Here at the University of Reading we take cheating very seriously as it is considered a type of 'academic fraud' and an attempt to deceive the examiners into giving you higher marks than you may have otherwise achieved.

Cheating involves attempting to gain an advantage by actual, intended, or attempted deception and/or dishonest action in relation to any academic work of the University.

Examples of what is regarded as cheating in an exam:

- Taking unauthorised material into an exam (only those items authorised for use in the examination are to be on the desk) 

- Talking or communicating with another student during an exam 

- Having a phone in exam with intention to look up information 

- Using hidden ear pieces or miniature cameras 

- Wearing a watch of any kind 

- Wearing any wearable device that enables you to obtain, generate, receive, transmit, record, analyse, and/or display information during an assessment, whether currently existing or developed in the future, . e.g AI glasses, any bluetooth enabled device etc

- Writing information on notes or on a part of your body or clothing 

- Removing from an examination or test any script, paper, or other official stationery (whether completed or not) unless specifically authorised by an Invigilator or Examiner 

- Copying or attempting to copy the work of another student 

- Impersonating or attempting to impersonate another student, or knowingly being impersonated 

Full details can be found in Section 9 Assessment Handbook 

We take cheating and other academic misconduct very seriously, whether in written examinations, online exams, in-class tests, or coursework.  

Any such case will be treated as a disciplinary matter and will be referred to the School Director of Teaching and Learning (for students on taught programmes) or the School Director of Postgraduate Research (for students on research programmes), who may impose a penalty or refer the matter to the Senate Standing Committee on Academic Misconduct (SCAM). SCAM then has the power to impose more severe penalties including expulsion from the University. 

You can find further information details about exam conduct and cheating here, or see the Academic Integrity Toolkit. 

Examples of what is regarded as cheating in assessed coursework (e.g. dissertations, online exams, long essays or projects): 

- Gaining access to any unauthorised material relating to an assessment 

- Copying the work of another student, with or without their knowledge or agreement 

- Submitting work done in collaboration with another person as your own 

- Buying essays from the internet 

- Reproduction of work assessed elsewhere 

- Falsifying data, evidence, or experimental results 

Q. What happens if it is alleged that I have committed academic misconduct in my exam? 

A. Normally, if it is suspected that you have committed academic misconduct during your exam, you will be briefly spoken with by the Senior Invigilator of your exam venue, who will ask you to stay behind at the end of the exam to speak with one of the Exams Team Managers. If the misconduct involves a non-permitted item such as a mobile phone, this will be confiscated until the end of the exam. You will then be allowed to complete the rest of the exam. 

When you finish the exam, the Senior Invigilator will instruct you to wait in a specific area until one of the Exams Managers can speak with you. The Exams Manager will then take you to a private area so they can take a statement from you regarding the alleged academic misconduct.  

Once the Exams Manager has taken your statement, they will pass this onto the relevant School and Departmental Director of Teaching and Learning, along with any statements from the Invigilators involved. 

Once your School and Departmental Director of Teaching and Learning has reviewed the statements, you will be contacted by your school to advise what needs to happen next. This may be a meeting with your school to discuss things further. 

Q. Do The Exams Team make decisions on and decide the outcomes for academic misconduct? 

A. No, The Exams Team have no involvement in making decisions on or deciding outcomes of academic misconduct cases. The only role The Exams Team have in academic misconduct cases is enforcing the rules at the exam venues, and then taking a statement from the involved parties after the alleged misconduct has taken place.  

Once The Exams Team have passed the initial statements over to the School and Departmental Director of Teaching and Learning, the academic misconduct case is handled by your School. 

Q. I have been spoken to about alleged academic misconduct and I still have other exams to sit, am I still allowed to sit these? 

A. Yes, you should still sit any further exams as normal.