Prompt
You earn $40 an hour tutoring a 17-year-old student, Lena, in English. Her parents pay for four hours a week, and this income covers most of your rent. Lena is applying to college, and her application requires a personal essay. Her father emails you asking you to polish her essay this weekend. When you open the attached draft, it is a page of rough notes. He writes that he would like you to turn the notes into the finished essay, and he offers you an extra $300 for your time. Lena, who is copied on the email, has not replied. What would you do?
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After you practice: what this question tests and how to approach it
What this question tests
- Professionalism and integrity
- Ethical reasoning
- Communication
How to approach this question
This academic integrity station tests whether you'll protect the honesty of a college application when refusing could cost you income you rely on and upset the family paying you. Name everyone involved: Lena, whose application must be her own work, her father, who may simply be anxious, and the admissions readers who trust the essay. Show where you'd draw the line between legitimate help, such as coaching and feedback, and writing the essay for her. Weigh replying to the father, speaking with Lena directly, and proposing extra sessions to help her write it herself, then decide. When the station reveals the pressure the student is under, show empathy for her while explaining whether her stress changes what help is appropriate.
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