University at Buffalo (UB)
The Office of the Vice Provost of Academic Affairs oversees university policies that encompass both graduate and undergraduate education. It is recommended that members of the university community consult these policies and procedures whenever academic issues necessitate review and consideration.
Academic integrity has an important role in the success of our students, faculty, staff and our institution. Members of the UB community achieve academic excellence through honest and fair learning experiences, research endeavors and service opportunities that not only benefit current educational study, but lay the groundwork for ethical work in various disciplines across the globe.
In cases of academic integrity violations, the university will pursue appropriate sanctions subject to official policy.
The University at Buffalo annually welcomes tens of thousands of applications for admission from students around the globe. This process provides applicants a comprehensive means to fully and effectively present their academic records and experience for a sensitive and holistic review and determination of admissibility.
UB expects and assumes all applicants will adhere to the highest standards of integrity by fully and accurately providing the information and documentation required for this full and fair review. If, in the course of the admissions process or subsequent to a student’s enrollment, questions arise regarding the completeness or accuracy of any aspect of an individual’s application to UB, the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs should be notified and a review of the circumstances will result following the process delineated in the appropriate Undergraduate Admissions Integrity policy (below) or Graduate Admissions Integrity policy.
The University at Buffalo Student Code of Conduct – University Standards and Administrative Regulations cites in the General Conduct Rules and Regulations that:
Any student found responsible for committing the following misconduct is subject to disciplinary sanctioning:
Article 3, Item 12 – Dishonesty - the following is noted under section D: iv. Knowingly falsifying application information
Students found to have knowingly falsified application information may be subject to suspension, dismissal or other administrative penalties.
From time to time, students apply and are admitted to UB, but they omit a transcript for prior college-level work. Then, after the student is enrolled, the transcript is received and the student seeks the credit for their record. The following will be applied to such cases:
The Office of Admissions submits a written request to the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs to initiate formal proceedings or a student petitions the decision of the Office of Admissions regarding credit for prior unreported work at another institution.
The Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs will officially notify the student via email to the student's UBIT address of the allegation of admissions dishonesty and the institution of these proceedings. If it is a petition, the vice provost for academic affairs will notify the student of the committee hearing process.
The vice provost for academic affairs will convene the Admissions Integrity Committee to hear the case. The committee shall convene within 20* academic days from the date which the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs received written notification from the Office of Admissions requesting the initiation of these formal proceedings or receipt of the student’s petition.
The Admissions Integrity Committee will consist of members from the Office of Admissions, the Office of Judicial Affairs, and the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.
The Admissions Integrity Committee shall give the student at least 72 hours’ notice of the hearing. The student shall provide the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs with a written statement including evidence supporting his/her position.
At the hearing, the Admissions Integrity Committee shall provide the student sufficient opportunity to present his/her position. The student shall have the right to be present and to have one advisor present at hearing. In no case shall the advisor be an attorney, unless he or she is a member of the faculty not acting in his/her capacity as member of the bar. The advisor may not speak. Such hearings shall be conducted in confidence. The technical and formal rules of evidence applicable in a court of law are not controlling, and the Admissions Integrity Committee may hear all relevant material and reliable evidence that will contribute to an informed result. The chair of the committee may exclude irrelevant or unduly repetitious evidence.
Once the hearing has adjourned, the committee will review all applicable evidence and submit a written statement of recommendations and reasons for recommendations to the vice provost for academic affairs. The written statement of recommendations shall be submitted within 10 academic days* after the final meeting of the committee.
Recommendations may include:
Upon thorough consideration of the committee’s findings and recommendations, the vice provost for academic affairs shall, if he/she finds the student responsible for breaching admissions integrity, keep a file of the matter consisting of all written communications, all written evidence, an audiotape or other record of the hearing, and its decision letter in the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.
The vice provost for academic affairs shall, if he/she finds the student not responsible for breaching admissions integrity, expunge the student’s record regarding this matter.
The final decision (Statement of Decision) and sanctions imposed shall be submitted in writing from the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs to the student via email to the student's UBIT address within 10 academic days* of receiving the Admissions Integrity Committee’s statement of resommendations. The decision of the vice provost for academic affairs is final, and no further appeal is available.
*Academic days are defined as weekdays when classes are in session.
Additional policy information pertaining to UB’s undergraduate and graduate populations can be accessed on the Undergraduate Policies page and the Graduate School’s Policy Library.
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