Academic Integrity at TAFE NSW

Academic integrity means being honest and ethical in your studies. Students, teachers, and other staff must act with honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.

The importance of academic integrity

Academic integrity fosters a culture of trust between students, faculty, and institutions. When academic integrity is upheld, the value of degrees and qualifications is maintained.

Academic integrity ensures that all students are evaluated based on their own merits. It promotes a level playing field, where hard work is rewarded.

Upholding integrity encourages genuine learning. Following ethical standards helps students build character and responsibility, which is vital in academic and professional settings. Ethical breaches can have serious consequences.

Academic integrity values

Academic integrity is a commitment by staff and students to six fundamental values:

Honesty
Trust
Fairness
Respect
Responsibility
Courage.

The International Centre for Academic Integrity defines these values.

No matter how tough your circumstances are, you must not be dishonest.

We understand that, at times, difficult circumstances can make it harder for you to succeed. We encourage you to speak with your teacher if you need help, and make use of our support services.

Help with academic integrity

We offer many support services. It's your choice whether or not you use them. If adverse events hinder your task submissions, apply for special consideration.

Higher Education students should see sections 7 and 11 of the Higher Education Assessment Procedure. If it's for medical reasons, apply using this form. Your practitioner must fill in this form, not write a letter.

Vocational Education and Training (VET) learners should contact their Head Teacher.

We offer many free services to help you uphold academic integrity:

Counselling and Career Development Services
Disability Support Services
Study Support including:

– Access to review your assessment with a foundation skills teacher. Keep in mind the review is not on the content but the structure, phrasing, spelling and grammar.

Library Services including our:

– Researching and referencing hub to help staff and students with research skills, referencing, study and writing skills, and digital literacy.

– Referencing skills and how to book a librarian for a one-on-one session, either face-to-face or online. Check the library calendar for scheduled training sessions.

Subject Guides relevant to your course.

Our academic integrity framework

There are six areas to maintaining academic integrity:

Effective education of staff and learners.
Proactive support for learners to minimise breaches.
Targeted preventive measures to minimise breaches.
Diligent identification and reporting of potential breaches.
Fair, consistent handling and record keeping of breaches, outcomes and appeals.
Integrated governance and continuous improvement.

A pie chart illustrating the academic integrity model, divided into six segments: education, support, prevention, identification and reporting, handling and record keeping, and governance and improvement.

Learn more

To learn more about academic integrity please complete the academic integrity module for your course:

For more information, read our academic integrity policies and procedures:

Potential academic integrity breaches

If there has been a potential academic integrity breach, this is what you can expect to happen.

Your teacher, assessor or exam supervisor will report the potential breach to your head teacher or course coordinator.
You will be notified via email and invited to a meeting to discuss the concern, with the option to bring a support person. If you are unable to attend, you must respond to the email within seven days to reschedule.
In the meeting you will be able to explain what has happened and provide any relevant information about the situation. Our academic integrity team will aim to understand what led to the breach and suggest TAFE NSW support services that may be of use to you. This is to help you develop lifelong skills and prevent any future breaches.
A decision will be made based on the evidence provided.
You will be informed of the outcome via email.

If you disagree with the outcome, you have the right to appeal the decision within 20 business days by submitting an appeals form. For details on acceptable reasons for appeal, please refer to the Academic Integrity Procedure.

Additional student resources

The Australian Government, Department of Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has resources to help you use AI safely and ethically.