Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity for Students

Be well to do well

Academic integrity is important to the entire University community. It is expected that all students demonstrate honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility, and courage throughout their academic work. Some of the biggest barriers to demonstrating academic integrity are stressors and gaps in knowledge. Stressors may include pressure to succeed in school, or challenges in your personal life that may have a negative impact on your mental and physical wellness. Gaps in knowledge may emerge from many challenges such as not knowing how to cite and reference appropriately or a lack of familiarity on how to write a research paper.

Making good decisions is more difficult when stressors and gaps in knowledge are heightened. This is when unacceptable shortcuts like plagiarism and cheating are most likely to occur. The best way to avoid this is by familiarizing yourself with the services and supports available to you.

Making Good Decisions

Tips for making good decisions are:

Take care of yourself. Your physical and mental wellness should always come first. It’s normal to have some stress in life, and it’s important to recognize when stress begins to impact your wellness. Make time to take care of yourself. This may be as simple as taking a break for a meal or taking time to decompress with loved ones. Sometimes self care may be more complicated which brings us to the next tip.
Ask for help. You are not alone in managing stressors and gaps in knowledge. Support is available at the University to help you navigate challenges that may arise from mental health to study skills. Take a look at the resources listed below to find the support you may need.
Rely on University of Alberta supports, services, and resources when looking for help with academic challenges. Some third parties advertise tutoring services or learning resources that may lead you to an allegation of academic misconduct. This includes offers to write assignments or to provide copies of past exams.

University Resources

Below are some resources available to you at the University.

Help to manage stressors: The Campus Life web page provides a comprehensive list of places where you can find help to manage stressors and gaps in knowledge before they become overwhelming.
New academic integrity policy for students: The University of Alberta has a new Student Academic Integrity Policy (SAIP). Familiarize yourself with what is expected of you and the University’s approach to academic misconduct. Read a summary of the policy »
Support when facing an allegation: Remember that there is support for you if you do find yourself facing an allegation of academic misconduct. The Office of the Student Ombuds can help you navigate the Student Academic Misconduct Process.
Student conduct policies and procedures: Visit the Office of Student Conduct and Accountability website for more detailed information on policies and procedures related to student conduct.

IMPORTANT LINKS:

FoMD

FoMD Professional Standard for Students

U of A

Harms of Academic Misconduct

Academic misconduct causes harm to the learning environment, the university’s reputation and can pose risk to the greater community. Some examples of these harms are:

Those who engage in academic misconduct gain an unfair academic advantage over other students.
Every case of academic misconduct, whether it is confirmed or not, can do harm to the university’s reputation by bringing doubt to the quality of the credentials earned by students.
Academic misconduct can pose serious risks to members of the greater community if students graduate and move on to professional careers without having gained necessary knowledge and skills.

The Student Academic Integrity Policy provides detailed information on expectations of students, different types of academic misconduct, and procedures for addressing cases of alleged academic misconduct.

Read the Student Academic Integrity Policy »

Academic Integrity + AI

The use of artificial intelligence in coursework is a topic of great debate and interest. It is important to remember that artificial intelligence is an emerging tool that provides both opportunities and risks to the learning environment. There is no definitive guide on the acceptable use of artificial intelligence in the classroom.

Each instructor, program and even assignment may have different rules on the use of artificial intelligence. For instance, it may be appropriate to use artificial intelligence to help build ideas on a topic for a research paper while it is inappropriate to use it to write the entire paper.

However, there are ways for students to better understand when its use is appropriate. The following tips can help students navigate the use of artificial intelligence in their coursework. Be proactive and follow these tips before you begin work in any of your courses.

Things to do

Read instructions and course syllabi

Every course offered by the university comes with a syllabus. A syllabus provides information on the course, assignments, and what is expected of students. Begin by carefully reading each of the course syllabi provided to you and find out if your instructor has outlined the use of artificial intelligence in their class.

Understand expectations

Understand what is expected of you for each and every assignment. A course syllabus is a great place to start understanding if the use of artificial intelligence is acceptable in your course. However, it is important to know exactly when and how you may use it. Check the details provided by your instructor on each and every assignment you are required to complete to ensure that you know if and how it is appropriate to use artificial intelligence on an assignment before you submit it.

Ask for clarification

Ask your instructor about when and how you may use artificial intelligence if you are unsure. It is a good idea to ask your instructor in writing so that you have a record to refer back to when completing your assignment.

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