5: University Regulations

Academic Regulations | Non-Academic Regulations | The Honor System
Department of Parking and Transportation Services | Department of Student Health

Origin | Responsibilities | The Honor Committee
Juries | Honor Support Officers | The Bad Check Committee

Origin

University of Virginia students have entered into an agreement, embodied in the Honor System, that they shall not tolerate lying, cheating, or stealing from their fellow students. In addition, all students have agreed to conduct themselves in accordance with the spirit of the Honor System in Charlottesville and Albemarle County, and whenever they present themselves as University students to induce reliance. Students are thus presumed to be honorable unless their actions prove otherwise.

Students who violate this spirit of mutual trust have committed an offense against the community. Hence, their continued residence at the University would undermine the basis of this community which holds that personal fulfillment is best achieved in an atmosphere where only honest means are used to achieve any ends. Because permanent dismissal is the penalty for such an offense, each student generation must ensure that the system covers only those offenses which are intolerable to their community. Indeed, the Honor System has undergone many changes since its establishment in 1842, in an effort to maintain its viability as a norm of conduct characterizing life at the University.

The Honor System is the finest example of student self-governance at the University. It demands a commitment from every student to the ideal which forms the very basis of the system. A thorough understanding of the system is an essential part of every student's matriculation.

Continue to: Responsibilities
Return to: Chapter 5 Index