This isn't for a story but for a favor I'm doing, critiquing high school seniors' college application essays.
My own kids were lucky to have a writer in the house to tweak their work into its best shape ("Are you sure about that verb tense?" "Hm, do you really mean impermeable here?") and it seemed like a good thing to say yes when students at another website asked. I didn't offer, so it's flattering to be asked out of the blue.
However, for the second time in two weeks, I've discovered blatant plagiarism. I call the authors on it, of course, but I'd like to be on solid footing before issuing any more dire condemnation.
What happens when college students plagiarize?
If you are a current or very recent college or university student (ETA: or a faculty member or administrator), did your college have a policy on plagiarism? (The college or university as a whole, not individual professors or departments.) If so, what would happen to the student who plagiarized all or substantial portions of a paper? What if he or she plagiarized and got caught more than once? Last, and only if you're comfortable saying so publicly, what college or university did or do you attend?
Also, if anyone happens to know, does the college application process involve any attempts to identify plagiarism when and if it occurs? Considering that I'm two for three on essays I've critiqued, I hope so.
Maryn, whose kids' work was at least original
My own kids were lucky to have a writer in the house to tweak their work into its best shape ("Are you sure about that verb tense?" "Hm, do you really mean impermeable here?") and it seemed like a good thing to say yes when students at another website asked. I didn't offer, so it's flattering to be asked out of the blue.
However, for the second time in two weeks, I've discovered blatant plagiarism. I call the authors on it, of course, but I'd like to be on solid footing before issuing any more dire condemnation.
What happens when college students plagiarize?
If you are a current or very recent college or university student (ETA: or a faculty member or administrator), did your college have a policy on plagiarism? (The college or university as a whole, not individual professors or departments.) If so, what would happen to the student who plagiarized all or substantial portions of a paper? What if he or she plagiarized and got caught more than once? Last, and only if you're comfortable saying so publicly, what college or university did or do you attend?
Also, if anyone happens to know, does the college application process involve any attempts to identify plagiarism when and if it occurs? Considering that I'm two for three on essays I've critiqued, I hope so.
Maryn, whose kids' work was at least original
Last edited:
