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Academic Honesty

The Graduate Center of The City University of New York is committed to the highest standards of academic honesty. Acts of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, plagiarism (in drafts, outlines, and examinations as well as final papers), cheating, bribery, academic fraud, sabotage of research materials, the sale of academic papers, and the falsification of records. An individual who engages in these or related activities or who knowingly aids another who en- gages in them is acting in an academically dishonest manner and will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the bylaws and procedures of The Graduate Center and of the Board of Trustees of The City University of New York.

Each member of the academic community is expected to give full, fair, and formal credit to any and all sources that have contributed to the formulation of ideas, methods, interpretations, and findings. The absence of such formal credit is an affirmation representing that the work is fully the writer’s. The term “sources” includes, but is not limited to, published or un- published materials, lectures and lecture notes, computer programs, mathematical and other symbolic formulations, course papers, examinations, theses, dissertations, and comments offered in class or informal discussions, and includes electronic media. The representation that such work of another person is the writer’s own is plagiarism.

Care must be taken to document the source of any ideas or arguments. If the actual words of a source are used, they must appear within quotation marks. In cases that are unclear, it is the responsibility of the writer to take due care to avoid plagiarism.

The source should be cited whenever:

  1. a text is quoted verbatim

  2. data gathered by another are presented in diagrams or tables

  3. the results of a study done by another are used

  4. the work or intellectual effort of another is paraphrased by the writer

Because the intent to deceive is not a necessary element in plagiarism, careful note taking and recordkeeping are essential in order to avoid unintentional plagiarism.

Procedures to be followed in instances of allegations of academic dishonesty

Any student who has submitted a paper, examination, project, or other academic work in part or in full not his or her own without appropriate attribution is subject to disciplinary charges. Such charges may result in the imposition of a grade of “F” or other penalties and sanctions, including suspension or termination of matriculation.

An accusation of academic dishonesty may be brought against a student by a professor, an Executive Officer, a program, a group of faculty, an administrator, or another student and must be reported to the Vice President for Student Affairs, who is The Graduate Center’s campus Academic Integrity Officer, and to the Executive Officer.

The Executive Officer, upon initiating or receiving an allegation of academic dishonesty, shall appoint an ad hoc committee consisting of three members of the faculty. The function of this committee shall be to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to warrant levying for- mal charges against the student and to make a recommendation to the Executive Officer. The proceedings of the ad hoc committee shall be conducted expeditiously and should receive the minimum publicity possible. A recommendation by the ad hoc committee to levy formal charges shall be forwarded in writing by the Executive Officer to the Vice President for Student Affairs/ Academic Integrity Officer, who will then inform the student in writing of the nature of the al- legations against him or her and conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether to initiate disciplinary proceedings.

Executive Officers and faculty are encouraged to consult with the Vice President at all stages of an inquiry regarding allegations of academic dishonesty.

For additional information, including practical information on avoiding and detecting plagiarism, please consult The Graduate Center guide “Avoiding and Detecting Plagiarism,” which is available in the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs (Room 7301), the Provost’s Office (Room 8113), or on The Graduate Center web page at Microsoft Word - Avoiding and Detecting Plagiarism 2005 rev 2012 jkdc.docx (cuny.edu) See also the full CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity, with which The Graduate Center policy and procedures comply.