Click on the below links if you would like to know what to do if:

How do I cite sources appropriately?

There are a number of different ways to cite correctly. Often it depends on your academic discipline or professor's preferred style.

For examples of options of professional reference styles often used within the disciplines, please see links above or the following styles:

• APA reference style  (often, though not exclusively, used in psychology and the social sciences)
• MLA reference style (often, though not exclusively, used in English and the humanities)
• Turabian Citation style (often, though not exclusively, used in the natural and social sciences)
• Chicago Manual of Style (often, though not exclusively, used in history, law and some humanities)
• AMA Manual of Style (often, though not exclusively, used in business)
• CSE Style (often, though not exclusively, used in biology and other sciences)

How do I paraphrase correctly?

The Academic Integrity Policy explains that plagiarism includes (but is not limited to) the paraphrasing of another's work or ideas without proper acknowledgement.

For a discussion of strategies to avoid plagiarism when paraphrasing, please click here.

For assistance in determining whether something is plagiarism, you might consider meeting with a student consultant at the Center for Writing (they are available six days a week).  You may also send the Center a "Quick Question" by email. 

The University of Maryland University College offers a very helpful set of guidelines on this issue that begin here and here. 

What do I do if I receive a violation notification letter?

If a professor discovers a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy and chooses to sanction the student in any way (even if the sanction is simply to modify the conditions of the assignment), she or he is required to notify the student of the violation in writing.

You will therefore receive a letter that contains some critical information about the violation. If the violation is your first offense, you will not need to do anything in response to the letter.

Appealing the Violation. You do have a right to appeal the violation. If you choose to do so, the policy requires you to do so before the end of the fifth week of the quarter following the one in which the violation occurred. In order to file an appeal, you must use the online appeal process available through Campus Connect. Please click on the link "Appeal Academic Integrity Violation" under "For Students" and follow the instructions on the page that follows.

Mandatory Hearings. If this is not your first offense, you will be contacted shortly by Academic Affairs regarding a mandatory hearing before the Academic Integrity Board.

Additional Information. For more information, please see the Academic Integrity Policy and additional resources linked to the Academic Integrity box on the Campus Connect home page. You may also consult with an ombudsperson as you consider the possibility of an appeal. Several faculty members have been appointed as ombudspersons to provide clarification on the policy or process and you may contact any of them. All questions you may have about appeal or the hearing procedures should be directed to an ombudsperson.

How do I appeal a violation?

You have the right to appeal academic integrity violations.

If you have already been informed that you are subject to a mandatory hearing, you do not need to file an appeal. You will have ample opportunity at the hearing to present your perspective on the violation and the Board will review the case on its merits to determine whether a violation occurred before reviewing the sanction.

If you are not subject to a mandatory hearing and choose to appeal the violation, the policy requires you to do so before the end of the fifth week of the quarter following the one in which the violation occurred. In order to file an appeal, you must use the online appeal process available through Campus Connect. Please click on the link "Appeal Academic Integrity Violation" under "For Students" and follow the instructions on the page that follows.

IMPORTANT: You will be contacted in connection with your case and will be notified of information surrounding the hearing at the email and regular address contained in Campus Connect. Therefore, please ensure that the information in Campus Connect is up to date by using the "demographics" tab on the left hand side of your Campus Connect home page.

What do I do if I am notified of a mandatory hearing?

Why will there be a mandatory hearing?
You may be subject to a mandatory hearing for several reasons. You might have received this notification because you have multiple Academic Integrity violations while a student at DePaul. You might be involved in a violation that is not connected to a current course and therefore no sanction can be imposed by the reporting individual. Or, a member of the DePaul community may initiate a hearing against a DePaul Student.

In any of the above situations or others, you will be notified by the chair of the Academic Integrity Board during the quarter in which the hearing will be held of the date, location and time of the hearing, most usually scheduled for the eighth or ninth week of that quarter.

How is the hearing scheduled?
If you are enrolled in DePaul courses at the time, the hearing will be scheduled at a time that does not conflict with your DePaul class schedule. Please note that you are required to attend this hearing regardless of whether you contest the accusation against you and further sanctions may be imposed at this hearing whether or not you attend. (See IMPORTANT note at end of this answer about notifications.)

Can I apply for graduation or walk at commencement?
In addition, if you are otherwise eligible to apply for degree conferral (i.e. you have completed all other requirements for graduation), you are not permitted to apply for degree conferral until after the hearing has been conducted and after the Provost has issued a final decision with regard to the recommendations of the Academic Integrity Hearing Panel in your case. Please note that any application for degree in violation of this paragraph will be considered a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy.

Where do I get further information?
You should familiarize themselves with the policy and procedures for a hearing which are available off of the "Academic Integrity" tab at Campus Connect. If you would like, you may also choose to discuss your case with one of the university ombudspersons who are available to provide clarity to students about the policy and the process. Information about ombudspersons, appeals, the process of the hearing and other resources are all available online off of the "academic integrity" box on Campus Connection. Any questions you may have about the hearing procedures should be directed to an ombudsperson.

Critical Note:
IMPORTANT: You will be contacted in connection with this case and will be notified of information surrounding the hearing at the email and regular address contained in Campus Connect. Therefore, please ensure that the information in Campus Connect is up to date by using the "demographics" tab on the left hand side of your Campus Connect home page.

How do I file a grade challenge?

A grade challenge occurs where you wish to challenge the final grade that your professor gave you that does not involve an academic integrity violation. Grade challenges are not filed under the academic integrity process but are instead pursued through a different process at DePaul. For more information on grade challenges, please click here.

Please note that a challenge to a grade entered after an Academic Integrity Board hearing would also be subject to the Grade Challenge process, rather than the academic integrity process.

For example, assume you appeal a violation and the violation is overturned. The professor then enters a final grade of B for the course and you believe you instead earned an A in the course. You would follow the grade challenge process to dispute that final grade.

What do I do if I have questions that are not answered anywhere on this website?

For more information, please see the Academic Integrity Policy and additional resources linked to the Academic Integrity box on the Campus Connection home page. You may also consult with an ombudsperson as you consider the possibility of an appeal. Several faculty members have been appointed as ombudspersons to provide clarification on the policy or process and you may contact any of them. All questions you may have about appeal or the hearing procedures should be directed to an ombudsperson.