Plagiarism is a very serious academic offence. A few students plagiarize in an attempt to cut corners or to cover academic deficiencies. Other students, unfortunately, plagiarize because they don't understand the concept of plagiarism and the methods for avoiding it. In either case, students are held accountable for their actions, and the penalty could be as severe as dismissal from the institution.

Follow the rules of citation and documentation carefully, and make sure you understand what is meant by paraphrasing. In APA style, a citation consists of author’s last name and date of publication. A full citation appears on the References page. Plagiarism is a very serious academic and ethical issue. Most universities impose penalties on students or staff who plagiarize, whether the plagiarism is deliberate or inadvertent.

Avoiding Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the presentation of someone else’s work as your own. If you use another author’s words you must attribute the work to its original source (its author, composer, etc.).

• If you borrow an idea from, or directly quote from, another person’s work, cite the source of that idea or quote.
• Phrases borrowed word-for-word from another author must be placed in quotation marks and followed by the page number from the original source.
• Cite a source even if you don’t quote directly from it.
• Paraphrase with care. Inadequate paraphrasing can be another form of plagiarism, even with documentation provided.