<p>I was caught when I used solutions manual to do one of the assignments in my Junior year and the Dean decided to assign a NF(no grade due to academic dishonesty) on my transcript. </p>
<p>I have graduated now and am working at an engineering firm . i want to pursue Graduate school . Is there any hope for me to get into a decent graduate program?</p>
<p>No transgression is terminal, but this will make it harder. Not knowing anything else about you, nor what you would consider “decent”, it is not possible to predict whether or not you have substantially affected your chances of success.</p>
<p>I would consider this: Why did you use the manual, why did you think it was okay, what did you learn from the experience, and why should they expect honesty from you in the future?</p>
<p>I was charged of Academic dishonesty in my Junior year first semester.I am not trying to justify my mistake but I will like to explain it here so that you could understand my question properly. I was under pressure as every single one of my classmates and things were not going well at home, and in a moment of weakness and ignorance I made a horrible mistake. I used students solutions manual for completing one assignment and was caught and reported by my Professor. </p>
<p>Most of my classmates were referring to the manual and I thought that it will be okay to use it for an assignment where we are supposed to collaborate anyways.Why I used it would be because I was stupid in that moment and did not think through the consequences properly. Looking back now I know how naive that sounds.</p>
<p>I was given a NF (no grade due to dishonesty) and suspended for that semester. However considering that it was only one assignment and it was a minor offense I was allowed to resume classes right away to finish my degree. I have been pretty good with studies before and after this incident. I have a 3.5 GPA and have maintained my grades in all of my classes.
This incident has been the biggest shock for my life and also the biggest lesson I have had to learn the hard way. </p>
<p>My GPA and class grades otherwise are decent. I have good work experience and am active in extracurricular too</p>
<p>I am looking into Ivy leagues since that has been my dream since I was a kid. But to be honest, I realize how little if any chance I have into getting in. </p>
<p>I love the “holier than thou” attitude of some people here. It is unfortunate that you got caught but the use of materials like solutions manuals, answer keys and old tests is WIDESPREAD.</p>
<p>Everybody who does it know that it is not right but they do it anyways. That is just a fact of life. All you can do is move on with your life and stop regretting it.</p>
<p>I would say, for every person who gets caught, 19 don’t and I don’t really think you can judge how honest a person is solely based on that. </p>
<p>Stealing, embezzling, lying on a resume is a totally different story but those who have never done assignments in groups, looked at old tests, used answer keys or solution manuals, please cast the first stone.</p>
<p>
I would say the Ivy League is now a stretch - the ones that are really good in engineering would have been a reach anyway, and the rest have a more strict opinion on “honor” infractions than most schools. I think you can get into schools that have a pretty good engineering reputation, just probably not in that particular group.</p>
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You have not mentioned research, and if grad school really is your aspiration then I would get involved in some right away. Few engineering grad programs care about work experience, and even the best extracurriculars are relatively minor, unless they led to something exceptional.</p>
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Care to be specific here?</p>
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Yes, it is. But if it is against the rules, then it is still cheating.</p>
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While I agree with your statistics, I disagree with your conclusion. You can never know if someone is honest, but once they cheat, you can surely know that under at least some conditions they will be dishonest. And that is an important thing to know.</p>
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I never did assignments in groups (my schedule didn’t permit it even when it was explicitly allowed). The only old tests I have ever looked at were provided by the instructors. While I could guess at where and how to get an answer key or solution manual, outside the materials provided by my instructors I have neither sought nor used them.</p>
<p>But I am not casting stones. He asked for an opinion and advice, I am trying to give it. He has an NF on his transcript, I have a misdemeanor conviction - I can hardly claim any saintly status. The difference is, I don’t say “every one does it”, I say “learn from it and try to become a person who doesn’t do that sort of thing any more”.</p>
<p>Thank you for your comments. I am trying to move on.
And as for saying everyone does it. I used to say that before, I have definitely learned from it. As an international student it was especially hard because I had to deal with my VISA suspension issues too except trying to deal with the shock of everything academic. </p>
<p>I have learned my lesson but I am still paying for the one mistake I made. I am just wondering if there is a chance for me to get in to graduate programs at all now. . I have done research for my freshmen-sophomore and Junior year in both computer and electrical fields. What worries me the most is thinking that the admissions office will look at my application and only see that one mistake and not my whole life of working hard- and reject me.</p>
<p>Honestly, the only way you can truly find out is if you try it. Good luck</p>
<p>The only things you can do now are widen your pool of departments and figure if/how you will address it in your application or interviews. </p>
<p>On the first point, you should still apply to those departments where you really want to go. Admissions is highly subjective and individual, so you may still get in at one of your reach schools. But you should also consider that some departments may downgrade your application enough to reject you (it doesn’t take much some places!), so if going to grad school is important you may want to consider some departments where you are otherwise enough ahead of the pack that you are a good candidate even with the NF.</p>
<p>On the second point, the questions I raised earlier were so that you could show that you had considered and learned from the incident. I would not personally address this in your SOP with more than a line or two (if that), but you may want to be prepared to discuss this during interviews.</p>
<p>But Chucktown is fundamentally right - it has happened, all you can do is apply and see what happens.</p>
<p>I thought the only time to not use solution manuals was during a test… That is a bizarre reason to get suspended.</p>
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There are no absolute rules, but I have never heard of a university where the use of solution manuals was accepted at the department level. Usually, the rules state that this is cheating unless the instructor specifically allows their use (since instructors can usually allow whatever they want). If you are currently in the habit of using said manuals, you should check your department policies to see what you are risking.</p>
<p>A good rule of thumb is that submitting someone else’s work (either from a classmate, manual, or someone who took the course previously) is cheating unless the instructor specifically allows it. In most cases, simply possessing or referencing such work is also considered cheating even if the submitted solution is different than the one referenced.</p>
<p>I have never heard of this! I am currently transferring into a university from a CC. Will I be notified of these rules after I transfer?</p>
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Probably not explicitly - they will inform you that the rules (or honor code, or whatever) exist, and may tell you where, and may even require you to acknowledge that you are aware of them, but they will not sit you down and tell all the ways you can screw up. Where are you transferring to?</p>
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You say you were caught, so does that mean if you hadn’t been caught, you wouldn’t have told anyone? My dd was an EE student and she faced pressure as well as being 3000 miles from home. All engineers face pressure because it is a very difficult major. As a grad student, you’ll be facing more “pressures” as you face a thesis or presentation of your project, what will you do then? Why the need for a Masters? Is it to stay in the US? Most engineering firms have defense contracts with intense application forms and clearances. You won’t pass. Apply to the schools but know that you may not get in. Definitely not into the ivies.</p>
<p>@cosmicfish UT-Austin/Texas A&M/ USC ; applications are currently in review.
I will definitely keep this in mind for the rest of my academic career.</p>
<p>@RedEyeJedi, as an example, here is some info from USC’s Student Conduct Code:</p>
<p>*"The following are examples of violations of these and other university standards.
…
11.14
A. Obtaining for oneself or providing for another person a solution to homework, a project or other assignments, or a copy of an exam or exam key without the knowledge and expressed consent of the instructor.
B. Unauthorized collaboration on a project, homework or other assignment. Collaboration between students will be considered unauthorized unless expressly part of the assignment in question or expressly permitted by the instructor. *</p>
<p><a href=“http://scampus.usc.edu/1100-behavior-violating-university-standards-and-appropriate-sanctions/”>http://scampus.usc.edu/1100-behavior-violating-university-standards-and-appropriate-sanctions/</a> </p>
<p>That site also lists all the punitive actions that can be taken in response to violations (anything from probation to expulsion). Most schools have similar rules, this was just an easy one to find.</p>
<p>1) Get some work experience and hopefully with an employer with tuition reimbursement.
2) Approach the graduate school about enrolling in the part-time graduate program.
3) MAKE SURE THEY KNOW YOU HAVE EMPLOYER MONEY FOR TUITION
4) Dare them to allow you to walk out of admissions with that money</p>