Brigham Young University
Faculty Center


Academic Honesty


BYU students should complete their own work and be evaluated based upon that work. They should avoid academic dishonesty in all its forms, including: 

Plagiarism
Fabrication or Falsification 
Cheating 
Other Academic Misconduct


All students, once admitted to BYU, are required to observe the standards of the  Honor Code whether on or off campus.

 

Plagiarism

Intentional plagiarism is a form of intellectual theft that violates recognized principles of academic integrity as well as the Honor Code. Such plagiarism may subject the student to appropriate disciplinary action administered through the university Honor Code Office, in addition to academic sanctions that may be applied by an instructor.  Inadvertent plagiarism, whereas not in violation of the Honor Code, is nevertheless a form of intellectual carelessness that is unacceptable in the academic community.  Plagiarism of any kind is completely contrary to the established practices of higher education, where all members of the university are expected to acknowledge the original intellectual work of others when it  is included in one's own work.  In some cases, plagiarism may also involve violations of copyright law.

 

Intentional Plagiarism


Intentional plagiarism is the deliberate act of representing the words, ideas, or data of another as one's own without providing proper attribution to the author through quotation, reference, or footnote.

 

Inadvertent Plagiarism

 

Inadvertent plagiarism involves the inappropriate, but nondeliberate, use of another's words, ideas, or data without proper attribution. Inadvertent plagiarism usually results from an ignorant failure to follow established rules for documenting  sources or from simply being insufficiently careful in research and writing. Although not a violation of the Honor Code, inadvertent plagiarism is a form of academic misconduct for which an instructor can impose appropriate academic sanctions.  Students who are in doubt as to whether they are providing proper attribution have the responsibility to consult with their instructor and obtain guidance.

 

Examples of plagiarism include:
  • The verbatim copying of an original source without acknowledging the source.
  • Paraphrased Plagiarism The paraphrasing, without acknowledgment, of ideas from another that the reader might mistake for your own.
  • Plagiarism Mosaic The borrowing of words, ideas, or data from an original source and blending this original material with one's own without acknowledging the source.
  • Insufficient Acknowledgment The partial or incomplete attribution of words, ideas, or data from an original source.
  • Plagiarism may occur with respect to unpublished as well as published material. Acts of copying another student's work and submitting it as one's own individual work without proper attribution is a serious form of plagiarism.

 

Fabrication or Falsification

Fabrication or falsification is a form of dishonesty where a student invents or distorts the origin or content of information used as authority. Examples include:

  1. Citing a source that does not exist.
  2. Attributing to a source ideas and information that are not included in the source.
  3. Citing a source for a proposition that it does not support.
  4. Citing a source in a bibliography when the source was neither consulted nor cited in the body of the paper.
  5. Intentionally distorting the meaning or applicability of data.
  6. Inventing data or statistical results to support conclusions.


 

Cheating

 

Cheating is a form of dishonesty where a student attempts to give the appearance of a level of knowledge or skill that the student has not obtained. Examples include:

 

  1. Copying from another person's work during an examination or while completing an assignment.
  2. Allowing someone to copy from you during an examination or while completing an assignment.
  3. Using unauthorized materials during an examination or while completing an assignment.
  4. Collaborating on an examination or assignment without authorization.
  5. Taking an examination or completing an assignment for another, or permitting another to take an examination or to complete an assignment for you.

 

Other Academic Misconduct

 

Academic misconduct includes other academically dishonest, deceitful, or inappropriate  acts that are intentionally committed. Examples of such acts include but are not limited to:

 

  1. Inappropriately providing or receiving information or academic work so as to gain unfair advantage over others.
  2. Planning with another to commit any act of academic dishonesty.
  3. Attempting to gain an unfair academic advantage for oneself or another by bribery or by any act of offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting anything of  value to another for such purpose.
  4. Changing or altering grades or other official educational records.
  5. Obtaining or providing to another an unadministered test or answers to an unadministered test.
  6. Breaking and entering into a building or office for the purpose of obtaining an unauthorized test.
  7. Continuing work on an examination or assignment after the allocated time has elapsed.
  8. Submitting the same work for more than one class without disclosure and approval.