Common Misconceptions

1. It is ok to work/ discuss/ consult in groups. (for individual work) Unless your instructor has specifically told you it is alright, it is not acceptable to do any part of an individual submission with anyone else. It increases the chances of your work turning out to be similar to another person and you being charged with academic misconduct.
   
2. If someone is not submitting his work /data/ chart, it’s ok to use it for your own assignment – No part of the work that you submit as your own should consist of any other individual’s work without proper attribution; citations and references.
   
3. It’s ok to do a small part of the assignment together. It’s cheating only if you copy a major part or the whole thing – Cheating and plagiarism are not measured by how much of the content is similar. You could be charged if any part of your work is the same as another person’s work.
   
4. If you have not been caught just after the exam, you don’t have to worry about being caught in the future – In any case, less chances of being caught should not drive you to cheat. There have been cases where the instructors have continued investigations for months and caught cheaters a year after the misconduct was committed.
5. You don’t have to cite information from the internet as it is common knowledge – All information, even the factual common knowledge, when taken in someone else’s words from any source must be cited with proper referencing.
   
6. It is okay to use your own previous submission – Without your instructor’s written permission, you cannot submit the same work for the same course or another course in whole or in part. This is considered plagiarism.
   
7. Everything in your paper must be your own; you cannot take information from anywhere else – You can take information from all relevant sources, unless your instructor specifies certain sources, as long as they are properly referenced. 
   
8. Sending your information to another person to help them understand or to get it checked/ make changes does not mean you have cheated – You are responsible for your work. If there is a chance of it being copied or of someone else adding information which is not your own, you will be charged with contributing to academic misconduct.
   
9. If it’s unintentional, it is not plagiarism – It is your responsibility to learn proper referencing styles. Ask your instructor for help if you are in doubt. There are also ample resources available at Ryerson University to help you learn how not to plagiarize.
10. If it is your first instance of plagiarism, you will not be charged – In University everyone is treated equally. It is your responsibility to learn proper referencing and citations. First time plagiarism still counts as plagiarism. You will be charged depending on the seriousness of your misconduct by your instructor.
11. If I am doing an oral presentation, I can use any information from the internet or books and not inform the audience.
    Whether doing written work, oral presentation, powerpoint or exam. Anytime you use information that is not yours, you must give credit to the source.