College is a trying time for many students, and almost all struggle with grades and tests at some point during their academic career.

But when the pressure’s on, about 50 percent of college students who are in a bind resort to cheating, according to a recent Ball State University survey.

The survey reported that half of all college students admit to cheating at least once throughout college.

“I think that the average figures are reasonably accurate because they are averages,” said Bernard Whitley, professor at Ball State University who compiled data for the study. “Most likely, even the average figure under-represents the true value somewhat because some people will be reluctant to admit to cheating even on anonymous surveys such as these were.”

Whitley said the averages provided in the survey are accurate to “plus or minus five percentage points.”

Elgin Johnston, ISU professor of mathematics, said 50 percent is a proper estimate.

“In a pinch, people probably slide by one time or another. There are a lot of very honest people who have cheated just once and feel guilty about it afterwards,” he said.

Some ISU students believe that cheating is never an acceptable measure to pass a class.

Latisha Clemen, freshman in linguistics and Spanish, said it’s “never OK to cheat because everyone has their own mind and are able to think for themselves.”

However, Clemen also agreed that half of the students probably have cheated.

“Everyone gets in a bind, and friends offer other friends to cheat off of them to be helpful,” she said.

Some students said class size makes a difference in the amount of cheating that gets by professors.

“In big classes, the students are closer together, and many lecture halls have tiered seating, which makes it much easier and more tempting to cheat,” Clemen said. “In small classes, students can be watched on a more individual basis, which cuts down on cheating.”

The reasons students resort to cheating varies from person to person.

Dhareza Maramis, sophomore in pre-business, admitted to cheating.

“I have cheated to get better grades and to ensure a higher grade point average,” he said. “I probably didn’t study as much as I should have, which is why I have resorted to cheating before.”

Maramis acknowledged that there is always a risk with cheating and students are aware of the consequences, but he said some will take the chance.

“If a student is really that desperate to get a better grade, then they will do what is needed. Some people feel they need to cheat to pass the test or the class,” Maramis said.

Johnston encourages group work but hopes students don’t take advantage of it by cheating off others.

“With group work, students can collaborate and teach one another,” Johnston said, “but I don’t like mindless copying. I feel when students cheat and try to get by without learning, they hurt themselves and those who do the work. Those who copy homework end up getting stung on the exams.”

Students who are caught cheating can face serious repercussions at Iowa State.

“Cheating is a significant issue regarding personal and academic integrity,” said Pete Englin, associate dean of students. “I hope that students choose not to engage in that kind of behavior; it involves risk and the consequences are significant.”

If students are caught cheating, they will receive a letter and will be requested to schedule a meeting with University Judicial Officer Grace Weigel. Englin said students will be penalized from both an academic side and the Student Violation Code.

He said punishments can range from disciplinary reprimand to full suspension from the university. The 1998-1999 academic year had fewer than 70 cases brought to Englin’s office.

Whitley added that cheating rates vary from school to school, depending upon the school’s honor code. Schools with stricter honor codes are less likely to have students who cheat.