Academic Integrity Procedure

To ensure consistency, fairness, and transparency, all RMC Saint-Jean staff must adhere to the following process when an academic integrity violation is suspected.

1. All suspected academic integrity violations must be reported in writing to the department head responsible for the course in which the suspected violation occurred.

The declaration form provided by the department (Annex A) indicates the course title, course number, location, date and time, and a summary of the incident. The form specifically states why there is a violation suspected by referring to the relevant section(s) of the Academic Integrity Policy. Evidence is submitted as an attachment.

Here is how the form is distributed and how cases are processed:

2. If it is an assessment with a weighting between 0 and 10%:

  • The department head forwards the declaration form to the administrative assistant (Governance) in the Registrar’s office.
  • The administrative assistant (Governance) completes the declaration form within 24 working hours, indicating whether it is a first violation and whether the OCdt has completed the academic integrity training given by the Pedagogical Expertise Cell (PEC). If it is a repeat violation, the department head will follow the procedure outlined in section 3.
  • Within three days of receiving the declaration form, the department head forms a three-member committee. The three members of the committee are:
    • the teacher who made the declaration,
    • a teacher-investigator from the same department; and
    • a teacher-investigator from another department.
  • The committee reviews the declaration form and the documents submitted as evidence. If necessary, the committee may meet with the student concerned to obtain clarification.
  • This committee has three sanction options (combination of sanctions possible): (1) Score of 0 for the work in question; (2) additional work (result ≤ passing score); (3) mandatory pedagogical support.
  • Unless there are exceptional circumstances, the committee will render a decision within three working days. The committee immediately forwards a report containing the decision to the department head (Annex H). If the three committee members reach an impasse or are unable to reach a decision, they may refer the case to the Academic integrity executive council.
  • The department head or a member of the committee evaluating the case will forward the decision (Annex H) to the dean of studies and the administrative assistant (Governance), who will archive the sanctions. The department head and a member of the committee will then inform the student in person or video meeting.
  • The teacher concerned applies the sanctions imposed by the committee.
  • The student concerned has three working days after receiving the decision to submit a written protest (be e-mail) with the Registrar. This email justifying the request for an appeal should be sent to the administrative assistant (Governance). This should include specifying any procedural errors or explaining how new facts or elements could overturn or modify the decision made. In the event of a dispute, the case is automatically submitted to the Academic Integrity Executive Council.
  • The dean of studies may at any time request the Academic integrity executive council to audit a case.

3. In the case of an evaluation with a weighting greater than 10%, a repeat violation or an appeal following decision made by a departmental committee, the following applies:

a) Incident declaration

  • The department head concerned sends the declaration form to the administrative assistant (Governance).
  • The teacher or the invigilator submits the declaration form to the department head concerned.
  • The administrative assistant (Governance) completes the declaration form within 24 working hours, indicating whether it is a first violation and whether the student has taken the training on academic integrity provided by the PEC.
  • The administrative assistant (Governance) notifies the dean of studies, the administrative assistant of the dean of studies and the cadet wing (DCdts) by sending them a copy of the declaration form.
  • The administrative assistant (Governance) provides the student with a list of experienced advisors, including ALIEs. (Any teacher involved in the incident cannot be on this list.) If the student so desires, they select a person to accompany them during the academic integrity violation review process. Note: this person’s role is not to advocate for the student but to provide support and ensure that the student understands the rules and procedures throughout the investigation process.

b) Investigation

  • The Dean of Studies appoints a member of the Academic Wing, ideally from the department concerned, to investigate the situation within three working days of being informed. In making this appointment, the Dean of Studies must ensure that the person selected has received adequate training and is familiar with the rules and procedures to be followed (Annex B). The investigation begins once the investigator receives the letter provided by the dean of studies confirming their mandate (Annex C).
  • The investigator must first meet with the teacher concerned to fully understand the situation. The investigator must ensure that the teacher understands the investigation process and its various stages.
  • The investigator will then meet with the student. At the meeting, the investigator must ascertain whether the student has chosen an advisor or has deliberately declined to do so. The investigator will record that information in the report. The investigator will then provide the student with the investigation guidance (Annex D) and read it to the student in the language of the student’s choice before interviewing them. The investigator must also give the student a copy of the declaration form completed by the teacher. Throughout the process, the student will have the right to see all documentation used and produced during the investigation, including the final investigation report.
  • The investigator must then forward the transcript of their statement to the teacher and obtain the teacher’s written approval.
  • The investigation is completed within seven working days of the investigator being appointed, and the investigation report is then submitted in writing to the Dean of studies (Annex E). If the investigator experiences difficulties in meeting the persons involved or encounters unforeseen circumstances, they may have three additional working days to submit the report, provided that the Dean of Studies is duly informed.
  • This report must be written in the official language of the student’s choice.

c) Academic integrity executive council

  • The Dean of Studies shall notify the administrative assistant (Governance) that the investigation report is complete. Forty-eight working hours in advance, the administrative assistant (Governance) shall forward a copy of the investigation report, along with all relevant documents, to the student concerned and to all members of the Academic integrity executive council, hereinafter the “Executive Council”: the dean of studies, the associate dean of studies, (if the case involves a university-level course), the director of pre-university programs (if the case involves a pre-university-level cours), the department head responsible for the course, the director of cadets, and the secretary general. In case of absence, each member of the executive council has been involved in any way in the incident (has reported, witnessed, or investigated the incident), that member shall not be allowed to attend the meeting in question.
  • The executive council will meet within eight business days of the filing of the investigation report to discuss the findings of the investigation and determine the appropriate sanction. The executive council will ensure consistency and fairness in the application of the policy.
  • During this meeting, the student concerned may be given time to present new information and answer questions about the incident. They may be accompanied by an advisor from the list. The teacher concerned may also speak, if they wish, to present new information and answer questions about the incident. The teacher concerned and/or the person who declared the suspected violation may also speak, if they wish, to present new information and answer questions about the incident. The administrative assistant (Governance) will notify the student and the instructor of the details of this meeting.
  • If new information arises during the executive council meeting, the executive council may request further investigation. This further investigation may be requested from the original investigator or from another investigator. Additional time will be granted.
  • If the executive council concludes that a violation has occurred, it must decide on a sanction (Annex F)
  • The administrative assistant (Governance) in the Registrar’s shall record the sanctions as well as any mitigating or aggravating circumstances in the minutes. Therefore, if the sanction deviates from the established framework, an explanation is provided.
  • When the executive council determines that expulsion is the appropriate sanction, the Academic Director will make a recommendation to the Commandant of RMC Saint-Jean, who will make the final decision.

d) Communication of the decision

  • The department head will first inform the teacher concerned of the decision. with a few lines of explanation. They will then inform the student in person or video meeting.
  • The teacher and/or department, depending on the case, will apply the approved sanction(s). Once sanctions have been applied, the teacher must advise the administrative assistant (Governance) and secrgen-registrar@cmrsj-rmcsj.ca
  • For training purposes, an investigator can ask the Dean of Studies for the decision and brief feedback.
  • All decisions made regarding academic integrity must be brought to the attention of the DCdts. The DCdts will then decide if disciplinary and/or administrative action should supplement the academic action already taken. Further military investigation may be necessary.
  • If necessary, decisions may be forwarded by the administrative assistant (Governance) to the PEC to follow up on certain sanctions or to provide support to the student in question. At the end of the support provided, the PEC employee and the student must sign a form confirming the success of the process and send it to the administrative assistant (Governance) for archiving.

4. After being informed of the sanction imposed, the student will have 10 working days to register a written appeal (by e-mail) to the administrative assistant (Governance). The Commandant, the DCdts, the Academic Director and the Dean of Studies will study this appeal and will formulate a decision that is final and unappealable.

5. A flow chart illustrating all the steps described above can be found in Annex G.

6. In the event that a student who is found guilty of an academic integrity violation is a member of the Canadian Armed Forces but is not an ROTP OCdt, the Commandant of RMC Saint-Jean will inform the student’s commanding officer of the violation. In all cases, a student member of the Canadian Armed Forces found guilty of academic misconduct may be subject to such administrative or disciplinary action as their commanding officer deems appropriate, in accordance with DAOD 5019-6. Such action, if any, is in addition to any academic measures imposed by the Executive council.

7. A student who is expelled from RMC Saint-Jean for a serious academic integrity violation or for a repeat violation may not be admitted or readmitted to any academic program or course offered by or through RMC Saint-Jean. Following receipt of a written request, and after a period of at least five years since the date of expulsion, the Director of Studies may review the case of an expelled student and consider an application for admission or readmission.

8. Each academic sanction is noted on an ROTP student’s permanent academic record. In the case of serious academic integrity violations, and as directed by the Executive Council, the RMCC’s appropriate authorities will be notified the student’s official transcript may be annotated when forwarded to RMCC to reflect the fact that an academic violation has occurred, and a sanction has been imposed. This procedure will not apply during the student’s stay at RMC Saint-Jean, as Cégep Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu cannot place such comments on transcripts.

9. The secretary general is responsible for publishing the sanctions imposed for any violation of academic integrity. At the beginning of each semester, they must transmit the information concerning the previous semester to the faculty in the form of a list, omitting the names of the persons concerned and any other identifying data, such as the student number. They must also publish annual statistics for the entire college community regarding violations and sanctions.

10. The record of academic integrity violations must be up to date at all times by the Registrar’s office.

11. To file an appeal of an Academic integrity executive council decision, the student or teacher must:

  1. Send an email to the administrative assistant (Governance) justifying the request for an appeal. This should include specifying any procedural errors or explaining how new facts or elements could overturn or modify the decision made by the Academic integrity executive council.

Subsequently, the process will follow the following steps:

  1. Assessment by the Secretary-General of the reasons for the appeal presented by the student. (Rejection of appeal request if the reasons are not valid.)
  2. If the appeal is admissible, the email will be forwarded to the Academic Integrity Appeal Committee formed by the Commandant, the Academic director, and the Dean of Studies, and an Academic Wing member named punctually by the Dean of Studies. A member may be replaced by a substitute appointed by him who has not been part of the executive council concerning the case in question.
  3. They will study the dispute and formulate a final decision without appeal.
  4. The Dean of Studies will inform the student’s teacher of the final decision.
  5. The Dean of Studies will inform the student of the final decision.
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