The relationship between possession of one's authentic voice when writing at the university level and academic integrity is one of cause and effect because the latter could only be achieved through the former. Finding one's authentic voice at the university level is critical because it is the foundation of one's success not only in their future career but in general. But what is exactly one's authentic voice? Dennis Merrit Jones wrote: "Authentic voice is the outward creative expression that rises from the authentic self, the sacred being we were (and still are) at the moment of birth; it is that place within us where the infinite intelligence of life has personalized itself, and its sole/soul desire is to push out and express itself in a multitude of unique ways. Every human being is a creative vessel through which this happens ". While studying at university, students get the opportunity to find that voice and express themselves, their ideas and opinions, be original and creative, challenge their minds, ask questions and find answers, to think and reason and create their path towards their success rather than following other's footsteps and getting nothing in the result. This is an excellent opportunity for everybody to find who they are as an individual, what uniqueness they have, what they are capable of and what they are good at, but many students decide to cheat and plagiarize destroying all the opportunities that they are granted with. They become copycats and master their dishonest behavior instead of mastering their skills and becoming the person they were meant to be.
There is no doubt that cheating and academic dishonesty have been increasing these past years. With the innovation of computers and the internet, it has become very easy to cheat and not get caught in the process. Researchers report that approximately 40% to 90% of college students admit to cheating.