UPEACE Code of Academic Conduct

UPEACE Code of Academic Conduct

Students are expected to:

  • Conduct themselves in an orderly fashion at all times and to adhere to a common-sense code of behavior.
  • Be honest, behave with dignity and treat others with respect and courtesy while under the jurisdiction of the University and while participating in University-sponsored activities.
  • Do not harass others verbally, emotionally, or physically.
  • Come to Campus free from the influence of alcohol or drugs and do not to use or possess such substances on Campus. UPEACE is an alcohol and smoke free campus
  • Contribute to a safe University environment free from fear, and avoid acts of violence, weapons and contraband.
  • Treat all property belonging to the University and others with care.

Students will be sanctioned if found engaging in any of the following activities:

  • Intentionally damaging UPEACE property, equipment, or installations.
  • Misusing University funds or scholarships.
  • Falsifying documents (administrative, academic, or financial).
  • Harassing–sexually or otherwise–other students, faculty, or non-academic staff.
  • Using or distributing illicit drugs on the University premises or in the course of related University activities. f. Violating UPEACE’s Nondiscrimination Policy.
  • Disregard for University Policies and Rules.

Plagiarism

All students are expected to follow high standards of personal and professional integrity in the creation and presentation of their academic work at the University for Peace.

For this reason, the University for Peace considers that plagiarism is among the most serious breaches of academic honesty, and is not tolerated under any circumstances. It will be punished and may result in expulsion from the University for Peace.

Plagiarism is among the most serious breaches of academic honesty, and is not tolerated under any circumstances. Plagiarism involves the use of someone else’s ideas or words without full acknowledgement of and reference to the source. This definition covers all published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form. Plagiarism may be intentional or unintentional, and consent of the author of the source is inconsequential. Plagiarism includes the following instances:

  • Failure to use quotation marks when text is directly copied from another source;
  • Paraphrasing or copying text from another source without due acknowledgement by way of a reference;
  • Adopting the same frame or structure of another author’s written work without due acknowledgement by way of a reference;
  • Adopting the ideas or concepts, or the sequence thereof, of another author’s written work without due acknowledgement by way of a reference.

Plagiarism is, therefore, not only about copying the text of another author’s work, but also about presenting someone else’s approach (the “paradigm”) without acknowledgement, thereby suggesting that your work was the result of your own creativity and originality.

These rules apply to all written work. That includes, but is not restricted to: exams, papers, group reports, PowerPoint presentations, thesis, posters, etc. The same rules apply to group work and documents produced by several contributors. It is the responsibility of every member of the group or every contributor to verify that the plagiarism rules have been followed in the whole assignment. If a student has any doubts about the nature of plagiarism, the rules for use and citation of sources or other issues relating to academic honesty, it is the student’s responsibility to seek clarification from faculty before submitting a written assignment.

Procedure

A faculty member suspecting that a student’s academic assignment was plagiarized will report the case to the respective Head of Department who will maintain academic records of the case and make a decision that will be communicated to the student.

The student will have the right to appeal the decision to the University Dean within 10 days of receiving it. Upon receiving an appeal, the Dean will review all evidence and make the final decision. Decisions in cases of plagiarism will include expulsion from the University for Peace if a student commits more than two offenses.

Expected Classroom Behavior

Students are expected to arrive before the class starts and stay until the class ends, unless other arrangements have been made with the professor.

Discourse in the classroom and via email will be civil and respectful of all members of the class and wider learning community. Students will refrain from use of email and internet during class time and any other distractions, which might affect attention in the classroom. If there are classroom issues to be addressed, students will communicate in timely, respectful and appropriate ways with the professor, other students, and if necessary with the Department Coordinator.

Use of Internet in the Classroom

To maintain professionalism and respect for professors and fellow students, disruption of classes is not acceptable. The use of cell phones is not allowed and therefore they must be turned off or in silence mode. Students will avoid inappropriate use of internet. Individual professors may introduce stricter rules in their classes. The use of laptops is at the discretion of the professor.

Cheating

It is an academic offense for students to engage in unfair academic practices or to cheat in any examination, or in any other part of their academic work whether or not such work will be formally assessed and whether or not there has been intention to deceive.

Academic Offenses and Unfair Academic practices Include:

a. Copying the work of another student or otherwise communicating with another student in an examination.

b. Obtaining answers prior to an examination.

c. Using the work of others (whether written, printed or some other form) without acknowledgement.

d. Repeating work previously submitted for a different assessed assignment without full acknowledgement of the extent to which that previous work has been used.

e. Falsifying data or evidence.

f. Submitting a fraudulent claim of extenuating circumstances.

g. Unauthorized copying or sharing of answers in academic examinations.

h. Plagiarizing material submitted for assessment.

It is an academic offence for a student to knowingly assist another student in engaging in unfair academic practices.

When submitting any piece of academic work, a student shall acknowledge in writing any assistance received or any use of the work of others.

Disciplinary Actions

Under University regulations, students who violate these standards of conduct are subject to disciplinary action from a minimum of a warning to a maximum of expulsion from the University. The Coordinator of Department and the Dean for Academic Affairs will deal with reported cases of academic offenses and recommend disciplinary action to the Rector that is appropriate to the specific case. Penalties regarding academic or disciplinary violations will be filed on the student’s record and kept confidential. No information about such actions will be provided to other institutions, unless specifically requested. Academic violations will be reflected in the academic transcripts as a low or failed grade in the course during which the offense occurred. Faculty and non-faculty staff have an ethical responsibility to honestly answer questions on recommendation forms and other documentation referring to the student’s conduct during an academic programme. Therefore, if a student requests that a professor or any other staff member fill out one or more recommendation forms for further studies or job applications, or if any institution requests information about the conduct of the student through any other means for the above mentioned purposes, the staff member must honestly refer to academic or disciplinary violations if the document specifically requests this information.