Violations of Academic Integrity and Recommended Sanctions - Types of Violations

This section describes various ways in which the principles of academic integrity can be violated. Examples of each type of violation are given but neither the types of violations nor the lists of examples are exhaustive.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism is the use of another person's words, ideas, or results without giving that person appropriate credit. To avoid plagiarism, every direct quotation must be identified by quotation marks or appropriate indentation and both direct quotation and paraphrasing must be cited properly according to the accepted format for the particular discipline or as required by the instructor in a course. Some common examples of plagiarism are:

• Copying word for word (i.e., quoting directly) from an oral, printed, or electronic source without proper attribution.
• Paraphrasing without proper attribution, i.e., presenting in one's own words another person's written words or ideas as if they were one's own.
• Submitting a purchased or downloaded term paper or other materials to satisfy a course requirement.
• Incorporating into one's work graphs, drawings, photographs, diagrams, tables, spreadsheets, computer programs, or other nontextual material from other sources without proper attribution.

Cheating: Cheating is the use of inappropriate or prohibited materials, information, sources, or aids in any academic exercise. Cheating also includes submitting papers, research results and reports, analyses, etc., as one's own work when they were, in fact, prepared by others. Some common examples are:

• Receiving research, programming, data collection, or analytical assistance from others or working with another student on an assignment where such help is not permitted.
• Copying another student's work or answers on a quiz or examination.
• Using or possessing books, notes, calculators, cell phones, or other prohibited devices or materials during a quiz or examination.
• Submitting the same work or major portions thereof to satisfy the requirements of more than one course without permission from the instructors involved.
• Preprogramming a calculator or other electronic device to contain answers, formulas, or other unauthorized information for use during a quiz or examination.
• Acquiring a copy of an examination from an unauthorized source prior to the examination.
• Having a substitute take an examination for one.
• Having someone else prepare a term paper or other assignment for one.

Fabrication: Fabrication is the invention or falsification of sources, citations, data, or results, and recording or reporting them in any academic exercise. Some examples are:

• Citing a source that does not exist.
• Making up or falsifying evidence or data or other source materials.
• Falsifying research papers or reports by selectively omitting or altering data that do not support one's conclusions or claimed experimental precision.

Facilitation of Dishonesty: Facilitation of dishonesty is knowingly or negligently allowing one's work to be used by other students without prior approval of the instructor or otherwise aiding others in committing violations of academic integrity. A student who intentionally facilitates a violation of academic integrity can be considered to be as culpable as the student who receives the impermissible assistance, even if the facilitator does not benefit personally from the violation. Some examples are:

• Collaborating before a quiz or examination to develop methods of exchanging information.
• Knowingly allowing others to copy answers to work on a quiz or examination or assisting others to do so.
• Distributing an examination from an unauthorized source prior to the examination.
• Distributing or selling a term paper to other students.
• Taking an examination for another student.

Academic Sabotage: Academic sabotage is deliberately impeding the academic progress of others. Some examples are:

• Intentionally destroying or obstructing another student's work.
• Stealing or defacing books, journals, or other library or university materials.
• Altering computer files that contain data, reports, or assignments belonging to another student.
• Removing posted or reserve material or otherwise preventing other students' access to it.

Violation of Research or Professional Ethics: Violations in this category include both violations of the code of ethics specific to a particular profession and violations of more generally applicable ethical requirements for the acquisition, analysis, and reporting of research data and the preparation and submission of scholarly work for publication. Some examples are:

• Violating a canon of the ethical or professional code of the profession for which a student is preparing.
• Using unethical or improper means of acquiring, analyzing, or reporting data in a senior thesis project, a master's or doctoral research project, grant-funded research, or research submitted for publication.
• Misuse of grant or institutional funds.
• Violating professional ethics in performing one's duties as a teaching assistant or graduate assistant.

Violations Involving Potentially Criminal Activity: Violations in this category include theft, fraud, forgery, or distribution of ill-gotten materials committed as part of an act of academic dishonesty. Some examples are:

• Stealing an examination from a faculty member's or university office or from electronic files.
• Selling or distributing a stolen examination.
• Forging a change-of-grade form.
• Falsifying a university transcript.