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Student Affairs Forum

An Analysis of Academic Integrity Programming and Tutoring Support at Large, Public Institutions in the United States and Canada

Strategies for Combatting Academic Misconduct

eab.com Custom Research Brief


Student Affairs Forum Peter Cellier Research Associate

Anna Krenkel Research Manager

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Table of Contents Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................................... 3

1) Executive Overview ............................................................................................................................. 4

Key Observations .................................................................................................................................. 4

2) Student Solicitation of Unethical Academic Services ..................................................................... 5

Integrity Assessments ........................................................................................................................... 5 Student Motivation ................................................................................................................................ 7 International Students ........................................................................................................................... 8

3) Academic Integrity Programming and Support Services ................................................................ 9

University Branding ............................................................................................................................... 9 Academic and Tutoring Support............................................................................................................ 9 Student Programming ......................................................................................................................... 11 Faculty Programming .......................................................................................................................... 14

4) Consequences of Academic Misconduct ........................................................................................ 16

Reporting Structures ........................................................................................................................... 16 Sanctions ............................................................................................................................................. 17

5) Research Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 20

Project Challenge ................................................................................................................................ 20 Project Sources ................................................................................................................................... 20 Research Parameters ......................................................................................................................... 21


1) Executive Overview

Proactive and visible tutoring and academic support services help prevent students from engaging in academic misconduct. Instructors can incentivize students to attend tutoring sessions with extra credit and opportunities to revise assignments. Tutoring services should send tutors into classrooms and integrate academic support with coursework, to demonstrate to instructors the value of tutoring and academic support services. Tutoring and academic support services can further increase student traffic by advertising in student union buildings and online.

Integrate academic integrity programming into new student orientation and continue programming through the academic year. Staff at profiled institutions begin academic integrity programming at new student orientation with presentations about collegiate academic rigor and importance of developing ethical academic habits. They consistently brand all academic integrity outreach and distribute small, ubiquitous items like post-it notes and pins to maximize proliferation of branded materials. Academic integrity presence at large, campus-wide events such as athletic events and dances, and academic integrity “office hours” in heavily trafficked areas like libraries and student union buildings ensure frequent student contact with academic integrity programming.

Design courses and assignments to discourage academic misconduct. Advertising for unethical academic and tutoring services targets students’ frustration with tedious assignments. Faculty members must adjust assignments from year to year, assess critical analysis and application of material as opposed to rote memorization of content, and discuss assignment value and purpose with students to deter them from cheating. Transitions from infrequent, high-stakes testing to more frequent and varied assignments emphasize content mastery over performance.

Integrate academic integrity programming into the classroom with online modules and frequent classroom discussions. Engage students in the classroom with academic integrity learning modules to promote understanding of relevant policies and expectations. Faculty members should discuss academic integrity policies with students before all major assignments and exams to demonstrate commitment to academic integrity. Faculty must articulate to students consequences for academic misconduct and confront all incidents of academic misconduct with students informally or through a formal adjudication process.

Allow an informal, but documented, resolution process between instructors and students for minor academic misconduct cases to improve metrics collection. Faculty members and discipline officers at many profiled institutions report that formal, legalistic adjudication systems for incidents of academic misconduct discourage documentation. Allow faculty members greater flexibility to adjudicate incidents of academic misconduct directly with students, but require documentation of even informal disciplinary interactions with students to increase actionable data on trends of student academic misconduct on campus. Consider reserving formal adjudication system for severe or repeat cases of academic misconduct.

Key Observations


2) Student Solicitation of Unethical Academic Services

Academic Integrity Officers at Most Profiled Institutions are Aware of Unethical Academic Services Offered to Students Despite unethical academic service existence, few academic integrity officers recognize student solicitation of unethical tutoring and academic services as a common occurrence or a pervasive problem. Academic integrity officers at all institutions are most concerned with more traditional forms of academic misconduct, including:

Plagiarism

Cheating

Inappropriate collaboration

Where student solicitation of unethical academic services does occur, academic integrity officers target service providers with two methods:

Institution D sent cease and desist letters to online providers who had displayed the university’s brand and logo in their email advertisements to students

Institution A posted stickers on top of advertisement fliers for unethical services saying “Don’t do it, don’t be a cheater” and “Academic Integrity Matters” with links to the academic integrity office’s website.

Notwithstanding the above examples, academic integrity offices at all profiled institutions report greater success with strategies that target students rather than unethical service providers. These include:

Robust tutoring and academic support services

Extensive academic integrity branding and classroom integration

Academic misconduct reporting and adjudication

To Best Determine the Prevalence of Academic Misconduct Among Students, Contacts Conduct McCabe’s Academic Integrity Survey Donald McCabe, formerly a professor at Rutgers University, is an expert in the study of academic integrity and misconduct among college students. His research focuses on student and faculty attitudes about academic integrity and misconduct, the prevalence of academic misconduct among college students, and student motivations for and faculty reactions to academic misconduct.

Institution G and Institution B administer McCabe’s survey at regular intervals (i.e., every six years at Institution G) to:

Determine the prevalence of academic misconduct on campus

Measure academic integrity and support services’ efficacy

Guide future academic integrity programming and policy efforts

Integrity Assessments


Indicates Student Behavior Indicates Student Opinion of Misconduct Severity

More Than Once

Not Relevant

Not Cheating

Trivial Cheating

Moderate Cheating

Serious Cheating

Donald McCabe Academic Integrity Survey – Sample Questions1

1) “Academic Integrity Rutgers University Survey,” Rutgers University, accessed May 13, 2014, https://honesty.rutgers.edu/rutgers.asp

Working on an assignment with others when the instructor asked for individual work

Using an electronic/digital device as an unauthorized aid during an exam

Copying material from any written source and turning it in as your own

Turning in work done by someone else

Administer Shorter, Targeted Versions of McCabe’s Survey to Students at Large, Campus-Wide Events Institution C asks students to respond anonymously to a 12-question version of McCabe’s survey at a large, annual, campus-wide event in exchange for t-shirts and other prizes. Ethics Center staff aggregate responses into two scores: An Academic Integrity Value Scale (AIVS), which illustrates degrees to which

students value academic integrity and where a higher score indicates greater support for academic integrity values.

An Academic Integrity Behaviors Scale (AIBS), which illustrates degree to which students engage in academic misconduct, and where a higher score indicates greater condemnation of academic misconduct.

Nine hundred students responded in less than an hour; staff publish a report of these findings annually to guide future academic integrity programming and policy.

Institution C’s Ethics Center found: Female students

scored higher on both scales.

Domestic students scored higher on AIVS than international students, but AIBS scores were equal.

A majority of students (67%) indicated that they would report a fellow student for academic integrity violations.

Never Once


Findings from a McCabe survey

Poor Time Management and Student Frustration Lead to Academic Misconduct Contacts at all institutions report that students most often engage in academic misconduct, including solicitation of unethical academic and tutoring services, as an act of desperation. Students who manage their time poorly and do not understand the purpose of their assignments are at a greater risk of soliciting unethical academic services.2

2) “About Lashzone: Our Story,” Lashzone, accessed May 22, 2014, http://lashzone.com/pages/about

Student Motivation

Determine approximate rates at which national versus international students engage in academic misconduct Ask students to report basic demographic characteristics: “Are you of domestic or international origin?” “What is your class standing/major?”

Assess student attitudes towards different kinds of academic misconduct On a Likert-Scale: “How important is proper source citation?” “How severe is plagiarism of online sources?” Discover student motivations for engaging in academic misconduct “Why do students cheat?” “Because they are lazy” “Because they are concerned about their grade” “Because they were not adequately prepared to take an exam or turn in an assignment”

Unethical Service Provider Advertisement: www.lashzone.com3

“In 2010, Lashzone’s founders discovered university education is nothing at all like what they advertise in high schools and magazines. They realized it’s a deceitful system—much like a bank—designed to rip people off;; the only difference is that it’s doing so with a mask called education. They began to discover: not only are students not being taught anything practical or useful, they are actually being miseducated and forced to pay for material that has nothing to do with actual life problems. In the end, all you are left with is a paper that has a university stamp on it that’s only good for collecting dust on your bookshelf—essentially a $40,000 Mr. Clean towel (price varies). Today, thousands of students have joined us and helped to make Lashzone a huge community. They’ve helped Lashzone by becoming writers, database administrators, customer support representatives, site developers, and much more. Whether you need to get through your final exams, or just get through your assignments; we have the tools you need to achieve your goals.”

http://www.lashzone.com/


Language Barriers and Cultural Differences Drive International Students to Engage in Academic Misconduct International students face pressures beyond what domestic students must contend with, leading many to struggle with standard coursework. Academic integrity outreach much direct international students to existing support services (e.g., tutoring centers and International Student Services).

Common International Student Pressures:

International Students

International Student

International students may not cite sources correctly and may view collaboration with other students as acceptable. Clearly describe assignment rules Require international students to solicit

tutoring center support to learn citation methods

Cultural Differences

Economic stress, familial pressure, and stringent visa requirements place international students at greater risk to commit academic misconduct Partnerships between international

student services office and tutoring centers increase support

Status Pressures

Many international students speak English as a second language. Refer international students to tutors

trained to provide ESL support Allow extra test-taking time to alleviate

pressure

Language Barriers


3) Academic Integrity Programming and Support Services

Develop Visible Academic Integrity Brand to Increase Student Adoption of Policies and Resources Pervasive branding influences student behavior and encourages an ethical student culture on campus because it increases peer pressure that discourages students from engaging in academic misconduct. Consistent, uniform branding on all academic integrity programming and outreach builds academic integrity relevance and presence on campus.

Strategies to Change Student Behavior Through Branding

Provide Ethical Academic Support to Students to Discourage Academic Misconduct Academic integrity offices at all profiled institutions provide tutors with academic integrity training to ensure that students receive ethical support. Tutoring and academic support services are most useful to students when tutors are non-judgmental of work and will answer questions students feel uncomfortable asking (e.g., “how can I access the library?,” “how do I create a bibliography?”)

Though most tutoring services are located in a single building (e.g., Student Union or Student Success Office), Institution E created a tutor registry that lists independent students who provide tutoring services. These students complete a six-hour tutor training, must have received a 3.5 grade in the courses for which they wish to tutor, and must maintain a 3.0 overall GPA. In return they may advertise their services to students on the Academic Learning Centre’s website.

University Branding

Start at Orientation

Institution C staff hand out branded postcards to students and parents

Outline academic integrity policies and expectations; profile available tutoring and academic support services

Maintain Presence

Frequent events and presence in common areas (e.g., libraries) increases student awareness of academic integrity

The Academic Integrity Office at Institution G hosts giveaway events with academic integrity branded post-it notes, magnets, and athletic bandanas

Academic and Tutoring Support


Institution D Centre for Writers

Partially baseline funding from university budget, partially discretionary

Free to students

Tutor training addresses international student pressures and needs

Fifty percent of students who register for tutoring support are international students

Students demonstrate demand for 90-100% of tutor hours year-round

Appointments available through website

Fifteen-hour base training Three to four hours shadowing Closely supervised initial tutoring, regular

meetings that include further training

Primary tutoring offices in two main libraries Some academic units pay to have dedicated

tutors for first-year students o Plan to expand into more academic units

5,000-6,000 students visit tutors per year

Mandatory, 3-credit, semester-long course Must be second-year student or older Must participate in 3 biweekly re-trainings per

semester to be rehired

Operates in single office Graduate and undergraduate tutors available

Funded through student fees Free to students, faculty, and alumni

Centre director trains tutors to provide ESL and international student support o Course addresses international student

pressures and needs Centre provides eight hours of writing

instruction to international students during two-week summer “bootcamp” for incoming international students hosted by International Student Services

Two Academic Support Service Models:

Institution C’s Ethics Center hosts three academic training workshops per term for international students. One tutor, trained by Ethics Center staff to provide ESL and international student support, works with four to five international students in 30-40 minute sessions. Session topics include strategies to effectively manage time, and practicums on proper paraphrasing, citation, quotation, summarization, and plagiarism. International students are not required to attend, but professors encourage attendance and Institution C’s Ethics Center saw student demand double, from 25-50 participants in 2013.

Tutoring and academic support services are most effective when students are encouraged to visit and use them through multiple avenues. The following describes a model for maximizing student utilization of tutoring support while providing feedback to faculty on assignment quality and student attitudes about assignments:

Institution E Academic Learning Centre

Funding

Structure

Tutor Training

Utilization

International Student Support


Advisors, peers, and student groups refer students to support services

Online resources direct students to support services

Instructors send students to tutors

Tutors provide instructors with assignment feedback

Feedback and Referral System for Academic Support Services

Target Students with Proactive Academic Integrity Programming to Maximize Awareness and Minimize Academic Misconduct Academic integrity office and ethics center staff at all institutions give in-class presentations to students; most of these presentations occur during introductory-level courses with many or highly weighted writing assignments. These courses are often most difficult for new students, who are not used to writing collegiate-level essays, which places them at a greater risk of committing academic misconduct. Institution C finds that a 15-30 minute customizable presentation allows staff to quickly prepare presentations for a maximum number of both undergraduate and graduate classes.

Student Programming

Strategies to Integrate Academic Support into the Classroom and Maximize Student Utilization of Tutoring Services

Create facilitated writing groups (i.e., tutors and students) that meet during multiple phases of an assignment (e.g., thesis development, outlining, drafting)

Assign content tutors to provide dedicated support to courses and students

Offer in-class revision sessions

Use incentives, like extra credit or opportunities to revise assignments, to encourage students to use academic support services

Consider scheduling repeat and follow-up appointments for struggling students with regular email reminders

Allow “drop-ins” to maximize tutor accessibility during finals and other high-stress periods

Tutoring Support Classroom


Conduct Academic Integrity Outreach to Major Student Service Providers A majority of profiled academic integrity offices and ethics centers conduct outreach (e.g. presentations, workshops, promotional events) at major hubs for student activity and foot traffic to increase dissemination of academic integrity values. Enlisting and training student academic integrity ambassadors (i.e., student volunteers) increases student-to-student propagation of academic integrity content and improves the likelihood that other students will support academic integrity policies.

Academic Integrity Outreach Network at Institution G:

Office of Academic Integrity

The Student Success Office contains the writing center, international student support, and peer mentors and coaches who provide support to students

Academic integrity ambassadors include graduate students and senior undergraduates who receive training from Office of Academic Integrity staff.

The Student Housing Office provides a large audience for academic integrity posters and other outreach

Academic integrity ambassadors and office of academic integrity staff hold office hours in libraries for one to two hours and offer branded prizes to students who participate in academic integrity activities

Academic integrity offices incorporate programming and outreach into new student orientation to encourage students to lead ethical collegiate careers. Institution B‘s academic integrity office conducts an all-day onboarding initiative for new students that teaches time management skills and proper citation. Where universities do not allocate time during scheduled orientation events for academic integrity offices, academic integrity staff should partner with faculty to give academic integrity presentations and workshops during class time to students early in the academic year.


Consider Online Training Modules as to Integrate Academic Integrity Content into Classroom Academic integrity and ethics officers at all profiled institutions conduct in-class presentations, discussions, and workshops. Online content can increase information dissemination to more students than staff can reach, and online training modules supplement in-person academic integrity programming.

All profiled institutions maintain academic integrity websites and use advertising to direct students to available resources, which include academic integrity handbooks, student conduct policies, and directories of available academic support services. Institution D worked with a local filmmaker to create academic integrity-themed music videos and comedy sketches. Students reported these videos to be very effective forms of academic integrity programming.

Structured Academic Integrity Training3

3) “Virtual Academic Integrity Lab,” University of Maryland, University College, accessed May 14, 2014,

http://www.umuc.edu/students/academic-integrity/vail-tutorial.cfm.

Graduate Academic Integrity Module (AIM) – Institution G Developed by Institution G’s, Office of

Academic Integrity One to two hours of content on: o University policies on academic offenses,

intellectual property, and student discipline o Common violations of academic integrity

policy o Available academic integrity resources

Mandatory for graduate students: must complete within eight weeks of first term (otherwise ineligible to register for second term)

Must attain 75% on quiz; however the module is non-credit and does not affect GPA

Mandatory for undergraduates by 2016 Virtual Academic Integrity Lab (VAIL) – Institution B Developed by the University of Maryland,

University College One and a half hours of content on: o Understanding academic integrity,

plagiarism, and cheating o Understanding how to avoid plagiarism o Documentation styles o Plagiarism policies

Not mandatory, but academic integrity office staff recommend faculty incorporate training modules into introductory composition and other writing-intensive courses

Students must complete a quiz at the end of each of four training modules

After successfully completing all four quizzes, students receive a certificate of completion

http://www.umuc.edu/students/academic-integrity/vail-tutorial.cfm


Promote Academic Integrity to International Student in Partnerships the International Student Services Office Institution B’s International Student and Scholar Services Office hosts an International Student Week, during which Institution B’s Academic Integrity Office partners with several international students host a question-and-answer panel on academic integrity. Institution B’s Academic Integrity Office also gives presentations during international student orientation.

Institution D offers academic integrity workshops to international students who visit the International Student Services Centre. ISSC email newsletters and faculty encourage attendance at these events. Presentations stress the importance of understanding university and faculty academic expectations, highlight available academic and tutoring support, and provide information about common forms of academic misconduct and how to avoid them.

Sample Email to International Students Institution G

Promote Academic Integrity and Integrate Academic Integrity Content into Coursework Academic integrity officers report integration of academic integrity content into courses to be among the most effective programming initiatives. Students whose instructors present academic integrity expectations and policies throughout the course, and reiterate them before all major assignments and exams, are less likely to commit academic misconduct.

Institution C’s Ethics Center hosts three themed “Ethics Lunches” per year, open to faculty, staff, and graduate students, which feature academic integrity presentations, success stories, concerns, and strategies.

Faculty Programming

International Student Experience Email Newsletter

Resources and Upcoming Events: Guidebook for New International Students

Campus activities

International Student Experience team contact info Important Dates: Registration and move-in

Orientation schedules Available Support Services: International peer mentors

English conversation circles

English conversation partners

English conversation hour

Regular newsletters to international students increase campus integration. The more involved international students are in campus life, the more likely branding initiatives and peer pressure are to influence their behavior around branding initiatives.


Design Courses, Assignments, and Exams to Discourage Academic Misconduct: Academic integrity officers at a majority of profiled institutions report that faculty course and assignment design decisions affect student risk for committing academic conduct violations. Institution B reports that course design is the university’s most effective defense against student academic misconduct.

Course Design Strategies:

Clarify Learning

Outcomes

Faculty that introduce every assignment with a discussion of that assignment’s purpose illustrate connections between the assignment and student outcomes. Students who understand an assignment’s importance and value are at a lower risk to commit academic misconduct and solicit unethical services.

Assess Higher-Level

Thought

Unethical service providers target student frustration with tedious assignments that rely on rote memorization. Assignments that require critical analysis and practical application of materials are difficult to plagiarize, and faculty can more easily convince students of assignment importance and worth.

Change Assignments Year to Year

Faculty effort to create unique assignments contradicts unethical service provider advertisements that instructors shortcut with assignment design, which validates student solicitation of unethical services. It also ensures that current students do not inappropriately collaborate with past students or plagiarize past work.

Emphasize Mastery over Performance

High stakes course and assignment design increases student stress and risk of committing academic misconduct in desperation. Transitions from high stakes, single test assessment structures to more frequent, lower stakes testing allows students to revisit difficult concepts.

Vary Assignment

Format

Mix short essays with in-class projects, longer essays, and exams to more accurately determine student aptitude for content. Instructors who are more aware of student progress throughout course duration can target struggling students with support interventions, such as extra office hours or referrals to the tutoring center. Proactive support decreases student risk of academic misconduct.


4) Consequences of Academic Misconduct

All Profiled Institutions Identify Two Academic Misconduct Reporting Structures A hearing process involving student and faculty representatives is common to adjudicate cases of academic misconduct that faculty formally report to conduct offices and deans. However, all institutions recognize that instructors do not report all instances of academic misconduct, and that many instructors would prefer to resolve instances of suspected plagiarism or cheating themselves. Academic integrity officers and faculty report that informal resolution options allow sanctions to be learning experiences, rather than punitive.

Many informal resolution structures involve no documentation of the offense, making it difficult for conduct offices to collect meaningful data on student academic misconduct. Allowing instructors to informally resolve some instances of academic misconduct, while reporting the case and its outcomes, can increase academic integrity offices’ ability to track programming efficacy.

Institution D observes a strong correlation between concerted academic integrity campaigns (e.g. big surveys, video releases) and the number of academic misconduct cases that students and faculty members report.

Reporting Structures


Informal Academic Misconduct Resolution Process Institution B

Conduct Code Sanctions for Academic Misconduct Vary in Level of Prescription Across Profiled Institutions Student conduct codes at all profiled institutions categorize solicitation of unethical academic services as plagiarism. However, only Institution F and Institution C conduct codes mention “the purchase of material” as a punishable offense, under plagiarism. Doing so allows discipline officers, academic integrity officers, and legitimate tutoring service providers to more effectively discourage students from soliciting unethical services.

Sanctions

Seventy percent of students who receive a sanction from a faculty member following the informal resolution process agree to and complete that sanction.

Instructor presents student with evidence of academic misconduct. Does student deny engaging in academic misconduct? Has the student employed the voluntary resolution process in the past? Is the student a graduate student? Is the student currently serving a conduct probation?

If the answer to one or more questions is “yes” or student refuses to enter voluntary resolution process with instructor, or rejects instructor’s proposed sanction then: Instructor and student present case to

academic integrity council, composed of two students nominated by student government and two faculty members nominated by faculty senate

Conduct code mandates an “informal give-and-take” between instructor, student, and relevant witnesses

Formal Resolution

If answer to all question is “no” and student agrees to enter voluntary resolution process with instructor, then: Instructor and student discuss academic

misconduct incident Instructor recommends sanction, which

may include: o An “F” on assignment or in course o One-year conduct probation o Notation on transcript if student

found guilty of academic misconduct in the past

Informal Resolution

If the student is found to have committed academic misconduct, Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity records offense, sanction, and ensures student

compliance with imposed sanction(s)


More Prescriptive

Less Prescriptive

Conduct Code Sanctions for Academic Misconduct

Institution Informal Resolution Option

Possible Sanctions for Plagiarism

Institution G Instructor meets with student,

proposes sanction, and reports sanction to Associate Dean who decides if sanction is acceptable

Grade of suspect work reduced to “failing” or “zero”

Further five marks off final course grade

Repeat offenses escalate in severity, include suspension, three-term suspension, and expulsion

Institution D

Instructor meets with student and proposes sanction

Reports to dean if student refuses meeting or sanction

Instructor must report code violation by student to dean

Instructor may recommend sanction

“Inappropriate Academic Behavior” automatically demands an “intermediate-level” sanction, such as: o Mark reduction, mark of “zero,”

reduction of course grade, “F” in course, or remark on transcript

Institution F

Instructor meets with student, proposes sanction, and reports sanction to dean

Instructor may not recommend any sanction more severe than a failing grade on suspect work

Grade of suspect work reduced to “failing” or “zero,” or by percentage appropriate to degree of academic misconduct

Student may be asked to resubmit work

Institution B

Instructor meets with student, proposes sanction, and reports sanction to dean who decides if sanction is acceptable

Formal hearing instigated if student refuses meeting, sanction, or is ineligible to receive informal sanction

Typically an “F” grade on assignment or in course

One-year conduct probation Notation on transcript if student

formerly found guilty of academic misconduct

Institution E

Instructor must report cases of academic dishonestly immediately to department chair

Department chair may choose informal resolution

None prescribed

Institution C Instructor meets with student and proposes sanction None prescribed


Institutions Lack Actionable Data on Academic Misconduct due to Reporting Failure Most profiled institutions report lack of data on academic misconduct as the primary impediment to assessing academic integrity programming efficacy. For this reason, academic integrity and discipline officers want to allow faculty members to adjudicate some incidents of academic misconduct themselves, provided they report such incidents to deans. Discipline officers may use aggregated data to track trends over time, and can determine repeat offenders.

As a result of data collected from informal resolutions between instructors and students, in addition to data from formal hearings, Institution B has observed a significant increase in the number of academic misconduct cases reported to the Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity in the past six years. Despite this increase, data indicate low individual recidivism.

Findings from the Annual Report from the Disciplinary Committee Institution E

Year Total # of Incidents of Academic Dishonesty

Total # of Students at Institution E

Percentage of Student Body

2008-2009 228 26,238 0.87% 2009-2010 243 27,476 0.88% 2010-2011 265 27,751 0.96% 2011-2012 286 28,430 1.01% 2012-2013 352 29,181 1.21%


5) Research Methodology

Leadership at a member institution approached the Forum with the following questions:

What level of demand exists on campus for unethical academic services? What motivates national and international students to solicit these services, and to engage in academic misconduct more broadly?

How do contacts deter national and international students from soliciting unethical academic services, and from engaging in academic misconduct more broadly?

What tutoring services do contacts offer to national and international students? How do contacts ensure that students receive ethical service from tutors?

Which students can access university-approved tutoring services? How do contacts structure service offerings?

What academic support exists for international students?

What relationship exists between contacts’ academic integrity policies and tutoring services?

What consequences exist for students who solicit unethical tutoring and academic services?

How do contacts adjudicate violations of academic integrity and student conduct policy?

The Forum consulted the following sources for this report:

EAB’s internal and online research libraries (eab.com)

The Chronicle of Higher Education (http://chronicle.com)

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) (http://nces.ed.gov/)

Websites of profiled institutions

“About Lashzone: Our Story,” Lashzone, accessed May 22, 2014, http://lashzone.com/pages/about

“Academic Integrity Rutgers University Survey,” Rutgers University, accessed May 13, 2014, https://honesty.rutgers.edu/rutgers.asp

“Virtual Academic Integrity Lab,” University of Maryland, University College, accessed May 14, 2014, http://www.umuc.edu/students/academic-integrity/vail-tutorial.cfm

Project Challenge

Project Sources

http://nces.ed.gov/

http://lashzone.com/pages/about

https://honesty.rutgers.edu/rutgers.asp




The Forum interviewed academic integrity officers and directors of tutoring centers at large, public institutions in Canada and the United States.

A Guide to Institutions Profiled in this Brief

Institution Location

Approximate Institutional Enrollment (Undergraduate/Total) Classification

Institution A* Pacific West 22,700 / 28,300 Research University Institution B Mid-Atlantic

United States 19,600 / 24,700 Research University

Institution C South United States

26,500 / 32,500 Master’s University

Institution D Western Canada

31,900 / 39,500 Medical Doctoral

Institution E Western Canada

25,200 / 28,700 Comprehensive

Institution F Western Canada

25,200 / 32,200 Medical Doctoral

Institution G Central Canada

29,400 / 34,500 Comprehensive

*Profiled through secondary research only

Research Parameters

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