Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V – James Beuerlein, DC Student

The Failure of Academic Integrity

A lot of articles have been written on the subject of academic integrity: whether it’s ranting about cheating on tests, signing the attendance for someone else, or collaborating on assignments intended to be done individually. While all of those topics probably merit re-mentioning, I want to focus on a different aspect: books and notes.

One of the marvels of the Internet is the ability to share files with anyone at any place in the world. This ability unfortunately espouses the following common delusion: “Well, if I can simply download it from the Internet, it must be FREE!” It could be music, movies, books, or software. Whatever the lure, it is all-too-easy to compromise our ethics by “sharing” someone else’s copyrighted material or intellectual property.

Unfortunately, establishments are no safe-havens from the onslaught of piracy – rather they are temples built in its honor! I mean, who actually BUYS Photoshop? Really? It’s not like I make money by using it; it’s just for personal use. Except for that one time… never mind. Isn’t it only against the law if you sell it to someone else?

Another thing is all these books. The administration must think we’ve all got money trees back home. “Anyway, do you know how much we pay to go to this school? Are you kidding? They OWE us! Can you believe the nerve these people have to ask us to buy books that are $50, $80, $200 a pop? Ludicrous! Thank Jesus for the PDF copy of Guyton’s Medical Physiology that an upper-quarter buddy of mine passed me! Like I was going to actually PAY for that thing? Don’t be ridiculous. All of this basic science stuff is a bunch of BS anyway. We only have to know it for Boards. It’s not like I’m ever going to use Embryo in practice anyway…”

Frankly, a major paradigm shift occurred for me shortly after arriving at Life. I was introduced to AmeriPress. What a great idea! I mean, some over-achiever actually TAKES NOTES, sells them to AmeriPress, and I buy them for like $12 per class. Total life-saver: I honestly didn’t know how I was going to cope with checking Facebook, watching movies from PirateBay on my iPad, AND trying to keep up with copying down the slides during lecture. “Where’d I get what? Oh, THIS copy of the AmeriPress notes for Endocrinology? No, I didn’t buy them per se. I got a scanned copy from a friend of mine in the next quarter. He bought them… I think… or, he knows the girl who bought them… Yeah, she posted them all to her Mobile Me account, so we can totally use them.

Hey, there’s also a bunch of old tests on there too. Definitely saved my bacon on the final exam last quarter. About 2/3 of the questions were in there verbatim. I know; it’s basically all I studied. You know, I heard someone had a copy of the midterm too, and they didn’t share it with anyone. What a punk! I mean, who does that?”

Ok. I’ll stop. I think you get the point, and I’d be willing to bet you know – just as well as I – that these conversations require no effort of imagination at all. I’ve heard it said that those who will cut corners here and there will do the same thing once they begin practice. It honestly makes me a little fearful about the future of our profession. In case you think I’m blowing these “trivial” things way out of proportion, answer me this: At what point do we receive a functioning moral compass: When we walk across the stage to receive our diploma and a “Dr.” in front of our names, or when the state mails us our license? When are we going to grow a freaking SPINE?

We’re all sick of hearing about “integrity” here at Life, so it seems that we’ve just abandoned it entirely. I think it all comes down to how much you value your own character. I’m sure we’ve all heard that an objects’ true value can be defined by how much you’d be willing to pay for it. So, tell me: How much is your character worth? Is it worth $68.50? (The price of Clinically Oriented Anatomy on Amazon.com) Is it worth $12.00? (A set of AmeriPress notes)  Or how about $4.99? (Renting “Dinner for Schmucks” from Blockbuster)  The reality is this: Whatever point you sacrifice your integrity is the value you place on your character. Found that new Usher song on torrent site? Congratulations! You just sold your character for $0.99.

Forget Bringing Sexy Back – Alex Gerdel, Chief Content Editor

I’m bringing integrity back, and it is sexy!

We’re all familiar with the word integrity. It is after all one of the Eight Core Proficiencies our school stands for. However, despite this fact I would argue that very few of us truly understand the concept of integrity, much less practice it in our everyday lives. I know I didn’t, until I learned not only how easy it is to lose our integrity, but also the freedom that comes in restoring integrity.

During fifth week last quarter I discovered that a lecture for one of my classes had never made it onto my schedule. It was four weeks into the quarter, and I’d skipped a two-hour lecture in a four-hour class every single week without noticing. Once I’d recovered from my initial shock that I could have possibly done something that stupid, I started searching desperately for a way to not have to drop the class. What I devised was a half-hearted plan to restore my integrity. A plan that quite frankly, completely lacked integrity for me.

I admitted to my professor what had happened, but neglected to mention I had also already missed one lab and needed to miss class again later in the quarter for a seminar—a seminar that, ironically, held integrity at its foundation. My professor agreed to let me take the midterm and go from there.

A few days later, I aced the midterm and breathed a huge sigh of relief – relief that remained only as long as that breath lasted. For the next week I didn’t sleep well, I felt a weight being carried on my shoulders and I couldn’t focus on anything. Even if you’re a little unclear on what the definition of integrity means, we can all relate to feeling a complete lack of power and freedom that comes when something you have done or are a part of is bothering you. What I’ve since discovered is that it bothers us because somewhere our integrity is out.

I went to my seminar and got the integrity knocked back into me. That Monday I came back to school and promptly dropped the class. With an A average, I forfeited the full $1,049 in tuition and walked away feeling relieved, happy and free for the first time since I realized my blunder. Most of my friends thought I was crazy. I could have easily created some elaborate story, continued to be dishonest and done whatever it took to stay in the class. In the end however, I would have spent the whole quarter feeling guilty and powerless because of what I had done.

What I discovered through this experience was that somewhere in the process of my screw up I lost sight of what my true values are and felt out of sorts and incomplete because my actions didn’t correlate with what I stand for. If you look up the definition of “integrity” you’ll find it means “to be whole and complete, to have consistency in your values and actions.” Honesty is something I value, and my original actions had a complete lack of honesty.

My purpose in sharing my story isn’t to gloat, or attempt to come across like an amazing saint who found her integrity and can do no wrong. I’m only human. The only thing I’ve discovered is the ability to admit where and when I’m out of integrity with myself, and the courage to do what I need to do to restore it. What constitutes integrity is entirely unique to each of us. Something that is out of integrity for me may be completely in integrity for someone else, because each of us has our own set of values.

Do you lack feeling whole and complete? What happened that left you feeling powerless? My challenge for each of you is to examine your life for where you feel incomplete, and to have the courage to do what you need to do to restore your integrity. Many of us at this school have a dream of making a difference in the world. The power to change the world begins with the power to change yourself. Are you ready to find that power?