The 34 students from Fuqua School of Business, who were charged by the University Judicial Board with cheating by collaborating on a take-home exam last month have until Thursday to file an appeal, officials said.
The Judicial Board handed down punishments to the first-year masters of business administration program candidates in a required first-year course, ranging from expulsion to a failing grade in the class. Four of the students that were investigated were found not guilty of any Honor Code violations.
"Each case is unique and complex, and the charge to the Judicial Board is to take great care in considering the individual circumstances surrounding each," Fuqua Dean Douglas Breeden said in a statement.
Michael Hemmerich, associate dean for strategy and institutional research at Fuqua, confirmed that some of the candidates charged were international students. Federal privacy regulations, however, prevent administrators from releasing any further identifying information about the charged students, he added.
"Those convicted come from four different continents and several countries," Hemmerich said. "There are both domestic and international students involved."
Recently, expelled students from abroad at other colleges such as Illinois State University have lost their student visas and have been deported to their home countries.
Hemmerich said although he was unsure if any students had filed an appeal, most students do appeal Judicial Board decisions. He added that he expects students to wait until the last minute to enter the appeals process.
"The [appeals] committee will have 10 business days to render a decision once students file for an appeal," Hemmerich said. "I expect that this situation will probably be wrapped up by the end of the month."
Breeden will choose a tenured faculty member and a student to join him on any appeals committee.
Once the members of the appeals committee receive a case, they consider two main factors-whether new information has surfaced since the initial decision was made and whether the Judicial Board followed the procedure outlined in the Honor Code, Hemmerich said.
"To my knowledge, the Judicial Board was very meticulous in following the proper procedure in its investigation of these students," he added.
After the committee has made a decision on the appeals, it will publish its findings publicly.
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