The problem. Through observation and the review of literature, students often receive inconsistent and vague messages about plagiarism from faculty. Marcoux (2002) and Roig (2001) found a lack of consensus between faculty concerning definitions and forms of plagiarism. Although some students develop skills in order to avoid plagiarism, almost half of the students tested in two private colleges in the New York metropolitan area were unable to identify plagiarism in passages, due to misunderstandings concerning plagiarism and correct paraphrasing (Roig, 1997). Despite having university policies on plagiarism, many faculties applied and interpreted policies inconsistently. To assess the issue of plagiarism, it is important to understand faculty and students' perceptions of the problem. Method. The hypothesis of the study is that there is a significant difference between faculty and students' perception of plagiarism. To determine whether there is a difference between the age and gender groups, a population of undergraduate students and faculty from Alliant International University, California International Business University, College of the Sequoias, and Shawnee Community College were surveyed. Results. While several sub-categories of this study showed no significant differences in their perception of plagiarism, overall, there were significant differences in perception between male and female faculty, undergraduate students under 20 years old, and faculty and students in the perceived seriousness of plagiarism. Because university policies influence university practices, the lack of agreement between faculty and students suggests that university policy may not provide sufficient penalties based on the perception of the plagiaristic infraction. This is perceived as a serious problem in academia. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.