Definitions

I. It is an academic offence for a candidate to commit any act designed to obtain for himself or herself, or another, an unfair advantage with a view to achieving a higher grade or mark than his or her abilities would otherwise secure. Any such attempt to convey deceitfully the impression of acquired knowledge, skills, understanding, or credentials shall represent a contravention of University Regulations and may constitute grounds for exclusion. The following list details examples of such contraventions. This list is not, and does not purport to be, comprehensive.

II. Cheating in written or practical examinations (applicable to on-campus programmes), in enrolment and in assessments

Occurs when: a candidate communicates, or attempts to communicate, with a fellow candidate or individual who is neither an invigilator or member of staff; copies, or attempts to copy from a fellow candidate; attempts to introduce or consult during the examination, any unauthorised printed or written material, or electronic calculating or information storage device; personates, or allows himself or herself to be impersonated. Cheating also occurs when a candidate impersonates, or allows himself or herself to be impersonated in any process of enrolment or assessment by the University, or whilst communicating with the University in furtherance of such process.

III. Plagiarism

Plagiarism occurs whenever a candidate for an award of the University or for a qualificatory period of work, appropriates the writings or results of another, whatever the medium (text, written or electronic; computer programs; data sets; visual images, whether still or moving) and dishonestly presents these as his or her own i.e. by a failure to distinguish between knowledge, understanding and terminology that are considered to be common property, and those which should be attributed to other persons or agencies. All assessed work, including formal and class examinations, dissertations and projects, theses, and shorter pieces of work that contribute to an assessment mark, must be the candidates’ own work, and acknowledge assistance given (including from fellow students or mentors) and the detailed input into the work from the major sources involved. All forms of plagiarism are considered serious academic offenses and will normally lead to substantial penalties.

IV. Fabrication of results

Occurs when a candidate claims deceitfully to have carried out tests, research, experiments or observations as part of his or her assessed work, or presents fabricated results arising from the same with the object of gaining an unfair advantage.

V. Misrepresentation of qualifications

Occurs when a candidate claims deceitfully

(a) to hold a qualification which he or she does not hold;
(b) to have achieved a mark or grade in a qualification or part thereof which is not that awarded by the awarding body;
(c) to have presented specified work for a qualification that was not presented for said qualification;
(d) to have been a candidate for a qualification and/or to have been awarded that qualification on a specified date or dates when he or she was not a candidate for said qualification and/or was not awarded said qualification.

Consequences