Unless students are careful about university policies like Osentonski, there might be consequences for making a few bucks on their class notes.

Students need permission from their instructor before posting direct notes, recorded lectures and other course material online, according to the general student regulations established by MSU and outlined in the student handbook.

Faculty have the right to reduce students’ grades if they share course materials without permission, according to university policy.

Both Notehall and GradeGuru have disclaimers warning students not to post recordings of lectures or PowerPoint slides online.

Psychology sophomore Katie Osentoski sells her notes on Notehall to earn money.

Osentoski rewrites her notes in her own words before posting them online, which also helps her study because she reviews them twice, she said.

Osentoski makes 50 cents every time a set of her notes is bought.

For study guides, she earns $2, and she makes $100 at the end of the semester if more than 100 students are enrolled in that class.

The sites, among others, also require students to recreate notes in their own words.

GradeGuru asks students to post their own interpretations of class discussions or personal study guides — material created solely by the student, said Angela Santiago, Digital Marketing Coordinator at McGraw-Hill Higher Education, which runs the website.

Despite cautions, some MSU students have violated university policy unknowingly, said Kathy Doig, College of Natural Science associate dean of undergraduate studies.

A student in one of Doig’s classes posted her class notes online for money, Doig said.

She said the student took the notes offline after realizing it was a violation of university policy.

Doig encourages faculty to address note sharing in course syllabi to let students know it won’t be tolerated.

Some colleges, such as the College of Engineering, don’t deal with students inappropriately selling class notes because students already share notes between friends and the courses are based more on applying concepts than regurgitating facts, Associate Dean for Engineering Undergraduate Studies Thomas Wolff said.

Compared to going to class and taking notes themselves, studying only with other students’ notes won’t give students the same learning experience, Doig said.

GradeGuru is meant to be used as a supplement for in-class learning, not an alternative, Santiago said.

Although some students buy notes online instead of attending class, sitting through a class gives students a deeper level of understanding, Osentoski said.

“Going to class is a whole different atmosphere,” she said.

“Just reading the notes, you’re not going to get everything out of the lecture that you would if you were there.”