Academic and Professional Integrity

Introduction

This is an era of unprecedented transformation for journalism, media and marketing communications. Changes in each of these arenas emerge with increasing frequency and with new opportunities and challenges. At Medill, we strive as a community to champion professional and academic integrity, which are interrelated yet distinct within the context of the school. With the proliferation of information outlets, work based on integrity will be even more important. That is why we are committed to learning about and living by Northwestern’s academic integrity policy and Medill’s professional integrity code.

There are few factors in the digital age that are "for sure." Nevertheless, at Medill a constant is our ability as a community to champion professional and academic integrity. Maintaining and deepening a commitment to integrity is a requirement to be a member of the community and for receiving a Medill degree. Those students who live these standards offer employers who hire them a distinct advantage. Those who violate them hurt everyone at Medill.

Detailed information regarding procedures for suspected violations of Northwestern’s academic integrity policy and Medill’s professional integrity code is below. The information applies to all part-time and full-time undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at Medill. It is each student’s responsibility to be aware of all rules and policies applicable to their program. All students registered for classes at Northwestern must adhere to the University's standards of academic integrity. All  students participating in Medill-affiliated professional activities must also adhere to the school’s standards of professional integrity.  Medill’s procedures, described here, operate within the broader Northwestern policy framework detailed on the academic integrity page of the Office of the Provost’s website, which includes Academic Integrity: A Basic Guide, a resource containing essential information and a section on how to avoid plagiarism. These procedures also apply to Medill’s enforcement of its professional integrity code.

Medill's Professional Integrity Code

All students participating in Medill-affiliated professional activities are held to the same expectations under the school’s professional integrity code. Medill students will be subject to review and action by the director of academic integrity and appeals (the director), including but not limited to sanctions outlined in the University's academic integrity policy. Non-Medill students will be subject to review and action by their supervisor or program director. All students must read and understand the school’s professional integrity code:

To fulfill my community responsibilities, I commit to honesty and fairness and to not plagiarize, cheat, fabricate, deceive, submit the same work more than once or present someone else's work as my own, or engage in any other behavior designed to gain an unfair advantage for myself or others. All of my academic, professional, media, journalism and marketing communications work must meet the standards in this code.

I further agree to avoid conflicts of interest or to identify conflicts to the appropriate individual(s) if they cannot be avoided. In addition, I will encourage those who have concerns about my work to voice their concerns, and if they are valid, I will correct my mistakes as soon as possible.

Medill students : I accept that this code applies to my media, journalism and marketing communications work, whether I am in school, on an internship or job, acting as a volunteer or in a professional/academic activity not associated with Medill or Northwestern.

Non-Medill students: I accept that this code applies to my Medill-affiliated media, journalism and marketing communications work, whether I am in school, on an internship or job, or acting as a volunteer.

Violations of Medill’s Professional Integrity Code

Because it is impossible to list every possible permutation of situations that might arise, the professional, media, journalism and marketing communications standards and definitions in the Medill handbook are not all-inclusive.

Violations of Medill’s professional integrity code include, but are not limited to:

1. The appropriation, purchase, receipt as gift or acquisition by any other means of another's work while presenting that work as the student's own. To be a student's own work requires it to be an original expression on the part of the student.
2. The verbatim copy or paraphrase of materials that appear in any medium, including but not limited to, a newspaper, magazine, book radio, television, the internet, or in any other published or unpublished sources (including student work) without proper attribution or citation.
3. The use of another person's research, photographs, artwork, video, audio, design, computer code, phrasing, conclusions or unique descriptions without proper attribution or citation.
4. The repurpose of past assignments or stories, or the use of materials from past assignments or stories, without permission.
5. The copy of a quotation obtained by another person or organization unless both the person/organization and the original speaker are clearly identified.

Intent is not a factor in determining violations of Medill’s professional integrity code, nor is it a defense when a violation has occurred.

Therefore, it is a student's responsibility to check in advance with the appropriate Medill administrator. It is not a valid excuse to say, 'I did not know the appropriate standards and definitions.' It is a student's duty to stay current with the code’s standards or to ask if the student has a question.

Some outside organizations where a student may be involved could have higher standards than these, and those standards should be embraced. If, however, a student is asked to violate this code by an outside organization or situation, a student should explain persuasively that they are covered by Medill’s professional integrity code and what that means. After that explanation, if the student is still expected to violate this code, the student must contact Medill and discuss how best to proceed. If a student follows these steps, a student will have the full support of the Medill community as the student moves ahead in such a situation.

Reporting Suspected Professional Integrity Code Violations

Any member of the Medill community or anyone supervising or otherwise engaged in a Medill student’s media, journalism and marketing communications work who suspects that a student has violated Medill’s professional integrity code should report this to the director of academic integrity and appeals (the director). Anyone who is unsure what occurred constitutes a violation  may discuss the concern with the director.

A suspected violation of Medill’s professional integrity code must be referred to the director within 1 month of the date of the alleged incident or within 1 month of the date the individual becomes aware of the alleged incident, whichever is later. No action shall be taken on any case if more than one year has elapsed since the alleged incident.

Procedures for Cases of Alleged Violations of Medill’s Professional Integrity Code

All cases of alleged violations of Medill’s professional integrity code by Medill students must be referred to the director. The procedures follow those for cases of alleged violations of Northwestern’s academic integrity policy (see below) except where noted otherwise.

Cases of alleged violations of Medill’s professional integrity code by non-Medill students will be subject to review and action by their supervisor or program director.

Procedures for Cases of Alleged Violations of Northwestern’s Academic Integrity Policy

Initiation of a Complaint

All cases of alleged violations of academic integrity by students in courses in Medill must be referred to the director.

1. Suspected cases of academic integrity violations should be reported to the course instructor or the director. Reports must be brought within 1 month of the date the reporting individual becomes aware of the alleged incident. The director will review the report and decide whether to bring a charge. The review may include electronic searches of plagiarism resources, websites, and other databases. Students charged with an academic integrity violation may not change their registration or grading basis in a course in which a charge is pending, or in which a finding of an academic integrity violation has been made.
2. If the director determines that there is cause for further investigation, they shall provide the student with written notice of: the facts and evidence underlying the charge of an academic integrity violation; the principle(s) of academic integrity said to have been violated; and the procedure by which the accuracy of the charge will be determined.
3. The student will have reasonable time, if requested, within which to prepare a response to the charge. Ordinarily, an initial meeting with the director will take place within 7 business days of receiving written notice of the charge.
4. If the student does not schedule a meeting to take place within 7 business days, the director may decide whether there was sufficient evidence of a violation of academic integrity. The director may, at their discretion, grant reasonable requests for an extension of this deadline.

Meeting with the Director of Academic Integrity and Appeals

1. The director has the authority to determine whether there was sufficient evidence of a violation of academic integrity.
2. In meeting with the student, the director will describe the allegation and detail the evidence provided by the instructor. At this initial meeting, the student may decline to discuss the matter and/or request that the director defer making a determination until after a subsequent meeting between the student and the director, at which time the student may present other relevant information or evidence. This second meeting must be requested at the initial meeting and must be scheduled for a time within 7 business days of the initial meeting. The student may be accompanied by a fellow student or another individual of the student's choosing, but not an attorney or other person providing legal assistance or representation, or any person acting in a professional capacity. This person may not, however, take part in the proceedings; the student must speak on their own behalf.
3. After reviewing evidence and the statements made by the student in the meeting, the director shall inform the student in a written statement of decision on whether there was sufficient evidence of a violation of academic integrity, and the sanction. Any finding of violation must be supported by a brief description of both the process used to come to that determination and the evidence supporting the finding. Except in cross-school cases, the statement will include the sanction to be imposed.

Sanctions

1. Sanctions will be imposed by the school in which the student is enrolled. (Note: For dual degree students, sanctions will be jointly decided by the relevant administrators in the applicable schools.) More information about possible sanctions (as well as grade modifications by the instructor) can be found in the relevant section of the academic integrity policy on the Office of the Provost's website.

School-Level Appeal

1. The director’s finding of violation and/or school-level sanctions imposed as a result of the academic and/or professional integrity violation may be appealed to the Medill Academic Standards Committee by the student filing a written notice of appeal within 10 business days of the date of the director’s written statement of decision. Grades modified by the course instructor following a finding of academic and/or professional integrity violations may not be appealed.
2. The notice of appeal should include:
   • What is being reviewed (the finding of the violation, the sanction imposed or both).
   • A detailed description of the grounds for the review.
   • Supporting materials the student wants the committee to take into consideration.
   • The name and title of any individual who will accompany the student. A student may be accompanied by a fellow student or another individual of the student's choosing, but not an attorney or other person providing legal assistance or representation, or any person acting in a professional capacity. The individual may not take part in the discussion with the committee. Only the student may speak on their own behalf.
3. Reviews by the Academic Standards Committee are limited to:
   • Errors in procedure.
   • Conflict of interest on the part of the faculty member or director of academic integrity and appeals.
4. The Academic Standards Committee will consider the review request as soon as practical after it has been filed. The student will be invited to attend the meeting, and the committee may, at its discretion, invite the director and/or the instructor to the meeting.
5. The Academic Standards Committee consists of four Medill faculty and one Medill student appointed by the dean's office. Committee members must confirm they have no conflicts of interest regarding either the alleged incident or the student. If the appointed student fails to appear at the committee meeting, decisions rendered by the committee will still be valid.
6. The chair of the committee will send the student an emailed letter on behalf of the committee notifying the student of the committee's decision.

Provost Review

1. Final review of an unsuccessful appeal may be requested in writing by the student within 10 business days, by the Provost or an advisory committee designated by the Provost. The Provost will review unsuccessful appeals only after a finding and a sanction have been issued. Bases for review can be found in the relevant section of the academic integrity policy on the Office of the Provost’s website. (Note: Cases involving Medill’s professional integrity code will not be reviewed by the Provost.)

Cross-College Cases

1. When a student who is enrolled in another school is suspected of an academic integrity violation in a Medill course, the authority of Medill will extend only to determining whether there was sufficient evidence of a violation of academic integrity. Any finding of violation will be referred to the relevant administrator of the school in which the student is enrolled for imposition of a sanction. 
2. When a student who is enrolled in Medill has been found in violation of academic integrity in a course based in another school, the director will contact the student in writing to request a meeting to take place within 7 business days, at which the student may present any evidence of mitigating circumstances, but not regarding the finding of violation. If the student does not schedule an appointment within the allotted time, the director may determine a sanction based on the available information.
3. The director will inform the student in writing of a sanction to be imposed and of the student’s right to appeal that sanction within the school.
4. In a cross-school case, an appeal of a finding of violation will take place in the school in which the course is based (i.e., the school in which the finding of violation was made). An appeal of a sanctionimposed by the school in which the student is enrolled should take place in that school (i.e., the school that has imposed the sanction). A sanction will not be determined until the appeal process of the finding has been completed.

School-Specific Considerations

1. The director of academic integrity and appeals will strive to keep the investigative process as private as possible, involving only those with a specific need for involvement.
2. A student may not receive a university degree if a charge of an academic and/or professional integrity violation is pending or if a suspension is in effect.
3. As a matter of school policy, Medill students who are found to have violated Northwestern’s academic integrity policy or Medill’s professional integrity code cannot graduate with academic honors.
4. Sanctions take effect after the appropriate review period has expired or after all university reviews have been exhausted. If the student's final review is not granted, the penalty imposed by the director may be applied retroactively and, if necessary, current registration may be canceled.

Last revised January 2025