USN will, through teaching, information on usn.no and resources at the library, facilitate for students to gain knowledge about the rules of academic writing, and what consequences it can have if the rules are not followed.

As a student, you are obliged to familiarise yourself with the rules that apply to each exam and coursework requirement, including rules on the use of sources and citations, legal cooperation and examination support material. If you violate the rules, you may be suspected of cheating or attempted cheating.

What are the consequences of cheating?

You can be expelled from USN and all other universities and university colleges in Norway for up to two semesters.

You lose access to compulsory teaching, practical training, coursework requirements and exams during the period you are expelled.

Coursework requirements/exams are cancelled (cancellation counts as one attempt to sit the exam).
You will be delayed in your study.
If later (even after many years) it is discovered that you have cheated on an exam or after you have received your diploma:

the exam may be cancelled
you must return your diploma

What is considered cheating?

Cheating means that a student is trying to gain an advantage over other students by doing something that is considered a violation of the rules established for coursework requirements or exams at USN.

Plagiarism
- Use someone else's work, either directly copied or paraphrased, without providing the source
- Give a fictitious source
- Use your own previous work without giving yourself as a source
- Don't mark quotation marks around text that is directly copy of other text
- Insufficient paraphrasing
Illegal collaboration with other students
If someone else has written the text you deliver (this also applies if a chatbot has written what you deliver)
Helping other students cheat
Use of illegal examination support materials

Remember that cheating on compulsory assignments (coursework requirements) is just as serious as cheating on exams, and that it has the same consequences for you if you are discovered.

How is cheating detected?

All compulsory assignments and exams are checked for cheating (plagiarism check).
The invigilators keep a close eye on all students who have school exams.
Course lecturers and examiners carefully check for similarities between answers (illegal collaboration).
The lecturer and examiner may suspect cheating if there are irregularities in the language, typeface, quality of the content of the answer, etc., even if it is not detected by the plagiarism checker.

All cases concerning suspected cheating shall be dealt with by USN's Student Affairs Board.

Important to remember on the day of the exam and when writing assignments

Source reference, citation and plagiarism check

Information about the requirements for source references is provided in lectures, in the course description and on the front page of the exam paper.
It will always be plagiarism/cheating if you do not provide the sources you use and mark the direct transcript from the source as a quote (in quotation marks).

Collaboration with other students on the exam

Permitted cooperation is described in the course description and on the front page of the exam paper.
Illegal cooperation will always be cheating.

Exam support materials on school exams

It is stated in the course description and on the front page of the exam paper which exam support materials you are allowed to use.
If you bring and/or use illegal exam support materials (cheat sheet, phone, watch, etc.) there will always be cheating.
Remember that it will also be cheating if you bring but do not use illegal exam support materials, such as wearing a watch, keeping a phone in your pocket, using an illegal calculator, etc.

Remember to read about the rules that apply to each exam and to your studies. You are responsible for complying with all laws and regulations at USN as elsewhere in society.

Do you have questions about cheating, or need help because you are suspected of cheating?

We hope you have now received enough information about cheating to avoid being suspected of cheating during your studies. If you have any questions, you may ask:

Student advisor about your studies and the rules that apply to the exam
The examination office about the exam
student ombudsman about your duties and rights as a student at USN (laws and regulations)
SSN Health and student chaplain on things that are difficult

Here you can read more about cheating and the rules for cheating:

Regulations relating to studies and examinations at the University of South-Eastern Norway § 8-8
min.usn.no/juks

Now you have some information about what is considered cheating, how cheating is detected, and the consequences of cheating. In the next part of this training module, you will learn how to use and cite sources correctly.