About the Honor Committee

Explanation of the Honor System

Each student is charged with the responsibility to refrain from dishonorable conduct. Accompanying this individual commitment to abide by the Honor System is an even more demanding commitment­a responsibility to ask those who violate our standard of honor to leave the University. Accepting these responsibilities is vital to the successful maintenance of our student-run Honor System.

Criteria

By today's standard, an honor offense is defined as an intentional act of lying, cheating or stealing which warrants permanent dismissal from the University. Three criteria determine whether or not an honor offense has occurred:

  • Act: Was the act of lying, cheating or stealing committed?
  • Intent: Was the act committed willfully or intentionally?
  • Non-triviality: Would open toleration of such an act impair the community of trust sufficiently enough to warrant permanent dismissal from the University?

Scope

Although a student should always conduct himself honorably, a student is only formally bound by the Honor System in Charlottesville and Albemarle County, and elsewhere at any time when he identifies himself as a University of Virginia student in order to gain the reliance and trust of others. The geographic limitation is intended to prevent an overextension of the System, for the Honor System can only act effectively where it is reasonably well-known and understood.

Explanation of the Honor Committee

The Honor Committee is comprised of two Honor Representatives from each of the ten schools except the College of Arts and Sciences, which has five. The twenty-three member Honor Committee is ultimately responsible for the maintenance and administration of the Honor System. With the help of some one hundred support officers, the Honor Committee conducts honor investigations and trials, disseminates information on the Honor System to new students and faculty, and establishes special programs and policies for the maintenance of the System from year to year. Click here to see the 2009-2010 Honor Committee Representatives.