Each school, college, and university has their own definition of "academic integrity." Penn State's definition is below. It is likely that you have heard the term "academic integrity" before, but if you haven't, the Penn State definition as stated by University Policy section 49-20 is:
"Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest, responsible manner."
At Penn State, academic integrity is a basic guiding principle, and students are expected to act with integrity. Penn State also has a definition for an academic integrity violation:
"An academic integrity violation is an intentional, unintentional, or attempted violation of course or assessment policies to gain an academic advantage or to advantage or disadvantage another student academically."
To avoid violating unintentionally, make sure you understand course policies and academic integrity.