Honor Code
As the next generation of medical professionals, students are expected to maintain the highest integrity and ethical standards that are associated with their future profession and that are representative of our school. Students are entrusted to assume responsibility for upholding the school's culture of integrity by being honest, respectful, and accountable in their academic and non-academic endeavors. They are expected to follow the school's standards of conduct (see the Student Handbook) - to adhere to an "unwritten" honor code of absolute academic integrity.
Below are just some examples of common scenarios that illustrate activities in which a student would be violating the honor code.
Writing Papers, Reports, Patient Write-ups
- forging an attending's or resident's signature on your patient write-ups
- "Inventing" a patient to include as a patient write-up
- on a patient write-up, stating you conducted a complete physical exam when you actually did not; stating the patient is "fine" but, in effect, you cannot be sure since you did not do the full exam, e.g., saying pulse is normal, but never checked the patient's pulse; lying about respiratory rate when you never even listened to the patient's lungs - just cutting and pasting a normal patient exam results when you only did a limited exam on this patient.
- ghostwriting - having someone write your paper for you or you writing a paper for a colleague
- plagiarism - knowingly representing the work of someone else as your own, without proper acknowledgement (see Plagiarism)
Exams
Students are responsible for understanding the specific conditions for individual course quizzes and examinations (including triple jump exams), both in-class and take-home. For example, some TJEs have policies that allow students to collaborate at certain points during the exam period. However, unless otherwise stated, the following examples would involve a violation of the honor code:
- for an in-class exam, using, giving, or receiving any assistance or information (voluntary or otherwise) from any source (e.g., classmate, previous "test-taker," notes, textbooks, electronic devices, or any other unauthorized materials) other than information provided by the course director or in the examination itself
- copying or photographing or memorizing the content and/or answers of posted exams in courses and passing them on to future test-takers
- consulting with persons other than the course director (e.g., experts in the field) between the time a take-home exam is distributed and the time it is submitted by the student
Research
- falsifying or fabricating data in support of laboratory or field work
- not giving proper credit to research collaborators on an abstract, poster, presentation, or publication
False Statements to Faculty, Staff, or Other Students
- telling faculty you had an excused absence (e.g., illness or religious observance) when, in fact, that was not the case
- telling course director you saw a patient or went to a preceptor's office when you actually did not
- signing a colleague's name on an attendance sheet or asking a colleague to sign your name to an attendance sheet
- purposely telling other students incorrect content/concept explanations in order to lower the average exam scores
- suspending e-value questions just to get through them quickly
Curricular Materials Including Manuals, Lecture Transcripts, Slides, Videos, Podcasts etc
Curricular materials including slides, manuals, case scenarios, videos, on-line modules or self-assessment programs, podcasts, images etc., are provided for use by students and faculty enrolled in specific courses. These materials are not to be shared with others, including students or faculty at other institutions, or uploaded onto websites or social networking sites. These materials are copyrighted and may contain sensitive information. Failure to adhere to this policy constitutes a violation of the honor code and may constitute an infringement of copyright law.
Patient Confidentiality
Students should familiarize themselves with the laws governing patient confidentiality found in the Health Insurance portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Students are expected to abide by these policies fully. Misuse of patient confidential information or unauthorized access to patient records constitute a violation of the honor code and federal laws.
ITS (Computing, E-mail, Software) Policies
Students are expected to follow all policies as outlined by Information Technologies and Services regarding the use of computers, e-mail, iPads, software etc.
Weill Cornell ITS Policies
Miscellaneous
- PBL: telling the next year's class details of PBL cases or triple jump exams that might be repeated, including diagnosis and treatment
- taking extra course packets and lecture notes
- taking bone boxes or other anatomy resources and not returning them so that other students may use them
Other Policies
For a complete list of policies, please visit our Medical Education Policy Nexus. Note: an active CWID is required to log in to Nexus.
Weill Cornell Medical Education Policies