0.110 Academic Integrity

What is Academic Integrity?

Academic integrity means honesty in academic work. All of your coursework should be a result of your own efforts. I understand that you can often feel pressured and overwhelmed by the demands of school, work, and personal commitments. No matter what level of stress you may be experiencing, it is still expected that you will approach your work with honesty and integrity. While I recognize that mistakes can happen, violating the college's academic integrity policies may compromise your academic career. You would also be devaluing your resulting degree or certificate when you enter the workforce or transfer and cannot meet the expectations that your degree or certification requires.

College of the Desert 

College of the Desert is devoted to maintaining an honest academic environment and upholding integrity as a core value. Members of the College of the Desert community share the responsibility to challenge and report acts of academic dishonesty.

Students are expected to act in an honest and trustworthy manner. Work performed on examinations or other forms of evaluation must represent an individual’s own work, knowledge, and experience of the subject matter. Students are expected to follow the classroom rules established by each instructor.

Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Appropriate action, including discipline Links to an external site. up to and including expulsion, shall ​be taken consistent with due process. 

What to Do

  • Trust the value of your own intellect, honest mistakes are excellent learning experiences.
  • Demonstrate your own achievement and abilities.
  • Do original work for each class.
  • Undertake research honestly and credit others for their work.
  • Ask for help from me, or for more time if you need it!
  • Constructive collaboration with other students is encouraged.

What Not to Do

  • Copy ideas or wording without citing your source.
  • Copy answers from another student.
  • Ask another student to do your work for you, but feel free to collaborate with other students in a joint learning effort.
  • Take an exam or complete an assignment for another student.
  • Collaborate with other students in taking quizzes or exams.
  • Purchase papers or have someone write a paper for you. 

Concept adapted from "Academic Integrity Example" by Fabiola Torres for Online Network of Educators, Links to an external site. licensed under CC BY 4.0 Links to an external site.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (2018, July). What is academic integrity? Links to an external site.