EIT Case Study

The Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) is a private college operating globally. Founded in 2008, with headquarters in Perth, Australia. EIT is a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) in the Vocational Education and Training Sector (VET) in Australia and is regulated by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA).

EIT is also a designated Higher Education Provider within Australia and is regulated by Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). The college is registered to deliver a number of Bachelor of Science and master’s degrees in the engineering and technology discipline.

Before IRIS

“Over the past decade I have become ever more disheartened by the levels of academic dishonesty among students; both in the classroom and in the online learning environment. The lack of any meaningful response by colleges and universities has not been terribly surprising. Cheating is an intractable problem and students are crafty! It is also an ever-changing issue: as students increasingly demand a less arduous route to academic success, the enablers emerge, in their droves, to supply it.

As an engineering college making its online foray in 2008, we were confronted with a new challenge: the authentication of students completing assessments, experiments and examinations remotely. We needed to establish a significant but simple solution to verify that the students studying with EIT were genuine, and deserving of their qualifications.

Questions around the invasion of student privacy have caused the academic community to be wary of online invigilation. It is, however, essential that a qualification does not become tainted by students who graduate having gained it dishonestly. Educators willing to compromise, or over-look academic rigor and integrity will, in the long-run, lose credibility.

It should also be remembered that most online students are grateful for the availability of online tools which enable them to complete their studies remotely. For many the need to travel to a formal examination hall is onerous (and became unworkable during COVID-19 lockdowns across the world).

Before introducing IRIS, we assessed that incidents involving cheating or academic misconduct could have been as high as 30%. IRIS has assisted us with reducing this to less than 1% – in the classroom and online. With its implementation we have been able to confidently promote EIT as a reputable college founded on high quality education and integrity.

When I see other universities and colleges being worn down by academic misconduct which is steadily worsening – I realize that IRIS provides a reliable and safe solution to this most troublesome of issues.”

Dr Steve Mackay – Dean of Engineering Institute of Technology

After IRIS

“IRIS has provided us with an edge: allowing us to place academic integrity and quality education at the heart of what we do.  It has, however, taken a decade of assiduous effort, and the software continues to be honed.

From its inception we have learnt so much, thanks to the feedback from support staff, lecturers and students. This input has helped us improve the operations of IRIS, ensuring it is user-friendly and fair for all. Disbelieving students have on occasion tested the boundaries of IRIS, but have been chastened by the efficacy of its invigilation power. The software quickly alerts staff to suspicious behavior or activity; its detection capabilities are systematic and efficient. The fact that IRIS provides clear evidence of academic misconduct means the process of identifying an incident of cheating is objective and uncomplicated.”

Dr Steve Mackay – Dean of Engineering Institute of Technology

"Since we have adopted IRIS as our invigilation software of choice we believe we have successfully educated students on the perils of cheating with the support of robust evidence and detection mechanisms and thus had a huge reduction in this type of academic misconduct."
Dr Steve Mackay
Dean of EIT

Adoption of IRIS by EIT staff

“Staff and lecturers welcomed the use of IRIS. They were able to rely on the software for misconduct detection, with – in most cases – clear and objective proof. This has eliminated the awkwardness of cheating disputations.”

Adoption of IRIS by EIT students

“Students load IRIS onto their computers before sitting for an assessment; it is a simple process. Once they have installed the software they very often forget that it is running. All the processing is then performed and stored in the cloud.”

Has IRIS being effective in reducing the rate of exam and assessment cheating?

“IRIS has been enormously beneficial to EIT. It has certainly achieved what it was designed for: to dramatically reduce cheating. It has, however, also given EIT some gravitas: students weighing up their options see EIT as credible and committed to excellence in education, an institute which is prepared to safeguard high standards. Furthermore, EIT students who are conscientious are rewarded with the knowledge that grading is fair across the board.”