34.2Preliminary Investigation
The staff member suspecting the misconduct will ascertain the initial concerns, gather evidence and notify their Head of Department (or nominee) that a preliminary investigation will be conducted.
During the preliminary investigation, the student will be informed of the allegation made against them and invited to discuss the allegations suspected of committing poor academic practice or academic misconduct.
The purpose of the preliminary investigation is to:
establish the facts of the allegation of academic misconduct and the evidence to support it
determine whether there is a case to answer
determine whether the case relates to poor academic practice or academic misconduct
resolve the matter, determine the action to be taken or refer the case to an Academic Misconduct Panel where appropriate (see section 5.7.3).
The preliminary investigation is a matter of academic judgement and should be completed either by a member of academic staff with either:
one or more additional member(s) of academic staff, or
as a joint review with a member of professional staff (to support the investigation for regulatory advice and conducting and managing investigations).
The process for investigating the evidence for the suspected academic misconduct is published in the Assessment and Feedback Policy and Guidance.
The Preliminary Investigation will seek to resolve the case as follows:
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