Responding to an Incident Report

The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (OSCCS) supports student growth and learning through an educational conduct process that upholds MIT’s values. We’re here to provide guidance and support as you navigate this process.

Schedule an Appointment

Preparing for the Committee on Discipline Process

If you are identified as a “respondent” in an incident report, you will be notified by OSCCS and provided a list of alleged policy violations. Your first step should be to review the COD process [link to Incidents page] and prepare for the Initial Meeting — your opportunity to share your perspective and respond to any alleged policy violations.

Scheduling Your Meeting

To schedule your appointment with OSCCS, email osccs@mit.edu.

  • Do not schedule your appointment during a time when you have class, a lab, or other academic requirement.
  • If your schedule changes, you are sick on the date of your appointment, or you have another unforeseeable circumstance, contact us to reschedule.

Preparing for the Meeting

  • Consider what questions you have and think about what you want to say as your response to the letter.
  • Review the letter you received and possible relevant policies, including the Mind and Hand Book.
  • Consult the Rules of the Committee on Discipline.
  • Gather any material or information relevant to the situation and bring it with you to the meeting.

Other Considerations

Decide if you want to bring an advisor to this meeting. Your advisor can be any person of your choice who is not an attorney or a member of the media, with the exception that attorneys are permitted to serve as advisors to complainants and respondents in cases involving allegations of sexual misconduct, intimate partner violence, or stalking.

Your advisor can help you think of what questions to ask and how you’ll prepare going forward. If you are looking for an advisor, but cannot find one, contact OSCCS to be connected with a member of the OSCCS Advisor Program [link to OCSSC page>Anchor Advisor and Mentor Programs].

As you prepare for the meeting, consider if you have any relevant witnesses.

Witnesses are individuals who are not a party and who may present information in the course of the COD process. Witnesses are not required to be eyewitnesses to the incident in question, but should have relevant information to present. Witnesses may not serve as advisors. Both parties have equal rights to have witnesses or witness statements presented.

OSCCS is committed to the principle of equal opportunities for students with disabilities. If you have a disability and need an accommodation to participate in the COD process or any program or service offered by the OSCCS, please contact Disability & Access Services. If you would like assistance with language translation, please notify us so that appropriate arrangements can be made.

The observance of religious holidays and cultural practices are an important reflection of our diversity at MIT. OSCCS will provide reasonable accommodation for students to reschedule a meeting and/or adjust a sanction deadline with our team, for reasons of faith or conscience or for organized activities conducted under the auspices of a religious denomination, church, or religious organization.

Academic Misconduct

Responses to academic misconduct usually include academic actions within the subject or project, as well as formal documentation. You have three options for responding to an Academic Letter to File:

  • An academic letter to file is considered a finding of responsibility by the Institute and serves as a warning to refrain from violating Institute policies again in the future. A letter to file is the least serious sanction given by the Institute after a student is found responsible for violating a policy.
  • The OSCCS will maintain the letter and review it in the event of future allegations.
  • This is the default option. If students do not respond to OSCCS outreach about the letter to file within three Institute days, OSCCS staff will assume they have chosen Option One by default and will close the case and let the letter stand.

  • The documentation that the student submits will be kept with the letter to file and would also be reviewed in the event of future allegations, but the finding of responsibility would stand.
  • To choose this option, students must submit documentation to osccs@mit.edu within three Institute days and clearly indicate that their intent is to submit documentation only and not request a COD review of their case.

  • If a student requests this option, the COD Chair will review all the information and decide whether or not the student is responsible for violating the academic integrity policy, and if so, what sanction is appropriate.
  • If you request a COD review and are found responsible, this letter to file submitted by your professor will remain in your disciplinary file as a written warning.
  • If you have received an academic letter to file and you would like to request a COD review of your case, please schedule an initial meeting with staff in the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards by emailing osccs@mit.edu or calling 617-258-8423.
  • During this initial meeting, we will discuss the attached letter, you will have an opportunity to explain your recollection of events, and the COD review process will be explained.

Records Maintenance and Release of Information

OCSSC maintains student discipline records for the Institute. Student discipline records are private. In accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and MIT’s policy on the privacy of student records, student discipline records are typically released only with the written permission of the student, unless otherwise required or authorized by law.

Often, students request a Dean’s Certification from MIT commenting on their behavior or disciplinary record at MIT as part of an application for graduate or professional school, employment, or for another purpose. All such forms should be directed to OSCCS. Many institutions (e.g., employers, graduate schools) have a form they would like you to use; our office accepts such forms. Please bring them to W20-507 or send them electronically to osccs@mit.edu.

We will require a signed authorization from you before releasing any information. Please allow three days for processing.

In most cases, if a student authorizes the release of their discipline record to a third party, the OSCCS will send a letter summarizing any situations in which the student was found responsible for violating policy. Information is generally not released if the student was not found responsible for violating a policy. The information communicated in the letter is governed by the specific authorization, but released information typically includes the date of the incident, the violations for which the student was found responsible, sanctions assigned, and the completion status of those assignments.

If you are considering authorizing a release of your discipline records, we encourage you to contact us. We can review the details of what, if any, information we will release from your specific record. Please note that we will require a written authorization from you before releasing your records.

In general, all discipline records are maintained by the Institute for eight years from the date of incident. Their release to people outside MIT will be governed by the Records Release Practice described above, but they will be maintained for the eight-year period to verify aggregate data published annually in MIT’s Annual Security and Fire Safety Report as required by a federal law known as the Clery Act.

Cases resulting in suspension, expulsion, degree revocation, and other serious sanctions are generally maintained permanently. If a student leaves the Institute without resolving a case or completing the assignments, it will be maintained until the student returns. The student must resolve the case before returning to the Institute.