Suspecting AI Cheating, Ivy League Prof Ordered an in-Person Final; Scores Fell 50%
Dozens of students likely used ChatGPT to earn near-perfect scores, and the professor voided the midterm after the final exam average fell to 48.6%.
- Brown University economics professor Roberto Serrano voided his spring midterm after suspecting widespread AI cheating among 86 students, whose take-home exam averaged 96 percent with 40 earning perfect scores.
- Following a December 2025 campus shooting that killed two students, Serrano adopted a take-home format to ease anxiety about in-person testing, causing enrollment to nearly triple to 86 students.
- When Serrano switched the final exam to in-person format, the class average plummeted to 48.6 percent, a historic low, while 22 of 27 students who dropped the course had earned perfect midterm scores.
- Brown spokesperson Brian Clark stated the university treats academic integrity allegations seriously, though Serrano contends the administration's response has been inadequate, requesting individual complaints rather than addressing the scale of suspected cheating.
- A Brown committee published its inaugural report Tuesday urging faculty to emphasize dialogue over punishment regarding AI use, while Princeton University ended its 133-year tradition of unproctored exams due to integrity concerns.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Brown says AI make student brain no work good, teacher should help use it better
Students and faculty at Brown University are worried generative AI could harm learning after an economics professor's take-home exam produced results he said pointed to widespread misuse of the technology. In a report [PDF] published by Brown's Generative AI in Teaching and Learning (GAITL) committee, teaching staff say they fear AI could weaken students' cognitive skills and encourage cheating. The committee's report comes days after Brown's Ro…
Mass AI Cheating at Brown Raises Shocker Query: Is an Ivy League Degree Worth $90,000 a Year?
A Brown University professor believes around 50 of his students used artificial intelligence (AI) to cheat their way to perfect midterm scores this spring, and he says the university's top leadership has answered his evidence with silence. For families paying $97,016 (£72,400) a year, the scandal poses an uncomfortable question about what an Ivy League degree actually proves. The Numbers That Gave the Game Away Roberto Serrano, an economics prof…
Students scored 96 with take-home exams and 48 in class, professor blames AI
Brown University professor, Roberto Serrano, has accused his class of using ChatGPT to cheat in take-home exams. Serrano says that when he switched to offline exams, the class average took a big dip, and 18 students dropped the course entirely.
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