Here at Coventry University, our academic teams use a number of tools to make sure that work submitted is genuine.

When there's suspected academic misconduct or poor academic practice, work can be flagged by the marker to investigate.

How does the system figure out academic misconduct?

The marker and academic conduct team decide whether a student's work is investigated. They might look at:

• Whether your writing style has changed
• If the writing makes sense and fits the assessment brief
• Pictures or diagrams without citations
• Odd formatting, hidden text or special characters
• Identical or unusual mistakes in two or more assessments
• Unfamiliar work methods
• Inaccurate or old references
• If your work is similar to a submission from another student
• Signs that some content may not be your own work

Turnitin checks similarity between text in your work and subjects in its database., it doesn’t make decisions. Whether you’re invited to an academic conduct meeting is not just because of the Turnitin.score.

How do I know my work is being investigated?

You might get an invitation to a meeting, you might see AD (Awaiting Decision) when you check your grades on SOLAR, or the marker might leave comments in the feedback on your work.

How do you reference- APA 6 or APA 7? Would this get me in trouble?

Most Coventry University courses use APA 7 (or OSCOLA  for Law students) though this may change as APA updates! If in doubt, always check online here or look at the  University recommended referencing software for help.

It’s possible to be invited to an Academic Conduct meeting because of poor referencing, though it would probably be a Minor case of misconduct unless there were other issues, like copy/pasting or problems with attribution.

Can I use Grammarly?

Sometimes- but don’t rely on it!

It can help with proofreading, grammar and making your work easier to read

Don’t use Grammarly :

• To reduce the similarity score
• To disguise copied text or plagiarism
• If you’re told not to (for example if you’re being tested on grammar)

 If you’re not sure, ask the module leader!

Why is work marked and I’m still getting AD?

Sometimes the Academic Conduct process starts after marking.You might see an AD (Awaiting Decision) until the work is checked. If everything’s OK, it will be marked as normal. If not, the University will talk to you about it during an academic conduct meeting.

For more help and support, you can visit our academic advice pages on our website or get in contact with our Advice Service.