Hundreds Of Texas A&M Students Accused Of Using Chegg To Cheat

Texas A&M is investigating a "large scale" cheating scandal that could involved hundreds of students, the Texas Tribune first reported.

Faculty at the university in College Station noticed something was wrong when students in an online finance class answered test questions faster than they could read them. Later, faculty discovered that the test questions and answers were on Chegg.

Chegg started as a website where college students can rent and buy textbooks, but it now offers online tutoring and homework help. Students interviewed by the Texas Tribune admitted to using the website to find answers for some of their assignments.

Hundreds of students in the finance class received a university email earlier this month alerting them to the cheating. The email also said that guilty students should turn themselves in by December 8 or they'll face expulsion or suspension if found by the university.

“If you engaged in this behavior, I would like to encourage you in the strongest way to reclaim your personal integrity,” said Director of the Aggie Honor System Office Timothy Powers in the email.

No student has been expelled or suspended for cheating as of December 14, MySA.com reported, but the investigation can take up to a month.

As more college courses move online because of the pandemic, most Texas universities say that there's been an uptick in cheating or "academic dishonesty."

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