So, you are new to college and suddenly you realize that the work in high school was just child’s play compared to the mountain of papers that await you during any given semester. This much work does not even leave room for much of a social life, and you start to panic. What can you do about this? While you stress, perhaps you meet a fellow student who suggests using someone else’s paper as your own, or perhaps you are even tempted to purchase one. You might also come across a couple of articles or even paragraphs that you hastily copy to flesh out your own writing – without crediting a source. Folks, we all know that college is tough, but what I have just described is commonly referred to as PLAGIARISM.
Plagiarism is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “the practice of taking someone else’s work or ideas and passing them off as one’s own.” Also known as intellectual kidnapping, piracy, cribbing, theft, and infringement, plagiarism can lead to the end of your academic career. According to the 2013-2015 ENMU undergraduate catalog, plagiarism is in the same vein as cheating and is not only subject to receiving a zero grade for the assignment, but can lead to further disciplinary action as well. Plagiarizing can include offering up someone else’s work as your own or giving your paper to someone else to claim as their own. It can also mean not crediting the source of a quote from magazines, books, internet sources, and the like.
The act of plagiarism can lead to getting dropped from a much-needed class and even to academic probation or suspension. It may seem easier than creating your own work, but remember this: you are not in college because you chose easy, but because you want a better life, and that doesn’t start by cheating. It is okay to ask for help!
Eastern offers 30-minute tutoring sessions with students at the Golden Library Monday through Friday. You do not need to make an appointment as walk-ins are welcome. ENMU’s tutors can help you to construct your papers and show you how to cite sources properly, as well as direct you to the correct style format for your assignments. There are also wonderful online tools that are easy to use and answer many of your questions. Two of these are The Purdue Online Writing Lab and Grammar Girl’s quick and dirty tips.
One more thing about plagiarism: I know that there are students out there who make money by typing papers for people who are not so good at it. Allow me to poke holes in this non-solution. The people who offer this service are not your friends. They researched the topic that you will be tested on while you put your social life first. Therefore, when you get asked about the topic (and you will — after all, folks, this is college), you will attempt to explain something you know nothing about, thus giving yourself away. The person you paid just made money off of your future misery, and the sad part is you paid them to help you fail.
I know it’s not easy. The end of my final semester as an undergrad I had two weeks to write two 20-page pagers, one 15-page paper, one seven-page paper and two three-page papers. At times I felt like crying, and sometimes I did. I am only human! Still, I didn’t cheat. I stayed up until 3:00 a.m. and got up again at 7:00 a.m. to complete my work successfully. When I finished and got everything turned in, I felt good knowing that I had accomplished this task on my own. I hope most of you never have to face that kind of stress — but if you do, don’t give yourself permission to become a literary kidnapper.
Story credit: Melissa Arguello