Procedure: Academic misconduct
Section 10: Academic Misconduct Procedure
If you are unclear or require support with the information listed below, contact the Students’ Union Advice Centre (SUAC) who provide free, independent, confidential and impartial advice to everyone on their rights and responsibilities by emailing advice-centre@hud.ac.uk
10.3 Procedural introduction
10.3.1 There are three stages to the procedure:
- Stage 1: Preliminary Consideration by the Tutor/Marker
- Stage 2: School Academic Misconduct Officer investigation
- Stage 3: University Academic Misconduct Panel (AMP)
10.3.2 We can make decisions and apply penalties at any stage of the procedure. In cases where the allegation represents a serious breach of academic misconduct we may choose to escalate the procedure immediately to a higher stage without exhausting the procedure at a lower stage. If we decide to start our investigations at a higher stage of the procedure, we will explain to you why we have decided to do this.
10.3.3 If you withdraw from your course during this procedure you will not be allowed to return to study with us until we have investigated the matter and notified you of the outcome. If you ask us for a reference, it will record where a disciplinary matter is outstanding.
10.3.4 Upheld allegations of academic misconduct may be recorded on your transcript. Where this is the case, we may refer to this information in character references or notify any relevant professional body.
10.3.5 If an allegation of academic misconduct is raised against you, , you are advised to seek independent advice from the Students’ Union Advice Centre because they have experience of supporting and advising students during academic misconduct proceedings. You can be supported by one of their advisers at any stage of this procedure.
10.3.6 We recognise that in the early part of your studies you may make mistakes but we expect you to learn from these mistakes and not to repeat them. If the circumstances suggest that you intended to gain an unfair advantage, we will take this very seriously and may apply a more severe penalty.
10.3.7 We work on the balance of probabilities when considering allegations of academic misconduct.
10.4 Definitions of Academic Misconduct
10.4.1 Academic misconduct is any behaviour that goes against academic integrity by allowing a student to gain, attempt to gain, or help another person gain an unfair academic advantage. It includes actions that are dishonest, deceptive, unfair or inconsistent with the expectation that students complete their work honestly and give proper credit to the work of others.
10.4.1a The use of AI tools is not, by itself academic misconduct, Academic misconduct may arise where AI tools are used in ways that are not permitted by the assessment requirements, where their use is not appropriately acknowledged, or where students present AI-generated content as their original work. If you are unsure what kind of support is permitted, or whether you can use AI tools for a particular assessment, check your assessment guidance or ask your tutor before you submit your work.
10.4.2 The examples below are intended to help explain the different types of academic misconduct, but they do not cover every possible situation.
| Type of Offence | What this means | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Cheating | Cheating is when students gain, or try to gain, an unfair advantage in an assessment. |
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| Contract cheating | Contract cheating is when students submit work that has been produced by someone or something else and present it as their own work. |
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| Collusion | Collusion is when students work together on an assessment that is meant to be completed individually. |
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| Falsification | Falsification is when students change, omit or misrepresent information so that it does not accurately reflect what happened. |
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| Fabrication | Fabrication is when students make up information, data, evidence or documents and present them as genuine. |
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| Impersonation | Impersonation is when students complete an assessment on behalf of someone else or ask another person to complete an assessment for them. |
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| Plagiarism | Plagiarism is when students use another person's words, ideas, data, images or creative work without properly acknowledging the source. |
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| Self-Plagiarism | Self-plagiarism is when students reuse their own previously submitted work without permission or declaring that it has been used before. |
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| Inappropriate sharing of work | This happens when students share their work, or fail to protect it, in a way that allows someone else to gain an unfair academic advantage. |
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| Ethics Misconduct | Ethics misconduct is when students do not follow the ethical requirements or approval processes that apply to their course or research project. |
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10.5 Definition of Poor Academic Practice
Poor academic practice means small or minor mistakes in your work that are usually unintentional and often happen the first time because you are still developing your academic skills rather than because you are trying to gain an unfair advantage.
Examples may include:
- Incomplete or inaccurate referencing
- Incorrect use of quotation marks
- Minor citation errors
- Weak paraphrasing where there is evidence of an attempt to reference sources
Where poor academic practice is identified, our focus is normally educational. Therefore, a penalty will not be issued, and you will instead be supported to improve your academic skills
10.6 Deadlines
10.6.1 There are deadlines within this procedure and we expect you to keep to these unless you have independent documentation to show why you could not do this. We are also expected to meet our deadlines but there will occasionally be times when we are unable to do this for good reason. If so, we will let you know why and keep you informed of progress.
10.7 Absence from any meeting or hearing
10.7.1 We expect you to attend any investigation meetings or hearings but if you are unable to attend for a good reason, which can be independently documented, you must let us know before the date of the meeting or hearing date.
10.7.2 If you cannot attend a meeting as part of Stage 2 investigation then you should contact your course team directly before the meeting date and we may consider holding the meeting at a later date.
10.7.3 If you cannot attend an Academic Misconduct Panel (Stage 3) held at University level then you must email us at AcademicMisconduct@hud.ac.uk before the hearing date and we may consider holding the hearing at a later date.
10.7.4 We are unable to postpone a meeting indefinitely and will normally only rearrange a meeting once.
10.7.5 If you do not tell us in advance that you are unable to attend the meeting or hearing and you do not attend, the meeting or hearing will go ahead in your absence, a decision will be made in your absence based on the information available to the panel, and you will waive your right to appeal against the decision.
10.7.6 If you tell us in advance that you are unable to attend but cannot provide independent documentation as to the reason why, the meeting or hearing will go ahead in your absence, a decision will be made in your absence based on the information available to the panel, and you will waive your right to appeal against the decision.
10.8 Submitting work during an academic misconduct investigation
10.8.1 If your case is referred for investigation, then we will not confirm any marks for your work until a decision has been made. You must continue working on any other assessments not affected by the allegation. You will receive results as normal for any modules that are not being investigated.
10.9 Mitigation in relation to outcomes
10.9.1 Mitigation does not provide a defence for academic misconduct but it might allow us to consider a lesser penalty. This means we do not take into account your intention to breach the regulations; this is a matter of fact which will be determined by the investigation. For example, if you take a smart watch into an exam, we will consider this as a breach of our regulations, even if you do not use the notes and never intended to. However, we may consider intent when determining the weight of penalty to apply.
10.9.2 We expect students to engage with the Exceptional Circumstances Procedure prior to an assessment rather than submitting an assessment which results in a breach of the Academic Misconduct regulations. If you feel that your conduct within an assessment was affected by personal circumstances and you can provide us with independent documentation of circumstances which you believe have affected your behaviour at the time of the assessment, we may consider this as mitigation. We may not necessarily apply a lesser penalty, even when there are Exceptional Circumstances, as we will also consider other factors such as the seriousness of the offence, if this happens we will explain why.
10.10 Allegation(s) of academic misconduct and investigation paperwork
10.10.1 If it is suspected that academic misconduct has occurred, we will proceed with an investigation. The investigation may include:
- Reviewing the piece of work you have submitted.
- Considering your conduct in an assessment.
- Looking at any relevant source materials.
- Talking to witnesses.
- Asking you to demonstrate your knowledge in relation to the work you have submitted.
10.10.2 Where the allegation is raised by a tutor from another School, the allegation will be put forward and investigated by the School that owns and delivers the module. If you are investigated under this procedure, you will receive an outline of the allegation and an explanation for the poor academic practice/minor academic misconduct allegations. For minor offences, you will be given an opportunity to respond to these allegations via email or a meeting (normally held online) before a fast-track outcome is confirmed.10.10.3 In cases where the allegation represents a serious breach of academic misconduct, for example, exam or contract cheating, we reserve the right to escalate the procedure immediately to a higher stage. If we decide to start our investigations at a higher stage of the procedure, we will explain to you why we have decided to do this.
10.10.4 Where the allegations against you are of a major or serious nature, you will receive an outline of the allegations and an explanation for the referral, along with the meeting details and the name of the investigator at Stage 2 or Stage 3The stage at which the investigation begins is dependent on the nature of the allegation. You will also be provided with relevant documentation to support the allegation. This information will allow you to prepare in advance of a meeting.
10.10.5 Allegations without supporting information will not be escalated for investigation. Supporting information could be for example but is not limited to; copies of previous submissions or drafts of work, a Turnitin report, witness or third-party statement and/or invigilator report.
10.10.6 We will not take into account previously upheld allegations of academic misconduct when considering a new, unrelated allegation. However, if we conclude that you have committed an offence, we will then consider any previously upheld allegations when applying a penalty. It is likely that if you have a previously upheld offence, we will apply a more serious penalty.
10.10.7 If a case has remained open due to escalation or a corrective penalty has not been satisfactorily met in line with this regulation, they will be classed as a continuation of the previous allegation and will be considered at a higher stage.
10.10.8 If you are being investigated for academic misconduct and a second offence comes to light on an assignment you submitted prior to the first case being concluded, then both allegations will normally be considered as part of the same case.
10.10.9 Where an allegation relates to more than one student e.g. collusion or group work cases, then each student will be asked to attend individual investigations and outcomes will not normally be applied until all cases have been investigated at the appropriate stage.
10.10.10 We will keep a record of any investigation and outcome in line with the University’s Records Management Policy.
10.10.11 The University recommends that all students who have been subject to an academic misconduct investigation should undertake further training and development and repeat the academic misconduct module on Brightspace.
10.11 Stage 1: Preliminary consideration by the Tutor/Marker
10.11.1 Stage 1 is intended to address minor concerns. It focuses on helping students understand academic integrity expectations and develop their academic skills.
At this stage, your tutor will review the concern, explain why it has been raised and allow you to respond.
If the issue is considered to be poor academic practice or minor academic misconduct, it may be resolved at this stage without progressing further.
If the case cannot be resolved, either because the evidence indicates a more serious concern or you are dissatisfied with the outcome offered at the Preliminary consideration Stage, it will proceed to Stage 2 of the Procedure.
10.11.2 Stage 1 Offences
- Poor academic practice
- Minor academic misconduct
For a detailed but not exhaustive list of the offences, please see S10.4 of this procedure.
10.11.3 Stage 1 Outcomes
Upon completion of the preliminary consideration, the Tutor or marker will make one of the following decisions:
10.11.3a Poor Academic Practice – there is evidence of poor academic practice but not of an academic offence. The Tutor or marker will email you the allegation that has been made and provide you with a copy of any available/relevant documentation. They will tell you why they are concerned about your work and/or conduct and explain the rationale for the outcome they reached. You may request a meeting with the tutor to discuss the documentation and understand the feedback.
The following outcomes will be considered:
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- Informal Warning and signposted to advice, guidance and additional learning resources or
- The student may be required to undertake the appropriate University training module.
The original mark for the work containing poor academic practice will stand.
Lack of engagement with an outcome(s) may be taken into consideration in the event of further allegations of academic misconduct.
There is no right of appeal against a finding of poor academic practice
10.11.3b Suspected Minor Academic Misconduct – Fast track outcome
There is evidence of minor academic misconduct, usually where this is a first offence, for a student at an early stage of their study, the amount of malpractice is minimal, and the matter (if established) will attract a fast-track resolution. The academic who marked your work will email you about the concern raised and provide any relevant documents. They will explain why they are concerned about your work or conduct. You will be asked to reply to the email, or if you prefer, you may also request a meeting with the tutor to explain your response within 5 working days.
When considering what outcome to apply, the tutor may consider whether you acknowledge the issue and accept responsibility at the earliest opportunity, and whether you provide any relevant information or evidence to prove that you did not intend to gain an unfair academic advantage. They will then make one of the following decisions:
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- No case to answer
- Poor Academic Practice – relevant outcomes to be applied
- Minor Academic Misconduct – fast track outcome to be applied
- Major or Serious Academic Misconduct – refer to the next stage
If the academic misconduct is considered to be minor, they may offer the following fast-track outcome:
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- A reduced mark given for the assessment by marking the work, considering the offending sections, and compulsory training and development.
If the work does not meet the minimum pass mark, then you will be subject to the usual referral opportunities available to you as per the regulations for awards.
10.11.4 If the case cannot be resolved at this stage because you do not accept the fast track resolution offered, it will proceed to the next stage of the Academic Misconduct Procedure.
There is no right of appeal against a finding of poor academic practice/ minor academic misconduct or against the decision to refer the matter to the next stage. However, if you contact us within 10 working days to confirm that you do not accept the outcome for the minor misconduct, your case will be considered at the next stage.
If a penalty is applied at Stage 1, the outcome will not appear on your transcript.
10.12 Stage 2: School Academic Misconduct Officer investigation
10.12.1 We may not be able to conclude an allegation against you at Stage 1 or you may have been referred directly for Stage 2 investigation. In that situation, your case will be referred to an Academic Misconduct Officer (AMO) in your School. The AMO will be independent from the allegation and the Stage 1 investigation.
10.12.2 We will provide you with five working days’ notice of any meeting to discuss the allegation and you will be able to bring a supporter with you.
10.12.3 When you are invited to meet with the AMO, you will be emailed with a full copy of the documentation and relevant information that we have received.
10.12.4 The purpose of this investigation is to review the facts and to consider the case as a whole. The AMO will consider all available material in the case and will speak to you and any other relevant parties about the allegation.
10.12.5 During this investigation the AMO will present the documentation that they have, ask you questions around the work you have submitted and may ask for you to demonstrate your knowledge in relation to the work you have submitted. A note taker will be present in the room to keep a record of the discussions that take place. You will be provided with a copy of the record from the meeting when you are issued with the outcome.
10.12.6 If you are unable to attend the meeting with the AMO you should refer to the section at the top of this procedure called ‘Absence from any meeting or hearing’.
10.13 Stage 2 offences
10.13.1 Examples of the offences* that may be considered under Stage 2 include but are not limited to:
- A repeat instance of poor academic practice or minor academic misconduct
- A case of minor academic misconduct where you have not accepted the outcome
- Collusion.
- Cheating
- Exam Cheating.
- Contract Cheating.
- Falsification.
- Fabrication.
- Impersonation
- Recycling.
- Ethics Misconduct.
* For a detailed but not exhaustive list of the offences, please see 10.4 of this procedure.
10.14 Stage 2 outcomes
10.14.1 Following the AMO’s investigation, they will make a decision based on the documentation and information available and will apply an outcome based on the balance of probabilities. We will normally contact you within 5 working days of your meeting with the AMO, via email, to let you know the outcome and to provide you with a copy of the notes taken during your meeting.
10.14.2 When considering what outcome to apply, the AMO may consider:
- Whether you have accepted the allegation;
- Whether you have provided any mitigating documentation and/or information;
- Your conduct through this procedure.
10.14.3 The possible outcomes that can be applied are listed here:
- No case to answer.
- Case upheld and an appropriate Stage 1 outcome applied
- Case concluded as major academic misconduct with one of the following penalties applied:
- Receive a mark of 0 for the piece of assessment and compulsory training and development.
- Fail the entire module with a full repeat (with attendance) in the next academic session unless you are already on a second full attempt of the module. The subsequent repeat will result in the module being capped at the pass mark, and complete compulsory training and development.
- Case upheld as there is evidence of serious academic misconduct and referred to Stage 3 (Academic Misconduct Panel).
10.14.4 If the case is upheld against you then the AMO will take into account any previous academic misconduct offences when applying a penalty.
10.14.5 There is no right of appeal against a finding of poor academic practice or against the decision to refer the matter to the next stage
10.14.5 If the case is concluded as major academic misconduct, the outcome will normally appear on your transcript.
10.15 Stage 3: The Academic Misconduct Panel
10.15.1 If the allegation against you cannot be concluded at an earlier stage, Registry will convene the Academic Misconduct Panel (AMP) to consider your case. The purpose of this panel is to consider the case as a whole with a view to making a final decision on the outcome.
10.15.2 You will normally be given a minimum of five working days’ notice of the hearing. We will tell you the date and time of your hearing and who the panel members will be. You will also be provided with all of the relevant documentation and information gathered up to this stage. You are not normally allowed to provide additional documentation and/or information at this stage. If there is a good reason to demonstrate why this documentation and/or information could not have been provided any earlier, we may consider it. This is at the discretion of the chair of the panel.
10.15.3 You are expected to confirm your attendance and the name and status of any person who attends to support you at the hearing. A supporter is not normally allowed to speak on your behalf.
10.16 Stage 3 offences
10.16.1 Examples of the offences* that may be considered under Stage 3 include but are not limited to:
- Repeated instances of a Stage 1 offence.
- Repeated instances of a Stage 2 offence.
- Collusion.
- Cheating
- Exam Cheating.
- Contract Cheating.
- Falsification.
- Fabrication.
- Impersonation
- Recycling.
- Ethics Misconduct.
*For a detailed but not exhaustive list of the offences, please see 10.4 of this procedure.
10.17 Stage 3: The Academic Misconduct Panel
10.1771 The Academic Misconduct Panel (AMP) will normally include:
- Any combination of two AMOs not drawn from the School where the allegations originated, one of whom will be identified as the Chair at the hearing.
- An elected officer of the Students’ Union.
10.19.2 Panel members will receive appropriate training before they can sit on a panel and make decisions.
10.73 Other attendees at the AMP may include:
- The Stage 2 investigator or nominee who will attend the hearing and present the case;
- The secretary to the panel;
- Any witnesses brought by you;
- Any witnesses brought by the School including the tutor who raised the allegation;
- Your supporter (if applicable).
10.17.4 If you want the panel to hear your version of events, we expect you to attend the hearing. If you do not want to attend the hearing you can submit a written statement to us at least 2 working days in advance of the hearing date. Please be aware that if you decide not to attend the hearing you will not be able to answer any questions that the panel may want to ask you.
10.17.5 You can also submit witness statements but you must ensure that these have been signed and dated by your witnesses and are sent to us at least two working days in advance of the hearing.
10.17.6 You should also email us at to confirm the names of your witnesses at least two working days in advance of the hearing date. If you would like witnesses to attend the hearing it is your responsibility to inform us of their names at least two working days before the hearing and ensure you advise them of the hearing date.
10.17.7 If you are unable to attend the AMP you should refer to the section at the top of this procedure called ‘Absence from any meeting or hearing’.
10.18 Stage 3 outcomes
10.20.1 Following the AMP, the panel will make a decision based on the documentation and information available and will apply an outcome based on the balance of probabilities. The outcome reached by the panel will be sent to you and your school, no later than 10 working days after the hearing and will include the notes taken during your meeting.
10.18.2 When considering what outcome to apply, the AMP may consider:
- Whether you have accepted the allegation;
- Whether you have provided any mitigating documentation and/or information;
- Your conduct through this procedure.
10.18.3 The possible outcomes that can be applied are listed here:
- No case to answer.
- Upheld with a Stage 1 or Stage 2 outcome applied.
- Fail the entire module with a full repeat (with attendance) in the next academic session unless you are already on a second full attempt of the module. The subsequent repeat will result in the module being capped at the pass mark AND complete compulsory training and development.
- Case concluded as serious academic misconduct with the following penalty/penalties applied:
- Fail the year in which the offending module(s) occur(s). This will normally result in you having to withdraw from the course.
- Permanent exclusion from the University.
- A recommendation to the Registrar and Secretary that the award/credit is to be revoked under Section 1.13.
10.18.4 If the case is upheld against you then the Panel will take into account any previous academic misconduct offences when applying a penalty.
10.18.5 There is no right of appeal against a finding of poor academic practice.
10.18.6 If the case is concluded as a major or serious academic misconduct, penalty is applied at Stage 3, the outcome will normally appear on your transcript.
10.18.7 Where you are required to leave the course you will normally be awarded any credit you have achieved to date unless the Panel specifies otherwise.
10.19 Academic misconduct outcome appeal procedure
10.19.1 You can appeal an outcome at Stage 2 or Stage except the outcome which requires a referral to a later stage or where you waived your right to appeal by not attending a meeting. You should complete Academic Misconduct Appeal Form no later than 10 working days from the date when we issued your outcome.
10.19.2 If we receive your appeal after the deadline has passed and you have not provided a good reason, with independent documentation, about why your request is late we will not uphold your request on the basis that it has been submitted late. Please see our Supporting Information Guide for Students for information about appropriate standards of information and documentation.
10.19.3 There are four grounds for appeal:
- You can demonstrate that a procedural irregularity occurred during the procedure;
- You can demonstrate that the decision maker(s) reached an unreasonable decision and/or the penalty was disproportionate or not permitted under the procedures
- You have independently evidenced exceptional circumstances, which impacted on your conduct in the assessment or engagement with these procedures which for good reason you could not tell us about earlier;
- There was bias or reasonable perception of bias in the procedure.
10.19.4 Once we receive your appeal and have confirmed that it was received by the deadline, we will ask an appropriately trained member of staff who has not been previously involved to review the decision. You will be issued with an outcome letter within 20 working days of receipt of your appeal form and all supporting information.
10.19.5 If your appeal is upheld the original decision may be changed, it may stand but the penalty applied may be altered or your case may be referred to a new Stage 3 AMP hearing with a new Panel containing members who have not been involved in the previous decision. The investigator will be the same person as before. The note taker may also be the same person as before. Please note that it is the panel that makes the decision, not the investigator or the note taker.
10.19.6 If your appeal is not upheld, the original decision will stand and you will be issued with a Completion of Procedures letter.
10.20 OIA: Independent review of the academic misconduct appeal decision
10.20.1 You can request an independent review of our Completion of Procedures Letter (at whichever stage it is issued). You will need to send your Completion of Procedures Letter to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) within 12 months of the date of the completion of procedures letter.