Claire1016

I'd just like to learn a little more about the honor code at Bryn Mawr. I don't have any specific questions, but if someone could just kind of summarize what it's all about I'd really appreciate that. I'm very excited to be coming to bmc in the fall and from what I've heard it seems like the honor code is very beneficial to students in the sense that it creates a less cut throat environment, but is there anything about it that you don't particularly care for? Do some people take it a little too seriously? I'm all for not discussing grades, but is it very strict?

b@r!um

The honor code basically says don't cheat, don't steal and treat others with respect. Most of it is really just common sense. Students leave a lot of things in shared spaces: detergent in the laundry room, food in the tea pantry, umbrellas in the hallway etc, trusting their classmates not to take anything. The no-cheating rule in particular applies to take-home exams. A professor might hand you an exam with the rules that you have a 4-hour limit and may not consult anything but your handwritten notes, to be returned the next week. The college trusts you to stick to those rules, even when you know that you could finish the exam with more time or remember seeing the answer in the textbook.

The no-grade-talking rule is one item that is pretty particular to Bryn Mawr and the only rule not covered by common sense. All it asks you to do is not discuss grades in a public setting, for example in the line at the dining hall. But you are free to talk about grades in your room or an empty classroom or when talking a walk. Professors reveal the grade distribution in a class to varying degrees. Many professors will not give you any indication of how you did relative to your peers. On the other extreme, a few professors will write the entire distribution of grades on the board. And then there are varying stages in between: some professors will tell you the average grade or the average number of points, a few will give you the distribution of points on the exam (but not tell you where the cut-offs for grades are), etc. Professors are usually happy to talk to you about your performance relative to your peers' during office hours if you have some concerns.

Another aspect of the honor code that might be worth pointing out is the clause about confrontation, which is part of being respectful to your peers. In short, when someone does something you dislike, you are supposed to "confront" them about their behavior. This sounds more scary than it is. Imagine this: your neighbor plays loud music late at night. You can go knock on her door and ask her to turn it down (confrontation), or you can ignore it, lose some sleep and then ***** about your neighbor to your friends the next day. I think it is obvious which option is better for everyone involved.

Claire1016

thanks, that was very helpful!

b@r!um

Maybe it is worth mentioning that Haverford has an honor code as well, and that we are expected to follow their honor code on their campus. Their honor code is similar to ours but with a few notable differences:

- You are required to report honor code violations. When you catch a friend cheating for a class at Bryn Mawr, you can deal with the situation at your own discretion, but if it's a Haverford class you have to report her.

- You are not allowed to discuss the form, content or degree of difficulty of an exam at Haverford, even after the course is over. That's because it might give your friends an advantage over someone who does not have that information.

- You have to sign an honor code pledge on every Haverford exam.