Academic integrity and student conduct

As a student, you are responsible for maintaining the values, traditions and academic reputation of UQ.

UQ is an academic community dedicated to the pursuit and creation of knowledge. The foundation of our community is a set of shared values, which are outlined in the:

These values create a common bond between students, academics and other members of the UQ community, and provide us with a framework for ethical behaviour. UQ is committed to uphold academic integrity as a core value.

Why academic integrity matters

Academic integrity is a way of describing the ethical principles that underpin academia, the pursuit of knowledge and student life. These include the International Center for Academic Integrity's fundamental values: honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility and courage.

Academic integrity forms a central part of your intellectual and personal development. It teaches you how to uphold values, develop proper skills in research, thinking and writing, and how to conduct yourself in an ethical manner. These are lifelong skills that will serve you well in your future life and career.

As a member of the UQ academic community, you have a duty to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity in your work. You must avoid cheating, plagiarism, collusion and other forms of academic misconduct.

Honour Code

The UQ Honour Code fosters a proactive approach to ethical behaviour.

The Code encourages mutual support among community members in upholding UQ values and behaviours. By committing to the principles of honesty, personal responsibility and accountability, we collectively contribute to a trustworthy and supportive academic environment.

The Honour Code sits alongside the Student Code of Conduct Policy, which outlines conduct that is prohibited (misconduct). The Code complements the policy, but doesn't replace it.

The UQ Honour Code is:

As a member of the University of Queensland academic community:
I stand by the University’s motto and believe that excellence in learning is achieved through Scientia ac Labore: knowledge and hard work.
My achievements are built on the knowledge contributions of the diverse learning community of which I am a part, and in turn I contribute knowledge to this community in the same spirit.
I am trustworthy in my work, in my studies, and in my connections and interactions with others.
I help other members of this community uphold these values and rely on their support in return.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in assessment

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly becoming a bigger part of our lives. At UQ we are working to help students understand how to ethically and effectively use AI. Your course coordinators have provided guidance in your course profiles defining the appropriate use of AI in each assessment task. You can also review UQ's Artificial Intelligence module for an overview of the different types of AI, the implications of AI for society and what AI research is being done at UQ.

At UQ, the use of AI outputs without attribution, and contrary to any direction by teaching staff, is a form of plagiarism and constitutes academic misconduct.

If you use AI in your assessment without permission or appropriate acknowledgment it may be considered misconduct. If you have questions you should ask your course coordinator.

At UQ, allegations of misconduct are managed according to the Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Student Integrity and Misconduct Procedure. If someone teaching a course sees indications of misconduct, including use of inappropriate AI outputs, they may ask an integrity officer to investigate. This investigation explores if there is sufficient evidence to allege misconduct.

Turnitin

Turnitin is used by UQ staff to help teach appropriate referencing and to find indicators of potential plagiarism, which in turn may then be investigated. Turnitin identifies text in submissions that matches text within its database.

Turnitin provides a Similarity Report with a percentage rating of matched text and links to documents with matching text. At UQ you can submit a draft of your assessment to Turnitin to get a Similarity Report. This will allow you to review your own assessment before your final submission.

Turnitin has released a tool to indicate the probability of text being produced by a generative AI tool. Turnitin doesn’t determine misconduct, but it can provide an indication of potential misconduct to a UQ staff member who can ask for further investigation. AI detection will continue to be updated over time.

What you need to do

As a new student, you're required to complete two academic integrity modules to ensure you understand your obligations and responsibilities. The modules will:

provide an overview of the academic moral code and ethical policy
enable you to learn about ethical decision making
show you how to act with integrity in studying and assessment.

You'll need to complete:

Part A by 31 August 2024 (census date)
Part B by 25 October 2024 (end of week 13)

Note: Leave Part B until after you have completed some of this semester’s assessment tasks so you have experience with University level assessment.

Complete the academic integrity modules

Academic misconduct is a disciplinary offence. It involves a range of unethical behaviours that are designed to give a student an unfair and unearned advantage over their peers.

Academic misconduct includes:

contract cheating (e.g. using an online file-sharing site to obtain or share answers for assessable items)
collusion
plagiarism
falsifying data
research misconduct
accessing examination materials without consent
impersonating another student
falsifying documents for academic advantage (e.g. a medical certificate, a bibliography), or
changing the work of another student in a group without their consent.

All of these devalue the standards of UQ and the degrees awarded.

A full definition of academic misconduct is outlined in the Student Code of Conduct Policy.

Examples of academic misconduct

These are real examples of cases where students have engaged in academic misconduct at UQ. The penalties given take into account a range of circumstances related to the specific case.

In each of these cases, the academic misconduct was recorded by UQ. If the same student engages in misconduct again, their previous offence will be taken into consideration and the penalty imposed may be harsher.

Example 1: Collusion

A student submitted assessment items that showed a high degree of similarity to another student’s submission. Following an investigation, it was determined the students colluded with each other to produce the assessment item.

As a penalty for this form of academic misconduct, both students received 0 marks for the piece of assessment.

Example 2: Contract cheating

A student accessed an assignment from an online contract cheating service and submitted it as their own work.

As a penalty for this form of contract cheating, the student:

received a misconduct grade of 'G' on their official academic record – this is a failing grade and will stay on the student’s record forever, being viewable by future employers
was required to repeat and pay for the course on another attempt on their return to UQ.

Example 3: Submitting fraudulent documents

A student altered the date on a medical certificate and submitted it as supporting documentation for their deferred exam applications.

As a penalty for this form of academic misconduct, the student:

received a suspension from UQ for a period of 2 semesters
received a misconduct grade of 'G' on their official academic record for each course where the medical certificate was used – this is a failing grade and will stay on the student’s record forever, being viewable by future employers
was required to repeat and pay for the course on another attempt on their return to UQ.

Plagiarism is the act of presenting other people's ideas, words or work as your own, without proper credit or acknowledgement.

It not only applies to published academic sources (such as books or journal articles), but also to online materials, unpublished documents, topics discussed in lectures and tutorials, music and sounds, images and photographs, designs, computer code and ideas developed through group work.

Plagiarism is the type of academic misconduct most frequently reported for disciplinary proceedings. Penalties range from losing marks to being expelled from UQ.

Plagiarism is usually classified as unintentional plagiarism or intentional (deliberate) plagiarism.

Unintentional plagiarism includes careless or inadequate referencing, or a failure to reference properly. It is treated as "poor academic practice" or negligence, rather than intentional deception. In these cases you may be given academic counselling. If your work is repeatedly careless, you will be reported for academic misconduct.
Intentional plagiarism is treated as academic misconduct. Disciplinary proceedings, including an investigation and a hearing, will be arranged. The disciplinary process is explained in the Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy.

How we detect plagiarism

Your tutors and lecturers have spent years studying their field and are capable of identifying the arguments, claims and writing of other people.

UQ has also invested in plagiarism-detection software, including:

Turnitin
MOSS software.

How can I avoid plagiarism?

During your first few years at university, while you're getting to know the intellectual debates and discoveries that underpin your field, you'll have to meticulously reference all your work so you can demonstrate to other people that you have read widely and that you understand what you have read.

Most plagiarism can be avoided if you simply use appropriate referencing to acknowledge where you got your ideas, words or work from.

Student Services runs workshops throughout each semester that cover study, time management and writing skills, as well as how to reference correctly and avoid plagiarism.

Other sources of help include:

UQ Library, which has resources to help you learn about plagiarism and links to major referencing style guides. Librarians can also answer questions about referencing and how to avoid plagiarism.
Schools or faculties, which can offer information about referencing and plagiarism relevant to your discipline.

Examples of plagiarism

These are real examples of cases where students have engaged in plagiarism. The penalties given take into account a range of circumstances related to the specific case.

Example 1: Copying from published work

A student submitted an assignment in their first year which had sections copied from published work.

As a penalty for this form of academic misconduct:

the student received an official written warning
only the components of the assignment that were the student's original work were marked
the student was required to undertake workshops covering essay writing, referencing and dealing with stress.

Example 2: Copying from another assignment

A student submitted an assignment which was identified by Turnitin as having a high similarity to an assignment which had been submitted for assessment in another course.

As a penalty for this form of academic misconduct:

only a maximum of 50% of total marks for the assignment was awarded for the piece of work
the student had to revise and resubmit the assignment – the revised assignment was not marked for credit towards the course
the student had to complete the academic integrity modules prior to the commencement of the next semester.

Example 3: Inappropriate referencing

A student submitted an excessive amount of unacknowledged material without appropriate referencing and citation, for a major essay.

As a penalty for this form of academic misconduct, the student:

received a misconduct grade of 'G' for that course – this is a failing grade and will stay on the student’s official academic record forever, being viewable by future employers
was required to repeat and pay for the course on another attempt
was required to undertake workshops covering essay writing, referencing and dealing with stress.

Your university career comes with expectations about how you'll conduct yourself as a UQ student.

General misconduct is a disciplinary offence. It involves a range of unethical behaviours that damage or hinder the rights and freedoms of others to reasonably pursue their studies, research or work at UQ.

General misconduct also includes the improper use of university facilities, resources or information, or the improper use of other people's belongings on university property.

Specific examples of general misconduct include:

harassing, bullying, abusing, threatening or assaulting staff, students or other members of the UQ community directly or online
altering or falsifying documents or evidence (e.g. a medical certificate or other supporting evidence)
accessing inappropriate or obscene material on a UQ computer (e.g. pornography or hate sites, downloading movies or music)
damaging or destroying University property (e.g. library books, computers, data)
publishing or distributing images or recordings (e.g. taped or recorded lectures, tutorials or classes) without permission.

A full definition of general misconduct is outlined in the Student Code of Conduct. This policy doesn't replace the laws of Queensland or Australia, which you have to obey along with everyone else.

Other relevant sources of information include:

What happens if I'm accused of misconduct?

If someone makes an allegation of general misconduct against you, UQ will conduct a preliminary investigation.

Once evidence has been collected, we'll decide whether to:

take no further action
informally counsel you about your conduct
issue you a Conduct Notice
issue you with a formal allegation notice and commence disciplinary proceedings, including a hearing.

Penalties for general misconduct range from a written warning to expulsion from the University.

The full process for dealing with general misconduct is outlined in the Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy.

Our Academic Integrity Framework outlines how UQ prevents, identifies and manages misconduct to protect the integrity of your degree.

It also outlines our expectations for you as a UQ student and the resources and support we’ll provide to help you.

Preventing misconduct

Education

If you're a current student, you're required to complete a mandatory Academic Integrity Module.

You'll also have access to:

additional courses and information sessions to learn about academic practices, values and expectations (we visit schools and colleges across UQ)
video presentations and examples of what academic integrity means and the consequences for breaching it.

Awareness

You should be aware of acceptable behaviour and your obligations to academic integrity outlined in the:

Student Code of Conduct
UQ Honour code.

We will:

use plain language in procedural guidelines so everyone can clearly understand expectations
engage student champions and social advocates to promote academic integrity.

Assessment

We will:

provide better feedback on your assessments
tailor our teaching throughout your journey by increasing our use of formative assessment
introduce the compulsory release of exam papers
increase the use of Identity Verified Assessment
introduce a system of giving assessments integrity ratings and mapping these ratings across programs.

Communication

We aim to:

increase your awareness about the consequence of breaching academic integrity, for example, by including more information in student publications and online forums
actively pursue legal action against online sites that misuse UQ materials
market UQ as an institution that has high expectations of student behaviour
communicate that UQ doesn't tolerate breaches of academic integrity or the student code of conduct, and will pursue action against any misconduct
encourage staff to discuss the importance of academic integrity with students, so that you receive a clear and consistent message and understand the consequences of breaching it.

Support

We will:

work with the UQ Union on academic integrity projects such as the UQU championship.
develop reporting systems and avenues of support for whistle-blowers.

Educate staff

UQ will support staff by:

providing ongoing training about technologies and practices relevant to defending academic integrity
facilitating the formation of communities of practice, so knowledge and approaches to academic integrity issues can be shared
hosting UQ and sector-wide workshops that discuss the issues of academic and assessment integrity issues
engaging in an ongoing review and discussion of assessment design approaches that defend academic integrity.

We will also utilise academic integrity experts to provide advice including:

Information Technology Services (ITS)
Academic Services Division (ASD)
Institute for Teaching and Learning Innovation (ITaLI).

Best practice

We will:

stay up to date with the latest research and trends across the tertiary sector regarding the issues impacting academic integrity
communicate developments in academic integrity trends across UQ
assess current and developing practices to choose the best practice for implementation by UQ
use templates and tools to minimise loading of unauthorised content to file-sharing sites.

Identifying misconduct

Partnerships

We will engage with partners across the sector to:

collaborate on academic strategies, such as the use of e-Quals
investigate and identify online ghost writers
share information about individuals and sites breaching academic integrity to TEQSA, the national tertiary sector regulator
cooperate with TEQSA in legal action against facilitators of contract cheating
engage with provider of integrity checking tools, such as Turnitin, to develop effective advice and guidelines for ensuring academic integrity.

Technology

We will engage technology to help defend academic integrity such as:

programs that detect plagiarism such as Turnitin and MOSS (Measure of Software Similarity)
online proctoring of exams.
work collaboratively with file-sharing sites to identify and remove UQ-branded materials.

Staff support

We aim to make detection, identification, investigation and misconduct processes more consistent, efficient and effective.

Greater feedback will be given to staff regarding the outcome of misconduct processes.

Managing misconduct incidents

Systems and data

We will:

process and report academic integrity cases and identify patterns more efficiently with our newly introduced complaints management system
actively collaborate with residential colleges
review data to support consistent decision making.

Policies

All of our policies relevant to academic integrity will be:

reviewed to see if they're effective in their application and outcomes.
brought into closer alignment with the University’s Fitness to Practise (FTP) policy and procedures.

We will:

facilitate and create communities of practice at the faculty and institutional level that will contribute to the consistent development and application of integrity policy and practices.
publish case studies about academic integrity types to assist decision makers engaged with misconduct processes.
provide more effective and consistent annual statistical reporting of academic integrity incidents and trends through The Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).

Training

We will provide:

training, guidelines and an induction to new members of central boards that act as decision makers in misconduct proceedings
relevant training for all decision makers in effective decision making
regular seminars and workshops to Integrity Officers to discuss the latest information, approaches and trends in academic integrity issues
workshops run by experts in the various aspects of academic integrity to decision makers, academic and professional staff.

Help and advice

If an allegation of academic misconduct has been made against you, there are several sources of help, advice and support:

UQ Union offers advice about the misconduct process and can help you understand your rights and obligations during a disciplinary hearing.
Student Services offers confidential and free online counselling or face-to-face counselling if you're experiencing anxiety or stress during the misconduct process.

Reporting misconduct

We strongly encourage you to report misconduct. You can report suspected misconduct to:

your course coordinator
the Head of School
the Executive Dean of your faculty
the Dean of the Graduate School
a relevant senior academic.

If you have a complaint about discrimination, harassment or bullying, contact a Discrimination and Harassment Contact Officer, who can provide you with advice about your options and the best way to proceed.

You can also report misconduct online:

Report misconduct