Department of Student Rights and Community Standards

Helpful Hints to Maintain Academic Integrity

1. Go to class. Your Brandeis education is based largely on class attendance, an opportunity to learn from scholars who are experts in their fields. Instructors often make important announcements, including revised due dates, hints for exam preparation, and new assignments during class time.

2. Clarify instructions. Ask your instructors to clarify any vague instructions before you begin working on an assignment. Once you understand the parameters, it will be easier for you to plan your work and stay on schedule.

3. Plan ahead. Get yourself on the right track at the start of each semester by noting all your due dates for papers, assignments, and exams on one calendar. Keep yourself on a consistent study schedule throughout the semester, and try to keep ahead of your work. Planning allows you to invest maximum effort with a minimum amount of stress.

4. Know where to go for assistance. Familiarize yourself with campus resources available to assist you in studying, writing papers and preparing for exams. Such resources include the Writing Center, the library staff, your Academic Services adviser, and your instructors.

5. Follow instructions. Guidelines for completing assignments are carefully considered by your instructors. You are less likely to arouse suspicion about the originality of your work if you follow their instructions to the letter. This includes any instructions given during an exam.

6. Do your own work. Unless given explicit permission from your instructor or teaching assistant, your best bet is to refuse assistance from friends on homework, papers, or exams.

7. Sit apart from your friends during exams. You and your friends will be prevented from exchanging glances or looking at one another's papers if you find seats at opposite sides of the room. Whenever possible, leave several empty seats between you and any other student.

8. Know whose words or ideas you're using. When preparing a paper, take careful notes from books, articles, web sites and journals. Specifically note page numbers, authors' full names, and publication dates. Avoid downloading information from Internet sources directly into your own files. Place quotation marks around any notes you make in which you are using a source's words or ideas. Use proper footnotes (or endnotes) and quotation marks in your final paper.

9. Know your options. If your lab experiment goes sour, if you have a family emergency, if you have three exams on the same day, talk it over with your instructors right away. They are much more likely to offer solutions, such as extensions or incompletes, if you approach them BEFORE the assignment is due. You will not likely earn their sympathy if you choose a dishonest or careless route to getting the work done.

10. Think. Think about why you are at Brandeis. Think about why you are enrolled in the course. Think about the value of your education; about studying, reading, and writing; and about honestly completing your work.