Academic integrity: frequently asked questions
In this article:
General questions
Q. Do I have to do the online Academic Honesty Education Module (AHEM)?
A. Yes. At the University of Sydney, successful completion of the AHEM is mandatory for new coursework students. If you don’t complete the module before the census date of your first semester, you may not be able to access your academic results.
Q. Are academic dishonesty and plagiarism the same thing?
A. Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism means using someone else’s words or ideas in your submitted assessment without proper acknowledgement. In most cases, plagiarism will be considered a minor breach if the plagiarism was unintentional.
Academic dishonesty includes deliberate plagiarism, recycling, collusion and exam misconduct. Academic dishonesty is evident when a student has tried to gain an academic advantage. All cases of academic dishonesty will be considered a major breach.
Q. Why is it considered an academic integrity breach if I reuse what I wrote in a previous assessment task?
A. Resubmitting or ‘recycling’ previously submitted work is an academic integrity breach because a new assessment task requires you to do new, original work. This is true whether you reuse the whole assessment or only parts of that assessment. You may sometimes be permitted to reuse previously submitted work, but don’t do this without your unit coordinator’s written instruction.
Q. Can I use Grammarly, Google Translate, or any other software (including automated writing tools) to check my assignment?
A. Only if the unit of study outline expressly permits it. You must state on the front of the assignment, or in a footnote or reference, the name of the software and a brief description of how you used it, including whether it was used for editing or proofreading.
Q. Will I get an academic integrity breach if I use AI for an assessment?
A. The University has clear procedures for using AI in assessments. For secure (supervised) assessments such as exams and tests, AI tools cannot be used unless the unit of study coordinator has explicitly granted permission in the unit outline. For open (unsupervised) assessments, you may use AI if you properly acknowledge how it was used. In these cases, using AI appropriately would not be considered a breach of academic integrity.
The specific rules for each assessment will always be set out in your unit of study outline, so check this carefully. We recommend keeping a record of your inputs into the AI service – this could include screenshots or a download of your interaction.
Q. Why is it a breach of academic integrity rules if my friend and I work together but write and submit our own assessments?
A. You are expected to formulate and write individual assessments on your own. Your submitted assignment must contain ideas and wording that are original to you, or correctly referenced, otherwise Turnitin will detect a high level of similarity, and you and your friend may receive a breach allegation. Only group work assessments allow you to share ideas and write collaboratively with other students.
Q. Is a friend or family member allowed to check my assessment before I submit it?
A. Only if your unit of study outline expressly permits it. Anyone who checks your assignment must only correct grammar and provide general feedback, such as feedback on the structure of your work, lack of clarity in answering the question, or referencing errors.
Under the Academic Integrity Policy 2022 (Section 16), any person who provides you with assistance must be acknowledged in writing at the front of your work, or in a footnote or other reference. You must state the name of the person and describe the nature of their assistance. If the person has expertise related to the topic of the assessment, you must identify their current or former area of academic specialisation.
Q. Do I always need to reference text I found on a non-English-language website?
A. Yes. Any content in your assessment that is not your original idea and written by you must be referenced. Even if you translated and paraphrased the content yourself, you still need to reference the source. This includes content from anywhere on the internet, in any language, and in any form. If you are not sure how to correctly reference this content, contact your unit coordinator or register for an individual consultation with the Learning Hub.
Q. How long do I need to keep copies of my assignment drafts?
A. You must keep all your working notes, drafts and other research materials for every submitted assignment for one year after completing a unit of study. We recommend using the ‘save as’ function to create working drafts of your assessment, even if you typically work on the same document or file.
Q. What are the possible outcomes and penalties for an academic integrity breach?
A. While the possible outcomes and penalties vary for each student’s case, decisions are guided by the University’s Academic Integrity Decision-Making and Penalty Guidelines 2023. We explain the different types of breaches and the possible outcomes and penalties in our article Academic integrity breaches: responding to an allegation.
Q. What can I do if I don’t agree with the outcome or penalty for an academic integrity breach?
A. You have a right to appeal the outcome or the penalty. Find out how to appeal.
Q. Will an academic integrity breach appear in my academic transcript or be shown to future employers?
A. No. The breach is kept on a file that is only accessible to Academic Integrity Coordinators. However, it may impact the decisions made on any further breaches you receive in the future.
If your breach allegation is referred to the Registrar (Student Affairs Unit) to be investigated for academic misconduct, some penalties may be shown on your transcript. In this case, you should contact us for advice.
Applying to practise in some professions (such as law) will require you to disclose any previous integrity breaches, which may include major academic integrity breaches or misconduct. The University will not disclose this information to potential employers. If you are unsure if you need to disclose a breach, contact us for advice.
Q. Can the faculty still investigate me for a possible academic integrity breach for an assessment I submitted and passed last semester?
A. Yes. The faculty or University can investigate any previous assessment you’ve submitted, including group work assessments.
Q. I am very anxious about an academic integrity breach allegation. Do I need a lawyer?
A. No. Receiving an academic integrity breach allegation is not a legal matter – it is an alleged breach of the University policy. SUPRA has free, professional caseworkers who are very experienced and knowledgeable of the University’s policies and procedures who can help you. Contact us for help from a SUPRA caseworker.
Major academic integrity breaches
Q. I received a notification of a possible major breach. Can I contact my unit coordinator and explain my actions?
A. No. If you receive a major breach allegation from your faculty’s Educational Integrity Coordinator (EIC), the notice will include instructions on how to respond. Your unit coordinator is not the decision-maker, and they are not able to influence the decision or withdraw the allegation.
Q. What things should I include in my response to a major breach allegation?
A. You have 7 days to submit your written response through your student dashboard, or you can request a meeting. We recommend that you be honest with the faculty. For example, if you made honest mistakes with referencing you should admit this and explain the reasons for the errors. If you have any kind of documentation to support your response, we recommend you present it to the faculty. Read our advice on responding to a major academic breach allegation.
Q. Can I ask for more time to submit my response?
A. Yes. You should follow the instructions on your student dashboard to request an extension.
Q. What supporting documents are useful to submit as evidence to prove that I did the work independently?
A. The key types of evidence that could support your claim include:
- notes written about source materials and various readings that show your original thinking about the subject
- your plan for using the material in your assignment
- your drafts leading up to the final submission.
You are required to keep your working notes, drafts and other research materials for one year after completing the unit of study.
Q. When responding to a possible major breach, is it better for me to attend a meeting or to submit a written response?
A. When you receive your allegation notice you will be instructed to respond in writing or attend a meeting. If you have been instructed to respond in writing, you can still request to attend a meeting if you prefer.
Some students prefer having the time to construct a considered written response and not have the stress of a real-time interview with the EIC. Others prefer a meeting because they feel they can explain the situation better verbally. SUPRA can help you with both types of response. Contact us for help.
Q. Can SUPRA write my response for me?
A. No, but a SUPRA caseworker can help you to understand the allegation, advise you on support documents, and review your written response. Contact us for help.
Q. If I admit to the allegation will the outcome and penalty be more lenient?
A. If, after reflecting on the allegation and the evidence, you conclude that you have breached academic integrity requirements, even if it was unintentional, we recommend you accept the allegation and provide your explanation. The EIC will consider your honesty and previous academic behaviour when making their decision. The outcome and penalty should be consistent with the University’s Academic Integrity Decision-Making and Penalty Guidelines 2023.
Q. I received a notification of a possible major breach, but my faculty didn’t send me a marked-up copy of the assessment. Can I ask for this?
A. Yes. Your faculty must give you relevant and marked-up assessment items and, if applicable, the associated Turnitin compatibility report. These documents will show you the parts of the submitted work that the faculty is investigating and will help you to properly structure your response.
Q. I need to respond to an alleged major breach via a meeting. What types of questions will they ask me at the meeting?
A. The EIC will want to properly understand if there has been a breach of the University’s Academic Integrity Policy or not. Usually, the initial questions will be something like, ‘Do you understand the allegation?’ followed by, ‘Tell me what you think happened’. If your response is not clear, they will ask further questions to help them understand your explanation and decide whether you have breached the policy.
Q. Will a decision be made at the meeting?
A. Usually a decision is made after the meeting. You will be provided with an outcome letter via your student dashboard, which should also inform you of your right to appeal and the deadline for appeal.
Q. I don’t want to risk not graduating on time, or any impacts to my visa and job opportunities. I did not breach the academic integrity rules, but should I accept the allegation to avoid the investigation?
A. In this situation, we strongly recommend that you get advice from a SUPRA caseworker before responding to the allegation. Contact us for advice.
Q. My group members and I received a notification of a possible academic integrity breach for a group work assessment. I didn’t do anything wrong – do I have to respond?
A. Yes. The faculty must consider each group member’s response separately. Failure to respond to an allegation may result in a finding against you because you did not provide your side of the story. Contact us for help.
Academic misconduct
Q. If the matter is sent to the Registrar (Student Affairs Unit) to be investigated for misconduct, how long will this process take?
A. Any potential breach that is escalated to the Registrar will take longer to resolve. The Registrar has up to 10 days to consider the allegation before deciding whether to:
- proceed to an investigation
- send the matter back to the faculty for resolution
- issue a warning
- take no action.
If the matter is considered possible misconduct, it will proceed to investigation and the process will likely take at least several weeks to months.
Q. Will a misconduct investigation impact my study visa and graduation?
A. If you are required to respond to an allegation of possible misconduct you will not be able to graduate until it is resolved. This is because misconduct can lead to a fail grade, requiring you to retake the unit. You can appeal the outcome and penalty, but an appeal will take time to resolve. If you receive a notification of possible misconduct after you’ve completed your degree, we recommend you contact us for assistance.
International students who face a misconduct allegation will most likely need to apply for a new visa, especially if you deny the allegation. SUPRA Legal Service can assist you with your visa. Contact us for help.
Q. If I accept the allegation of academic misconduct at the preliminary interview, rather than going through to investigation, will the penalty be more lenient?
A. Accepting the allegation also means accepting the likely penalty, or range of penalties, outlined in the notification. This could result in one of the more lenient penalties, but it may depend on the circumstances and nature of the misconduct. We recommend that you contact us for advice.
Written by SUPRA Postgraduate Advocacy Service September 2025
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