No matter how you look at it, medical school is tough. That’s as it should be. No one wants to be sitting in a waiting room, wondering if their doctor is competent.
If you’re like most students at the Warren Alpert Medical School (AMS), though, you spend most of your time worrying about classes, exams, and clinic hours. The fact is that, as hard as it is to succeed academically in medical school, falling behind won’t necessarily put your future in jeopardy. Even failing a class outright usually only means completing a remediation plan to get caught up. Academic misconduct, on the other hand, can be grounds for immediate dismissal.
Whether you made a mistake or you’re the victim of a misunderstanding, you cannot afford to take a wait-and-see attitude when it comes to cheating and plagiarism allegations. The very moment you suspect you might be in trouble, it’s crucial that you contact the LLF National Law Firm.
The LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team was founded to help students challenge misconduct accusations. We know your rights, and we know how the AMS disciplinary system operates. Whatever your situation, you can be sure that we’re in your corner, ready to use every resource at our disposal to ensure you get the best possible resolution to your case.
If you’ve been accused of academic misconduct, don’t wait to see what might happen. Call 888-535-3686 to find out what we can do for you, or take a few minutes right now and fill out one of our online forms.
How AMS Defines Academic Misconduct
AMS doesn’t actually maintain its own policy on academic misconduct. Instead, the student handbook directs you to the Brown University Academic Code. Of course, that Code contains the same rules and regulations you encountered as an undergraduate, wherever you may have attended school.
- Cheating is explicitly prohibited, including any use of an unauthorized resource, from crib sheets to other students.
- Likewise, the Code outlaws plagiarism—the attempt to pass another person’s words or ideas off as your own.
- Generally speaking, any activity that might tend to give you an unfair advantage in completing your degree qualifies as academic dishonesty, punishable under the Code.
You might be tempted to think AMS doesn’t take academic integrity all that seriously since it doesn’t publish its own policy. In fact, the opposite is true. The medical school assumes students understand by this time exactly what is and isn’t acceptable, and that they don’t need to be reminded that integrity matters.
In fact, while most undergraduate institutions prescribe in-class sanctions for first offenses, a single offense could be enough to get you expelled from AMS.
This is precisely why it is so important you have an LLF National Law Firm attorney on your side any time you’re facing an academic misconduct charge. There is far too much at stake to risk responding to a charge yourself. One misstep can jeopardize all the work you’ve put in to this point in your career and doom any chance you have of earning your M.D.
Fighting For Your Future
The good news is that you have some important rights any time you’re accused of misconduct. The bad news is that those rights can be difficult to use effectively if you don’t have help. This is another important reason why it’s crucial you have an LLF National Law Firm attorney in your corner.
In fact, you may have to deal with both Brown University and AMS in order to resolve your case.
- Academic deans are responsible for enforcing the Brown Academic Integrity Code. Anyone can accuse you of a violation, but only this Case Administrator can officially charge you with an offense.
- If you’ve been charged, you’ll receive notice of the charges. This notice should outline the specifics of the violation and include a complete list of your due process rights.
- You are always innocent until proven guilty (“not responsible” until proven “responsible”). As part of the process, you’re accuser must submit evidence to substantiate their claims. You also have the right to give your version of events. And, you’re entitled to review all the evidence against you as well.
- You should be allowed to defend yourself at a formal hearing before the Standing Committee on the Academic Code. This is your chance to challenge the school’s evidence and to present evidence of your own. In addition to physical evidence, you are entitled to call witnesses to testify.
- Decision-makers must believe there is a “preponderance of evidence” against you in order to find you responsible for (guilty of) an offense. In simple terms, you are guilty if it seems “more likely than not” that you committed the offense.
- Should the Standing Committee find you responsible, your case is then forwarded to the Medical Committee on Academic Standing and Professionalism (MCASP). This committee reviews the Standing Committee’s decisions and issues any sanctions.
- Finally, you may appeal any decisions against you to the Dean of Medicine. However, your appeal must allege that you were denied a fair chance to make your case. You cannot appeal simply because you disagree with the decision.
You’re not alone as you go through this process. Your LLF National Law Firm attorney will help prepare you for every step, from collecting evidence to preparing your hearing presentation. We cannot speak for you, but we can make absolutely certain that you’re ready to speak for yourself.
Trust the LLF National Law Firm
The LLF National Law Firm knows what’s at stake in a way other firms just don’t. The attorneys who make up our Student Defense Team have dedicated their lives to ensuring schools treat students fairly, and they care about your future. No one else has the knowledge of campus justice they do. No one else can show you how to use the system to your advantage.
If you’re being forced to fight for your educational future, don’t try to handle the situation yourself, and don’t trust your case to a local attorney. Find out more about what the LLF National Law Firm can do by calling 888-535-3686, or take time right now to fill out our online questionnaire.