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🧠 Academic Integrity — Plagiarism & Use of AI Policy [June 2026]

This guide explains the academic integrity expectations for the Activation Phase, including plagiarism, responsible use of AI tools, transparency requirements, academic review processes, and the consequences of academic misconduct.

Your thesis is expected to reflect your own work, thinking, and contribution.

Maintaining academic integrity is essential to ensure fairness, credibility, and the value of your degree.

🚫 Plagiarism

Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work, ideas, or outputs as your own without proper acknowledgement.

This includes:

  • Copying text from sources without citation
  • Paraphrasing without referencing the original source
  • Submitting work created by another person
  • Reusing your own previous work without disclosure

✅ What Is Expected

  • All sources must be clearly cited using a consistent referencing style (e.g. APA)
  • Direct quotes must be clearly indicated
  • Ideas, frameworks, and data must be properly attributed

👉 When in doubt: cite the source.

🤖 Use of AI Tools

AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT or similar systems) may be used as support tools, but not as a substitute for your own work.

✅ Acceptable Use of AI

You may use AI to:

  • Brainstorm ideas or structure
  • Clarify concepts
  • Improve language, grammar, or readability
  • Support coding or technical debugging
  • Generate examples for understanding

❌ Unacceptable Use of AI

You may not:

  • Submit AI-generated content as your own work
  • Rely on AI to produce core sections of your thesis
  • Use AI outputs without critical evaluation and adaptation
  • Present AI-generated analysis, results, or conclusions as original work

⚠️ Key Principle

👉 You remain fully responsible for:

  • The accuracy of your work
  • The originality of your ideas
  • The validity of your analysis

📝 AI Declaration Requirement

All learners must include an AI Declaration within their final thesis submission.

You are required to:

  1. Open the declaration template
  2. Make your own copy
  3. Complete the declaration honestly and accurately
  4. Insert the completed declaration into your thesis document after the Appendices section

👉 AI Declaration Template

 

If you use AI tools in your process, you should:

  • Use them responsibly and critically
  • Be prepared to explain:
    • How did you use AI
    • How you validated and adapted outputs

👉 If in doubt, disclose your use of AI.

🔍 Academic Review

Your work may be reviewed for:

  • Plagiarism
  • AI-generated content

This may include:

  • Similarity checks
  • Academic evaluation of authorship and originality

⚠️ Consequences of Misconduct

If plagiarism or misuse of AI is identified, this may result in:

  • Revision or resubmission requirement
  • Delay in your thesis submission or presentation
  • Failure of the Activation Phase
  • Further academic review

🎯 Final Reminder

Your thesis is a reflection of your:

  • Thinking
  • Effort
  • Capability

AI can support your process — but it cannot replace your work.

👉 Focus on originality, integrity, and accountability.