Professor selling students work to clients

[aba1]

Ok so I am in a moral dilemma, basically one of my professors is selling our work to potential clients without any credit or payment to the students. I called her out on this in class the other day but she sorta shushed me off saying we are just students and shouldn't be asking for payment for projects we are doing for class. Personally I think that is completely off base because if it is being used commercially than we should be payed like a professional.

Since I am in my final semester and the teacher is the coordinator for the program I am thinking I will be leaving a complaint with the dean after I graduate that way I don't get screwed over. So basically my question to you guys is do you think I am off base getting up in arms about this or is it justified?

 

[smithy_2045]

Morally, it's a bit screwy from your professor. But I think that she's legally allowed to do that. I'd complain to the relevant authority ASAP if you have an issue with your work being used.

 

[Dark_Reaction]

Not at all off-base - from an ethical standpoint, a teacher selling off students work without accreditation/payment is beyond offensive, its downright pathetic. Shes effectively stealing your work and trying to make a profit off of it, which is, for lack of a better phrase, complete bullshit.

I'd be rather surprised if this wasn't illegal to some degree - at least, assuming you didn't unwittingly sign something as part of enrolling that permitted such a thing.

Personally, being the stubborn bastard that I am, I'd refuse to turn in any work that had the potential to be sold off without payment/credit, or at the very least refuse to hand over work for anything other than on-the-spot grading to be immediately returned to me afterwards, and would lodge an anonymous complaint with the higher-ups at your school.

If they failed to do anything about it, I'd probably anonymously inform the local news media - I'm sure they'd enjoy making a story of professors stealing their student's work.

Out of curiosity, what sort of 'work' is it that you're doing?

 

[Scarim Coral]

I take it she didn't asked the student permission?

What type of work well your degree you're doing? Just wondering so I get a better idea on the client who would want to buy the student work (it must be impressive works you students are doing unless that professor is scanning them no offence).

Either way she shouldn't be allow to do that or at least give some of the profit back to the student whose work had been sold. It doesn't sound like it should be allow to do for a teacher to do well the college/ Universirty in gernal. Sure I can understand your work being seen by new student when they're making their own works (dissertation) but not this.

I would suggest you look into the teacher education guildline to check if they are allow to do that in the first place and if not, I would alert maybe the higher education authority then just the dean (well maybe if the dean allow it or the dean do it him/ herself).

 

[Spinozaad]

While you might have signed away your entitlement to financial gains, you still have the (moral) right to be acknowledged as a creator.

 

[DoPo]

I think most universities have something along the lines of any work you do for them (assignments and so on) belongs to them. It's mostly for administrative purposes - they should be able to use your work (so, grade it) and file it later somewhere. But there are other elements, too - you are (expected to be) using information and resources from your course to create that work in the first place, that includes having access to teachers, other experts, literature on the subject, other facilities (computers with software needed or even just other students who you can exchange ideas with) and so on. So in that regard, it's not entirely your work either.

At any rate, is your professor selling the students' works for her profit or is it a university thing? The former would definitely be wrong, the latter...really questionable but technically permissible. You can still bring it up to the proper bodies - the dean, student counsel, whatever. And you better do it sooner rather than later, too - universities have this awful thing about bureaucracy, sometimes even if they want to help the red tape they have to go through is ridiculous. Last year, at my university we did manage to change that same policy in the department. And the department wanted the policy changed however it still took months of waiting - probably six, maybe one or two more. I'm not even sure if they started the process before the year started, either.

 

[Lilani]

Ok so I am in a moral dilemma, basically one of my professors is selling our work to potential clients without any credit or payment to the students. I called her out on this in class the other day but she sorta shushed me off saying we are just students and shouldn't be asking for payment for projects we are doing for class. Personally I think that is completely off base because if it is being used commercially than we should be payed like a professional.

Since I am in my final semester and the teacher is the coordinator for the program I am thinking I will be leaving a complaint with the dean after I graduate that way I don't get screwed over. So basically my question to you guys is do you think I am off base getting up in arms about this or is it justified?

Hell if I were you I would have told the dean a long time ago. I don't care if you're designing logos or writing dissertations, taking your work and not giving credit goes against any professional standards, and anytime a student pays or receives money for work to be passed off as someone else's that is academic dishonesty and would get you expelled. The very thought of this makes me livid. Do whatever you want, but your teacher deserves no pity, and she's only getting away with it because she's exploiting her authority over you.

 

[Mordekaien]

Ok so I am in a moral dilemma, basically one of my professors is selling our work to potential clients without any credit or payment to the students. I called her out on this in class the other day but she sorta shushed me off saying we are just students and shouldn't be asking for payment for projects we are doing for class. Personally I think that is completely off base because if it is being used commercially than we should be payed like a professional.

Since I am in my final semester and the teacher is the coordinator for the program I am thinking I will be leaving a complaint with the dean after I graduate that way I don't get screwed over. So basically my question to you guys is do you think I am off base getting up in arms about this or is it justified?

At my college, if a teacher did that, without consent of students, he/she would be fired, no problems there.
As I understand it, the works of student are belonging to college, not to one teacher, so she/he should not be taking money for it.

 

[Mister K]

Do you have witnessess? Do you have other sorts of proof of her actions? Are your work and works of your colleagues without anything copied from internet, books, etc.?
If you said yes to all, then file a complaint to the court (sorry, my legal english is a bit rusty, but you understood it, right?), because using intellectual work of other person without their agreement is a copyright infringment.
At best, court will find her guilty and you'll get reparations from her.
At worst, after the whole procedure, surely you'll have a posibillity to change your coordinator. Because, you know, after the trial her judgment of your work will hardly be objective.

P.S. Don't do it unless you have all bases covered. I am not aware of all the details of your country's legal system, so I can't help you there, but maybe one of your friends/relatives knows a good specialist in this legal sphere.

P.P.S. If you are SURE that you won't completely mess up the situation in the court, if you KNOW that your legal base is strong, then before actually sending your complaint, show the copy of it to her. She maybe willing to settle everything without trial.