Monday, March 26, 2007

Cheating in MBA programs

The Harvard Business Review (March 2007) has an interview with Howard Gardner, professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education on "The Ethical Mind". It has this nugget:

A study conducted by Duke University recently found that 56% of students in the United States pursuing a master's degree in business administration admit to cheating- the highest rate of cheating among graduate student groups.


No doubt, the MBA students go on to fine-tune their skills at cheating after they enter the corporate world.

The interview is worth reading. I liked the professor's uncompromising approach towards confronting wrong-doers in authority. He quotes the seventeenth century French playwright Moliere: It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible but for what we do not do.

Prof Gardner remarks:

As for confronting superiors, if that is impossible, you are not in the right organization. Of course, it is helpful to consult with others, to make sure that your perceptions are not aberrant. But if you are not prepared to resign or be fired for what you believe in, then you are not a worker, let alone a professional. You are a slave.
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