Academic integrity

Academic integrity at Lincoln University is based on the values of honesty, fairness, trust, respect, responsibility and courage.  These align with our university values and principles of kaitiakitaka, manaakitaka, rakatirataka, tohatoha, wairuataka and whanaukataka. 

When all students and staff act with academic integrity it safeguards  the university’s reputation and the value  of your degree. Industry and employers trust Lincoln University, and this helps graduates as they look for jobs. 

As a student, you are acting with integrity when you: 

• Hand in your own work. If you have discussed an assessment with others make sure you all write your own answers. Don’t borrow or buy assignments or claim group work as your own individual work.  
• Contribute fairly to group projects.  Participate actively in group projects, do your fair share and accurately report your contribution. 
• Support your friends by helping them to understand material but not giving them the answer.  
  Don’t write an assessment for anyone else, don’t let others copy your assignments and don’t share your files with anyone. 
• Distinguish your own ideas from material you have found in sources. Clearly show which ideas are your own and which are ones you have paraphrased or quoted from someone else. 
• Acknowledge the source of ideas and words you use in your assessments, including tests and exams. Remember material from lecture slides or notes and other course material on Akoraka | Learn must be correctly referenced, as well as material from all other sources. Get your head around when you need to reference and cite material appropriately.
• Hand in original assessments every time. Don’t hand in an assessment, or part of one, you wrote for another course or in another semester (unless you have a partial waiver approved) or source one off the internet. 
• Report data and source material accurately. Don’t invent or alter data from lab work or surveys, misrepresent information you have read or make sources up. 
• Follow the rules set down for tests and exams.  Don’t take in cheat notes, try to copy off others or use a device to get information about a question while you are doing a test/exam. Also, make sure you know what the technical requirements for your test/exam are and you’re connected to any online invigilation if you need to be. 

There are consequences for doing the wrong thing - even if you didn’t know it was wrong. It’s your responsibility to get familiar with what is OK and what is not acceptable.  

Here is the official policy relating to Academic Integrity at Lincoln University.

Academic integrity is serious stuff. You’ve signed up to a code of conduct and said you’ll abide by the rules. If you are unsure don’t ask a mate, ask your lecturer, come to a workshop or book an appointment with a Learning Advisor. 

To help you do the right thing 

• Learn what is expected when studying at Lincoln University. We all know it’s different from school. Make sure you step up. 
• Read assessment questions and instructions carefully, and keep them handy while working on the assessment. If you are unsure of any requirements, ask your lecturer.
• Learn how to find and use reliable and relevant sources in your assessments. Learning Advisors and library staff can help here. 
• Keep accurate notes and records of information while you are gathering it. 
• Develop your skills. Using and incorporating sources, paraphrasing and summarising, and referencing are vital university skills. 
• Learn how to correctly reference all your sources, including from lecture slides or notes and other course material on Akoraka | Learn. If you are unsure, talk to a Learning Advisor or use AskLive. 
• Include your in-text citations and update your reference list as you write your assessment.
• Learn about what’s OK to do when studying or collaborating with friends and what is not.
• Note that having English as an additional language is not a justification for plagiarism. Remember you have chosen to enrol at a University where the language of instruction is English, and all academic conventions that go with this must be adhered to. 
• Manage your time. Sometimes people do the wrong thing when they are stressed and under time constraints. Start assessment work and studying for tests and exams early. 
• If you’re doing something you feel unsure about, stop and find out if it’s OK before carrying on. You know what blatant cheating is but sometimes things that don’t seem so bad are still not acceptable and have massive consequences. It’s up to you to find out what is and isn’t OK and make sure you act with academic integrity. 

Here is some further information regarding what is academic integrity?