► What happens if I am accused of plagiarism?

What happens if I am accused of plagiarism?

1. Faculty letter

If you are suspected of plagiarism you will probably be invited to a meeting in your Faculty concerning the allegation by letter.

Before you attend the meeting

• It is important to decide whether or not you accept the allegation.
• If you have included other people’s work in an assessment without referencing it adequately you will need to remember how this happened and explain why you did this.
• If you have presented results that were not achieved using the method you said that you used you will also need to explain how and why you did this.
• If there were any special circumstances that may have caused you to act out of character or fail to use your normal approach to completing work it is important that you discuss this with the Students’ Union Advice Centre so we can advise you on the best way of explaining this at the meeting.
• You may find it helpful to write up a summary of your response to the allegation to take with you to the departmental meeting.

2. Faculty meeting

You will be shown the evidence against you. This meeting is your chance to discuss the work on which the allegation is based, and to put forward your version of events. If there are any special circumstances that are relevant to the situation it is important to make this clear at the meeting.

You may be asked to admit or deny guilt after discussing the case with the tutor. You may then have to sign a form confirming this. The form gives you three choices:

i. You can deny guilt
ii. You can admit guilt
iii. You can admit guilt with mitigating circumstances

Following the initial meeting your faculty can decide to take any of the following courses of action:

• If you have admitted the offence and it is a first offence, the case may be settled at Faculty level.
• If you have admitted the offence and it is considered serious enough it will be referred to the Examination Investigation panel (EIP)
• If you have contested the allegation but they believe that there is a case to answer, or if the allegation relates to a serious offence (whether or not you have admitted to it), or if it is a second or subsequent offence your case will be referred to an EIP.

3. Examination Investigation Panel (EIP)

If your case is referred onto an EIP you will receive a letter telling you that your case has been referred to an EIP. You are given the choice:

i. Of admitting your guilt in writing. If you do this you do not have the opportunity of attending the EIP meeting
ii. Attending the meeting in person. This means your case will be heard by a Panel who will give you the opportunity to put your side across. The Panel is made up of academics from your Faculty. No member of staff who has a conflict of interest with your case will be on the Panel.

It can take a number of weeks to get to this stage. When you receive the date for the EIP the letter will also contain copies of any evidence against you. At this stage you should make an appointment to see an advisor in the Students’ Union Advice Centre. Take the papers along with you and you will be able to discuss your case and whether or not you would like a representative from SUAC at the EIP.

The EIP is a formal meeting. It follows set Academic Regulations www.coventry.ac.uk/cu/registry/general-regs If an advisor is attending the meeting with you we will help you to prepare a statement and anticipate the questions that you might be asked. We will encourage you to speak for yourself and present your own case. An EIP is a very important event and should be taken very seriously.

The decision

After the Panel have finished asking their questions they will ask you to leave the room, along with any supporter and whoever has presented the case against you. The Panel then decides if you are guilty or innocent of the alleged offence. You are then asked to wait outside the room before the Panel while reaches a decision, after which you will be called back into the room.

If you are innocent then there will be no further action. If you are found guilty of the offence the Panel have to decide how serious the offence is. There are three levels of plagiarism

1. Serious
2. Very serious
3. Extremely serious

If you are found guilty the penalty you receive depends on how serious the Panel think the plagiarism has been. They decide this by looking at a wide range of factors including;

• What year you are in
• If you are an under graduate or a post graduate,
• Have you plagiarised before?
• How much of the piece of work was plagiarised?
• Were there any mitigating circumstances?

You will usually be given a new title to complete - it is not enough just to go back to the original piece(s) of work and insert the correct referencing. This work is marked as a referral and your marks will be capped at 40%.
As well as receiving an academic penalty the Panel may also recommend to the Pro Vice Chancellor that a disciplinary penalty be imposed. For details of the University guidelines for penalties see www.coventry.ac.uk/cu/registry/general-regs

Where can I get advice?

If you would like to obtain specific advice on your case, make an appointment as soon as possible to see an advisor. The Students’ Union Advice Centre is on the first floor of the Students’ Union Building on priory Street.

You also make an appointment by telephoning 024 7679 5200 or emailing suadvice@coventry.ac.uk.
What advice and help can I expect to receive from The Student’ Union Advice Centre?

We are able to assist with the following:

• Explain how the process works
• Helping you to structure a statement of defence / mitigation
• Accompany you to the EIP meeting if appropriate.

Students’ Union Advice Centre, First Floor, Coventry University Students Union, Priory Street, Coventry, CV1 5FJ
Telephone 024 7679 5200
Email:suadvice@coventry.ac.uk
www.cusu.org

 

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