4Primacy of academic quality and integrity

Section 4 Primacy of academic quality and integrity

The higher education provider maintains academic quality and integrity in its higher education operations.

4.1 The higher education provider’s objectives for its higher education operations include the cultivation in students of critical and independent thought and the capacity for learning throughout life.

4.2 The higher education provider promotes and protects free intellectual inquiry and expression in its higher education learning, teaching, and research activities.

4.3 The higher education provider protects academic integrity in higher education through effective policies and measures to:

• ensure the integrity of student assessment;

• ensure the integrity of research and research activity;

• prevent, detect and address academic misconduct by students or staff, including cheating and plagiarism;

• ensure that academic staff are free to make public comment on issues that lie within their area of expertise; and,

• ensure that the awarding of multiple awards, including higher education awards offered in conjunction with another entity, protects the integrity of the higher education awards offered by the higher education provider.

4.4 Research carried out under the higher education provider’s auspices meets appropriate codes of conduct, safety, and ethics clearance requirements, and is consistent with legislative or other regulatory requirements and any applicable national guidelines.

4.5 Where the higher education provider has an arrangement in place with another entity to manage or deliver some or all of a course of study on its behalf, the higher education provider has effective mechanisms to manage and quality assure all aspects of the arrangement, including admission and support of students and delivery of the course of study to ensure student learning outcomes equivalent to those for the same or a cognate course of study when delivered by the higher education provider.