Harvard University: 42% of incoming students admit cheating

Some Ivy Leaguers may not be so smart without the answers, as a survey of incoming Harvard University students shows widespread cheating. The Harvard Crimson reports that among 1,300 incoming students, 10 percent admit to having cheated on a test, and 42 percent admit cheating on a homework assignment. The survey also found athletes were nearly twice as likely to cheat as non-athletes. Twenty-six percent of recruited athletes admitted they had cheated on a paper or take-home assignment before arriving at Harvard. That figure was 16 percent for non-recruits. Meanwhile, in a survey of Harvard's graduating class of 2013, just 7 percent said they had cheated on an exam, and 7 percent admitted cheating on a paper or take-home test during their undergraduate careers. Thirty-two percent admitted cheating on their Harvard homework. The first line of Harvard's policy on academic dishonesty states that "All work submitted for credit is expected to be the student’s own work." Harvard University has been at the center of a number of recent cheating scandals. In 2012, more than 100 students were accused of cheating on a take-home test for an introductory class on Congress. In March of this year, Harvard Quiz Bowl teams that won four championships between 2009 and 2011 had wins vacated because of one cheating student.