‘I went straight to the dean’s office with both the recordings and told her’: Professor tries to fail grad student by faking attendance records, forcing the student to take it to the dean and finish with a 90% grade

A programming professor who treated lecture time like a Sundance submission of His Greatness tried to fail a grad student by redefining attendance as a vibe check and marking present as absent with the confidence of a man who thinks C++ stands for Curriculum Plus Personal Glory. Confronted, he invented an attendance talent show, demanded a devotional notebook that no policy mentioned, and still declared the performance unworthy of his legend. Unfortunately for his director's cut, the student rulebook existed, and it said fifteen minutes late still counts, while time-stamped lab files introduced his ego to a terrifying antagonist called Evidence, supervised by a head of department who can read.

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Author image for Etai Eshet Etai Eshet
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  • Revenge on a professor who tried to illegitimately fail me

    a professor wearing a suit teaching a class in front of a green board with chalk writng on it
    via WikimediaImages

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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  • Cornered, our visionary scheduled a private screening for one: bring an email falsely admitting to the “wrong classes,” save his job, and he’ll graciously bestow attendance like a Renaissance patron of the arts. The recorder in the room captured the plot twist, and so did the sequel where he laughed about reneging, unaware the boom mic was still very much in frame. Nothing humbles a self-styled guardian of rigor like Dolby surround playback.

  • Back when I was a grad student, there was a professor who taught us programming, his ego was the size of a volcano.
    via SympathyBig628
  • The first couple lectures, instead of teaching us programming, he showed us a PPT of his "achievements". To this day, I have no idea why he didn't like me.
    via SympathyBig628
  • For some context; the university I attended requires you to attend at least 80% of the classes for you to be able to appear for the final exams.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • So for obvious reasons I really cared about the attendance. A month later, we got our attendance report and I was marked absent for almost all the classes which I attended.
    via SympathyBig628
  • Professor Helping Student during Computer Class
    via Rido

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • I went to the professor's chambers and tried to ask him if there was an error and requested him to fix it.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • He said he didn't give me the attendance because he thought that I hadn't learnt enough in his class and told me that he will ask me some questions and determine if I "deserve" the attendance.
    via SympathyBig628
  • He also told me that I was required to carry a notebook with a summary of all of his lectures (we weren't required to take any notes other than what we decided on an individual level).
    via SympathyBig628
  • Of course he decided that I didn't deserve the attendance. I went back home and decided to write an email to the university authorise informing them about the situation and how I deserved the attendance.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • It was written down in the "student rulebook". The student rulebook was a rather useless book that they give you before you start your course and it has basic rules like- don't drink or smoke in class, respect the authorities and stuff like that.
    via SympathyBig628
  • a man standing in fornt of a white board holding study material
    via Vanessa Garcia

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Nobody reads that book but for some reason I did and the rule for attendance was that even if I was late to the class by 15 minutes, I would still get the full attendance for that class.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • I highlighted this in the email and then went to the computer lab, searched for my saved files from all the days when we had class and took pictures of the date and my name on the files for additional proof of my attendance.
    via SympathyBig628

  • He returned to class teary about consequences, then retired from experimental grading. The student finished with ninety percent, not from a torrid affair with code, but from weaponized compliance and the pettiest superpower on campus: reading the manual. Consider it academic justice by citation, bureaucracy’s version of slapstick, where swagger slips on a policy and falls into the dean’s inbox. Final grade: A for Attendance, and extra credit for rolling the credits.

  • The head of the department asked me to meet her for a solution. I told her exactly what happened and she said that I am liable to receive attendance and that there is no rule to maintain any summary of notes.
    via SympathyBig628
  • She directs him to make the necessary changes and tells him that some action will be taken against him.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • The next day, he told me to come meet him "privately" and I go to his chambers. He tells me that he might lose his job and he needs me to do him a favour and write an email.
    via SympathyBig628
  • He says I accidentally attended the wrong classes and it was my fault but he would still give me the attendance. I knew something was fishy before I went there so I was already recording the conversation and he had no idea.
    via SympathyBig628
  • I still tell him okay and leave. The next day, I go to him and tell him that I have sent that email and request him to give me the attendance he promised.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • He laughs and tells me "what attendance? You mentioned in the email that you attended the wrong classes so this is on you, you aren't getting anything."
    via SympathyBig628
  • The only thing was, I hadn't sent any email and I was recording this conversation too. I went straight to the dean's office with both the recordings and told her that a professor was trying to illegitimately fail me and here was the proof.
    via SympathyBig628
  • He came to the class later and started crying in front of everyone and saying that he might get fired because of me.
    via SympathyBig628
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  • He wasn't fired but never messed with me again and I ended up scoring 90% in his class (I hated programming and I still s k at it but I had to prove a point).
    via SympathyBig628

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