[SkyBelow]

There is a difference between memorizing enough information to ace a test and sneaking in notes that aren't allowed to ace a test. And people would also say it is wrong to steal a copy of a test and then memorize the answers to it to ace a test. But what if a professor uses the same test every year (maybe changing a few numbers but in a way that only impacts the calculations, not the way to solve it) and people study just the information needed to answer the test. Is that cheating?

[tialaramex]

If you cheat in most such tests it just means you miss out on actually learning what you were supposed to. If it wasn't your intention to learn anyway I guess that's fine.

Rarely the purpose of tests is to assure the public of your fitness (e.g. a driving test) and cheating those might be a problem, but if you cheat my CS 101 course and then struggle because you needed remedial classes but the cheated test means you don't get them that's your problem.

[bravoetch]

Another aspect is the incentives. Most discussion here is about the cheating itself, and not the reasons for it. I may not learn much from just writing about a degree I don't really have on my resume, or roles I never worked at, and experience I don't have. But I can get paid a lot more by doing so.

[SkyBelow]

There are a few other issues with cheating, such as devaluing a degree for all others who didn't cheat to earn it.