Academic Misconduct

University information on Academic Misconduct and their penalties: https://myuni.swansea.ac.uk/academic-life/academic-regulations/assessment-and-progress/academic-misconduct-procedure/ 

Types of Academic Misconduct

There are three types of academic misconduct, which carry different penalty ranges

Plagiarism: Without acknowledgement, using another person's work and submitting it for assessment as though it were one's own through copying or unacknowledged paraphrasing. This is often due to lack of paraphrasing, or lack of in text references, or a combination of the two. 

Collusion: Two or more students working together without permission and submitting this work for an independent piece of coursework as their own. 

Commissioning: The act of paying for, or arranging for another to produce, a piece of work, whether or not this is then submitted for assessment as though it were the student’s own work. This can be through an essay mill website or by arranging an individual to help with a coursework. 

Allegation Letters

For all academic misconduct, students will receive an allegation letter by the faculty academic integrity team. This letter will state the allegation, and state which of the above the student is being accused of. There are 4 alternatives for responding to allegations that students may be presented with in the letter: 

1. Written response: This means you must write a response to the allegation.
2. Response form: In this alternative, you would have received a form with boxes to fill in. 
3. Meeting with Faculty or Committee of Enquiry: Sometimes, you will be called in to a meeting with the integrity officers where you will be asked questions relating to the allegation. This will often involve questions about how the you made the assignment, how you paraphrase, reference, what was going on at the time of writing the assignment etc. They will also ask whether you admit to the allegation or not. Although this is more intimidating, it is a good opportunity to display your integrity and honesty. 
4. Viva: If there is suspicion that you have not made the coursework yourself, you may be called in to a viva. This is often on shorter notice (about 3 days), and you will be asked questions by the module lead (most often) about your chosen coursework topic, the references chosen and the content. The aim is to test the your knowledge of the coursework to establish whether it is truly your work. Vivas can be quite intense so prepare to be asked in depth questions relating to your work and sources. 

If you receive an allegation letter

• Contact us for support as soon as possible! We can read through a draft response and look at attending meetings with you.

• Contact Centre for Academic Success - Swansea University who can make sure you are referencing properly among other things.