All colleges, including those in Arizona, have to protect their reputations as academic institutions. This includes enforcing their codes of academic conduct to prevent students from using unfair methods to get good grades and graduate. However, these rules are often left vague in an attempt to prevent novel ways of cheating.
This puts innocent students at risk of being accused of academic misconduct when they have done nothing wrong. Appointing a lawyer to be your advisor during the investigation and hearing process can be a good idea if you care about your professional future.
Academic Misconduct in Arizona
Each school in Arizona has its own rules on academic misconduct and usually publishes them in the student handbook, which is typically found online. While every college is different, though, there are several types of academic misconduct that tend to be singled out by name:
- Plagiarism. Colleges want to ensure that each student gets credit for his or her own work. This means punishing those who claim the work of others as their own on a graded assignment or paper. However, citation mistakes happen to the best of students, leading to serious accusations of plagiarism.
- Cheating. Using prohibited items or notes during a test would give a student an unfair advantage over others. Cheating on an exam like this – or by hiring someone else to take the test for you – is frequently prohibited explicitly in a school's code of academic conduct.
- Complicity in misconduct. You can face accusations of academic misconduct even if you did not actually benefit from it. Being complicit in someone else's misconduct by failing to report it or by trying to cover it up can lead to allegations of misconduct against you, as well.
- Distributing or destroying resources. Not all academic misconduct happens in the classroom. Many Arizona schools explicitly prohibit destroying resources, like library books, or distributing academic materials like upcoming tests.
- Altering school documents. Perhaps one of the most egregious allegations of academic misconduct is altering official school documents, like your transcript.
Consequences of Academic Misconduct
Being accused of academic misconduct in Arizona is not a small issue. The penalties you can face if you are found to have violated your school's code of academic misconduct can range from severe – you can be expelled for the most egregious violations – to the relatively light, like a written warning.
However, even a warning can put a blemish on your academic record that can prove to be an obstacle, once you have graduated. Interested employers in today's competitive job market can be very picky and are looking for reasons to take one applicant over another. A warning for a minor instance of academic misconduct can be more than enough for them to choose someone else over you for your dream job.
Joseph D. Lento: Arizona's Academic Misconduct Advisor
Joseph D. Lento is a student discipline defense lawyer who can serve as your advisor if you have been accused of academic misconduct in Arizona. Contact him online to protect your rights and your professional future.
Arizona colleges and universities where Joseph D. Lento can help as your or your student's academic misconduct advisor during investigations, hearings, and appeals include, but are not limited to, the following schools:
- American Indian College of the Assemblies of God, Inc.
- Argosy University Phoenix
- Argosy University Phoenix Online Division
- Arizona Christian University
- Arizona College of Allied Health
- Arizona State University
- Arizona Western College
- Brown Mackie College Phoenix
- Brown Mackie College Tucson
- Central Arizona College
- Chamberlain College of Nursing Arizona
- Chandler/Gilbert Community College
- Cochise College
- Coconino Community College
- College America Flagstaff
- CollegeAmerica Phoenix
- Collins College
- DeVry University Arizona
- Dine College
- Eastern Arizona College
- Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Prescott
- Estrella Mountain Community College
- Everest College Phoenix
- Everest College Phoenix
- Fortis College Phoenix
- GateWay Community College
- Glendale Community College
- Golf Academy of America Chandler
- Grand Canyon University
- International Baptist College
- ITT Technical Institute Phoenix
- ITT Technical Institute Phoenix West
- ITT Technical Institute Tempe
- ITT Technical Institute Tucson
- Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Scottsdale
- Mesa Community College
- Mohave Community College
- National Paralegal College
- Northcentral University Prescott
- Northern Arizona University
- Northland Pioneer College
- Paradise Valley Community College
- Phoenix College
- Pima Community College
- Prescott College
- Rio Salado College
- Sanford Brown College Phoenix
- Scottsdale Community College
- South Mountain Community College
- Southwest University of Visual Arts Tucson
- The Art Institute of Phoenix
- The Art Institute of Tucson
- Tohono O'Odham Community College
- University of Advancing Technology
- University of Arizona
- University of Phoenix Online Campus
- University of Phoenix Phoenix Hohokam Campus
- University of Phoenix Southern Arizona Campus
- Western International University
- Yavapai College
It is an unfortunate reality that academic misconduct charges can upend an accused student's life if not properly addressed, and Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm have unparalleled experience passionately fighting for the future of his clients at colleges and universities in Arizona and throughout the nation. He does not settle for the easiest outcome, and instead prioritizes his clients' needs and well-being. Joseph Lento is a licensed attorney in New Jersey and New York, is admitted as an attorney pro hac vice in state and federal court if needed when representing clients nationwide, and serves as a professional academic misconduct advisor for students facing disciplinary cases in Arizona and throughout the nation. Make certain your or your student's interests are protected - Contact National Academic Misconduct Advisor Joseph D. Lento today at 888-535-3686.
