Plagiarism and AI use

What is plagiarism?

Plagiarism means that that the work you have handed in is not new, original work, whether this happened intentionally or not. The following are typical instances of plagiarism:

  • Turning in someone else’s work as your own.
  • Copying from another source without quoting and citing that source.
  • Paraphrasing someone else’s text without changing the basic structure of their presentation (even if you provide a reference to the work).
  • Reusing a text that you have written yourself but submitted before, passing it off as new work (self-plagiarism).

Why is it not allowed?

Firstly, plagiarism is not a good method for learning; secondly, it is intellectual theft, which is unethical; thirdly, your teacher will want to be sure that they assess your work and not someone else’s.

Why are we restricting use of generative AI?

AI is a valuable tool in both studies and working life, but the material generated must always be critically reviewed and used with good judgment. To be able to do this, experience, knowledge and proficiency are required, which you acquire during your education.

We need to be sure that what you submit in response to examination assignments (essays, reports, discussion posts, etc.) gives us a good basis for assessing whether you have achieved the course objectives. This assumes that you have not allowed AI-generated material to replace your own efforts. For this reason, we have decided not to permit the use of generative AI to create content (text, images, etc.) for use in examination unless a specific assignment or task is clearly geared towards actively engaging with such tools.

A content-wise correct answer that does not reflect your actual understanding is not an indicator of knowledge. In addition, if the answer is presented as if it were the result of your own work, it violates good academic practice, just as in the case of plagiarism or unaccounted citations. In the worst case, it may be assessed as misleading in examinations (cheating), which we handle according to the university's procedures.

What are the consequences?

Plagiarism and unpermitted use of AI generative tools may be reported to the Disciplinary Board at Uppsala University, which may result in suspension from your studies.

You can find more information about Uppsala University’s policies on and routines for dealing with plagiarism here: Cheating and plagiarism, Uppsala University

If you want to learn more about plagiarism and how to avoid it, Purdue University has a good overview: Purdue University

More information about AI use during your university studies.

FOLLOW UPPSALA UNIVERSITY ON

facebook
instagram
twitter
youtube
linkedin