Much of our society and advancements as a species are built on the advancements of scientific discoveries and research. Science is also additive in that past discoveries and research inform the assumptions and foundations of future research and discoveries. Meaning that reliable information and research form the backbone of the academic world and, by extension, the foundation of human society.
Because future researchers build on past researcher's work if any dishonesty or fraud is found, it jeopardises everything related to it, connected to it or that was built on it. Threatening the foundation and integrity of what makes scientific advancement possible.
As a result, the processes, conduct, integrity and findings of academics and students form the heart and foundation of the academic world.
Academic integrity is a set of values and practices that expect you to behave in a manner that is honest, fair, respectful, and responsible in your studies and academic work. Simply put, it means doing your own work, not cheating, and not presenting the work of others as your own.
Integrity means that you adhere to moral and ethical principles and that you are honest and of moral character.
Therefore, academic integrity is about who you are as a person, and how you conduct yourself as an academic.
Academic integrity is the foundation of all academic institutions. These values are expected of both staff and students. Without the maintenance of high standards of integrity in an academic institution, staff and students are unfairly treated, and society and the advancement of humanity are poorly served.
In the business world, if a company or people involved in a commercial venture behave in a manner that is questionable, unethical or fraudulent. The consequences generally only affect them and anyone directly associated with them. With collateral damage only really extending as far as their customers and investors.
In the academic world, because of the way science functions and the fact that it can be published anywhere in the world. Research can be built upon, utilised, and informed by any member of society, anywhere in the world. Any questionable behaviour or fraud, regardless of how small, can easily end careers, destroy reputations, have long-term consequences, and impact far beyond the original source of dishonesty.
- Do all your own work and research.
- Write your own documents and avoid plagiarism.
- Always cite your sources properly.
- Never change the results of an experiment to suit an outcome.
- Take a questionnaire or quiz without help from textbooks or friends.
- Report someone who you suspect has cheated in an exam or assignment.
- Report all conflicts of interest.
- Avoid letting personal biases or financial conflicts affect results.
By practising integrity in your studies, research, and publications, you build trust in your scholarly community and among the greater academic community. When an academic is viewed as trustworthy, their work is viewed in higher regard and trusted more and seen as more valuable.
- Your work can be trusted if your academic work is underpinned by honesty, trust, and respect.
- Academic integrity is important because it gives value to your degree.
- Employers prefer to hire graduates whom they believe to have high personal integrity.
- You can be relied upon, because you act honestly and do what you say you will do.
- Because you behave consistently in an honest manner, people trust you.
- Trustworthiness is one of the key characteristics of a successful leader.
- Your work brings honour and prestige to your faculty and institution.
Although most students understand what is academic integrity, dishonesty remains common. Common behaviours leading to an undermining of academic integrity are pressure to achieve, time management struggles, difficulty with a course and financial conflicts of interest.
Academic dishonesty hurts you, your peers, and the learning process.
- Unfair to the plagiarised author.
- Unfair to other students who did not cheat.
- Damages your own learning.
- Harms your reputation.
- Wastes money.
- Harmful if published research contains misleading information.
- Dangerous if you do not learn the fundamentals of academic practice, such as conducting experiments.
Being successful in life relies greatly on our ability to trust each other. Developing good ethical habits while you are studying will help you when you start your working career to face ethical issues.
Acting with integrity can also reduce unnecessary stress in your life and make you feel happier, healthier, and more productive.
Academic dishonesty, also called academic misconduct refers to actions that undermine academic integrity.
Common types of misconduct
- Plagiarism: Defined as copying someone else’s work and passing it off as your own, without giving proper credit.
- Cheating: Using unauthorised sources or devices to help you achieve an outcome you would not have achieved on your own.
- Contract cheating: Paying or bribing someone to help you cheat.
- Facilitation of academic dishonesty: Helping others cheat.
- Collusion: Working together with others to cheat.
- Data fabrication: Misrepresenting the results of your research.
- Deceit: Lying or falsifying information.
As a postgraduate student, you will conduct research by gathering data, analysing the data, and interpreting the data. Once you have the findings of the research, you will have to write up your research.
If you are studying towards a doctoral or master’s degree, you will probably have to write a long-form academic document. Depending on your institution, your document may be called a dissertation or a thesis. When writing up your thesis or dissertation, you must apply the rules of academic writing, as you could easily be guilty of some or other form of misconduct.
Common examples of academic dishonesty in postgraduate studies:
- A student plagiarises another person’s work in their thesis or dissertation.
- A student pays someone to do their experimental work or research.
- A student pays someone to write their thesis or dissertation.
- A student does not give people credit for their ideas or academic work.
- A student falsifies or misrepresents experimental/research results.
Being dishonest may lead to a disciplinary hearing, which could end in your expulsion. Students who are found guilty of academic misconduct may find it difficult to secure a job.
In postgraduate studies, students are often guilty of plagiarism. Mostly, they plagiarise when writing up their theses or dissertations.
Common examples of plagiarism:
- Copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit.
- Failing to put a quotation in quotation marks.
- Giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation.
- Changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit.
The best way to avoid plagiarism is to ensure you cite your work correctly. See our blog post for a detailed explanation of how to manage citations in your thesis.
Basics of academic citations:
- Cite another person’s idea, opinion, or theory.
- Cite facts, statistics, graphs, drawings—any pieces of information—that are not common knowledge.
- Use quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words.
- Cite when you paraphrase another person’s spoken or written words.
One of the best ways of protecting your academic reputation is to get help with your thesis or dissertation, in the form of an academic mentor.
Graduate Mastery provides academic writing coaching and mentoring services and can advise review and assist you in your academic writing and ensuring your reputation as an academic is seen as honest and acting with integrity.