As a student at York University, you have a responsibility to not only understand, but also play an important part in upholding the integrity of the academic experience. The Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies at York University supports the International Center for Academic Integrity’s definition of academic integrity. We expect that you will be committed to acting with integrity in all academic matters, even in the face of adversity, with honesty, trust, fairness, courage, respect, and responsibility.

How can you demonstrate academic integrity in the completion of your course?

Respect the ideas of others: Your course work should represent your own knowledge and ideas. You should not falsely claim credit for ideas that are not your own by presenting another’s work as yours. If you are quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing another person’s work to support your own ideas, identify the work and the author through proper citation practices. Do not memorize or repeat wording from another source without citing it. For more information about how to cite properly, use the Student Papers and Academic Research Kit (SPARK). You can improve your writing, research, and personal learning abilities through the Learning Commons.

Respect your peers: Know when you are allowed to collaborate. Ask your instructor about what group work entails when it comes to the sharing of work. In test situations and assignments, don’t steal or give answers to your peers. Your test answers and assignments should only include your own work and thinking. Ideas, information, and wording from other sources need to always be cited. Cheating and aiding in a breach of academic honesty are both against York University’s academic honesty policy.

Respect your course instructor(s): Understand what the instructors are asking of you in class, in assignments, and in exams. Read assignment descriptions and the syllabus closely. If you are unsure, ask your professor or TA. They are committed to making you feel supported and want to assess you fairly and with integrity.

Respect yourself: When you act with integrity, you know that your work is yours and yours alone. You do not allow others to impersonate you on tests and exams. You do not buy or otherwise obtain term papers or assignments. You do the work. As a result, you know that you earned the grades that you receive, so you can be proud of your York degree. By acting with integrity in your course work, you are also practicing a valuable professional skill that is important in all workplaces.

Take responsibility: If you have acted in an academically dishonest way, you can demonstrate courage and take responsibility for your mistake. You can admit your mistake to your course instructor as soon as possible. Please do not submit the same piece of work for more than one course without your instructor's permission.

Students who engage in academic dishonesty can be subject to disciplinary action under the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty. Your lack of familiarity with the Senate Policy and Guidelines on Academic Honesty does not constitute a defense against their application. Some academic offences can also constitute offences under the Criminal Code of Canada, which means that you may also be subject to criminal charges.

Find Support

For further assistance please contact lapshonesty@yorku.ca

Resources

• Writing Support/Guidance to avoid plagiarism: SPARK
• Academic integrity
• Citation help is available in the Citation Station in the Learning Commons