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Plagiarism: Cheating and Plagiarism at CSULB

Thank you to Butler University for the use of this guide

CSULB's Cheating and Plagiarism Policy

CSULB's  Cheating and Plagiarism policy is found in the CSULB University Catalog. Here is the preamble to the policy:

"This policy outlines what constitutes cheating and plagiarism, what procedures will be used for alleged violations, what actions will be imposed, and what the procedures are available for appealing the actions taken.

Cheating and plagiarism are fundamentally destructive to the process of education and the confident evaluation of a student’s mastery over a subject. A university maintains respect and functions successfully within the larger community when its reputation is built on honesty. Each student benefits in helping to maintain the integrity of the university. This policy, therefore, provides for a variety of faculty actions, including those which may lead to the assignment of a failing grade for a course, and for a variety of administrative actions, which may lead to dismissal from the University. This document is written with the intent to support the principle that students are on their honor to perform their academic duties in an ethical manner."

Self-Plagiarism

Self-plagiarism is possible and it's just as serious.

Self-plagiarism, or "double-dipping," is deception and goes against the core principles of ethical writing. Papers are assigned for you to demonstrate what you have learned in a particular class. If you reuse a paper you wrote for a previous class, you are not demonstrating new learning.

Examples of self-plagiarism:

  • Turning in a paper for a current class that you already submitted as an assignment for a previous class
  • Using a substantial amount of a paper written for another course as content for a new assignment
  • Treating anything you've previously written as if it were new material

Cheating and Plagiarism at CSULB

Consequences of Plagiarism

According to the CSULB Cheating and Plagiarism policy, the following can result from plagiarism:

  • A. Review – no action.
  • B. An oral reprimand with emphasis on counseling toward prevention of further occurrences;
  • C. A requirement that the work be repeated;
  • D. Assignment of a score of zero (0) for the specific demonstration of competence, resulting in the proportional reduction of final course grade;
  • E. Assignment of a failing final grade;
  • F. Referral to the Office of Judicial Affairs for possible probation, suspension, or expulsion.

Most penalties are determined by the faculty member with possible further action by the Academic Integrity Committee. Check with your individual instructors and read the syllabus to learn about the specific penalties of each class.

Source: CSULB 2015-16 University Catalog - Cheating and Plagiarism - Academic Action 

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