Mass Cheating Scandal Erupts at Harvard

Dozens of Harvard students are being investigated for possible cheating after officials discovered they may have shared or plagiarized answers on a final take-home exam last spring. More than half of the 279 students in the university's Introduction to Congress class are being investigated, reports the Harvard Crimson. "These allegations, if proven, represent totally unacceptable behavior that betrays the trust upon which intellectual inquiry at Harvard depends," said university president Drew Faust. Each student being investigated must appear before a subcommittee of the Harvard College Administrative Board.

The course in question included undergraduates at all class levels, said officials. A teaching assistant noticed that some students apparently collaborated on or copied answers, and used long, identical word passages in the open-book test. The situation was pointed out to the administrative board, which determined after an investigation that there was "cause for concern," said Harris. Student penalties could range from warnings to expulsion, reports AP. (More cheating stories.)