A math major was referred to Student Judicial Affairs (SJA) for allegedly plagiarizing an essay she submitted for an ethnic studies class. A TA for the course noticed that significant portions of the essay were copied from various Wikipedia articles. In her meeting with a judicial officer, the referred student admitted to the plagiarism and agreed to the disciplinary action of Deferred Separation. This means that if the student is again referred to SJA, she waives her right to a formal hearing and if found in violation by a judicial officer, she may be suspended or dismissed from the University. In addition, the student agreed to complete eight hours of community service.
Keep those eyes down!
A professor in an evolutionary biology class reported a student to SJA for supposedly copying from another student’s test during an examination period. The referred student denied copying from her neighbor but did admit that her eyes wander when she is nervous during exams. However, the professor and teaching assistant for the class were not persuaded and continued to insist that they had observed several instances of copying. In the end, the case was resolved based on the student’s admission that her eyes did wander during the test, which is a violation of University policy even if a student has no intention of cheating. As a result, the student agreed to be placed on Disciplinary Probation through Winter Quarter 2013 and to complete 10 hours of community service.
Identical and incorrect answers
A sophomore in a mechanical engineering class was referred to SJA for submitting a problem set that the instructor believed to have been copied from the solutions manual. The reporting party explained that the student’s answer to one of the problems and the answer from the solutions manual were both identical and incorrect. The referred student stated that she did not have the solutions manual. She declared that after realizing that her answer was wrong by checking in the back of the student textbook, she altered her work to make it correspond to the correct answer. The student was issued an Administrative Notice, which, although not a disciplinary sanction, serves as formal notice of university policies regarding student conduct. Because the student was not found in violation of the UC Davis Code of Academic Conduct, she will not have a disciplinary record.
