Collusion

What happens if you're accused of working with, or copying from, another student

What is collusion?

Collusion is where an individual piece of work is prepared by more than one student. This could include working with another student too closely, copying someone's work, or willingly sharing your work.

In some extreme cases, students have also had their work stolen when they left their computer or storage device unattended. This is most common in communal study areas like the library or if a housemate or guest accesses your room.

Collusion is usually discovered through large matches on Turnitin reports, but tutors can also discover similarities in how essays were structured, the use of the same unusual sources, or if you've made the same mistakes.

I've been accused of collusion but I don't know how it happened

Think about whether anything could have happened while you were writing this assessment that could have led to you matching with another student. If you know whose work you matched with, consider whether you did any studying together or were in the same groups for a project. Did one of you miss classes and borrow notes from the other? Did you plan the essay together or give each other any tips? Did you rely heavily on lecture slides or notes?

Did you share your work with someone who was struggling, or did you ask someone else if you could see their work?

Consider where you were working and whether someone would have had an opportunity to access your essay. Did you leave your laptop or a library computer unlocked for a few minutes while you went to the toilet or to get a coffee? Do any of your housemates study the same module?

Sometimes students match because they both copied too much from the same source and didn't reference properly. If this has caused the match, it would be a case of plagiarism rather than collusion. You can visit our plagiarism section for more information.

What will happen in the meeting?

The meeting will usually be with the School's Academic Conduct Officer (ACO), the marker and a note taker. The ACO and marker will tell you why they suspect you worked with another student and explain the similarities they have found. They will give you the opportunity to have your say and ask any questions you have. If you don't know what's happened, they may explore this with you to see if you can find answers. If you have exceptional circumstances, make sure to talk about them as they could impact the decision.

The ACO should be meeting with the other student(s) separately, to ask the same questions. If you meet with the ACO first you may be contacted again for another meeting if new information is given by the other student or if anything needs clarifying.

What are the possible penalties?

The penalties for collusion vary depending on the type of case and the number of cases you have had in the past. The possible penalties that can be applied are in the table on the University website.

In most cases, the ACO can make a decision and, if there has been an offence, apply a penalty. If the ACO hasn't been able to determine what happened or who was at fault they may instead refer your case on to the Academic Misconduct Committee. Your case would also be referred to committee if this is your third offence or if the ACO decides the case is too serious to apply one of the standard penalties.

IMPORTANT: If you had exceptional circumstances that affected your work, make sure you tell the Academic Conduct Officer and provide evidence. You will also need to explain why you didn't make an Exceptional Circumstances claim at the time. The ACO will consider your circumstances and may decide to lower the penalty so your resubmission or reassessment is uncapped.

Penalties for coursework assessments

First Offence

Warning - this is for very low level collusion or the first time you have shared your own work. No action is required.
Minor offence - you would need to correct the work so it's acceptable and then resubmit it. The mark will be capped at the pass mark. If it's not possible to correct the work, for example because you can't separate your own work from another student's, a new assignment might be set.
Major offence - a zero for this attempt, with normal reassessment consequences i.e. if you have an attempt remaining, you can take the reassessment and it will be capped at the pass mark. Please note that if you have no attempt remaining and this penalty would lead to you failing your degree, the ACO could exceptionally allow a further reassessment opportunity.

Second Offence

Minor offence - this has the same penalty as a major first offence.
Major offence - a zero for the module. This means that all the assessments for the module will be set to zero and, if reassessment is allowed, you will have to take all the assessments again for a capped mark. For modules of 30 credits or more, where this would be disproportionate or it is not feasible to redo some of the assessment components (e.g. lab work), an appropriate alternative penalty will be given.

Open book assessment, class test or flexible class test

First offence: a mark of zero for this attempt, with normal reassessment consequences i.e. if you have an attempt remaining, you can take the reassessment and it will be capped at the pass mark.

Subsequent offences are referred to committee, and the standard penalties are:

Second offence: a mark of zero for the entire module. If you have a reassessment attempt remaining, you are permitted to take it but you can only get the credits; your mark will stay at 0. This means you could still have the credits to graduate but your transcript and your degree classification calculation would include the 0 from that module.

Third offence: termination of studies.

I showed my essay to another student, will I get a penalty?

If you have no previous academic misconduct offences you will only be given a warning this time.

If you share your work a second time it will be treated as a major first offence, which means you're given a mark of zero for the assessment, with the normal consequences for reassessment.

I am unhappy with the outcome of an academic misconduct case, what can I do?

In some circumstances, you may be able to appeal the decision. You will only be able to do this if you can satisfy one, or both, of the following grounds:

procedural irregularity in the conduct of the original investigations of the Academic Conduct Officer;
exceptional circumstances, providing that these circumstances can be substantiated.

More information on appealing can be found on the University website. Remember that there is a deadline of 10 days to appeal.

If you would like to appeal or need some more information contact us at ASK and we will guide you through the process.

I am on a professional course, what impact will this have on me?

If you are studying a professional course, a record of academic misconduct may have further implications. You should check your School handbook for further details if this applies to you.

How can ASK help?

ASK can help you to prepare your case and attend the meeting with you, if necessary. However, due to limited resources we will not normally accompany students to an academic misconduct meeting for first offences of plagiarism or collusion.

If you worked with another student and you have reasons for doing so, we can explore these and help you to put your case forward to your school Academic Conduct Officer or an Academic Misconduct Committee.