Misconduct in Exams

Guidance relating to misconduct in online exams

AT A GLANCE

• Do not simply copy or translate or lightly paraphrase from notes, books, websites etc. – use your own words.
• Do not copy notes that are copied from somewhere else.
• Do not re-use your own previous work.
• Do not use shared or jointly-produced notes. This is inappropriate collusion.
• Do not communicate with anyone about the exam once the time has started.
• Do not get anyone else to do the exam for you.
• Do not use ‘homework help’ or Q&A sites, or paraphrasing software, or AI, to generate your work.
• Do not take longer to sit the exam than is allowed.

Please take a moment to re-familiarise yourself with the Student Code of Conduct, particularly during the exam period, and note the following specific to online exams:

• The answers you submit must be entirely your own work – the marker needs to be able to assess your interpretation and understanding of the material. Do not copy from lecture slides, books, online sources or anywhere else - even if the exam is open book and you are allowed to consult these, you must not simply copy because that is plagiarism. Changing a few words from the original, or translating it into English from another language is a commonly made mistake, and is also not acceptable - your answers must be your own. Any direct quote must be clearly shown – using quotation marks and attributing it to source and page number. Note also, your answers should not simply comprise a series of quotes - this does not demonstrate your understanding.
• If you are referring to your own notes (and only if you are permitted to do so), ensure that your notes do not contain material copied from other sources, because this will be considered as plagiarism, and will be identified by Turnitin.
• Do not re-use work you have already submitted for assessment at Glasgow or any other institution - you will not be given credit twice for submitting the same work.
• You must not translate text from other languages and submit it as your own work. This is plagiarism and does not demonstrate that you understand the course material.
• Do not share your notes with other students, as you may submit very similar answers as a result, which will be considered as collusion with others, and will be identified by Turnitin. You should also avoid using jointly produced notes for the same reason.
• Although in advance of the exam itself you can discuss how to approach the exam, and revise with other students, you must not discuss the specific exam questions or answers with other students. This is collusion and will result in conduct action.
• You must not allow any other person to sit any part of the exam for you. Students found doing this will be referred to the Senate Student Academic Conduct Committee where penalties include permanent expulsion from the University.
• You must not use any online Q&A or 'homework help' website - either posting the questions yourself, or using solutions posted in response to other students' questions. This is cheating. You must also not use paraphrasing software because the ability to express ideas in your own words is an important skill and using software makes it impossible for the marker to assess your ability. You must not use any AI tool, as the answers it generates will not be your work.
• Ensure that you are very clear about the rules for each specific examination, as rules may vary by course and assessment. Pay particular attention to the time allowed for each exam – for example, although a 24-hour slot may be allocated for an exam (to account for different time zones), this does not mean you are expected to take 24 hours to complete it. If you take more than the maximum allotted time, you are likely to face a penalty, so please consider the time needed to prepare and submit your exam according to the exam-specific guidance. If you are not sure what the rules are for a specific exam, check with your Course Convener in advance. Do not assume, and do not take advice from other students, as they may give you incorrect information.