Academic
Integrity
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
Guidance for Students
AUT University
Faculty of Business & Law
How to use this handbook
Your journey through the academic community is likely to be different to other communities or
places of work. As well as new experiences and learning, there are regulations, conventions and
codes of conduct that are particular to academia. This handbook is designed to help you meet the
requirements of academic integrity in order to safeguard the quality of your qualification and the
university’s reputation in the wider community. By applying the guidelines you will develop as an
independent, ethical and responsible professional.
It is highly recommended that you start by reading through the entire document. In the electronic
copy the Table of Contents are represented as hyperlinks, click on a link to go to a particular topic.
©AUT University 2013
Compiled by Faculty of Business & Law Academic Integrity Advisors: Rona Taylor-Smith and
Effie Theodorou.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
Contents
Academic Integrity .................................................................................................................................. 2
How is Academic Integrity Breached? .................................................................................................... 3
What is ‘copies from or inappropriately communicates with another person’? ............................... 4
What is ‘found in possession of unauthorised equipment or material’? ........................................... 4
What is ‘plagiarises the work of another person without indicating that the work is not the
student’s own’?................................................................................................................................... 4
What is ‘approved’ collaboration?...................................................................................................... 5
What is ‘unapproved’ collaboration ................................................................................................... 5
What is ‘resubmits previously submitted work without prior approval of the examination board’? 6
What is ‘uses any other unfair means’?.............................................................................................. 6
Why Do Students Plagiarise or Breach Academic Integrity? .................................................................. 7
Academic Study Skills ............................................................................................................................ 10
Referencing your work .......................................................................................................................... 10
Resources for referencing ..................................................................................................................... 11
Using citations ....................................................................................................................................... 11
Paraphrasing, quoting and summarising .............................................................................................. 13
Where do I get help?............................................................................................................................. 15
Why might my work be investigated? .................................................................................................. 18
Turnitin.................................................................................................................................................. 18
What is Turnitin?............................................................................................................................... 18
What happens to my work when it is submitted to Turnitin? .......................................................... 19
How is Turnitin used? ....................................................................................................................... 19
What is the process if I’m suspected of academic misconduct? .......................................................... 20
Cover Page Submission ......................................................................................................................... 20
What can I do? ...................................................................................................................................... 21
My rights ........................................................................................................................................... 21
Where do I get help?......................................................................................................................... 21
References ............................................................................................................................................ 22
Appendix One – Academic Integrity and Plagiarism ............................................................................. 23
Appendix Two – AUT Library Referencing with APA 6th – Brief Guide ................................................ 26
Appendix Three – Collusion Continuum Exercise ................................................................................. 28
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
What is
Academic
Integrity?
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
This section explains
academic integrity and
how it might be
breached
1
Academic Integrity
What is academic
integrity?
Honesty
Academic integrity governs the way in which you research, develop
and publish ideas and complete assessments while at university.
Academic Integrity is founded on the principles of respect for
knowledge, truth, scholarship and acting with honesty.
Trust
Fairness
Respect
Responsibility
The five fundamental values of academic integrity are: honesty, trust,
fairness, respect and responsibility. These values underpin principles
of behaviour that enable intellectual learning, research and service
(International Centre of Academic Integrity, 2012).
These principles and values are the foundation of academia. Students
and staff have a responsibility to practice academic integrity
throughout every aspect of academic life.
The practice of academic integrity contributes to:
 the quality of your degree and reputation of AUT Univeristy
 your grades or marks
 your learning experience at AUT University
 your personal and professional integrity.
http://www.aut.ac.nz/being-a-student/startingout/undergraduates/academic-information/academic-andstudy-support
What does academic
integrity mean to AUT?
The understanding and application of the values of academic
integrity by staff and students ensures that the reputation and rigour
of qualifications granted by AUT are of the highest standard.
Credibility of qualifications
The AUT Strategic Plan 2012-2016 has integrity as a key requirement:
Tāwhaitia te ara o te tika, te pono me te aroha, kia
piki ki te taumata tiketike.
Follow the path of integrity, respect, and compassion; scale the
heights of achievement.
Upheld through regulatory
requirements
The AUT General Academic Regulations, Part 1, Section 2 Integrity
states that:
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
2.1 Each student shall demonstrate integrity and behave honestly
in all transactions with the University, inclusive of admission,
enrolment, course of study and academic record.
2.2 Any student in breach of Clause 2.1 above may be subject to
the provisions of the University Discipline Statute. (AUT University
Calendar, 2013).
2
Upheld through scholarly
writing
You are rewarded for high quality scholarly writing and other
endeavours. This is based on your ability to integrate the work of
other academics into your own ideas and conclusions, while making
sure you explicitly refer to these sources.
We recognise it takes time to learn the skills of academic integrity
and scholarly writing and that information about what constitutes
academic integrity needs to be offered throughout a student’s
programme of study. It is not expected that you will understand all
the technical requirements of referencing in your first year or will be
able to write in perfect academic language. However, all students
have a responsibility to act with honesty, trust, fairness and respect
in relation to academic activities. Students also have a responsibility
to learn about scholarly writing and academic integrity.
Academic staff have a responsibility to support students in learning
and applying academic integrity throughout their programme of
study. They also have a responsibility to uphold the quality of the
qualification through adherence to the principles of academic
integrity and scholarly writing.
How is Academic Integrity Breached?
Academic integrity may be breached in a number of ways, either
intentionally or unintentionally.
The AUT Calendar 2013 General Academic Regulations Part 6
Academic Discipline, Section 2 Dishonesty During Assessment or
Course of Study states:
2.1 The University Academic Regulations shall be breached if a
student during an assessment and/or course of study:
2.1.1 copies from, or inappropriately communicates with,
another person
2.1.2 is found in possession of any unauthorised
equipment or material
2.1.3 plagiarises the work of another person without
indicating that the work is not the student’s own
2.1.4 collaborates with others in the preparation of
material, except where this has been approved as an
assessment requirement
2.1.5 resubmits previously submitted work without prior
approval of the examination board
2.1.6 uses any other unfair means.
(AUT Calendar, 2013)
An explanation of the regulations is given below.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
3
What is ‘copies from or
inappropriately
communicates with
another person’?
Copies from, or inappropriately communicates with, another person
generally relates to an exam or test situation. This may involve giving
unauthorised assistance to or accepting unauthorised assistance
from another student, whether directly or indirectly. You are
expected to act honestly and to take responsibility to ensure your
work is not visible to others as this could be viewed as indirectly
giving assistance to another student.
What is ‘found in
possession of
unauthorised equipment
or material’?
Being found in possession of any unauthorised equipment or
material in an exam, test, clinical or laboratory situation or other
controlled assessment event. Unauthorised equipment or material
includes any item that might provide you with an unfair academic
advantage over other students. This may be equipment or material
which contains or conveys, or is able to convey information that
relates directly or indirectly to the subject matter of the assessment.
An example would be using a programmable calculator into which
you have pre-programmed information that may give you an
advantage over others, or having a cellphone in your possession
when you have been advised that cellphones are not allowed.
Even if you are found in possession of unauthorised material and
don’t use it you might be deemed to be in breach of this regulation.
What is ‘plagiarises the
work of another person
without indicating that
the work is not the
student’s own’?
Plagiarism is taking the ideas or words or concepts of others and
claiming that they are your own. It can take many forms, from
deliberate cheating to copying from a source without sufficient
attribution to the source of the information. Plagiarism can have
serious consequences as it is viewed as theft of someone else’s
intellectual property just in the same way that taking someone’s
physical possessions would be theft. So it is important that you are
aware of what it is, and how to avoid it.
Almost all scholarship relies upon referring to the work of others; in
fact you cannot normally write academically without borrowing
words and/or ideas from other people. However it is important that
you acknowledge the academic work of other people. It is partly this
tradition of acknowledgment of sources in the form of citing and
referencing that separates academic writing from other forms of
knowledge: it is part of the strength of academic research.
The academic work of other people includes:
 the work of other students
 written work from the Internet, textbooks or any other
source
 images and audio
 ideas
 work that is published, posted on the internet, said, viewed
or heard publicly
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
4
In addition, as part of an academic community, and thereby
benefiting from your membership of this community, you are
expected to abide by its ethical practices. These ethical practices
include the need to consciously acknowledge those ideas, words and
concepts that we borrow from other people.
Experts on plagiarism point out that the ‘work of other people’
excludes work that is common knowledge, making it difficult for new
students to decide when to reference (Carroll, 2007). See the section
on How to Develop Academic Integrity Skills for help on determining
what is common knowledge.
What is ‘approved’
collaboration?
You are encouraged to become an independent learner through the
University’s teaching and learning approach that emphasises student
engagement in their own learning and student interaction with each
other (AUT Strategic Plan 2012-2016).
Group work requires you to collaborate ie to study, research, analyse
and evaluate topics, together. Group assessment requires you to
study, research and complete a single assessment as a group. Both
group work and group assessments help you to develop teamwork
skills, to build on each other’s ideas. Group assessments encourage
you collaborate in order to develop a result that is better than it
would have been if produced by individuals.
When completing individual assessments you may choose to discuss
the assessment requirements with other people, to suggest areas for
research and to discuss your ideas with others. However, your
submitted work must be as a result of your own intellectual
endeavours.
What is ‘unapproved’
collaboration
Unapproved collaboration may lead to collusion, that is, submitting
work as if it has been done individually when it has been significantly
influenced by another person or persons.
Examples of unapproved collaboration in an individual piece of
assessment may include:
 two or more students developing one set of study notes in
preparation for an examination or other type of assessment.
 students taking parts of an individual piece of assessment
and then combining each part to make one assessment that
is then submitted by each student separately.
 students writing an assessment together and submitting it
under two different names.
 editing or re-writing by another person that goes beyond the
norms of checking spelling and grammatical errors and
results in changes in the ideas.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
5
See Appendix Three for an exercise in determining the difference
between collaboration and collusion.
What is ‘resubmits
previously submitted
work without prior
approval of the
examination board’?
This is also sometimes referred to as self-plagiarism. It means
submitting the same work or parts of the same work that you have
previously submitted in another assessment for which you have
received credit or a grade.
It is not fair to give credit again for the same piece of work written
for another assessment. Previously submitted work includes work
that was submitted for another paper in the same or another
institution or publication, as well as work previously submitted in the
same paper but a previous assessment.
If the assessment instructions permit you to use work that you have
developed for a previous use, this work must be referenced as
though it was a publication, as you are the author.
What is ‘uses any other
unfair means’?
Following are a range of situations which may constitute a student
having an unfair advantage over other students. It is not a mutually
exclusive list.
 Tampering with examinations
 Obtaining the exam or test script prior to sitting
 Sitting an exam for another student or having another student sit
an exam for you
 Changing a marked assessment and submitting for
reconsideration
 Allowing someone else to do the work eg writing, of an
assessment
 Overuse of third party assistance such as editors, proofreaders
 Altering group assessment work of participating students without
the collaborating students’ consent
 Fabrication or falsification of data or results of field or other work
 Making a false declaration, eg falsifying the word count for an
assignment
 Misrepresenting exceptional circumstances beyond your control
and then claiming special conditions
 Any situation where a student gains an unfair advantage through
using work that is not their own and is not acknowledged by
them as not their own.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
6
Why Do Students Plagiarise or Breach Academic Integrity?
Students who are new to the academic world may be new to skills
such as ‘scholarly writing’. For example, scholarly writing may
require you to research a range of existing works on a specific topic
and then critically analyse the topic area or draw your own
conclusions. While the foundation of your work may be based on
what other people have produced, the end result must demonstrate
your learning and clearly identify and acknowledge the sources that
are the foundation of your thinking.
Plagiarising or cheating may be referred to as academic misconduct,
the reasons for which are complex. It is useful to identify why this
takes place in order to develop better study habits. The following are
some of the reasons identified by Plagiarism.org (2012) together with
other anecdotal information.
Searching vs researching
The growth and ease of availability of information on the internet has
made it easy for you to search for information and then copy and
paste it into your own work. Searching and using information is not
the same as researching information. Researching requires the
careful consideration and comparison of a range of materials,
individual interpretation of the information and making a judgement
that is then supported by referencing to the source of information.
Plagiarism vs paraphrasing
Paraphrasing is a skill that takes time to learn as it involves using your
own words and developing your own writing style. Sometimes
students attempt to paraphrase by copying a piece of text into their
work and then using the thesaurus or synonym checker to change
words to those with a similar meaning. This is still plagiarism as it is
simply manipulating the text and presenting it as your own thinking.
The originator of the ideas is not cited.
Paraphrasing is reading a phrase or paragraph of someone else’s
work, thinking about it in the context of your assignment and
interpreting the meaning using your own words. Text that is
paraphrased is still based on someone else’s thinking and therefore
must be attributed to them (cite and reference).
‘But their words are better’
Students who do not have a good grasp of English or academic
writing skills find it difficult to rewrite something that portrays
exactly what they want to say.
Making the grade
Pressure imposed by external circumstances and self-imposed
pressures to succeed may result in students cheating.
‘Everyone else is doing it’
Some students are under a false assumption that ‘all’ others are
doing it and it is accepted practice.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
7
Poor planning
Poor time management skills are often a cause of if you leave writing
assignments or studying until the last minute or due to your busy life
you have difficulty in prioritising time. Sometimes you may have
difficulty coping with multiple assessment deadlines.
As a result you may panic and try to find the quickest method of
completing an assessment.
Citation misunderstanding
Citing and referencing indicates to the reader the sources of ideas
and material that you have used as a foundation for your own work.
Citation misunderstanding can result from insufficient understanding
of the academic conventions of citing and referencing, particular to a
student’s area of study. For example, the Faculty of Business & Law
requires students to use the APA (American Psychological
Association) 6th edition method of referencing.
‘It’s my own work, I’ve used
it before’
You rightly see work that you have already produced as your own
intellectual property and feel you have the right to use it again where
appropriate. However, you cannot resubmit work that has previously
been used to gain credit (a grade) unless prior permission is given
and then the work must be referenced.
‘I thought they were my
own notes’
Poor research practice results in students copying and pasting chunks
of work or recording information without reference to the original
author. At the time of borrowing the information, you may forget to
record the attribution information such as the source, author,
original date and date of retrieval when using the material of others.
Then when you come to use the information it is no longer clear who
the information belongs to. This results in the text losing ownership
(Carroll, 2007).
‘It’s common knowledge’
Information may be viewed as ‘common knowledge’ and therefore it
is implied that as ‘everyone knows this’ there is no need to reference
that information to its source.
Some of the rules around referencing may seem contradictory and
vary in their interpretation of what is common knowledge. See the
section on How to Develop AI Skills for help.
Ambiguity of terms
Students who are new to academic study may have difficulty
understanding terms such as ‘define’ or ‘explain’ or ‘analyse’. Some
students do not think a definition needs to be referenced.
Different cultural
perspectives
Students may unintentionally plagiarise due to differing cultural
assumptions. In some cultures, paraphrasing is viewed as being
disrespectful to the original author and to include material from an
expert in a particular field without citation is acceptable (Chester,
2001).
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
8
How to
develop
Academic
Integrity
skills
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
This section offers
guidelines on how to
develop skills leading
to academic integrity
9
Academic Study Skills
Good academic practice
Good academic study skills are gained through:
 developing good note taking skills
 developing skills in researching Internet and library material
 reading and researching widely
 planning your writing, drafting and redrafting
 learning to paraphrase and summarise appropriately
 limiting direct quotes
 learning to develop a clear argument and thinking critically
 managing your time effectively
 understanding the requirements of the assessment
Recognise gaps and seek
help
Recognise where you have gaps in your skills and knowledge in the
above areas and seek help. This might be through self-directed study
such as finding resources that will help you develop good academic
study skills. You are also encouraged to attend courses and seek help
from academic staff. See the later section on Where do I get help?
Be a responsible student
You also have a responsibility to familiarise yourself with the
Business Assessment and Study Handbook and follow the Student
Expectations (AUT Business Assessment and Study Handbook).
Referencing your work
Assessments
Assessments such as tests, essays, reports, presentations and exams,
provide you with the opportunity to show your understanding in a
particular subject area and to demonstrate the achievement of the
learning goals for the papers you are enrolled in.
As part of your learning you are expected to refer to and incorporate
the work of experts in the subject area. However, it is unacceptable
to use another person’s ideas without attributing the work to them.
Attribution is undertaken by citing the source in the body of the work
and giving a full reference at the end of the work.
What is referencing?
Referencing is the formal acknowledgement of the source of any
material (other than your own ideas) used in your work. The source
material used could include: other people’s ideas, research,
diagrams, images, audio files, statistics, facts and theories from both
published and unpublished works.
Systems of referencing
There are a number of accepted referencing systems used by
different disciplines. Please refer to your subject study guide for
details.
NZ Law Style
Law students and academics use The New Zealand Law Style Guide
available at: http://www.lawfoundation.org.nz/styleguide/index.html
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
10
APA 6th Edition
The Business School in the Faculty of Business & Law uses the APA
(American Psychological Association) system of referencing (6th Ed.).
A Guide is available through the AUT Library online resources
http://www.aut.ac.nz/library/study/referencing
This system requires sources to be acknowledged by:

citations within the body of your work
and

full written details of those citations in the reference list at
the end of your work.
Reference list
The purpose of the reference list is to allow your sources to be found
by your reader. It also gives credit to authors you have consulted for
their ideas. A reference list must be included as a new page after the
body of the report and be titled References. It is an alphabetical
listing of all the sources cited in your work except for personal
communications (such as conversations), which cannot be retrieved.
Bibliography
A reference list is different from a bibliography which is more a
comprehensive list of all background reading. A bibliography lists all
the sources used during your research and background reading, not
just the ones you refer to in your assignment.
Resources for referencing
AUT Business Assessment
and Study Handbook 2013
This booklet has been developed specifically for business students
and is a useful resource for information on academic integrity,
referencing and assessments (AUT, 2013).
Endnote
EndNote is personal reference management software that allows you
to import, store and manage your references to create citations and
references lists, using a range of referencing conventions. You may
download it for free from the AUT University website for off-campus
use.
http://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/content.php?pid=84548&sid=628305
MS Word
Increasingly, students are using MS Word to manage their sources.
Student Learning Centre
Courses
The Student Learning Centre offers courses early in the semester on
a range of skills related to academic study. Moreover, they are free
to AUT students http://www.aut.ac.nz/being-a-student/startingout/undergraduates/academic-information/academic-and-studysupport/student-learning
Using citations
What is a citation?
A citation indicates that particular information in your work is
borrowed from or based on another source. The citation gives brief
details regarding the author that help the reader to identify the
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
11
source of the material in the alphabetical reference list at the end of
your work.
These are often referred to as in-text references and require the
name of the author/s and date of publication. If a quote is used then
the page number must also be included.
Citations within the body of
your work
A citation is required every time you use or refer, in the body of your
text, to another person’s:
 opinions
 ideas
 statistics
 diagrams
 images
 audio files
 charts
 illustrations
 suggestions
 facts
 observations.
This means every time you:
 quote
 paraphrase
 summarise
 make specific reference to another person’s work
 use another person’s work as the basis of the development of
your own thoughts.
You do not need to cite your own original thoughts or common
knowledge, unless you are referring to something you have written
elsewhere.
How to use a citation
Citations are used in the same way whether you are paraphrasing,
quoting or summarising.
The citation may go before or after the paraphrase, quote or
summary depending on how you have presented the material. The
following example uses a quote:
“In performance cultures, employees are more likely to see their own
goal achievement as synonymous with their own organisation’s
success”(Macky, 2008, p.261).
OR
Macky (2008) comments that “In performance cultures,
employees are more likely to see their own goal achievement as
synonymous with their own organisation’s success” (p. 261).
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
12
Paraphrasing, quoting and summarising
What is a paraphrase?
A paraphrase is when you put the words, sentences and paragraphs
of another person into your own words without copying the words or
structure of the original material. Good paraphrasing indicates that
you have clearly understood the original material as you have
integrated it into your own thinking and personal writing style.
Paraphrasing is a skill that takes time to do well and will develop with
practise.
Paraphrasing requires more than minor changes to the original work.
Simply changing the order of the words or changing the occasional
word with another word that has a similar meaning is not the correct
way to paraphrase. Even someone with very good writing skills may
have difficulty at times. See Appendix One for an example of poor
and appropriate paraphrasing.
What sort of common
knowledge doesn’t need to
be cited?
Following are some thoughts on what determines common
knowledge.

Information that is common to your discipline is common
knowledge when it is referred to in at least five credible sources
without being referenced (Owl Writing Lab, Purdue University).

Whether something is common knowledge depends on the
audience. If you were referring to general information or ideas
from your discipline and your intended audience was from the
same discipline then you may expect it to be common knowledge
and therefore there would be no need to find the source of this
common knowledge.
For example as a marketing student you might use the term
‘market segmentation’. This is a common term in the marketing
discipline and therefore when using this term in a general sense
there may be no need to attribute it to its source. However, if
the same term was referred to in say the psychology discipline, it
would be wise to cite it as it is not a term common to that
discipline and you would want to explain it in more detail for that
audience and make reference to the source of information
(Referen©ite, University of Auckland).
It is suggested that even where citing does not seem necessary as
with common words, your credibility as an academic writer is
enhanced by attributing to the source of your research (Carroll,
2007).
What is a quote?
A quotation is when you copy the exact words from the source
material.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
13
When to use quotes
Quotes are used where the wording of the original material is
powerful and you cannot reasonably paraphrase without losing the
meaning of that work. You would use a quote to emphasise an
important idea from a leading expert.
All quotes must be followed by an explanation. It is not sufficient to
quote and leave it up to the reader to interpret it in the context of
your writing.
Why have you chosen to
include the quote in your
assignment?
Limit the amount of quotes you use. Remember the majority of the
assignment needs to be your own thinking in your own words. It is
suggested that quotes should not exceed 10% of the total word
count (McCulloch & Reid, 2012).
How to use a quote
If a quote is less than 40 words, the quote must be in double
quotations marks, together with the author, year of publication and
page number of the original source of the quote. Examples:
Short quotes
“So once you start preparing assignments, you will need to ensure
that you properly acknowledge any information that you have used
to support your writing. This applies in the professional world as
well” (McCulloch & Reid, 2012, p. 62) .
McCulloch and Reid (2012) stated that “once you start preparing
assignments, you will need to ensure that you properly acknowledge
any information that you have used to support your writing. This
applies in the professional world as well” (p. 58).
Long quotes
If a quote is 40 words or more, the quote should start on a new line
and each line is indented fives spaces from the left hand margin. No
quotation marks are required but the author, year of publication and
page number format is the same as for short quotes. Examples:
If you understand that you need to acknowledge all your
sources, then this is the first step in ensuring you practise
academic honesty and avoid plagiarism. This also applies in
the professional setting where you are demonstrating
professional integrity by acknowledging your sources of
information. (McCulloch & Reid, 2012, p. 63)
McCulloch and Reid (2012) explain that:
If you understand that you need to acknowledge all your
sources, then this is the first step in ensuring you practise
academic honesty and avoid plagiarism. This also applies in
the professional setting where you are demonstrating
professional integrity by acknowledging your sources of
information. (p.63)
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
14
Summarising
A summary gathers together and identifies the key points from the
original source. A summary is written in your own words.
Where do I get help?
Your lecturer
Your first point of contact is your lecturer. If you are unsure of the
assessment requirements or whether you can use previously
submitted work then you should speak to them.
Paper Co-ordinator/Leader
Your Study Guide will also refer you to the Paper Leader for the
paper you are enrolled in.
Student Learning Centre
The Student Learning Centre provides free academic support to
help you excel and achieve better grades. If you are struggling with
an assignment, essay or paper they offer a range of resources on
essay writing, referencing, time management, exam preparation
and how to study effectively. They also hold free workshops
throughout the year to help you achieve the best possible grades.
http://www.aut.ac.nz/being-a-student/currentundergraduates/academic-information/academic-and-studysupport/student-learning
Services for Māori and
Pasifika students
Māori and Pasifika students at AUT can access a wide range of
student learning services and resources, including tertiary readiness
programmes for new AUT students, tutorial groups, one-on-one
academic support, and fono and whānau spaces on campus.
http://www.aut.ac.nz/being-a-student/currentundergraduates/academic-information/academic-and-studysupport/maori-academic-support
AUT Library
The Library provides a range of tools and resources to assist you
with your learning and research.
http://www.aut.ac.nz/library/study
AuSM (Auckland Student
Movement at AUT)
The AuSM Advocacy team can provide support, advice and
advocacy services that are independent, confidential and free.
http://www.ausm.org.nz/
The AUT Chinese Centre
AUT Chinese Centre is under the umbrella of the Office of
International Relations and Development and Student Services. The
primary aim of the Chinese Centre is to provide pastoral and
academic assistance for students from the Chinese region.
http://www.aut.ac.nz/study-at-aut/international-students/autchinese-centre
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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AUT
Processes
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
This section outlines
the University
processes for alleged
breaches of academic
integrity
17
Why might my work be investigated?
Why might my work be
investigated?
Academic misconduct or cases of suspected plagiarism or cheating
are generally found by the lecturer, marker or examination
supervisor.
In an unsupervised (uncontrolled) assessment such as a written
piece of work or submission of visual or audio or other material, the
marker may suspect there is academic misconduct when:
 there are significant similarities between the work of one
student and another student
 the language used or work presented is more sophisticated
than would be expected at that academic level and/or is
inconsistent with the student’s previous work
 submission to Turnitin.com results in an unacceptable
overall similarity score.
 in the lecturer’s professional judgement a body of
knowledge has been used that has not been given
attribution rights
 there are other irregularities.
In a supervised (controlled) assessment such as an examination or
test the marker or examination supervisor may suspect there is
academic misconduct when:
 a student is in possession of material that is not permitted
in the examination room
 a student tampers with the examination or the examination
setting
 a student shares their work intentionally or unintentionally
allows their work to be shared
 there are other inconsistencies.
Turnitin
What is Turnitin?
Turnitin.com is an electronic text matching tool used to check the
similarity of student submitted work with other sources held in its
databases. Submitted work is checked against:
 the Current and Archived Web - 20 billion web pages from the
current web as well as archived web pages.
 student papers - a database of over 220 million items of
student submitted work.
 content partnerships - over 100 million books, publications and
articles (Turnitin, 2012).
When work is submitted to a ‘class’ and ‘assignment’ that has been
set up in Turnitin, an Originality Report is automatically generated.
This report shows an overall similarity index (OSI), the overall
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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percentage of the document that is matched to sources on the
Turnitin databases. The OSI is also broken down into the
percentage of matches to other student work, the internet and to
publications. Furthermore, each match to the same source is
highlighted in the student report and a percentage of that match is
given.
What happens to my work
when it is submitted to
Turnitin?
When you submit your work to Turnitin your work is permanently
stored in a database. In order to help maintain your privacy you
should remove your name and use only your student ID on the
coversheet, headers and footers of the work you submit.
If your work matches the work of a student in another educational
organisation, the lecturer of that organisation may be able to view
your work. If your work is not available, they may request, via
Turnitin, to view your work. If permission is given by your AUT
lecturer then your work is then made available to another
institution.
How is Turnitin used?
Turnitin is one of several methods used when investigating any case
of alleged copying, plagiarism or cheating. Turnitin scores are also
only one of a number of factors that are taken into consideration in
determining the outcome of an investigation.
In considering the Overall Similarity Index and the percentage of
matches as determined by Turnitin the marker will:
 Consider the matches to other students or your own previously
submitted work.
 Take into consideration text that has been included in the
matches but may be part of a template or other material made
available to all students and part of the structure of the
assessment.
 Take into consideration text that is appropriately cited and
referenced.
 Look at text that has been cited but is a direct match and
therefore should have been included in quotation marks.
 Look at text that appears to have been altered by replacing
some of the words but still follows the same sequence, flow
and themes of discussion as another source.
 Look at text that has not been matched to Turnitin but may
follow the same sequence, flow and themes of the discussion in
another source.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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What is the process if I’m suspected of academic misconduct?
What is the process?
The type and severity of the misconduct will determine how the
student’s case is dealt with. The Faculty of Business & Law has
robust procedures in place to ensure allegations of academic
misconduct are dealt with in a transparent, fair and consistent
manner. In the case of examination or test misconduct the
student’s case may be sent to the Faculty of Business & Law
Discipline Committee. In the case of written or other academic
misconduct, the case may be referred to the Faculty of Business &
Law Academic Integrity Advisors for further investigation.
A student will receive written and email confirmation of an alleged
case of academic misconduct. This advice will be sent to their AUT
email address and the residential address on ARION, the student
records management system.
There are a range of possible outcomes as a result of an
investigation into alleged academic misconduct:
 An interview with academic staff or request for further
information
 No penalty
 A requirement to complete a course on academic writing or
study
 A warning penalty
 A warning penalty that is formally recorded on the
University academic dishonesty database
 A change to the grade awarded for a piece of assessment
 A requirement to resubmit work or re-sit an examination or
test
 a change to the overall grade awarded for a paper
 In rare cases a student may be removed from the
university.
Cover Page Submission
Electronic or hard copy
submission
Students submitting assessments are normally required to submit a
standard AUT coversheet declaration with their assessment. This is
a declaration that you understand and agree to comply with the
AUT General Academic Regulations. When the coversheet is
submitted in hard copy you are required to sign and date it. When
it is submitted electronically you are not required to sign or date it
but by submitting it electronically you are agreeing to the terms of
the declaration.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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What can I do?
My rights
Students’ rights are strongly respected and therefore as well as
recommending students seek support the University also requires
students to have the right to appeal a decision made. There are
several steps to the appeal process. Students have the right to:
 seek a reconsideration of an assessment grade
 appeal the decision to the Discipline Committee
 appeal the decision of the Discipline Committee to the Vice
Chancellor’s office.
(AUT Calendar 2013, The General Academic Regulations, Part 6
Academic Discipline, Sections 1-4)
Where do I get help?
It is recommended that students seek help and support from AUT
AUSM (Auckland Student Movement). This is a free student
advocacy service. Alternatively, students may wish to discuss their
case with family or other support people.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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References
AUT (2012). AUT Strategic Plan 2012-2016. Retrieved on 5 April 2013 from
http://www.aut.ac.nz/about-aut/university-publications
AUT Student Learning Centre (2013). Academic integrity and plagiarism. Retrieved 8 April 2013 from
http://www.aut.ac.nz/being-a-student/starting-out/undergraduates/academicinformation/academic-and-study-support/student-learning/student-learning-centre-printresources-for-students
AUT (2013). AUT University Calendar 2013. Retrieved from http://www.aut.ac.nz/aboutaut/university-publications
AUT (2013). Business assessment and study handbook.
Carroll, J. (2007). A handbook for deterring plagiarism in higher education (2nd ed.) Oxford, Great
Britain: Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development.
Chester, G. (2001). Plagiarism detection and prevention: final report of the JISC electronic plagiarism
detection project. Retrieved 8 April 2013 from
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/plagiarism.aspx
Student Materials (n.d.). Retrieved 8 April 2013 from http://plagiarism.org/resources/studentmaterials
International Centre for Academic Integrity (2012). The fundamental values of academic integrity.
Retrieved 5 April 2013 from http://www.academicintegrity.org/icai/resources-2.php
McCulloch, R. & Reid, A. (2012). Your business degree. Australia:Pearson.
Purdue University (2010). Purdue online writing lab. Retrieved 11 July 2012 from
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/2/
The New Zealand Law Foundation (n.d.). The New Zealand law style guide. New Zealand: Thomson
Reuters. Retrieved 25 March 2013 from http://www.lawfoundation.org.nz/styleguide/index.html
Turnitin (2012). Turnitin products. Retrieved 19 July, 2012 from
http://www.turnitin.com/en_us/products/content#page
University of Auckland (2012). When do you need to reference? (Referen©ite, University of
Auckland). Retrieved on 11 July 2012 from
http://www.cite.auckland.ac.nz/index.php?p=when_to_reference
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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Appendix One – Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY & PLAGIARISM
Academic integrity refers to the practice of honesty around using and reporting academic research,
texts and ideas and the research process in general.
When a person uses another person’s words (direct quotations) or ideas and does not give them
credit for those ideas in their assignment it is known as “Plagiarism” and this goes against the
principles of academic integrity – whether intentional (on purpose) or unintentional, it is still
considered a breach or breaking of academic integrity.
What is wrong with plagiarism?
There are many reasons why plagiarism should be avoided:
Plagiarism is really stealing someone else’s words or ideas and pretending that they are your own.
e credit.
procedures as described in the AUT Calendar under “Policy Statements” (AUT, 2013).
is disrespectful to other students studying with you. Plagiarism is like when you cheat on an
exam. You give yourself an unfair advantage over others who have worked hard to avoid plagiarism.
iarising, or even worse, you could be asked
to leave the programme you are studying.
ideas and wants to follow up your sources, they do not have any idea of where to find your sources if
you do not reference them.
community made up of many years of thinkers and writers.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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How to avoid plagiarism
Manage your time carefully. You need to allow yourself enough time to read your material, write
useful notes and complete your assignment.
need to choose what you want to read. Allow yourself enough time to read the material at least
twice so you have a good understanding of what the author is saying before you start making notes.
ng the information in the body
of your assignment and in the reference list at the end i.e.: author, date of publication, name of
book/journal (Vol. &No.), page range of journal articles or chapter, publisher, place of publication,
page number, website url, webpage title, date of retrieval, all references to where information is
taken from.
information in YOUR OWN WORDS.
u are reading you may find that several authors have a similar
idea. In your notes write down the idea (in your own words) and the authors who think this.
o
include the page that this quote came from.
Print out or photocopy all your source information. Start the bibliography or reference list as you
find information.
Hints to identify plagiarism in your writing
Pretend that you have seen the following opening in Brooksbank’s book Battle for the market.
You think this is what your lecturer wants to see in your essay.
Brooksbank, R. (1996). Battle For the Market.
Smart marketers know that to be successful, their company’s products and services must be
well “positioned” in the marketplace ... positioning strategy provides the key to market success.
However, research has also shown that not all managers fully understand either the concept of
the process of positioning strategy development. Recent research I conducted suggests that up
to 50% of marketing executives in medium-sized companies in the UK fall into this category.
You have read the information and taken notes. Look at what you have written below and
decide if you think your lecturer would be pleased.
How a company positions itself in the marketplace can determine the success or failure of the
company. However research has shown that not all managers understand the concept or the
process of positioning strategy development.
The first sentence in the above text is fine. It is a summary of what the paragraph will be about.
The second sentence, however, is clearly plagiarism. The sentence has been written word for
word, except for the word ‘also’. There is no acknowledgment that these words/this idea came
from someone else.
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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Positioning strategy provides the key to market success. Smart marketers know that to be
successful, their company's products and services must be well “positioned” in the marketplace.
The above text is also plagiarism. The writer has reversed the two sentences in the opening
paragraph, but this is still considered plagiarism.
How a company positions itself in the marketplace can determine the success or failure of the
company. Surprisingly, research shows that up to 50% of managers in some UK companies do
not understand the importance of effective marketing.
In the text above the writer has paraphrased the ‘idea’ from Brooksbank’s article. However, this is
still considered plagiarism as the ideas have not come from the writer and Brooksbank has not been
referenced.
Changing the occasional word for another with a similar meaning is not “writing in your own
words.”
So what does good referencing look like? Have a look at the two texts below. Both have been
referenced properly. The first text is an example of paraphrasing and the second is an example of a
direct quote.
Paraphrasing and citing
How a company positions itself in the marketplace can determine the success or failure of the
company. Surprisingly, research by Brooksbank (1996) shows that up to 50% of managers in
some UK companies do not understand the importance of effective marketing.
Quoting
How a company positions itself in the marketplace can determine the success or failure of the
company. Surprisingly, as Brooksbank (1996, p.48) states, ‘recent research … suggests that up to
50% of marketing executive in medium sized companies in the UK fall into this category’.
Taken from AUT Student Learning Centre, Academic Integrity & Plagiarism.
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Appendix Two – AUT Library Referencing with APA 6th – Brief Guide
Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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Academic Integrity Guidance for Students 2013
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Appendix Three – Collusion Continuum Exercise
Read the exercise below and think about at which point the students move from acceptable
collaboration to unacceptable collusion that would result in academic misconduct.
Discuss it with your friends and see if their viewpoint differs from yours.
A teacher sets this task: ‘Choose one of the three companies I suggest and write an individual report
on their advertising campaigns in the last three years’. Three students do the steps listed below in
this order.
When (if ever) do they move from co-operation and collaboration to creating a report that gives a
false impression to the assessor as to whose work is being marked?
The three students:
1. Discuss the coursework brief with the teacher and with other students.
2. Look at examples of similar coursework from the past and discuss their good and bad points with
each other.
3. Discuss the best way to tackle the task of writing the report and decide to choose the same
company (Let’s all do Microsoft).
4. Decide to all do a bit of research on advertising campaigns (You find out about design, I’ll do
impact, Joe, you do cost, etc.).
5. Tell each other what they have found and brief each other on useful sources of information.
6. Photocopy each others’ scribbles, library notes and printed Web pages.
7. Delegate the best researcher of the group to find out about the company’s campaign, tell the
others and give them copies of notes, Web pages, summaries of articles, etc. (Joe, you find out
and tell us…).
8. Jointly agree a structure for the final report; agree which are the strongest points, which should
go first, etc.
9. Share out the writing task with each person writing one or two sections.
10. Pool the sections and everyone takes the collected test to write their own final draft. Nobody
changes more than 5%.
11. Submit the report for a mark.
(Carroll, 2007, p. 19)
It is our opinion that anything below Point 3 above, is collusion. Students may select the same topic
area when a predetermined range is given, however as part of your academic study and assessment
requirements you must undertake your own research.
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