Brown University Faces AI Cheating Scandal Criticism

Brown University economics professor Roberto Serrano has criticized the university’s handling of a significant AI cheating scandal among his students. Earlier this year, Serrano opted to shift his midterm and final exams to an online format after a campus shooting in December, which led to an unexpected surge in course enrollment.

The online midterm saw an average grade of 96, significantly higher than previous years where averages ranged from 65 to 80. Serrano discovered that 40 students achieved perfect scores and noticed answers aligning with those from ChatGPT.

“In our new AI era, if you do not expose and punish cheating, you will encourage it,” Serrano wrote, emphasizing the importance of academic integrity.

Serrano announced that the final exam would revert to an in-person format. Midterm scores would be void unless they resembled final scores, which led to only 59 students taking the final. The average dropped dramatically to 48.6 with scores ranging from 0 to 95. Among the 27 students who dropped the final, 22 had previously scored perfect on the midterm.

Despite reporting this to Brown’s Committee on the Academic Code and the campus paper, Serrano did not receive a response until his account gained public attention. Brown University claims it remained responsive to Serrano’s concerns and formal procedures are now in motion.

Serrano shared his story with El Pais and Inside Higher Ed, leading to increased activity from the university regarding his allegations. He expressed gratitude for the university’s eventual response but maintained skepticism about whether any action would have occurred without public exposure.

Serrano addressed the use of AI as a tool for cheating. He dismissed arguments that students were using AI due to academic pressure, highlighting instead a deliberate attempt to gain unfair advantages.

“AI has dramatically reduced the difficulty of cheating,” he wrote. “The solution is to provide incentives that guide behavior in a better direction.”