Search Page

According to Ofqual, the exam regulator for England, over 4,300 candidates were penalised over cheating this year during A-level and GCSE exams. 2,000 candidates caught in possession of a mobile phone were given mark reductions, while about 1,500 students received warnings. Moreover 800 candidates were penalised by having their exam voided. Ofqual also published its report into the conduct of the 2022 exam series, which noted that 14 schools and colleges reported cyberattacks aimed at accessing exam administration software or student work.

Last April, the Office for Students set out a list of recommendations aimed at helping universities to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and misconduct on campus. According to ministers in the UK, universities failing to take tough action on sexual misconduct should risk losing their official status.

100,000 pupils have been missing from school rolls during the past two years. The Government has announced that a national register would be introduced to assess how many pupils were not in school across the country. The Schools White Paper announced that laws would be introduced to modernise how attendance is recorded, with a “national data solution” used to track attendance and provide a “safety net” for vulnerable pupils at risk of disappearing from school rolls.

Six vice-chancellors from Cambridge, Exeter and UCL have signed up to a pledge which commits universities to stop using legally binding non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) against students and staff who report sexual harassment. The Higher Education Minister stated that universities should end the use of NDAs which “buy victims’ silence” in sexual misconduct cases.

According to the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, there are over 1,000 essay mills in operation in UK universities. The government announced that offering essay-writing services to students for a fee will become a criminal offence under plans to tackle cheating. Universities welcomed this decision and introduced codes of conduct with severe penalties for submitting work that is not a student's own.

The “proliferation” of essay mills over the past 5 years has led to an increase in the number of plagiarism cases. Last year, 338 cases were reported by universities in the North, with the majority of cases at Aberdeen University and Robert Gordon University. 1,000 essay mills companies are currently operating across the UK. Some are allegedly involved in exploiting graduates overseas where they are forced to work 12-hour shifts producing essays for as little as $1 an hour.

As part of the government's crackdown on degree fraud, and to safeguard the international reputation of UK universities, 85 fake UK university websites have been shut down since 2015. Websites have also been found selling fake degree certificates from real universities: a BBC investigation in 2014 found a website selling the University of Kent for £500, which were described as for “novelty purposes, or as a replacement for lost diplomas”. Employers are encouraged to carefully vet the qualifications of any new employees as “The only way to stop these operators is to remove the demand”.

A Cal State LA student allegedly denounced the actions of her classmates in a discussion forum on Canvas. Using the GroupMe app, students participated in cheating such as sharing answers and taking credit for the work of others. According to the Vice president for student life and dean of students, the University investigates all alleged acts of dishonesty and will hold students accountable if found responsible.

A former Harvard coach accepted $1.5m in bribes in exchange for helping a businessperson get his two sons into the Ivy League school as fencers. They face charges with conspiracy to take bribes under federal programmes. The coach was fired in July 2019 for violating Harvard’s conflict-of-interest policy.