BRAC University Plagiarism Policy

Plagiarism

BRAC University defines plagiarism as follows: “to represent as one’s own idea or expression of an idea or work of another in any academic examination or term test or in connection with any other form of academic work, i.e. to commit plagiarism”.

(BRAC University Regulations of Students Conduct, P.1., Section 4.1.4).

Plagiarism occurs when someone fails to acknowledge that the ideas or work of others are being used without citing and referencing the original source, which includes:

paraphrasing and presenting the work or ideas of another (including the work of another student)
copying work either in whole or in part
fabricating references or using incorrect references
using statistics, figures, tables, diagrams. questionnaires, designs, computer codes or images as their own work (i.e., without crediting the original source)
phrases and passages are used verbatim without quotation marks and/or without a reference to the author or a web page
reproducing lecture notes without proper acknowledgement.

Consequences of Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a serious academic offence (BRAC University Regulations of Students Conduct, P. 6-13). Students caught plagiarising may face either academic or disciplinary consequences. If found guilty of plagiarism, it may result in the following:

For Students

A failing grade of an assignment or course
Suspension from the university for a period of time
Permanent expulsion from the university

For Faculty (an appropriate combination of the following)

a formal reprimand and probation
restitution of funds to a funding source,
withdrawal or correction of pending or published scholarship
withdrawal of university name from forthcoming works
a decrease in rank at the university removal from a research project
termination of employment
dismissal

How to avoid Plagiarism

To avoid plagiarism, student must properly cite the original source and give credit whenever they use -

another person’s idea, opinion, or theory;
any facts, statistics, graphs, images, recordings, computer codes, experiment results,
any information that is not generated by the student;
quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words; or
paraphrase of another person’s spoken or written words
words or phrases or citations

Students should identify their sources as accurately and fully as possible and must give a full reference to the source.

Faculty Guidelines

It is better to prevent academic misconduct than to deal with its consequences. Faculties and Departments are expected to provide guidance and create an atmosphere of awareness among students by:

Assuring that students are familiar with the Plagiarism Policy.
Providing information and training about correct citation techniques (both printed and web-based material), plagiarism avoidance and how to distinguish between acceptable collaboration and unacceptable collusion.
Notifying that students are required to submit their papers electronically and plagiarism detection software will be applied
Reinforcing the responsibility of students to do their own work on both papers and exams
Notifying students of what actions will be taken in response to academic misconduct and what penalties apply.

Faculty may also take a signed “anti-plagiarism” undertaking from the students similar to the outlined below:

Student Statement:

I have read the University’ Plagiarism Policy and I understand the consequences of a breach of this policy.

I verify that other person’s work contained herein is fully referenced and properly attributed.

Students Signature..................................... Date ...............................................

In addition, the faculty may find it helpful to incorporate proactive preventive practices into their courses; for example:

Use new topic for papers each semester
Make assignments unique and specific to the course
Create questions that require conceptual (not rote) responses

Detailed procedure for dealing with such academic offence is given in the BRAC University Regulations of Students Conduct, section 12, page no 12 (and may be modified along the following lines).

The following procedures are a framework in which allegations of plagiarism are investigated. There may be instances when the procedures may not be applicable or will need to be modified appropriately.

All effort shall be made to conduct investigations in a timely manner; the proceedings should be concluded within 30 days of the initial report of plagiarism.
Reporting plagiarism for malicious or dishonest purposes shall be dealt with as per the faculty code of conduct.
All effort shall be made to protect the individual making the allegations from retaliation.
Any retaliation shall be dealt with according to the guidelines in the faculty code of conduct.
The investigation will be kept as confidential as possible to protect the reputations of both the alleged offender and the individual who made the allegation. However, there may be circumstances under which other senior university personnel may be brought in to consult on the issue.

Reporting

All persons at BRAC University have a responsibility to report plagiarism.
When possible, concerns should be brought to the departmental head of the individual whose work is in question. The departmental head will report the allegations to the Pro- Vice Chancellor within three working days.
Alternatively, if there are reasons not to bring the matter to the departmental head, concerns should be brought to the Pro-Vice Chancellor.

Initial Inquiry

Upon receipt of a plagiarism allegation, the Pro-Vice Chancellor will establish an Initial Inquiry Committee to investigate.
The alleged offender shall receive notification of the allegations by the Pro-Vice Chancellor when the Initial Inquiry Committee is established.
This committee shall include three individuals: one from within the unit in which the alleged offender works and two from outside that unit. The investigators should have no conflict of interest.
The Pro-Vice Chancellor will meet with the committee to discuss the investigative procedures, which will vary according to the circumstances.
The outcome of the inquiry will be a formal, written report draft which
1. details the inquiry procedures,
2. identifies the information that was reviewed,
3. contains copies of all pertinent documentation, and
4. recommends whether a formal inquiry should be launched or whether the matter should be dropped.
Subsequently, this draft shall be sent the alleged offender who will be given an opportunity to comment on the report.
The committee will review the comments and amend the report if appropriate.
The comments will be attached to the final report and, subsequently, sent to the Pro-Vice Chancellor.
The Pro-Vice Chancellor shall review the document, and then submit the document to the Vice-Chancellor with his/her own recommendations on the next step.
1. If it is determined that plagiarism did not take place, the matter will be dropped.
2. Copies of the final report shall be sent to the appropriate parties, and the university shall keep the original report for its records.
3. If it is determined that a formal inquiry is justified, the Vice-Chancellor will request that a formal investigation be undertaken.

Formal Investigation

Upon receipt of the request for a formal investigation from the Vice-Chancellor, the Pro- Vice Chancellor will establish a Formal Investigation Committee.
The alleged offender shall receive notification of the decision to proceed with a formal investigation by the Pro-Vice Chancellor within three business days of the request from the Vice Chancellor. The alleged offender will be given a minimum of two weeks’ notice before being required to attend any interviews to ensure they are able prepare for the proceedings.
This committee shall include three individuals: one from within the unit in which the alleged offender works, one senior university official, and one from outside of the university. The investigators should have no conflict of interest. If conflict of interest prevents individuals from the alleged offender’s unit from participating in the investigation, an individual from another unit may be selected.
The Pro-Vice Chancellor will meet with the committee to discuss the investigative procedures that will vary according to the circumstances but will entail, at a minimum, an examination of all relevant documents and separate interviews with the alleged offender as well as the individual who made the initial allegation.
The outcome of the inquiry will be a formal, written report draft which
1. details the inquiry procedures,
2. identifies the information that was reviewed, o contains copies of all pertinent documentation, o presents the findings of the committee, and
3. if appropriate, makes recommendations for disciplinary action.
Subsequently, this draft shall be sent the alleged offender who will be given an opportunity to comment on the report.
The committee will review the comments and amend the report if appropriate.
The comments as well as recommendations for penalization, if appropriate, will be attached to the final report and sent to the Pro-Vice Chancellor.
The Pro-Vice Chancellor shall review the document, and then submit the document to the Vice-Chancellor with his/her own recommendations on disciplinary action, if appropriate.

Findings

The Vice-Chancellor will respond to the findings in writing, confirming, modifying, or rejecting the findings. This formal notice will be sent to the appropriate parties.
1. If it is determined that plagiarism did take place, the Vice-Chancellor will decide upon the appropriate disciplinary action.
2. If it is determined that plagiarism did not take place, the matter will be dropped. Copies of the final report shall be sent to the appropriate parties, and the university shall keep the original report for its records. Subsequently, the university will make reasonable efforts to ensure that the reputation of the alleged offender has not been damaged or will make reasonable efforts to repair any damage to the reputation of the alleged offender.

Appeal of Findings

The alleged offender has the right to appeal the findings to the Vice-Chancellor within 5 days of receiving formal notice of the findings.
The decision made by the Vice-Chancellor after the appeal is final and binding and shall be communicated in writing to all appropriate parties.

Note: This document is primarily a synthesis of the documents found in the references; however, it has been modified for BRAC University

References

Harvard University. (n.d.). Procedures for Responding to Allegations of Misconduct in Research. Retrieved from http://research.fas.harvard.edu/policies/procedures-responding- allegations-misconduct-research

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (n.d.). “10.1 Procedures for Dealing with Academic Misconduct in Research and Scholarship MIT.” Policies & Procedures: A Guide for Faculty and Staff Members. Retrieved from http://web.mit.edu/policies/10/10.1.html

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. (n.d.). Faculty Handbook: Faculty Plagiarism Policy. Retrieved from http://www.siue.edu/provost/fhb/FacultyPlagiarismPolicy.shtml

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