughts take over

 

[Flamen04]

Tests in my school are taken in a testing center on computers. The testing center has a camera facing every single computer with additional personnel walking around during the test. If anyone cheats, they are pretty stupid because they would easily be caught.

 

[Ost3oclast]

Our anatomy professor would tag the bodies late at nigh & then lock all doors & disable the card access to the lab. When asked why he didn't just tag them earlier in the day, he told us that in his previous school, some students had gone into the labs THROUGH THE VENTS & photographed the tags

Whoa!! Thats cheating dedication right there. How did he even find out about that?

 

[rodmichael82]

We had someone do this as well. They got called out pretty badly in a full classroom



You can't really believe that? Our anatomy professor would tag the bodies late at nigh & then lock all doors & disable the card access to the lab. When asked why he didn't just tag them earlier in the day, he told us that in his previous school, some students had gone into the labs THROUGH THE VENTS & photographed the tags

Most people who get into medical school have been fairly, if not outstandingly, successful in undergrad & when faced with not doing well for the first time in their lives, it is easy to see why panic & irrational thoughts take over

I guess I meant to say no one that I know of. I've never seen it happen.
There have been cases where people have moved pins during the anatomy practical and I fell victim to that twice lol but I've never seen or heard of anyone in my class blatantly cheating on a written exam.

 

[rodmichael82]

Whoa!! Thats cheating dedication right there. How did he even find out about that?

Student got stuck in the duct?
Not a good idea to be cheating through a duct when weighing 300 lbs lol.

 

[Ost3oclast]

Student got stuck in the duct?
Not a good idea to be cheating through a duct when weighing 300 lbs lol.

Hahahaha wow that would be pure quality!!

 

[FutureInternist]

I guess I meant to say no one that I know of. I've never seen it happen.
There have been cases where people have moved pins during the anatomy practical and I fell victim to that twice lol but I've never seen or heard of anyone in my class blatantly cheating on a written exam.

That also happened with us. The rule was if any tag came off the whole class got it counted wrong

Student got stuck in the duct?
Not a good idea to be cheating through a duct when weighing 300 lbs lol.

That's why you throw up the small Asian kid. Bonus - They already have a camera 🙂

We also had the whole "cough once for A, twice for B" etc during short quizzes

 

[modsar]

A group of first year students were caught signing in for one another in a manditory class. Their punishment was to repeat the entire class during their second year. Its a full-year class with at least 3 hours of required class and lab each week!

We had an optional cardiology final that contained the same questions from the first two exams. The professor found out that a group of students were planning on going to the second test review session to memorize all the answers for the final. The professor got super mad and sent out an email to the class threatening to cancel the exam review and ask for those students to be turned in. I dont beleive they were ever caught, but they did end up holding the exam review because she felt it would be a disservice to the honest students if she cancelled.

We have week-long practical exams and students tell other students what is on them. One student posted on another students facebook wall what was on the test and obviously got caught.

I bet there are students who get answers/questions from students who have taken the class in prior years, since the professors dont usually change questions from year to year.

One kid got caught hiding a cheat sheet in the bathroom.

I dont cheat, but its certainly possible! I dont think its worth the risk!

 

[Kaustikos]

I know of plenty of girls who cheated during med school. I was even involved in these... 🙁


Oh wait...did you mean EXAMS or significant others?

 

[D elegans]

You can't really believe that? Our anatomy professor would tag the bodies late at nigh & then lock all doors & disable the card access to the lab. When asked why he didn't just tag them earlier in the day, he told us that in his previous school, some students had gone into the labs THROUGH THE VENTS & photographed the tags

😱

 

[Stellar Clouds]

Getting ready to start med school in the fall and just curious how frequent people cheat (if at all) at your school?

I feel like it would take some big balls, but I know a ton of people in undergrad who did, although most got caught. =]

I don't know anyone who cheats. It would be too hard and the risk isn't worth it. Plus, our tests have 80-100 questions usually so I don't see how a cheat sheet would help very much.

I don't know of anyone who has nor do I know anyone who has come before the honor code committee about it.

Of course people cheat in medical school. You haven't seen it because they perfected their art during undergrad.

 

[NeuroLAX]

Cheating on tests? I haven't seen it and I imagine, like RandomHero, said it just isn't worth risking expulsion for a couple answers on one test.

Cheating on things that are less likely to get you caught happens though. Like having friends sign you in at a required class, passing around old tests that you aren't supposed to, a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers, etc. I've seen those kind of things happen.

If someone intentionally did that in my class there would most likely be hell to pay. They would definitely be called out.

We had someone do this as well. They got called out pretty badly in a full classroom

You can't really believe that? Our anatomy professor would tag the bodies late at nigh & then lock all doors & disable the card access to the lab. When asked why he didn't just tag them earlier in the day, he told us that in his previous school, some students had gone into the labs THROUGH THE VENTS & photographed the tags

Most people who get into medical school have been fairly, if not outstandingly, successful in undergrad & when faced with not doing well for the first time in their lives, it is easy to see why panic & irrational thoughts take over

Wow, I guess they thought that was one of those "desperate times call for desperate measures" moments. 🙄 Still, how bizarre! I would be shocked if I ever hear that happen again.

 

[eimaise]

I've heard of people at my school who would go to the bathroom during an exam and look up answers on their phones as our school's test policy is pretty much on honor code.

My school forbids us from leaving the classroom during an exam. If you walk out of the room, you fail. My buddy got ill during one exam and knew he had to vomit.

He stood up and walked toward the door and the proctors told him he wasn't allowed to leave, even to vomit. He busted out the doors anyways... and thankfully they didn't fail him.

 

[NeuroLAX]

My school forbids us from leaving the classroom during an exam. If you walk out of the room, you fail. My buddy got ill during one exam and knew he had to vomit.

He stood up and walked toward the door and the proctors told him he wasn't allowed to leave, even to vomit. He busted out the doors anyways... and thankfully they didn't fail him.

We have chaperones. Must turn out your pockets before leaving and when returning. No white coats allowed. I think someone tried to pull notes out of their coat pocket. At least that's what I've been told.

 

[D elegans]

My school forbids us from leaving the classroom during an exam. If you walk out of the room, you fail. My buddy got ill during one exam and knew he had to vomit.

He stood up and walked toward the door and the proctors told him he wasn't allowed to leave, even to vomit. He busted out the doors anyways... and thankfully they didn't fail him.

What a bunch of bleeding hearts. He should learn to swallow next time like a man

 

[Stellar Clouds]

What a bunch of bleeding hearts. He should learn to swallow next time like a man

He should have just vomited in a trash can next to the proctor and then returned to his seat.

But seriously, not being able to use the restroom during an exam? That seems rather extreme.

 

[Stellar Clouds]

a classmate messing up a class google doc study guide with wrong answers

That's not cheating. That's the very definition of being a gunner.

 

[loveoforganic2]

A student in the class after mine changed a wrong answer on a returned test and brought it back to the professor for "incorrectly marking off for a right answer." The professors make copies of all the tests before giving them back, so... yeah. Not sure what the outcome of being caught was, think it might have been expulsion

That also happened with us. The rule was if any tag came off the whole class got it counted wrong



That's why you throw up the small Asian kid. Bonus - They already have a camera 🙂

We also had the whole "cough once for A, twice for B" etc during short quizzes

Yeah, that's great if you want peace signs obstructing all the tags

 

[Kaustikos]

He should have just vomited in a trash can next to the proctor and then returned to his seat.

But seriously, not being able to use the restroom during an exam? That seems rather extreme.

Man, my school is hilarious in that regard. Granted we have a small classroom, but they didn't care if we left for a bathroom break at any time. I once did that with my phone and started doing what anyone does - play some Ruzzle. I then realize that I could easily look up answers on my phone or go to the library and google ****.

That and they let us use our phones as calculators...

We never cheated but the opportunities were definitely there....

 

[rodmichael82]

A group of first year students were caught signing in for one another in a manditory class. Their punishment was to repeat the entire class during their second year. Its a full-year class with at least 3 hours of required class and lab each week!

We had an optional cardiology final that contained the same questions from the first two exams. The professor found out that a group of students were planning on going to the second test review session to memorize all the answers for the final. The professor got super mad and sent out an email to the class threatening to cancel the exam review and ask for those students to be turned in. I dont beleive they were ever caught, but they did end up holding the exam review because she felt it would be a disservice to the honest students if she cancelled.

We have week-long practical exams and students tell other students what is on them. One student posted on another students facebook wall what was on the test and obviously got caught.

I bet there are students who get answers/questions from students who have taken the class in prior years, since the professors dont usually change questions from year to year.

One kid got caught hiding a cheat sheet in the bathroom.

I dont cheat, but its certainly possible! I dont think its worth the risk!

Okay I'm not going to lie I know a bunch of students that sign in for their friends for mandatory lectures. I know it's wrong but I didn't know that's considered "cheating".

 

[NeuroLAX]

Okay I'm not going to lie I know a bunch of students that sign in for their friends for mandatory lectures. I know it's wrong but I didn't know that's considered "cheating".

It's more academic dishonesty, but still a punishable offense in the same way as traditional "cheating".

 

[theshellyb]

But seriously, not being able to use the restroom during an exam? That seems rather extreme.

For reals! What about everyone's stress-induced IBS?

 

[D elegans]

For reals! What about everyone's stress-induced IBS?

We had a mini-outbreak of gastroenteritis in my school last year the day before our big block exam. I believe the official count infected was 12. The source was not identified but it must have been something from a potluck luncheon we had. Most of them made it in for the exam but a few had to take it during remediation.

 

[KnuxNole]

Please tell me you have better things to do with your life than keep track of people's SDN status.

As to the cheating...I heard rumors of someone fudging with clinical evals a couple years ago. What a waste of a quarter mil, huh?

There was a story of a student who filled out their own eval, and gave a resident to sign it to give themselves a good grade. Although I doubt it's actually true...I could see it happening given the lax nature of certain areas.

 

[Unzbuzzled]

Getting ready to start med school in the fall and just curious how frequent people cheat (if at all) at your school?

I feel like it would take some big balls, but I know a ton of people in undergrad who did, although most got caught. =]

We have quite a few people who go to the bathroom and then use their smartphones to look up answers. The medical students don't normally do it, but there's an SMP at my school, and those students have been known to do that from time to time. In most SMPs, you have to get As and Bs in order to get an acceptance, so for those struggling, it might be pretty tempting.