I.      Standards of Academic Conduct

        As an academic institution committed to the discovery and dissemination of truth, William Paterson  University expects that all members of the University community shall conduct themselves honestly  and with professional demeanor in all academic activities.

        William Paterson University has established standards of academic conduct because of its belief that academic honesty is a matter of individual and University responsibility and that, when standards of honesty are violated, each member of the community is harmed.

        Members of the University community are expected to acknowledge their individual responsibility to be familiar with and adhere to the Academic Integrity Policy.

II.     Violations of Academic Integrity

        Violations of the Academic Integrity Policy will include, but not be limited to the following examples:

        A.     Cheating during examinations includes any attempt to (1) look at another student's examination with the  intention of using another's answers for attempted personal benefit; (2) communicate in any manner, information concerning the content of the examination during the testing period or after the examination to someone who has not yet taken the examination; (3) use any materials, such as notebooks, notes, textbooks or other sources, not specifically designated by the professor of the course for student use during the examination period, or (4) engage in any other activity for the purpose of seeking aid not authorized by the professor.

        B.     Plagiarism is the copying from a book, article, notebook, video, or other source material whether published or unpublished, without proper credit through the use of quotation marks, footnotes and other customary means of identifying sources, or passing off as one's own, the ideas, words, writings, programs and experiments of another, whether or not such actions are intentional or unintentional.
                Plagiarism will also include submitting, without the consent of the professor, an assignment already tendered for academic credit in another course.

        C.  Collusion is working together in preparing separate course assignments in ways not authorized by the instructor. Academic work produced through a cooperative (collaborative effort) of two or more students is permissible only upon the explicit consent of the professor. The collaboration must also be acknowledged in stating the authorship of the report.

        D.     Lying is knowingly furnishing false information, distorting data or omitting to provide all necessary, required information to the University's advisor, registrar, admissions counselor, professor, etc., for any academically related purpose.

        E.     Other concerns which relate to the Academic Integrity Policy include such issues as computer security, stolen tests, falsified records as well as vandalism of library materials. No list could possibly include all the possible violations of academic integrity. These examples should, however, give a clearer idea of the intent and extent of application of this policy.