Importance

Academic integrity must begin from the first day at university and build into a habit that lasts for life. Without academic integrity, it is not possible to have a true university that teaches how to think or which builds new knowledge for the benefit of mankind.

Expectations

All members of the academic community are expected to:

• Conduct themselves with honesty and integrity at all times
• Credit the work of others, as appropriate
• Conduct research in an ethical and accurate manner, with the work of others cited appropriately
• Follow the ethical expectations of their discipline
• Honor the confidentiality of personal information of others in the academic community or of research subjects
• Research the intellectual property rights of others

Students are expected to:

• Come to class regularly and on time
• Clarify any assignments or expectations they do not understand
• Complete all assignments on time, without assistance from others, unless this is permitted by the professor
• Avoid the use of any aids or extraneous information on quizzes, midterms, or exams, unless explicitly allowed by the professor
• Recognize that excused absences are a privilege, and students are expected to provide accurate information when obtaining these

Breaches of Academic Integrity

Coursework

Students may not:

• Use any method to cheat on exams
• Plagiarize or copy the work product or ideas of others, in any way, without adequate citation
• This includes assignments done by other students themselves for a different and/or earlier course
• Attempt to bribe or intimidate any other student, professor, or staff person in relation to academic work or for personal gain
• Impersonate another student in class or for exams or any assignment
• Sabotage the work of other students or faculty
• Conceal or remove information or material so that it is not available for others
• Violate confidential information.

Research

Members of the academic community may not:

• Plagiarize or use the work of others whether written work, lab results, or ideas, without appropriate credit
• Falsify results, data, findings, observations or any other information through active falsification or omission
• Intentionally mislead others about the importance of academic information
• Coerce a faculty member into suppressing the results of his/her research
• Violate the confidentiality of respondents or participants in any research activity

Documents

No member of the academic community may:

• Present a degree or other documentation of achievement that is not valid
• Present false or misleading information to obtain extension, absence, or to retake exams or take them later
• Expropriate or abuse a position of trust to utilize ideas, data, or other information gained in a peer review or pre-review process or in reviewing proposals for funding.

Academic Integrity Issues

The Academic Integrity Committee will review all cases where student breach of Academic Integrity has taken place. This includes but is not limited to cases of forgery (signing by students for advisors/faculty/staff) and plagiarism. All cases of forgery will entail a fine and an automatic hearing by the designate committee.

Reporting Breaches of Academic Integrity

When a faculty member believes that a student has violated academic integrity, he or she will confront the student. The faculty member will check with the Office of the Vice Rector to see if this is a first or subsequent breach of academic integrity.

If this is a first offence, and the student does not contest the charge, the student will fail the assignment; the faculty member will report the incident to the Office of the Vice Rector along with whatever documentation is relevant. The information will be put into the student’s file. In this instance there is no Academic Integrity Committee (AIC) hearing.

The faculty member must notify the following: the Vice Rector’s Office, the Chairperson of the relevant department, the Dean of the relevant faculty, the student’s advisor, the Chief Student Affairs Officer, and the student concerned.

If the student contests the charge or the penalty, or if it is a second of subsequent offences, or a very serious offence, the faculty member will refer the case to the AIC using the appropriate form, with copies notifying the student, the Advisor, Chief Student Affairs Officer, the relevant Dean, and the Chairperson of department. The faculty should attach whatever documentation exists of about the breach. The offence should be reported as soon as possible, but no later than five working days after discovery of breach.

• A student may report a breach of another student’s academic integrity to the professor or to the AIC in writing, signing the accusation
• A staff member may repost a breach of a student’s academic integrity to the AIC with appropriate documentation
• The breach must be reported within 10 working days of discovering the breach.