The Challenge of Exam-time Integrity

Or take our Self-Paced Coaching anytime. Your dates. Your pace!

Image Credit: Getty Images

Article By Sarah Lyman Kravits, LifeBound Director of Training and Certification | Dec 2, 2025

Coaching for Sustainable Performance

I often wish that I had time to audit a variety of my students' courses, so that I could experience the environments, instruction styles, and exam circumstances they describe in our coaching sessions. For now, at least I have their descriptions. After nearly seven years in this profession, aggregating these student stories has highlighted a host of factors outside of learning and preparation that contribute to exam-time challenges.

We often talk with students about study strategies, regular engagement with course material, and ways to physically prepare for good performance on test day — as well we should. But learning and preparation are only part of a larger dynamic system of test-taking factors. One factor that has come up recently with several of my students is the challenge of maintaining integrity in the face of discernible cheating, driven increasingly (although not exclusively) by the rise of genAI. As stated in this Arts Technica article by Nate Anderson, "Those who want an education only for its 'credentials' — not a new phenomenon — have never had an easier time of it." I might add that learners who want to maintain integrity have perhaps never had a harder time of it. Shortcuts and cheating tools, driven by genAI and facilitated by countless online communication platforms, are so available that they may demand more effort to reject than to find and use. Even when students take an exam in a room together, all on computers managed by a lockdown browser, answers can be sent around on group chats via smartwatch without detection.

When you encounter students whose ability to show what they know is disrupted by visible cheating during an exam, students who are disheartened that their honest efforts produce lower grades than those of classmates using dishonest practices, consider questions like these for your coaching conversation:

At exam time, what do you have control over in the testing location? How might you choose a seat, arrival time, test-taking tool, etc. that could help you avoid seeing or hearing what others may be doing?
What self-talk are you hearing around your performance vs. that of others? How is it affecting your efforts? How can you change your inner messaging in a way that builds your confidence?
How does maintaining integrity in this situation serve you as a learner, current/future employee, human being?
What self-advocacy might you engage in, with the instructor or the administration, regarding how others' cheating is affecting your performance and grades?
How might you narrow your focus to your own learning and minimize the cognitive disruption coming from noticing what others do?

You and your inviting questions are a valuable asset to your students. Continue to build your skills with LifeBound.

3-Day Virtual Coaching: Next Class - Dec 11, 12, 15
Self-Paced Coaching: Choose your own dates!
Coaching Certification: Spring, Summer, and Fall Cohorts

Explore which course is right for you at www.lifebound.com.

Visit our Website

Make 2025/2026 the Year Coaching Solves Higher Ed’s Toughest Challenges

Higher education is grappling with unprecedented challenges—rising mental health crises, the need for greater career readiness, and the unfortunate reality that many students struggle to secure meaningful employment or are let go shortly after starting. These issues affect not only individual students but also university outcomes like enrollment, retention, and long-term institutional success.

By equipping your staff with coaching training, you can help students build resilience, achieve meaningful employment, and address many challenges that universities face today. Allocate your budget toward LifeBound’s training options this year and plan ahead to ensure your institution is prepared to address these critical needs effectively. Let’s create a campus-wide culture of coaching and make an impact!

LifeBound offers multiple ways to train academic coaches, faculty, or staff:

3-Day Virtual Coaching Course

A dynamic, interactive course focused on practical coaching techniques.

December 11, 12, 15

January 5, 7, 9

February 23, 25, 27

March 6, 13, 20

more dates online >

Time: 3 days, 6 hours each

Format: Online

Cost: $1,500 per person. Contact us about group rates.

___________________________

Self-Paced Coaching Course for Academic, Personal, and Professional Success

A flexible, 15-hour program designed for those who want to deepen their skills at their own pace. The course dives deep into foundational and advanced coaching techniques as well as motivation, resilience, career readiness, cultural competence and coaching diverse student populations, and includes private sessions with a LifeBound Coach. Institutional packages are available for group training.

Choose Your Own Dates!

Time: 15 hours (self-paced), plus 3 hours with LifeBound Coach

Format: Online

Cost: $1,500 per person. If you’ve already completed the 1-Day or 3-Day program, email contact@lifebound.com to receive a discount code for $500 off the new Self-Paced Course. Contact us about group rates.

___________________________

LifeBound Certification Program

For coaches ready to take their skills to the next level, the LifeBound Certification Program offers an in-depth dive into advanced coaching practices and strategies, culminating in certification as a LifeBound Coach.

Spring, Summer, and Fall Cohorts

Format: Online or in-person as available

Cost: $5,000 per person

___________________________

Let’s make 2025/2026 a year of transformation for your institution and the students you serve!

Learn More at lifebound.com