Okay, so I already know I’m about to get an extreme amount of backlash and the hate-spewing comments, but I can deal with them.
During the winter 2016 semester at the institution I attend, I was found in contempt of the plagiarism policy, which I cannot divulge many pertinent details due to discretion concerns, but nonetheless instead of attempting the whole appeal process, I just chose to accept the consequences due to the timing of the incident (the week of finals), and I really needed to focus and do well on my final exams. The non-academic related sanctions resulted in a three page essay in regards to the experience, as well as a lower letter grade for the course. I figured this was not be all, end all because I could always retake the course and earn a replaceable, reputable grade for the course.
Fast forward to winter 2017 semester, I retook the SAME course except with a different instructor; coincidentally enough, around be exact same time this semester (week before finals), I received an email that I was in breach of said policy…again. When I called student relations office, they informed me of the alleged charge, and gave me several options; one of which was to speak with the professor who formulated the charge to gain a sense of his understanding, as well as a chance for me to plead my case. I chose this option because of the nature of the situation, and I’m not sure if this was the right decision or not.
I am nervous for the possible sanctions that can be assigned for not only one, but two acts of such untoward behavior (if my professor does not see my story to have merit). I am actively involved through campus with positions in on-campus community living as well. Is there a possibility I can lose this position for this situation?
May someone please give me some insight from prior experience or from a faculty member from a university? If expulsion is possibly the outcome, what are my options beyond that situation? Would I be allowed to immediately go to a CC? Open enrollment universities maybe? Would this be reported to FAFSA as well?
Any insight would be greatly appreciated!
So did you actually commit plagiarism both times?
Not intentionally. Quick synopsis of the situation: it was an optional assignment, and I wanted to be sure to get it done since it would provide a certain percent gain to your overall course grade. We are always encouraged to utilize academic support resources around campus, but to never work together. I connected with an individual that was apart of an organization I’m affiliated with to receive help and to gain an understanding of this assignment. To be up front, yes, the other student was present; however, this was the only help available at the time since the tutors in the facility were busy assisting other individuals at the time. My professor submitted an academic dishonesty charge form against my colleague and I, which resulted in the second charge of this violation. I requested to speak with the professor about the issue — not to beg and plead my way out of the situation, but to express maturity and remorsefulness. Should I have just accept led responsibility to deal with the embarrassment of the circumstance that my instructor finds me in breach of this policy?
You might read and comply with your school’s plagiarism, cheating, academic misbehavior. You need a clear idea about what is or not allowed. You need to be focus on doing assignments yourself after you have received assistance from someone else. You also need to understand what assistance tutors may or may not be allowed to provide. If you complete your work while someone is present, then your work may be more suspect. Finally, I suspect students with one charge against them will be watched more carefully.
Okay, thanks for the insight. By chance, are you able to forecast my outcome to any extent? I’ve been reading pages and pages of academic misconduct sanctions for different universities, and some are granted an E for the course, some recommended a academic probation status, some encourages suspulsion and of course expulsion. Since the outcomes vary per university, what do you believe may be my outcome(s)? I am definitely thinking expulsion more than anything, but I’m not sure and it’s hard to gauge the situation.
Nobody has a crystal ball with regards to your outcome-there are too many variables in play for people to give you anything other than empty guesses.
I am curious to know what your takeaway is on having the same thing happen to you twice in the same course.
Have you obtained the other student’s copy of the assignment so you can how similar it is to yours?
I have not, and it will look rather similar since we worked on the assignment in the presence of each other with the assistance of a tutor.
My takeaway from this situation is embarrassment and self-acknowledgment of the actions that occurred. What does not help, and only severely hurts, my possible outcomes is the junior status that I carry within the university. I have accumulated 74 credit hours thus far, and it’s very concerning to me as to how they will handle this second offense for the same charge for the same course. However, neither of the charges brought forth were from an exam of any kind (by no means am I using this a crutch). I am strongly persuaded that I will more than likely be released from the university, which will WRECK the rest of my life tremendously. It’ll be so many opportunities that I will be omitted from without being given an opportunity at all. Would anyone forecast this being a huge detriment to my actual career path in relation to the type of jobs I’ll have a chance at landing?
You are being much too vague for anyone to possibly predict the outcome of your situation.
Wait, so are you saying that the violation stems from the fact that you both went and saw a tutor at the same time?
Plagiarism is serious. We get that you’re worried. But the short version here doesn’t tell enough. Someone “helped” you. Somehow, your work raised suspicions. And someone reported. You admit your work and the other’s “… will look rather similar.”
First step should have been speaking with the prof. Not clear if you’ve done this.
What happens next depends on your college’s policies.
Suzy, I think OP means a tutor observed them.
@HenryModelT wrote
I have to call bull on this statement. You were given an opportunity-college. You blew it. Twice.
It is true that you have narrowed your window of opportunities by your behavior. I would say that is true for all of us for one reason or another.
However, you learn from your mistakes and you make the most of whatever opportunities ARE available to you.
I don’t think you’re owning your behavior at all-you’re just trying to figure out how to minimize the damage caused by it. Until that changes, I don’t think your world will change much.
What kind of assignment was it, how much was “similar,” and how similar were they? If it’s writing and the topic is similar but the ideas and words aren’t, that’s different than having the same opinion and identical words.
The impression I get is that you think the professors believe you knowingly cheated twice and got caught both times. If that’s the case, yes, they can probably expel you. Will they notify FAFSA? I don’t know. If you’re removed from that course and it drops your total credits enough to affect your aid, then you’ll be required to repay that money before you can attend any other college.
Can you go to cc? Maybe. If you’re a junior, you may have to many credits to qualify for aid though. And you’ll have to report all the courses you’ve taken. How much can your parents pay for school?
You know he’s super gone the minute he didn’t get the answer he was looking for. Yet another drive-by under ten posts thread starter.
Yay.
I apologize! My delayed response is only because I had a very busy weekend with traveling, and I forgot about this thread because I don’t get email notifications unless it’s a personal message.
In response to everyone, I spoke with my professor in regards to the situation to explain to him what occurred. He then gave an explanation as to why he reported me for plagiarism, which allowed me to see his viewpoint. I understood his stance, and he also said he could understand mine as well. He elaborated on the idea of getting help from the same tutor at the same time; he found nothing wrong with this because he understood the difficulty of the course, as well as the timing of events (before finals week). However, he said that our work still should not have been similar (which I understand, but at the same time I do not). After hearing his side, I apologized for the mishap and extended an opportunity to speak in person to make amends and talk about how to proceed in my college career (still awaiting his response).
The assignment itself (in both cases) were optional assignments that were only there as percentage boosters, and they could not hurt you. No tests, no quizzes, no writing assignments (not using this as an excuse, just answering possible questions proactively).
It was two primary components that brought my professor to the conclusion of cheating:
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our work looked similar because of the resources we utilized. (Understandable)
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both solutions of the assignment were incorrect. This is where I had a problem. Getting help from a student (the tutor) is peer-to-peer help; this means that they’re helping as much as they feel they can from the knowledge they’ve attained in that particular area. He helped us as much as he could with understanding the material, as well as completing the assignment to the best of our ability, BUT he’s not a professional in the subject; therefore, we did the best we could with the resources that were available to us.
So I find out the university’s decision on this situation this upcoming week, and I just want to be fully prepared going into this meeting. I don’t exactly know how this may play out, but I’m preparing for the absolute worst in all honesty.
In the case of a suspension of expulsion, what do you guys feel as if I should do to proceed in my college career? This is rather difficult to predict since I am close to senior status, and I’m out of gen eds and pre-program courses to take. I believe they give you the opportunity to appeal your sanction (I don’t believe they allow you to impose a sanction of equal value), but I’m not sure how much allowance I’ll have with that opportunity.
I do have a question… though this is the second occurrence, does the type of material plagiarized (test, normal assignment, final exam, essay, etc.) play a factor in the severity of the sanctions? And to be clear, please don’t interpret that question in the sense that I’m trying to ration my outcome(s) by the type of work this occurred with.
Sit down with an academic advisor at your school right away. They may be able to help you and can ceratinly advise about whatbto do going forward.
Since the semester has already ended, I am not anywhere near the school, and it would be rather difficult to meet with my academic advisor at this point. Do I have any other options? I’m in distress mode 