We have an anonymous forum where we can ask questions and get anonymous answers as well. I'm very intrigued to ask my lecturers what they think of <i>us</i>.<p>Now, I am not from the US, so this sort of pressure doesn't apply as much to me, but I wouldn't be surprised if the this sword of damocles that is student debt hovering above students heads influenced students behaviours.<p>If failing a year meant raking up 30k USD in debt, then yes, I would cheat my way through university too. Because now the risk associated with failing are just too high. One failed calculus class could cascade into a failed year, or a full drop-out, which could translate into possibly decades of poverty, if not much worse.