Disciplinary cases and offences

The rules regulating disciplinary measures in the event of a suspected offence can be found in Chapter 10 of the Higher Education Ordinance.

An offence under Chapter 10, Section 1 may be:

1. use prohibited aids or other methods to attempt to deceive during examinations or other forms of assessment of study performance
2. disrupt or obstruct teaching, tests or other activities within the framework of courses and study programmes at the higher education institution
3. disrupt activities in the library of the higher education institution or other separate establishments at the institution
4. subject another student or member of the staff of the higher education institution to harassment regarding:

• gender: male or female identity,
• transgender identity or expression: someone does not identify as a woman or a man, or through clothing or in some other way, expresses the opposite gender identity,
• ethnicity: national or ethnic origin, skin colour or other similar,
• disability: enduring physical, mental, or ability limitations to the functioning of a person who, as a result of an injury or illness, were present from birth, have arisen thereafter, or are expected to occur,
• sexual orientation: homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual orientation,
• and age.

Those who intend to change or have changed their gender identity are also covered by the grounds of discrimination on the basis of gender.

Attempting to deceive (as stated in paragraph 1 above) may consist of:

• providing oneself access to unauthorised examination aids (such as notes, unauthorised notes in permitted aids, telephone, or other unauthorised means),
• submitting someone else's work (e.g. text, image, diagram, design product) under their own name without specifying the source (plagiarism),
• self-plagiarism can also be considered plagiarism when the student does not include a reference to the original work,
• helping someone else to try to deceive the examiner also counts as an offence by carrying out unauthorised collaboration in an individual examination,
• changing the answers and scores of a corrected examination,
• having unauthorised access to examination content.

It is important that students find out what rules apply to the examination in question. Channels through which information can be transmitted are, for example, the course's website, written information that is distributed in connection with teaching, information sent to students' email address, or oral information given at the start of the course. As a student, you are responsible for accessing the information about what is allowed/unauthorised during an examination.

According to the text of the law, it is sufficient that a student has tried to deceive in order for disciplinary action to be taken. It is not a requirement that the attempt to deceive has been followed through upon. For example, it is enough to carry notes with you to an examination with the intention of using them as help, regardless of whether you actually use the notes or not.

Examples of disciplinary offences (falling under Chapter 10, Section 1 of paragraphs 2-3 of the Higher Education Ordinance) may be:

• that a student in the teaching context has recurrent inappropriate behaviour that adversely affects teaching,
• violations of rules of conduct in the case of written examinations on campus (e.g. if students interfere by talking to each other during the examination itself) or other assignments,
• that the student behaves threateningly or violently,
• when students violate safety regulations in, for example, a laboratory,
• when students behave disturbingly in the University Library/in connection with activities within the framework of the education located in, for example, hospitals, schools or the like,
• when students use the university's computer network in such a way that they violate the applicable rules of use (e.g. by storing unauthorised material in the university's computers),
• when students destroy property, which has negative effects on the work done where property is located.

If someone feels that they are being harassed on a different basis than those set out in Chapter 10, Section 1 of paragraph 4 of the Higher Education Ordinance, then a report for disrupting operations may be an option.
The harassment does not need to have taken place on the university's premises, but in order for the incident to be taken up for investigation of any disciplinary offence, it must be related to the university.

When suspicion arises that a student has committed an offence under Chapter 10 of the Higher Education Ordinance, this is reported to the Dean of Faculty/Head of Professional Services or the person to whom this has been delegated (e.g. Head of Department, Assistant Head of Department, Director).

Reporting is done by the examination supervisor, examiner, or anyone else who suspects that the student has committed an offence. An initial assessment is made in which it is assessed whether the offence is a violation of the rules in force at the time of examination and whether the offence is relevant in relation to the subject. In order for the Vice-Chancellor to be notified, both of these criteria must be met. Grounded suspicions of disciplinary offences must be reported under Chapter 10, Section 9 of the Higher Education Ordinance.

Once an assessment has been carried out and it has been established that there is a justified suspicion of an offence, a report is drawn up and sent to the Registrar’s Office for record-keeping. The Vice-Chancellor will then have the case investigated and give the student an early opportunity to make a statement regarding the report.

At the University of Borås, there is an Administrative Officer with special responsibility for student law issues who also investigates and handles disciplinary cases and is the presenter/secretary of the university's Disciplinary Board. During the investigation, the student is given the opportunity to make a statement and therefore is given the opportunity to explain their views on the report.

That the student is informed about the report and takes advantage of the opportunity to give the Administrative Officer his or her version of what happened is an important part of the investigation because it is the Administrative Officer's task to protect both the students’ and the university's interests. If any new information that may be relevant in relation to a decision is provided to the case by someone else during the investigation, the student is informed of this and given the opportunity to respond to this information.

When the case has been investigated and the student concerned has been given the opportunity to comment, the case is sent to the Vice-Chancellor, who, after a presentation by the Administrative Officer, takes a decision. The Vice-Chancellor may decide to write off the case (i.e. not pursue the case/dismiss it), to issue a warning, or to refer the case to the Disciplinary Board.

If the Vice-Chancellor writes off the case (dismisses it), it means that the case is closed and the student is free from suspicion. A warning means that the investigation has shown that the student has committed an offence but that there are either mitigating circumstances in the case or that the offence can be considered so minor that the Vice-Chancellor does not find reason to refer the case to the Disciplinary Board.

If the Vice-Chancellor decides to refer the case to the Disciplinary Board, this means that the case will be taken up by the university's Disciplinary Board for review. The Vice-Chancellor also has the possibility, after consulting the board member who is well-versed in the law, to suspend the student from the activities of the university on an interim basis with immediate effect. A decision on interim suspension is to remain in force until the case has been examined by the Disciplinary Board, but not more than one month.

The Disciplinary Board consists of the Vice-Chancellor, a member well-versed in the law, and a teacher representative. Students at the university have the right to be represented on the board with two members. In addition to these, the meeting also includes the Secretary of the Disciplinary Board, who is also the presenter.

If the Vice-Chancellor decides to refer the case to the Disciplinary Board, the student has the opportunity to present his or her views on the report to the board. If the student is not able to attend the meeting, a written statement may also be submitted.

The student may attend the meeting after the presenter has informed the board of the case. The board has the opportunity to ask questions of the student and the student has the opportunity to present their views on the report. After the student has been heard and left the meeting, the board deliberates and makes a decision. The Disciplinary Board may decide on writing off the case, issuing a warning, or suspension. The student is informed of the board's decision by an advance decision by email or telephone the following day.

A warning by the Disciplinary Board means that the board has found that the student has committed an offence but that due to circumstances in the case in question there has been reason to issue a warning instead of making a decision on suspension. If a student relapses in his or her behaviour, i.e. commits a new disciplinary offence and the board considers them guilty of the offence, the sentence may be affected by the fact that this is repeated behaviour. In practice, this may mean that a disciplinary offence that would normally lead to a warning results in a suspension due to repeated behaviour.

A decision to suspend a student means that the student must adhere to the following rules:

It is allowed for the student to:

• study independently, which means preparing for what will come after the suspension and doing those studies that you would have done during the time of the suspension
• be present on the university's premises where the public has access, which means e.g. the University Library, the university's restaurants
• register for examinations and courses that are after the suspension period. To get help with registration for such an examination, the student must contact the Student reception (contact information: Student reception University of Borås).
• have contact with the university's study counsellors and Student health Care, which means that you can visit study counsellors, the Social Counsellor, nurse, and pastor during the suspension period
• the student may need help to register for courses that are given after the suspension period. In such cases, you will need to contact the Education Administration. They will help you with course registration, but you will have to wait with contact until your suspension period is completed. Their contact information is:  https://www.hb.se/en/student/support/programme-and-course-administration/

It is not allowed for the student to:

• contact the university's teacher for advice and help, which means that you must not have any contact with teachers/supervisors regarding anything related to your studies
• submit laboratory assignments, practice assignments, receive supervision
• attend seminars/lectures/group work/workshops etc. during the suspension period
• participate in any kind of examination during the suspension period
• use the computer programs that are usually provided to the university's students (such as Canvas, Ladok, student email accounts, etc.)
• use your university access card, which means that during your suspension period you only have access to the premises to which the public has access. You do not have access to, for example, departmental spaces, laboratory rooms, lecture halls, and classrooms
• use the university's computer network, which means that you only have access to the pages on the Internet to which the public has access

A suspension decision may be placed for one or more periods and may last a maximum of six months. The suspension period normally begins on the first Monday after the date on which the decision was made. Exceptions may be made in specific cases, for example taking into account previously scheduled VFU/student placements/internships, approved leave from studies, etc.

As a student, you are obliged to follow the rules stipulated in the event of a suspension from studies. Violation of these rules will entail the following:

If a student during the ongoing suspension period in any way

• participates in any type of examination component or a situation when study performance is otherwise to be assessed, such a violation will be reported and handled as a case of attempted deception according to the Higher Education Ordinance (1993: 100) Chapter 10 §1 paragraph 1
• submits laboratory assignments/exercises and participates in seminars/lectures/group work/workshops etc., such a violation will be reported and handled as a disturbance according to the Higher Education Ordinance (1993: 100) Chapter 10 §1 paragraph 2. This is regardless of whether the violation took place in physical form or via a digital platform to which you as a student are allowed access via the university. Such acts have a disruptive effect on the university's activities by participating as a suspended student in study contexts to which one is not allowed to have access due to a suspension and which is also not open to the public
• contacts the university's teachers/supervisors for advice and help; such a violation will be reported and handled as a disturbance according to the Higher Education Ordinance (1993: 100) Chapter 10 §1 paragraph 2
• accesses the university's premises that are not open to the public or uses the university's computer network/ computer programs to which the public does not have access, such a violation will be reported and handled as a disturbance according to the Higher Education Ordinance (1993: 100) Chapter 10 § 1 paragraph 2.

If the Disciplinary Board decides to suspend a student, the Swedish Board of Student Finance (CSN for its Swedish name, Centrala studiestödsnämnden) will be notified of the decision. A suspended student is not eligible for student financing because a suspension is considered a break in studies.

The Vice-Chancellor's decision on the warning can be reviewed by the Disciplinary Board at the student's request. The decision by the Vice-Chancellor to dismiss a case from further proceedings cannot be appealed as well as a decision to refer a case to the Disciplinary Board as the latter does not constitute a final decision.

A decision by the Disciplinary Board on warning and suspension may be appealed by the student to the general administrative court. Other decisions of a disciplinary board may not be appealed in accordance with Chapter 12, Section 3 of the Higher Education Ordinance.

Once the Vice-Chancellor or Disciplinary Board has made a decision that can be appealed, the student will receive information about how to appeal.

Appeals are to be made in writing. They must include information about which decision the student is appealing, why the student believes that the decision should be reviewed, and what change to the decision they request. The appeal must have been received at the University of Borås within three weeks of the date on which the student received the decision. If the student has been informed of the decision, information about appeals, and other information via electronic means to their previously confirmed email address, the time from the day the documents were sent is what is relevant. In other cases, the decision is sent to the student by regular mail and the appeal period is counted accordingly.

Anyone who appeals against a suspension decision can apply for the Administrative Court to order inhibition, i.e. request that the suspension not take effect until the matter has been finally settled.

As regards the examiner's assessment of the study performance that was the subject of assessment when the suspected offence was discovered, it is generally the case that the examiner waits to assess the performance until a decision has been made. The examiner's assessment is not governed by the decision taken in the case, but the general rule is that a study performance should be assessed in cases where the case is written off (dismissed). In cases where the Vice-Chancellor or Disciplinary Board decides on a disciplinary measure, it is customary that the assessment of the performance does not take place. However, there may be cases where other approaches to the matter are justified. It is important to remember that it is solely the examiner who has the right to approve or reject a study performance regardless of the outcome of a disciplinary case.

An already established grading decision may be reviewed if the Vice-Chancellor/Disciplinary Board determines that cheating has occurred. If the review proves that the decision was incorrect, it may be changed on the basis of the decision of the Vice-Chancellor/Disciplinary Board to be correct, even if it would be to the detriment of the student. This exception is from Chapter 6, Section 24 of the Higher Education Ordinance, which prohibits the change of a favourable administrative decision in a negative direction for the individual, as set out in Section 37 of the Administrative Procedure Act (2017:900).

During suspension, a technical barrier is placed in the study administrative system Ladok that prevents the recording of results. The suspension can be seen in register extracts but not in study certificates or in certificates taken from the Student Portal. In diplomas or course certificates, it will never be visible that a student has been suspended or warned.

Decisions on disciplinary measures and documents in the file which are officially kept for record-keeping with the university may become official documents and can therefore be requested by anyone.

If you have any further questions, please contact: Nermina Aljic, Administrative Officer for questions regarding student law +46 (0)33-435 41 62 or Petra Gustafsson, Administrative Officer for questions regarding student law, +46 (0)33-435 43 76.

 If you have been reported for a disciplinary offence, you have the right to carry out your studies as previously planned during the processing of the case. Thus, during the course of the investigation, you have the right to carry out examinations, re-take examinations, attend lectures, etc. The main rule is that the examiner waits to assess the examination that was the subject of assessment at the time the suspected offence was detected, until that a decision in the disciplinary case has been taken. Therefore, it can be good for you as a student to think about your study situation while processing is ongoing and prepare for possible re-take examination in the course concerned. It is therefore solely the examiner who has the right to approve or reject a study performance, regardless of the outcome of the disciplinary case.

NOTE! It is important to consider, in regards to the possibility of suspension, that you student are not entitled to any additional examinations, any additional supervision or similar after the suspension period has passed. The intention is that the consequences of a suspension should be felt and that even a shorter suspension period could have far-reaching consequences for study plans.