Resources on Avoiding Plagiarism
Department of Political Science
Concordia University

II. Why Not to Plagiarize
C. Academic Code Procedures
According to the Academic Code of Conduct (art. 29):

An instructor, supervisor, re-evaluator or administrator who, in the course of grading a student's work or through any other means, has reasonable grounds to believe that a student has committed an offence pursuant to this Academic Code of Conduct shall complete an Academic Code of Conduct Incident Report ("Incident Report"), see Appendix A. The instructor, supervisor, re-evaluator or administrator shall forward the Incident Report to the Dean. Note that the Code specifies that the instructor "shall" submit an incident report if there are "reasonable grounds" to even suspect plagiarism. The instructor does not have a choice.

Incident Report
The incident report presents the instructor's basis for suspecting plagiarism, along with supporting documentation. A copy is provided to the student.

Interview with the Dean

After an incident report is submitted, the Dean will contact the student about an interview (unless he or she sends the case directly to an academic hearing panel) and provide the student with a copy of the incident report. The interview should take place within 15 days, and the student may bring a student advocate.

The Dean's Decision
Within 10 days after the interview, the Dean decides either to dismiss the case or to impose one of the penalties listed in the code. The Dean then informs the professor of the decision, and the professor submits the appropriate grade for the course.

Appeals
If the Dean imposes a sanction, the student has 10 days to appeal. The appeal is held by an academic hearing panel (AHP) of three professors and two students. The academic hearing panel can decide to dismiss the case, or to impose one of the above sanctions, or additionally, a suspension of up to six academic terms, or expulsion from the university. Students can appeal the decision of the AHP within 15 days to an Appeals Panel of two faculty members and one student, and a non-voting chair. The decision of the Appeals Panel = is final.


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