Ivy League college students are, by definition, smart. they don’t need use generative AI to cheat on exams; They could simply learn the material. But they also tend to be competitive, ambitious, and overscheduled, so AI can seem like an easy shortcut that gives them more time in their lives for things a chatbot can’t do. When the pressure is on, what approach do you choose?
A new scandal at Brown University reveals that a large number of these students are likely to cheat.
record scores
TO recent survey of Princeton students found that 29.9 percent admitted to cheating with AI on at least one exam or assignment. But the recent situation at Brown gives us a better idea of what this type of cheating looks like in a particular class and to what extent it can substitute for real learning. And we know all this because the blind economics professor who is at the center of it all, Roberto Serrano, won’t let it go.
Just last week, Serrano—who was born in Spain—told her story to The Country and Within higher educationwho have published important articles about the scandal.
The story that Serrano told them begins in December 2025, when a Gunman attacks Brown campus and killed two people, including one who had recently introduced himself to Serrano.
Roberto Serrano receiving an award from the King of Spain in 2025.
Credit: Getty Images
Roberto Serrano receiving an award from the King of Spain in 2025.
Credit: Getty Images
Shaken by the experience, Serrano decided that his spring 2026 section of the rather difficult ECON 1170 would allow take-home exams for both the midterm and final exam. Suddenly, the course received an influx of students. The Country has the history:
The course… normally attracts few students, but very good ones. (Serrano) has never had more than 30 students enrolled at a time, and on some occasions had only eight. This semester, probably due to the new grading system, 86 students were enrolled in the class. The results of the midterm exam, which took place on March 5, were extraordinary, with an average score of 96 out of 100. Forty students earned a perfect score of 100.
This was truly remarkable, because, as Serrano told Inside Higher Ed, “Historically, the average midterm grade for this course has been between 65 and 80 (percent), and this exam was harder than exams I’ve taken in the past, because…taking it home is an opportunity to challenge the class a little bit more, since you’re giving students unlimited time.”
