The University defines academic misconduct as “any attempt by a student or Postgraduate Researcher (PGR) to gain an unfair advantage in assessment”. The procedure covers summative assessments (transfer, thesis) only – any suspected misconduct in formative assessments (such as progress reports) is dealt with via feedback from your School. They should also support you with improving your academic practice.

Any taught elements you are studying as part of your research degree are covered by the Taught Students Academic Misconduct Procedure. You can read our guidance on Academic Misconduct for taught students here.

There are other procedures that deal with misconduct in the research itself, for example deliberate disregard for the ethical review process could be dealt with via the research misconduct protocol. How each case is treated can be decided on a case-by-case basis. 

As in taught student cases, the University does not take intention into account when deciding if an offence has occurred, though it can impact upon the penalty. 

Determination of Penalties 

Cases of suspected academic misconduct in research degrees are treated differently depending on the stage of the assessment, with higher penalties generally being considered for misconduct found in later stages (such as the final thesis submission). Penalty severity also depends on things like:

• Number of previous or concurrent offences 
• Extent of misconduct in the work 
• Whether you have proof of ownership of the work 
• Presence of mitigating circumstances 

The range of penalties available can be read in the full procedure.

The Investigation 

The process is largely similar to that of taught cases. You will be invited to a School-level meeting, which is your opportunity to make your case by justifying the work and offering any mitigation. 

If the School still feel the allegation can be proven, they may put in a penalty themselves, or they can refer the case to the Committee. This tends to be if they feel the case is more serious, particularly complex, or in some second and subsequent offences. 

You should receive the School’s outcome within 10 working days. 

If your case is referred to the Committee you will be invited to write a statement.  

You will then be invited to a hearing with the Committee, which is another chance to make your case and explain any mitigating circumstances. 

You should receive the outcome within 10 working days of the hearing. 

LUU Advice can help by: 

• Advising on the process and what to expect 
• Reviewing draft statements before your hearing 
• Helping to prepare you for your hearing 
• Attending Committee hearings as your supporter (subject to availability) 
• Helping with appeals against misconduct decisions

FAQs 

My viva is coming up, can I still complete this if my work is under investigation? 

No, any upcoming assessment of work will need to be postponed while the investigation is running. If your viva is due to be very soon, you might be informally told that your work is under investigation so that you are not confused as to why your viva is being rearranged. 

Can I appeal against a decision made by my School or the Committee? 

Yes, if you want to appeal a School-level decision you have 10 working days to submit this to Student Cases. The appeal will be decided by the Committee. 

If you want to appeal a Committee decision, you also have 10 working days to submit. This appeal would be decided by the Dean of the Leeds Doctoral College. The process and grounds at this stage are similar to that of the taught student procedure. You can read about Pro-Vice Chancellor Reviews in our related articles for an idea of how this would work. 

For PGRs, the Dean’s decision is final within the University, but if you think that it’s not been made correctly, or procedures have not been followed you might be able to take the case to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA).   

You can read more about appealing academic misconduct penalties here.