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School of Engineering

Code of Conduct

School of Engineering Expectations

  1. Attend class.
  2. Be on-time for all commitments (class, etc.).
  3. Thoughtfully complete and submit all assignments by the due date.
  4. Use proper grammar in written and oral assignments.
  5. Present an appearance that is not distracting to others and reflects a professional image.
  6. Be courteous in the use of electronic devices: pagers, cell phones, laptops, etc.

School of Engineering Academic Conduct

Academic Misconduct

Academic misconduct undermines the purpose of education. Such behavior is a serious violation of the trust that must exist among faculty and students for a university to nurture intellectual growth and development. Academic misconduct can generally be defined as all acts of dishonesty in an academic or related matter. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following categories of behavior:

  • Abetting

    Helping another student commit an act of academic dishonesty. Allowing someone to copy your quiz answers, or use your work as their own are examples of abetting.

  • Cheating

    Use or attempted use of unauthorized materials, information, study aids, the answers of others, or computer-related information.

  • Plagiarism

    Claiming as your own the ideas, words, data, computer programs, creative compositions, art work, etc., done by someone else. Examples include improper citation of referenced works, use of commercially available scholarly papers, failure to cite sources, copying other’s ideas.

  • Fabrication

    Presenting as genuine falsified data, citations, quotations.

  • Misrepresentation

    Falsification, alteration or misstatement of the contents of documents, academic work or other materials related to academic matters, including representing work substantially done for one class as work done for another without receiving prior approval from the instructor.

Violations

Violations of the Academic Code of Conduct are punishable by a range of penalties from receiving a failing grade on an assignment or examination to an F in the course. Any course grade of F for academic misconduct supersedes any other grade or notation for that class.

In the event of a suspected violation of the Academic Code of Conduct, the following procedure is followed:

  1. Upon reaching the conclusion that academic dishonesty may have occurred and that action is warranted, the instructor should inform the student of the charge as soon as possible.  The student has the right to hear the instructor’s reasons for making the charge, to inspect all relevant evidence in the instructor’s possession, and to respond to the charge.  Based on the student’s response and all the evidence, the instructor will determine if a penalty is appropriate. If a penalty is deemed appropriate, the instructor informs the student of the action to be taken. If the student is not in agreement with the findings or the penalty, the instructor will provide the student with a written statement of the action taken and the basis for it. A copy of this letter will be sent to the department chair.
  2. Within two weeks of this notification of a judgment of academic dishonesty, the student may appeal the instructor’s decision by letter to the chair of the department.  The chair or her/her designee, acting expeditiously, should take testimony from the student, the instructor, and all appropriate witnesses, and make a decision.  If the chair or designee reverses the finding of academic misconduct, the instructor must re-examine the work in question and assign credit without prejudice. In the event that the chair or designee is the instructor in the course, the Dean or his/her designee will replace the chair in the appeal process.
  3. In those cases where a grade of F is assigned in the course and the student has utilized the appeal process described in (2) above, the student has two weeks to appeal the decision by letter to the Dean of the School responsible for the course. The Dean or his/her designee, acting expeditiously, should take testimony from the student, the instructor, the chair or appropriate designee, and all appropriate witnesses, and make the final decision.
  4. In cases where the final decision concerning an academic misconduct charge is an F for the course, a letter to this effect will be sent to the office of the registrar and kept on file.

A student who has received the grade of F for two instances of academic misconduct will be expelled from the University. The student will be duly informed of the pending expulsion and will be provided the opportunity to be heard. The student has two weeks after notification to request in writing a hearing with the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Programs and Faculty Affairs. Students expelled for academic misconduct will have it noted on their transcript.

Examples of Academic Misconduct

  • Assignments for Credit

    Each student is expected to do his or her own assignments, homework, computer programs, design projects, and laboratory reports. Unless stated otherwise by the instructor, discussion of assignments between students is not permissible. In carrying out computer assignments, each student is expected to do his or her own preliminary calculations to establish the compilation required for an assignment, establish his or her own logic path to accomplish the task, and program that logic without assistance. Merely changing variable names, statement numbers, or the precise form of Input/Output statements (PRINT vs. WRITE, etc.) does not constitute a logic change. No student should submit as his or her own work, a solution copied from any source including, but not limited to, a solution manual, commercial or industrial documents, work of another student in the course, work of any person not in the course, or work of an instructor. The instructor has the right and the responsibility to decide if an unacceptable degree of similarity exists.

  • Tests and Examinations

    It is absolutely essential that each student do his or her own work on tests and examinations. Therefore, the following rules apply:

    • Talking, whispering, whistling, or tapping are not permitted during any test or examination.
    • Looking at anyone else's test or examination paper or notes during a test or examination is not permitted.
    • Passing notes or making written material visible to another student is forbidden. On a multi-page test or examination, all pages should be turned face down except the one currently being worked on.
    • In the case of an "open book" or “open notes” test or examination, only those books or materials specified by the course instructor may be used. Solution manuals are not permitted.
    • Student use of electronic devices (i.e., calculators, etc) during any test or examination is at the course instructor’s discretion.
    • In the case of "closed book, closed notes" tests or examinations, a student may not have notes hidden in secret anywhere within the room or in the area.
    • If for any reason a student must leave the room prior to completion of the test or examination, he or she must obtain the Instructor's (or proctor's) permission. No more than one person may be out of the room at any time.
    • lt is the responsibility of the instructor to decide if any portion of a student's test or examination has been copied from an unacceptable source or from another student.

Enforcement

If the instructor observes academic misconduct, he or she will take the offending student's material, and communicate a charge of academic misconduct to the student and to the department or designee, thereby invoking the academic misconduct policy and procedures described in above. These rules are not to be construed as an all-inclusive list of rules pertaining to academic misconduct. lt is only reasonable to expect that situations will arise which are not explicitly covered here. Since academic misconduct will not be tolerated, it is the right and responsibility of the instructor to determine if academic misconduct has occurred in any situation. Both the instructor and student may use these explicit rules as guidelines in determining what constitutes academic misconduct in circumstances other than those detailed here.

Student Grievances

Judgments on academic matters can most appropriately be made by individuals with expertise in the particular academic discipline involved. For this reason, complaints by students on academic matters are the responsibility of the department and school involved. Normally, such complaints can be resolved quickly through discussions with the faculty directly involved. In rare situations where such resolution does not occur, the student should contact the chair of the appropriate academic department. If the matter cannot be settled within the department, it may be forwarded to the Dean or his/her designee for the school in which the department is located. At the Dean or his/her designee’s discretion, an advisory panel may be appointed to study the disagreement and make a recommendation to the Dean or his/her designee. However, it is the responsibility and prerogative of the Dean or his/her designee alone to make a decision on any academic disputes which have not been resolved at lower levels, and the decision of the Dean or his/her designee is final.

Nonacademic Misconduct

The university is a community of scholars and learners; therefore, all participants are expected to maintain conduct that:

  1. facilitates the institution’s pursuit of its educational objectives,
  2. exhibits a regard for the rights of other members of the academic community, and
  3. provides safety to property and persons.

Through appropriate due process procedures, disciplinary action will be taken in response to conduct which violates these principles. A more detailed description of non-academic misconduct can be found in the student conduct code. It is the student’s responsibility to be fully aware of the policies and procedures described in Direction. The Vice President for Student Affairs has the responsibility for coordinating policies and procedures regarding students’ non-academic misconduct.