Peder Tjäderborn, head of the Student Services.
Photo: Per Melander
1. The Government has appointed you as one expert in a governmental investigation on how to prevent cheating on the Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test.
"That's right. I was nominated by the Association of Swedish Higher Education (SUHF) that aids the investigation appointed by the Government. The results of the investigation will be presented in
May 2019. The group of experts also consists of representatives from the Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR), and lawyers."
2. Why is it important to fight cheating?
"It's about maintaining people's confidence for the test as a tool of selection for higher education. It's unacceptable to buy yourself a study place using test results that you haven't achieved fair and square and hence deprive another applicant of that place.
As the admissions system uses results to make theselectiont, there is also a risk that the trust in this system is indirectly tarnished."
3. In what ways do people cheat?
"Thanks to coverage by Swedish Television, we know that those who cheat buy an earpiece that enables transmission of results submitted by a group who have gained access to the test in advance. The ongoing trial that started this spring when the Police caught cheaters in the act will probably provide more details on
how this cheating takes place."
4. Is one idea to introduce body searches?
"Yes. The investigation will look at the legal and practical conditions for performing body searches. It's a coercive measure regulated by law and a deviation from the protection against body searches that the constitution allows. It's regulated when, how, to
whom and by whom this coercive measure may be used. If it is appropriateto use to prevent cheating remains to be seen."
5 What alternatives are proposed if body searches are disallowed?
"UHR has proposed other measures such as jamming equipment to prevent the use of earpieces. But that's also regulated by law and can't be used in all situations. In the last three years, the handling of the test, before and during the test day, has also been revised to
minimise the risk of the test getting into the wrong hands. Test coordinators at the universities, test constructors at Umeå University and UHR have jointly made good efforts in preventing cheating."