A little is still too much
An undergraduate was referred to Student Judicial Affairs (SJA) for submitting a lab report that contained plagiarized material. Inconsistencies in the lab report’s content led the professor to believe that a significant portion of the report had been copied and pasted from another source. In a meeting with a judicial officer, the student admitted to having copied only a small section of his lab report. Although the professor believed that the plagiarism in the report was considerably more extensive than the portion admitted to by the student, the fact is that any amount of plagiarism is considered a violation of the Code of Academic Conduct. As a result, the student agreed to be placed on Disciplinary Probation until graduation. Probation is a status imposed for a period of time during which any further misconduct will result in further disciplinary action, normally in the form of suspension or dismissal.
How far are you?
A professor referred a student to SJA for looking at another student’s exam during a chemistry final. The student was witnessed to have looked at the exam of her neighbor for the duration of the exam. The student stated that while she had glanced over at her neighbor’s exam to “pace herself” she did not see any answers and did not copy any answers off the other student’s paper. However, looking at another student’s work during an exam is considered a violation of the Code of Academic Conduct, whether or not the student who looks has the intention to cheat or not. The student was assigned a three to five page writing assignment in which she was required to explain her responsibility for upholding academic and social misconduct. She also agreed to a censure, which is a written warning stating that further violations will result in more serious disciplinary action.
Just don’t look
An upperclassman was referred to SJA on suspicion of unauthorized collaboration during an exam. The student was seen looking at another student’s test by proctors, which coupled with anomalies discovered subsequently in the two exams, led to the student’s referral. The student admitted to checking answers with the other student but insisted that no answers were changed following the exchange. Nonetheless, comparing answers during an exam is a clear violation of the Code of Academic Conduct, whether or not any answers are changed as a result. The student agreed to be placed on Disciplinary Probation and to complete a specified number of community service hours.
Campus Judicial Reports are compiled by members of Student Judicial Affairs.
