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University cheating scandals reignite debate over policies around AI

Published: 11 Nov. 2025, 18:19 Updated: 11 Nov. 2025, 18:22

ChatGPT logo [EPA/YONHAP]

Allegations of mass cheating at Yonsei University and Korea University have reignited debate over whether universities need to update their teaching and evaluation systems to reflect a post-pandemic, AI-driven academic environment.

Universities have rapidly expanded online courses and normalized the use of AI since the Covid-19 pandemic, yet many institutions still lack clear guidelines on online testing and AI usage — leaving room for widespread misconduct, according to education experts on Tuesday.

Cheating was detected in October during the midterm exam for a Yonsei course titled “Natural Language Processing and ChatGPT,” which was conducted online. Around the same time, Korea University uncovered cheating in an exam facilitated through an open chatroom.

Similar cases occurred throughout the pandemic. In 2022, eight first-year business students at the University of Incheon were caught cheating during an online exam. In 2020, comparable incidents were reported at Inha University, Sogang University and Konkuk University.

A simple online search using the keywords “university online exam” returns suggestions such as “how to cheat on online exams,” “college cheating tips” and “what happens if you get caught cheating,” reflecting how prevalent the issue has become. A senior student at a private university outside the capital region said, “It’s not unusual for students to share answers via KakaoTalk during online general education exams, where monitoring is more relaxed.”

Despite these recurring cases, most universities still lack official guidelines on AI use. A 2024 survey by the Korean Council for University Education found that 71.1 percent of 131 universities nationwide had not yet established policies for generative AI.

A professor gives an online lecture at a university in Busan in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. This photo is unrelated to the article’s content. [SONG BONG-GEUN]

Experts say universities’ lenient responses to academic misconduct have also fueled ethical complacency among students. While such cheating can legally constitute obstruction of business, and universities can impose penalties such as academic warnings or suspension, disciplinary action is rarely enforced.

“During the pandemic, cheating on online exams became a major problem in the United States and other countries, prompting schools to hire additional proctors, establish clear definitions of misconduct and strengthen ethics education,” said Kim Ji-ha, head of higher education research at the Korean Educational Development Institute. “But in Korea, even the standards for what counts as cheating in online exams remain vague.”

Lee Chan-gyu, director of the Institute for Humanities and AI Research at Chung-Ang University, said that universities must fundamentally rethink their approach to assessment. “In the age of AI, we need to move beyond traditional written exams and shift toward project-based and collaborative learning models,” he said.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY LEE BO-RAM [[email protected]]