Academic Integrity

Academic Misconduct Regulations Avoid plagiarism Myth busting Turnitin similarity report

Academic Misconduct

Academic misconduct involves trying to (unintentionally or deliberately) gain an unfair advantage in any assessed work.

This short video introduces some of the main types of misconduct.

Using the tabs on this page, you can also access more information about the types of misconduct and how they can be avoided.

Plagiarism is the act of using other people's words, images, etc. (whether published or unpublished) as if they were your own.

In our plagiarism handout, you can find about more about plagiarism and how to avoid it.

The short handout contains these sections:

What is plagiarism?
How can I avoid plagiarism?
Frequently asked questions
Checklist for avoiding plagiarism

If work that is meant to be submitted individually (accidentally or intentionally) ends up replicated in your work or the work of others, then this is a form of academic misconduct, known as collusion.

Our short collusion handout contains these sections:

What is collusion?
Collusion vs group work
Checklist for avoiding collusion

Contract cheating is defined as a practice where a student employs a third party to complete any assessed work and submits as if it were completed by them.

Our short contract cheating handout contains these sections:

What is contract cheating?
How do I know if I am being targeted for contract cheating?
How will my tutor know if I have cheated?
Points to consider
Frequently asked questions

Student Guidance on Use of Artificial Intelligence
This is a link to the guidance on the Student Portal on how to use and how not to use artificial intelligence in your assignments.
How to reference A.I.
A link to the A-Z Reference Examples on Libguides. Select Artificial Intelligence from the list.

Other types of academic misconduct include:

Falsification - using false references.
Exam cheating - using unauthorised materials, or breaking the rules when sitting an exam or test.
Impersonation - pretending to be someone else in order to sit a test, or submit work, for them.

Regulations

When producing academic work, breaking the rules is called 'academic misconduct'. If you are suspected of doing this, you will be taken through the academic misconduct process.

If you are found to have committed academic misconduct, depending on the nature and seriousness of the misconduct, there are different outcomes.

Academic misconduct - scale of outcomes
The scale of outcomes for academic misconduct table outlines the consequences of misconduct.

All students that are found to have committed academic misconduct will be asked to attend training that will help to prevent future offenses.

To book a support session with an Academic Writing Tutor, use the Centre for Academic Writing page or speak to a Library staff member on your campus. You can also find details of upcoming academic integrity workshops on the workshops page.

You can check out our online guides below for avoiding plagiarism and malpractice

For help with referencing you can also watch our videos, attend one of our online workshops on referencing or book a 1-2-1 appointment with a Library Staff member on your campus: library.wro@coventry.ac.uk.