USUST hosts lecture on academic integrity and digital challenges

On May 15, 2026, on the occasion of Science Day in Ukraine, the Ukrainian State University of Science and Technologies held an online lecture titled ‘Academic integrity and digital culture: new challenges for higher education in Ukraine’. The event focused on current issues related to maintaining academic standards in conditions of digital technologies development and the growing use of artificial intelligence tools.

 

At USUST, academic integrity plays an important role in the organization of educational, research, and student development activities. The university systematically integrates the principles of honesty, responsibility, and respect for intellectual work into teaching and research. Particular attention is paid to developing a culture of academic integrity among students, especially first-year students, and helping them understand its importance for their future professional careers.

The lecture was delivered by Halyna Yevsieieva, Doctor of Sciences in Public Administration, Professor at the Department of Public Administration and Law of the SEI ‘PSACEA’, and Vice-Rector for Academic, Student and Humanitarian Affairs at USUST. In her presentation, she reminded participants of the key provisions of academic integrity, defined as a set of moral principles, ethical norms, and rules of conduct that should guide all participants in the educational and research process. She also emphasized the core values of academic integrity, including honesty, trust, mutual respect, fairness, responsibility, and resilience.

 

Halyna Yevsieieva paid special attention to the new law of Ukraine ‘On Academic Integrity’, which entered into force on February 1, 2026, and will be enacted on July 31, 2026. The document defines the key principles and legal mechanisms for ensuring academic integrity, regulates the rights and responsibilities of participants in the educational process, and establishes types of violations and liability for them.

 

The lecture also addressed the main principles of academic integrity established in legislation. In particular, it highlighted the need to foster respect for academic standards among students through education, motivation, and encouragement; ensure transparency of information regarding integrity rules and liability for violations; reject any manifestations of academic fraud; respect copyright and the results of others’ intellectual activity; and prevent conflicts of interest.

 

Halyna Yevsieieva devoted considerable attention to the use of artificial intelligence in the educational process. She emphasized that modern digital technologies are creating new challenges for higher education systems and academic communities worldwide. Under Ukrainian law, if materials created with the help of artificial intelligence are used in an academic text, the author is required to disclose this in the work, indicating the methodology used to generate the result or providing a reference to the relevant software or its description.

 

Participants were also briefed on the provisions of Article 29 of the Law of Ukraine, which addresses the dishonest use of results generated by artificial intelligence. In particular, publishing texts, images, models, data, or other materials generated by AI as the result of one’s own academic activity without proper disclosure in the work or accompanying materials is considered a violation of academic integrity.

 

Summing up the meeting, the speaker emphasized that academic integrity is a necessary condition for high-quality educational and research activity. It contributes to building trust in learning outcomes and scientific achievements, developing a responsible attitude toward education, and affirming respect for human honor and dignity in society.

 

The online lecture was held as part of the series of national-patriotic events ‘Resilience of the Ukrainian nation: history and present’. The event was attended by first-year USUST students, academic advisers, faculty members, and all those interested in joining an open discussion on academic integrity and the challenges facing higher education in Ukraine in the digital society.