Hi. I have been accused of two offences this semester. This first one was for plaigerism however what happened was that I accidentally submitted my assignment to the wrong course and plaigerism picked it up. I was told I would be contacted by the dean. Recently I got another offence for one of my midterms for another course because my friend and I had very similar answers. I’m in a very bad state right now and don’t know what to expect. Please help me

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hey there,

it seems like academic offence accusations have skyrocketed ever since school went online.

i can imagine that you’re probably feeling incredibly anxious, so i really hope that you’re able to reach out to some kind of support. you can talk to someone in your life whom you trust if you haven’t already, or you can get in touch with one of the counsellors over at mySSP. you shouldn’t have to go through this alone.

i’m not really sure what kind of help i can offer, but i can tell you what i know about the academic offence process, to kinda arm you with knowledge about what’s to come.

so pretty much everything there is to know about academic offences at u of t can be found in this document. according to the document, an instructor is supposed to have a discussion with you and get your side of the story before reporting things to the dean. i’m not sure if that already happened to you as you didn’t mention it, but it is a good rule to be aware of in case proper procedures aren’t being followed here.

before you meet with the dean, you’re allowed to seek out guidance. i’d very strongly recommend that you get in touch with your registrar’s office and ask to book an appointment with an academic advisor. academic advisors are incredibly experienced at navigating these kinds of situations, and i don’t think anything you say to one can be used against you. going through this process without the advice of an academic advisor is really risky—don’t do it.

normally i would do my best to walk you through everything you would be looking at, but my inbox is drowning in questions and i don’t have enough details about your case (weight of assignment? first offence?) to do so anyway. everything you might be looking at is contained in the code of behaviour on academic matters, including all the different meetings you may have to attend and the types of sanctions you may be looking at. you know your situation best, so do a quick scan over the document and you’ll be able to map out your path going forward.

in total, if you didn’t do anything wrong and things just look suspicious, i wouldn’t worry too much. i know that’s easy for me to say, but all these procedures are in place to ensure that due process is followed in convicting students of academic offences. if something goes wrong, you are able to appeal whatever decision is made. i know it’s scary. but if you know you didn’t do anything wrong, then you didn’t do anything wrong. remember that for now, these are just accusations.

sending you all the support and solidarity from afar. best of luck with everything! please reach out to the supports i mentioned. i think they’ll be really helpful to you.

be Boundless,

aska

Hi there, I’m a first year student and recently got caught for using an online website for help during a term test worth 15% of my grade. I was wondering what kind of sanctions would an offence like this typically receive if it’s a first offence.

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hello hello,

really sorry it took a while to get to this. by now maybe you’ll have spoken to someone about this issue (i really hope you have) but i’ll answer this in case you haven’t!

this code of behaviour on academic matters is the closest thing we’ve got to a guidebook on navigating academic offences. i’d give it a read through if you have the time— it contains many of the answers you’re looking for.

since you were kind enough to send me a specific question, though (not just “what will happen to me” but “what sanctions might i face”) i’ve taken two screenshots that you’ll find particularly helpful. you can find this info under the “divisional sanctions” section of the code of behaviour.

i hope that gives you a sense of what you might be looking at! if you haven’t already, i’d really recommend that you get in touch with your registrar’s office. a consultation with an academic advisor will be invaluable to you right now— you deserve that kind of support.

apart from that, here’s a post i did earlier this year that might be useful for you. the student asking this question was in a slightly different bind, but i explained the academic offence process for them, which will apply to your case as well. https://askastudent.utoronto.ca/?p=25569 

best of luck with this!

be Boundless,

aska

hi , I just got an email from my professor that the TA suspects me for plagiarizing . This is my first time getting academic integrity/offence email . It involves my final which is worth 30% . The issue was some of my answers were not properly paraphrased and misreference as I thought citing from Wikipedia isn’t valid . I know Im the dumbest person in this uni right now , but currently this issue has give me a lot of pressure . Thanks in advance for your help 🙂

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hey there,

not sure what your specific question is, but i can tell you what will probably happen next. according to the code of behaviour on academic matters, you’ll need to make yourself available for a meeting with your instructor, in which the two of you will discuss what happened, your instructor will give you more information, etc. etc. nothing you say in this meeting can be used against you, so you and your instructor can have as open a conversation as possible about the situation. if, after that, your instructor still believes that you committed an academic offense, your case will get passed on to your department chair or dean, and things will be dealt with accordingly.

in your case, since your assignment was worth more than 10%, it’ll likely be the dean who decides what kind of reprimand you’ll be facing. but no use speculating about what that’ll be until you meet with your instructor.

to address specific elements of the message you sent me:

in general, citing from wikipedia isn’t really a good call. if you’re really insistent on using it, scroll down to the bottom of the wikipedia page and see if you can find any legitimate sources lurking in the footnotes. it’s a much better to (properly!!) use and cite those sources than it is to use or cite wikipedia. don’t cite wikipedia. at most, use it as a starting point.

anyway, you pay for access to u of t’s library of online journals and stuff, anyway, so it may be worth the extra effort next time to pull sources from there instead. i know the language can be more difficult to parse and it’s a little less straightforward than doing a simple google search, but the quality of info you’ll get there is so, so much better than wikipedia. not using a service you already paid for is kinda like:

as for proper paraphrasing… this document from the uc writing centre is pretty legit in terms of the guidelines it provides. at the core of it, they outline two essential points. first, you NEED to reference your source (in-text, like through footnotes or whatever your prof wants). second, it’s essential that you use your own words and sentence structures when paraphrasing. it may be beneficial to give those guidelines a look, just so that you’re clear on what the expectations are for next time.

in general, i’d recommend that you reach out to your friendly local registrar. book a phone appointment and explain your situation. it would be useful for you to talk your situation over with someone who can give you advice specific to your case. it would also be a good opportunity for you to ask any specific questions you might have.

a final note: i need you guys to understand that i can’t bail you out, or give you reassurance i ultimately can’t stand behind, or even predict what’s going to happen to you. i’m willing to answer as many of these as are sent in, but i (as a fellow student!) can only be useful in these ways, as far as academic integrity cases are concerned:

• explain the code of academic conduct
• give you tips to avoid academic integrity issues in the future
• walk you through the next steps of navigating an academic integrity case
• refer you to resources

this isn’t @ you specifically, just an announcement for anyone asking academic integrity questions right now. i’ve gotten more this week than i usually do over the span of, like, five months.

best of luck finishing the rest of the semester if you’re not yet done. we’ll pull through.

be Boundless,

aska

I was charged with my second academic offense. My first one was a warning offense for sharing ideas on an extra credit assignment. This time, i was in a groupchat on messenger and people were sharing exam pics and such. I sent answers to 4 pics but didnt send any exam pics and proof was sent to the dean. I got an email saying the deans office is looking into it and now im really worried. what punishment can i expect? I know what i did was wrong and i fully admit to it I dont wanna be suspended:(

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hello there,

it’s kind of hard for me to say. since it’s not your first time offense, i highly doubt you’re going to get off with just a reprimand.

according to the code of behaviour on academic matters, the next lowest steps after a “warning offense,” as you put it, are a grade of zero or F on the assignment, or a reduction of the final grade for the course. you could also face a grade of zero or F in the course. in other words, a suspension isn’t the only possibility you’re facing, which i hope gives you a little reassurance. i know it sucks either way, though.

i feel like, until you sit down and have a conversation with the dean/your instructor/the department head, you don’t really know what you’re facing. ie. you can’t really guess at what punishment you can expect. it will probably help you out if you admit to what you’ve done (if you don’t, i believe the case moves to higher authority/worse punishments are doled out).

i’d just sit tight until you get an update re: their investigation. it’s an anxious situation to be in, i know, but you can’t really control what they do/find right now.

i’d recommend that you reach out to your registrar’s office if you’re really worried. they can talk to you over the phone or something, and give you a better sense of your situation as well as prep you for any potential discussions with the dean. good luck!

be Boundless,

aska

I just received an email this morning from my instructor that she thinks I plagarized. It’s really freaking me out because I was so sure I paraphrased (we weren’t allowed direct quotations) and that I put a citation to everything and I’m ashamed that I might have plagarized w/o knowing. I’m aware it might be accidental and the meeting will just be a discussion but I’m still really stressed about it and I can’t stop worrying that I also did this in other classes and I’ll get suspended pls help

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hi friend,

i feel like this pandemic has brought with it a wave of academic offense questions. not sure if the correlation equals causation here, but rest assured you’re not alone. perfectly natural and valid to be stressed about it, though– i know it’s a scary situation to be in.

it’s always a little bit hard for me to respond to peoples’ cries for help re: possible academic offenses, because there’s… very little i can do? without actually having a look at your assignment and sources, it would be very difficult for me to tell you if you actually committed an academic offense unknowingly. but i can explain what the possible consequences might be if your case moves past that first meeting, so you can see that getting suspended is far from the only outcome of this. for more, i would recommend that you reach out to your registrar’s office— they’re really experienced with these things, and can help you navigate the situation.

glad you seem to have done your research (or something?) so i can gloss over the bit about the first meeting just being a discussion. cool cool cool.

so according to the code of behaviour, how sanctions for academic offenses work is a little different depending on a variety of factors, like whether you admit guilt and how much the assignment was worth. it gets kind of complicated. you can scan through the potential consequences in the code of behaviour if you’d like, but i want to highlight for you that there are so many other options, other than suspension, even if your academic offense is found to be legitimate. for minor and first-time offenses, you may just need to resubmit your work in addition to some sort of reprimand being issued. obviously, since i don’t know the details, i can’t tell you if your assignment would qualify as a minor offense, but it does sound like you’re a first-timer.

even if it’s a bit of a larger deal, they’ll assign you a grade of 0 or F for the assignment or reduce your final grade in the course before they’ll suspend you. i know that’s not super reassuring, but it is better than suspension. and i have faith in the system to only reprimand you in proportion with what happened, ie. if it really was an accident, i really really doubt you’re gonna face your worst nightmares.

best of luck with everything though, sending you all the good vibes. drink some water and take a deep breath. focus on something else. as someone who would panic over something like this as well, what i’ve learned is that there’s no use digging yourself into a hole of anxiety– just prepare yourself well for that initial first meeting, be fully honest, and see where things go from there. you’ll have more information about your situation after that meeting. you got this.

be Boundless,

aska

I got an email from my philosophy prof that she wanted to meet to talk about my essay. she said that it was too similar to other students except I LITERALLY HAVE NO FRIENDS IN THAT CLASS. I THINK ASSIGNMENT IS WORTH 10% EXCEPT I ALREADY HAD AN ISSUE FIRST YEAR WITH A POLITICS COURSE THAT I FAILED AND WENT ON MY TRANSCRIPT. I really didnt copy anyone else work, and im guessing maybe I sent in a copy that didnt have all my citations on it bc I had multiple. how would I convince her otherwise??

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hey there,

“i literally have no friends in that class” lol a mood, where’d they get this headline about me?

sorry, i couldn’t help it, i had to find a way to sneak that gif in. i promise i know an average of 2.67 people in my courses this sem lol. all jokes aside, this is a tough spot to be in and i’m glad you reached out– you must be panicked, and you shouldn’t have to navigate this alone. this is what i think you should do:

• connect with your registrar

your first step should be reaching out to the resources you have, which you’ve already sorta done. the registrar’s office would be even better equipped than me to give you a rundown of your options, point you towards other resources, and give you advice.

• gather any drafts, reading notes, or other proof of the process you went through when putting this assignment together

this should include the other copies of your assignment with citations! it’ll help you make a stronger case that the assignment is your original work. i know sometimes papers get written super fast, so you might not have many substantial notes/drafts– but anything you have will help you. in terms of “how would i convince her otherwise,” this is the only real piece of advice i can offer.

• trust the process

haha i hate this phrase. but in this case, you’re kind of going to have to trust the process– my understanding is that you’ll need to attend several meetings to have your situation sorted out. the first (and hopefully only) one will be with your course instructor; if, after that meeting, they are still convinced you committed an academic offence, you’ll have to sit down with either a dean or department chair. there’s a whole rundown for you in this pdf, should you choose to preemptively subject yourself to learning what “the process” entails. i’m sure you’ll be informed anyway, and there might not be any use in making yourself anxious given that you might not even need to go through it all. but hey. what you do with that link is on you; i just toss info your way. my hands are washed.

best of luck with this all! i hope this answer has been at least a lil’ helpful, and that the situation resolves in your favour.

be Boundless,

aska

Hi Aska,

So i screwed up really badly- i commit and academic offense which is now reflected on my transcript (as a GWP). I recognize and understand the seriousness of this and completely accept responsibility. At the same time, i’m trying to turn my life around and want to apply to other UofT opportunities. My question is: can the registrar/prof/TA who are involved in my academic misconduct case reveal the reason for the GWP on my transcript? Can they share info on me behind the scenes? The position I’m applying for requires an application and transcript copy which obviously will show the GWP, so it’s not like i’m trying to hide the incident- i would just like to explain it myself, rather than have the faculty discuss it among themselves.

Thanks so much

P.S i’d really appreciate the lack of preaching about the wrongs of cheating. i’m not at all assuming that you’d do that, its just that, like i said, i understand what i did was wrong and came to aska to avoid the public shaming people have received on other advice sites- this has really affected me, as it should, and i just want to move forward

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hey,

first of all, i think what you’re referring to is a GWR (grade withheld pending review).

regardless of what position you are applying to, if the university was contacted regarding your transcript, they technically, (according to the rules of FIPPA) cannot confirm if you even go to the school. the university abides by a pretty strict code of confidentiality so you don’t have to worry about this kind of information getting out.

if your academic misconduct case results in a sanction, then your transcript might say something like “sanctioned for academic misconduct“, but again, the university still won’t be able to release any information on whether or not you attend the school or the reason of your sanction.

aska strives to be a lot of things, but we do not strive to be preachy. we realize that sometimes people make mistakes, which sucks, but we want to help you get back up so you can learn from your mistakes.

i’m not sure if proud is the right word to use here since i don’t want to sound patronizing, but i’m very glad/proud that you are willing to take full responsibility for your mistakes. sometimes the hardest part is admitting to your mistakes. it takes a big person to admit that.

anyways, public shaming sucks.

you’ll be okay in the end.

wishing you all the best,

peace and love,

aska