ISM University of Management and Economics will investigate a potential breach of academic ethics by Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius, the institution said on Friday.
The university said its Ethics Committee had decided to review a complaint forwarded by the Office of the Ombudsperson for Academic Ethics and Procedures regarding alleged violations in Sinkevičius' doctoral dissertation.
The university stressed that academic ethics issues involving all students and graduates are handled according to uniform procedures, regardless of their position or status.
A decision will be made after evaluating all information collected during the investigation and hearing from the interested parties.
Under current regulations, a decision must be reached within 30 calendar days, excluding the summer holiday period. ISM expects to issue its findings by the end of September.
Discussions regarding potential plagiarism in the dissertation have recently intensified among members of the public as well as the political opposition. Sinkevičius has repeatedly said he prepared the dissertation ethically and rejected the allegations of plagiarism.
Sinkevičius earned a master's degree in marketing and management from ISM in 2009 and defended his doctoral dissertation at the same university in 2015.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
