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Plagiarism: What is plagiarism?

What is plagiarism? How do I avoid it?

Definition

According to the High Point University Honor Code

"Every student is honor-bound to refrain from plagiarism".

But what does it mean to plagiarize something? 

Plagiarism involves quoting or paraphrasing without proper acknowledgment. You plagiarize if you submit, without appropriate documentation or quotation marks:

  • part or all of written or spoken statements derived from sources, such as books, the Internet, magazines, pamphlets, speeches, or oral statements;

  • part or all of written or spoken statements derived from files maintained by individuals, groups or campus organizations;

  • the sequence of ideas, arrangement of material, or pattern of thought of someone else, even though you express such processes in your own words.

(High Point University Student Government Association, The University Honor)

Summary: You plagiarize when you take credit for someone else's work, either on purpose or by accident. 

You can also plagiarize yourself. Called "self-plagiarism," this occurs if you reuse work from one course in another course without your instructors' permission. This is considered academic dishonesty.