Academic Integrity Statement
Me tika. Me rite. Me pono.
The University of Waikato is committed to excellence, respect, and honesty in scholarship and to ethical professional conduct. Academic integrity is at the core of this commitment and requires all members of the University community (students, academic and general staff) to uphold academic integrity as a personal, academic, and professional responsibility.
Mā te Tangata! Mō te Tangata!
Opening statement
Me tika. Me rite. Me pono.
Translation: “To be correct, to be prepared and to be ethical”
This element was developed to encapsulate integrity and the importance of being ethical. It expresses an underlying discourse of excellence, implying that by enacting these three core values we are demonstrating excellence. The three key terms used within the statement express the concept of academic integrity. They are translated as follows:
- Tika – just, right and correct
- Rite – legitimate and the balance of legitimacy. Be together, be ready, be steadfast.
- Pono – ethical and honest
Closing statement
Mā te Tangata! Mō te Tangata!
Translation: “It is up to the individual to do it and it is for the people's benefit”
This concluding statement has strong synergy with the University motto ‘Ko Te Tangata - for the people’. It was developed to reinforce that we are all part of the larger collective community which is the University of Waikato. Closing with such a statement is intended to place emphasis on the fact that we all belong to the collective and our individual actions therefore impose and impact on the collective as whole. It indicates that we are responsible not only to ourselves and who we are working with, but also to the University and its communities.