Law Students' Perceptions of Academic Integrity: Pilot-Study

The goal of the study is to investigate law students' perceptions about academic integrity and plagiarism. The study looked into the opinions and attitudes of students at a Law school in Osijek and a Law school in Rijeka. An online survey was conducted in March and April 2021. The sample included students of all five years of study who attended seminar classes in the summer term of academic year 2020/2021. Findings indicate that students are aware that plagiarism is a serious offence, but are not always sure what constitutes plagiarism. Only half of the sample is familiar with the ethical documents of their schools but a majority of respondents are well aware that their university professors use plagiarism detection software. Differences in the sample were spotted for male and female respondents, students with higher and lower Grade Point Average (GPA), students from Osijek and Rijeka, and students of lower and higher level of study. In future, educational activities focusing on issues of academicmis conduct should be intensified in order to help students successfully avoid plagiarism and academic dishonesty.