You notice a student cheating in an exam, what would you do?

Academic misconduct is something that is not tolerated in the dental profession. It shows lack of honesty, integrity and fairness.

As a future dentist you must reflect these qualities and much more.

Here is what you should do in this situation:

Avoid reporting the incident during the exam, wait till the exam is over:

You want to make sure you inform the necessary people about the cheating after the exam to avoid any disruptions and unwanted attention. You still have to be mindful of other people who are taking the exam

Inform the invigilator:

When you are recounting what you saw to the invigilator, make sure to only say what you see, don't try to make any assumptions. After you've informed the appropriate authority, it is their job to now deal with this potential cheating.

Approaching the student afterwards:

If the student is a close friend, you can approach them after the incident to encourage them to admit to the academic misconduct. It does put you in an uncomfortable position, but cheating must be reported.

The dental profession is built on a foundation of trust, reliability and integrity. Cheating defies all of these qualities. It would be unjust to allow someone who cheated in an academic exam to be responsible for patients as they may be incompetent to do so.