Avoiding Plagiarism

Avoiding Plagiarism

The CUNY Academic Integrity Policy defines plagiarism as “The act of presenting another person’s ideas, research, or writing as your own”.

pg 77-78 of the Student Handbook: www.citytech.cuny.edu/files/students/handbook.pdf

Most of the writing that you do in college will have a research element to it.

When you write a research paper, you’ll use existing information to support or explain an idea or make an argument.

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Not only does citing your sources help you avoid plagiarism, but using good information (and citing it) adds credibility to your writing.

For information about how to properly cite your sources, consult our Subject Guides:

http://library.citytech.cuny.edu/research/subjectGuides/wiki/index.php/Style_Guides_and_Research_Paper_Support

Citing = Attribution = Giving Credit

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Obvious examples of plagiarism include:

• Copying text directly from a source (even short phrases) and presenting it as your own.

• Handing in work done in whole or part by another person.

Less obvious examples include:

• Summarizing the work or ideas of another person without giving them proper credit (even if you’ve put it into your own words).

• Failing to list collaborators or indicate areas where you’ve received significant input on your work.

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• If you are analyzing a work of literature, you would list the title, author, and information about where this work was published on your works cited page.

• If you quote or paraphrase that work, you would make a note of it letting your

reader know where to find that specific passage.

• If you are reporting on a news event (that you did not observe firsthand), you would list any newspapers, websites, or broadcasts that you consulted for information.

• If you are writing a paper where you discuss the lyrics of a song, you would let your readers know where you found those lyrics by citing a recording, a transcript of the song, a music video, a performance, etc.

• If you are relying on information that comes directly from another person, you would list that person as one of your sources.

• IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER that SOURCES are anything that you draw on for information. So you should include information about things like books and articles, but also websites, images, video, etc, even if you are not quoting them directly.

What doesn’t need to be cited

• Work that is entirely original, such as a creative or reflective piece.

• Commonly understood facts.

Plagiarism is not the same thing as copyright. There are items that may be free of copyright (such as books in the public domain), but citations are still required.

Even very experienced writers and researchers refer to guides to help properly manage their sources. There are lots of tools and information on the library website to help you with this. Check out some of our subject guides for pointers:

http://library.citytech.cuny.edu/research/subjectGuides/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

If you still have questions, consult your professors or a member of the library faculty for advice. Librarians are happy to work with you!

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Need Help?Ask a Librarian!

http://library.citytech.cuny.edu/services/ask/