NU Faculty Resources Guide

The University uses Turnitin® as a tool to help faculty identify instances of possible plagiarism. Reports are generated when the tool is activated or linked to assignments in the learning management system. To determine whether or not to report an Academic Integrity Violation, follow the four AIV steps outlined on this page.

Please note: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) detection software tool in Turnitin (and other AI detectors) is unreliable. The score alone is not an indication that AI was used to create the writing and can not be used to charge a student with an Academic Integrity Violation (AIV).

The next step is to determine if the student needs a referral to the Academic Success Center (ASC) or if the student must be reported to the Office of Student Conduct. 

When to refer the student to the ASC:

• over-reliance on direct quotes (more than 1 per page);
• evidence of poor paraphrasing even if a citation is present;
• direct quote without citation; and/or
• exact match with no citation.

When to report an academic integrity violation:

• there is greater than 20% similarity after filtering out references on the Turnitin report; and/or
• this is the second or subsequent instance of academic integrity violation.

The Office of Student Conduct has an online referral form to report an incident of academic misconduct.

Before you begin the report, assemble the required information:

• Your name, position, and contact information.
• Details about the incident: date, time, location, other details
• Student's name, ID number, phone, and email.
• Turnitin report (.pdf) and any other evidence (files, websites, etc)

As faculty, we should be prepared to teach about more than our areas of specialty. We support the whole student. When academic integrity issues are discovered, the following practices can be helpful:

Identify - Carefully review the turnitin report. Consider what opportunities there may be to educate students about good academic practices. Using real-world examples of plagiarism and the professional costs famous individuals paid will resonate. 

Investigate - Due diligence should be done before filing a report. Conference calls (Zoom, FaceTime, etc.) are best for sharing empathy and understanding. Share your deep interest in students' success with them.

Support - Whether you file an official report or you refer a student for coaching, always follow up to see how they are doing. Offer additional support when possible by sharing useful resources. Use the ASC Collaboration Form to connect the student with a coach for one-to-one assistance that is tailored to their needs. 

Resolve - Follow through on any recommendations or guidance received from the Office of Student Conduct. Your faculty coach, supervisor, or manager can offer additional guidance.