Expert: Thurman C. Petty, Jr. - 12/26/2011

Question
Good day to you,

I am 20 years old Catholic, very seldom to read the Bible but i "think" i am a religious person on my own perspective.

I want to ask something that has been bothering me for about 1-2 years. I am a medical student and for the next 3-4 years i will be a doctor. Starting 3rd semester, i NEVER cheating again in exam, even though i can't work on it and i am very sure on the time i was working on it i will be get a bad grade. Before that, especially on 2nd semester on examination about "medical profesionalism" i cheating on this smart friend, which make me get an A, and this friend get an A too. But when i see my result, i get very sick of myself and apologizing to this friend because i saw some of his answers. Started from that, i never cheating again in exam.

Why i never cheating again is not just based on that sole purpose, because every night before the exam, me and my friend went to church to pray a while. It is very funny if i pray to God to give me His blessing for the exam but i cheat at the end, it is so silly right? I have study as hard is can, more than any most of my friend and they are quite smart, i guarantee that. At the 3rd and 4th semester, i think God give me a very hard tests. From 8 exams, i just passed 4 of them. I am not getting an A, only B's, all i work on my own, no cheating, and after seeing my result i just got very upset, dissapointed with myself and even God (sorry) for not giving me A's, and cried all over myself for 1-2 days. Compared to MOST of my batch-mate, i think around 60-70% of them cheating each other so they get a good mark with less work than myself.

Now i am on my 5th semester, so far i am getting a B on my first exam, the second result hasn't out yet but i think i passed them, tomorrow i will get my third exam in this semester. At some days i thinking, if i kept on like this, can i be a good doctor? can i have a nice recommendation from the uppers if the just look at me based on the grades? how about my CV if my grades is just so-so compared to those who so smart and the cheaters? can i be a specialist?

for additional information, i have no family-relation doctor, i am an chinese in my country which is a minority and the racism is very strong, especially if you in public university, they won't get you very high if you are not "special-smart" or have any close relation with another chinese doctor who want to help you through specialists and so on..

My question, am i too idealistic to have a perfect grades without any other "helpful sources" like cheating, to kept on what Jesus taught to us, to be honest person and give all my problems to Him and i will get a good one at the end, or what?

i am sorry for my bad English, i think i have done a many mistakes above, but i hope you know what i mean. thanks a lot, God bless you

Answer
Dear Kevin,

Thank you for writing. The situation you have met at your med school is a problem that’s growing in our world today—deception. No matter what word people use to try to sugar-coat it—fabrication, cheating, fudging—the basic problem is an effort to tell a lie.

“But I’m not hurting anyone,” the cheater might say. But in reality he is hurting himself. Anytime a person is untruthful with himself or with anyone else, he degrades himself in his estimation of himself, and when found out, in the estimation of others.

Cheating on a test in med school...where does it end? Cheating on a lab test; cheating on a patient’s chart—unthinkable! Then stop it at the beginning, and the end will turn out all right.

You have taken a bold and courageous stand. Keeping up your grade point average (GPA) is important in med school. But what good is a high GPA if it isn’t obtained honestly?

The definitive statement on cheating is made in Exodus 20:15, 16:

Ex. 20:15  "You shall not steal.
Ex. 20:16  "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

The first defines taking information from another’s test for your own. “But my friend said I could do it.” No matter. In a school setting, what your friend writes on his paper is his, and it is not acceptable to any school or professor for you to take it from him.

The second defines the outcome of the test when the professor grades it. The answers are not yours, but you’re presenting them to the tester as though they were yours. So in effect you are lying to the professor...to the school...to God.

Yes, you have decided to take the right stand, to refuse to cheat. God will bless you for that. In fact God’s entire government is based on truth.

Jesus said: “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; no man comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6.

Now, how can you make acceptable grades if you’re not brilliant and/or do not cheat? The average student just has to work harder, spend more time studying, stay up nights (which will eventually tell on your health and drag you down).

The Christian student, however, has another influence in his work: God. Our Creator is all powerful, all knowing, and everywhere all at the same time (that last one will probably be studied for eternity). Plus He loves you as though you were the only person in the world. How much does He love you? He died for you! End of story.

So how to pass med school and not cheat? Here are some suggestions: (I’m not a doctor, but I did get an MA, so I know this from experience.)

1. Pray before you study. Ask God to help you to learn the main points that you’ll need to know to become a good physician. And ask Him to help you see the points that the professor will ask on the test (by the way, God does know what questions will be on the test).

2. Study hard...as if your life depended on it. Your scholastic life does depend on it.

3. Work with a buddy. A friend of mine in med school found it difficult to write notes and the illustrations the professor showed or drew on the board. So his buddy drew what was on the board or screen, while my friend kept notes. Later they studied together so that both of them knew all the information. This is not cheating: it is team studying.

4. When test time comes
  a. Get plenty of sleep the night before.

  b. Pray as soon as the test is put on your desk: ask God to give you a clear mind and
       to help you to remember what you’ve studied. If you come to a difficult question or
       section stop and pray again.

That’s all there is to it. You can add many more ideas, of course, and adapt these things to meet your own needs. I like to claim a promise too:

Phil. 4:13  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

God bless you as you do the honorable thing of always standing for truth.

Even though you are loaded with school work and don’t seem to have room for one more thing, take time with God. Spend time reading the Bible, and praying—talking with God. Tell Him your needs and wants; your joys and sorrows. He wants to live your life with you: He’s your best Friend. You can talk with him anywhere at any time. You see, He can read your mind, so you can keep up a running conversation no matter what else you’re doing.

Spending time reading Bible study guides can be a profitable way to learn Bible truth. Here are a couple of sources:

  1: Bibleinfo.com
  2: PettyPress.com

Stay close to Jesus,

Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
pettypress@gmail.com