Q&A: Doing an Academic Paper for a Student
Doing an Academic Paper for a Student
Question
My wife is studying for an advanced degree in the sciences.
Part of the degree credits is a course and a paper in Judaism.
For her this is an enormous and unnecessary effort, from her perspective, relative to where she’s headed (she really doesn’t have the time).
For me, doing this paper for her would be very easy (because of my background and experience in writing this kind of thing).
I’m very tempted to do it for her, in order to relieve her of the burden.
Is that permitted according to Jewish law?
Answer
I don’t know how advisable it is ethically, but I don’t see any prohibition here, nor even a serious problem. Nobody is harmed by it, and it’s just a whim of the university.
If it counted toward the GPA, then there might be an issue vis-à-vis her fellow students. But I think it doesn’t.
Discussion on Answer
I’m not familiar with it, but this is not in that category, as I explained.
At least at Bar-Ilan it does count toward the GPA….
Although of course employers don’t really care about it, it does raise the overall GPA.
If it counts toward the GPA, that’s more problematic. But are you sure that’s the case? As far as I know, core studies are not part of the GPA.
There’s a GPA with them included and a GPA without them.
People say in the name of Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, and likewise Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, that a person who receives salary on the basis of a certificate that came into being through acts of deception is committing an act of theft month after month.
Are you familiar with this?
Would my case fall into that category?