Plagiarism, including the use of AI
Plagiarism is taken seriously by the Institution. This policy applies to existing members of all grades, and where applicable, to those in the process of applying to become members. It supports sections 3bx and 3bxv of the Code of Conduct that require members to reject bribery and other corrupt practices, and to be mindful of the integrity expected of members of the Institution in their personal conduct.
Plagiarism and collusion
IChemE subscribes to Oxford University’s definition of plagiarism:
Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement. All published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form, is covered under this definition. Plagiarism may be intentional or reckless, or unintentional.
Members must not plagiarise the work of others. No part of any report submitted as part of a member’s, or prospective member’s membership application to IChemE may be plagiarised.
Members and prospective members must also not be guilty of collusion:
Collusion is the act of collaborating with someone else on an assessment exercise which is intended to be wholly your own work, or the act of assisting someone else to commit plagiarism (Maguire, 2003).
Should there be concerns with material presented by a member or aspirant member in an application the Institution will investigate. This investigation can be carried out by a trained assessor or interviewer. If such an investigation shows significant levels of similarity with any unattributed sources the applicant will be contacted and asked to provide an explanation.
In the absence of an effective explanation, the matter will be referred in the first instance to the Qualifications Committee. In cases of plagiarism and/or collusion committed by non-members who are in the process of applying for membership, the Committee shall determine what action should be taken, including advising the applicant that no further membership applications will be accepted from the candidate.
In cases of plagiarism committed by a member, the Committee may decide to refer the matter to the Preliminary Investigation Committee as a potential breach of the Code of Professional Conduct.
Use of AI in membership/registration applications
IChemE acknowledges that Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools or large language models can be appropriately and ethically used to assist in composing an application. For instance, it can aid with translation, spelling, grammar, and restructuring. However, members and aspirant members remain responsible for the coherence, relevance, originality, validity, and integrity of the content in their application, even when utilising AI tools for specific elements.
All use of AI in membership/registration applications must be declared in writing to applications@icheme.org; assessors will be informed accordingly.
Any unethical use of AI, such as generating generic or inaccurate evidence statements that do not detail (or directly relate to) the member or aspirant member’s personal experiences, will be deemed inadmissible.
Should there be concerns with material presented by a member or aspirant member in an application, or there is suspicion of undeclared usage of AI, the Institution will investigate. This investigation can be carried out by a trained assessor or interviewer. If such an investigation shows significant levels of undeclared or inappropriate AI usage, the member or aspirant member will be contacted and asked to provide an explanation.
In the absence of an effective explanation, the matter will be referred in the first instance to the Qualifications Committee. In cases of inappropriate usage of AI committed by non-members who are in the process of applying for membership, the Committee shall determine what action should be taken, including advising the applicant that no further membership applications will be accepted from the candidate.
Where AI has been inappropriately used by a member, the Committee may decide to refer the matter to the Preliminary Investigation Committee as a potential breach of the Code of Professional Conduct.