Academic Integrity

Villanova has established a Code of Academic Integrity that applies throughout the University. The following excerpt from the Enchiridion encapsulates the basis of this Code as it applies to students taking courses in the College of Arts & Sciences:

Each student in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is responsible for the completion and presentation of work which is the result of an individual effort. Academic integrity is at the heart of the values expressed in the University's mission statement. A Villanova student agrees to accept this responsibility as a member of an academic community which was founded in the spirit of St. Augustine's search for knowledge in an atmosphere of cooperation and trust. The intellectual health of this community depends on and draws nourishment from the integrity and mutual respect of each of its members. Academic integrity is vital, therefore, to any university community.

Several acts are considered to be violations of the Code. The following list summarizes types of violations included; students should refer to the Enchiridion for additional explanation:

• Cheating: obtaining or using unauthorized help on an assignment or exam
• Fabrication: using falsified, invented, or misleading information–including bogus scientific data or literature references
• Assisting in dishonesty: helping to commit an academically dishonest act
• Plagiarism: relying on someone else’s ideas or information without adequate acknowledgment–whether verbatim or paraphrased
• Multiple submission: submitting the same work for more than course without prior approval

We all have an obligation to foster a healthy intellectual climate in which each participant receives credit for her or his own work and ideas. All students taking courses in the College are therefore responsible for understanding and abiding by the Code of Academic Integrity. University policy mandates that students violating the Code may be assigned a failing grade for an assignment or for an entire course–and depending on individual circumstances, they may receive further discipline that could even lead to expulsion from the University. The Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs provides additional details about policies relating to the Code. Included there are the procedures to be used by both faculty and students in cases of suspected violation of the Code, including complaints that may be initiated by one student against another.