IV.B. Code of Academic Integrity

(Source: Office of the Provost, Almanac, April 25, 1972; revised, Almanac, December 2, 1980; revised, Almanac, May 4, 1982; revised, Almanac, May 26, 1992; revised, Almanac, September 10, 1996)

Since the University is an academic community, its fundamental purpose is the pursuit of knowledge. A commitment to the principles of academic integrity is essential to the success of this educational mission. Every member of the University community is responsible for upholding the highest standards of honesty at all times. Students, as members of the community, are also responsible for adhering to the principles and spirit of the following Code of Academic Integrity.

Academic Dishonesty Definitions

Activities that have the effect or intention of interfering with education, pursuit of knowledge, or fair evaluation of a student’s performance are prohibited. Examples of such activities include, but are not limited, to the following definitions:1

  1. Cheating: using or attempting to use unauthorized assistance, material, or study aids in examinations or other academic work or preventing, or attempting to prevent, another from using authorized assistance, material, or study aids. Examples: using a "cheat sheet" in a quiz or exam, altering a graded exam and resubmitting it for a better grade.
  2. Plagiarism: using the ideas, data, or language of another without specific or proper acknowledgment. Examples: copying another person’s paper, article, or computer work and submitting it for an assignment; cloning someone else’s ideas without attribution; failing to use quotation marks where appropriate.
  3. Fabrication: submitting contrived or altered information in any academic exercise. Examples: making up data for an experiment, fudging data, citing nonexistent articles, contriving sources.
  4. Multiple submission: submitting, without prior permission, any work submitted to fulfill another academic requirement.
  5. Misrepresentation of academic records: misrepresenting or tampering with or attempting to tamper with any portion of a student’s transcripts or academic record, either before or after coming to the University of Pennsylvania. Examples: forging a change of grade slip, tampering with computer records, falsifying academic information on one’s resume.
  6. Facilitating academic dishonesty: knowingly helping or attempting to help another violate any provision of the Code. Example: working together on a take-home exam.
  7. Unfair advantage: attempting to gain unauthorized advantage over fellow students in an academic exercise. Examples: gaining or providing unauthorized access to examination materials, obstructing or interfering with another student’s efforts in an academic exercise, lying about a need for an extension for an exam or paper, continuing to write even when time is up during an exam, destroying or keeping library materials for one’s own use.
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 If a student is unsure whether his/her action(s) constitute a violation of the Code of Academic Integrity, then it is that student’s responsibility to consult with the instructor to clarify any ambiguities.