College Admission Essays: Noting a Few Words About Plagiarism

Quoting without Giving Credit

If you place the exact words of another writer or speaker into your essay without enclosing the words in quotation marks and citing the author, you’re plagiarizing. The solution is simple; give credit where credit is due. Here’s an example:

Plagiarized passage: Whenever my grades slip a notch, I immediately buckle down and review all my notes until I’m sure that the problem has been remedied. Good grades are money in the bank, the capital I will spend on my future.

Corrected version: Whenever my grades slip a notch, I immediately buckle down and review all my notes until I’m sure that the problem has been remedied. As multibillionaire Ariadne Weaver once said, “Good grades are money in the bank, the capital I will spend on my future.”

As you see in the preceding correction, only six words and two punctuation marks divide the ethical from the unethical.

Swiping Ideas

If you snatch someone else’s thoughts and claim them as your own, you’ve signed up for a stretch in the plagiarism penitentiary. Swiping ideas is a no-no even if you change the wording of the original source. For example, suppose you’re reading about the Powderpuff Revolt in history class. (Don’t look for it in your schoolbooks, or anywhere else, for that matter. The Powderpuff Revolt is a product of my very strange fantasy life.) Here are a passage from the book and a plagiarized essay paragraph, along with a possible correction:

Original passage: The Powderpuff Revolt teaches us that human rights, in this case the right to powder one’s nose without governmental interference, are an extraordinary motive for social change. The human spirit tends towards freedom, and any government that forgets this truth must arm itself and prepare to use force to subdue its own people.

Plagiarized passage: The issue that most concerns me is human rights. Throughout history we see that human rights act as a strong force, motivating people to work for social change. If a government ignores this fact, the government will eventually have to use weapons to control its subjects.

Corrected version: The issue that most concerns me is human rights. I recently read an account of the Powderpuff Revolt by historian A.J. Tomato. Tomato makes the point that human rights act as a strong force, motivating people to work for social change. If a government ignores this fact, Tomato says, the government will eventually have to use weapons to control its subjects.

The example clearly shows that staying on the right side of the academic law is quite easy. The addition of a word or two crediting the source is enough to take care of the problem.

Tips: Some ideas — the economy matters during an election year, ancient Egyptian culture emphasized the afterlife, boy bands are dumb — are very common and likely to be found in many sources. You don’t have to worry about crediting a source for this sort of idea.

Locating Help When You're On Your Own

The general principle of legitimate help has two simple rules:

Rule #1: They can help.

Rule #2: They can’t write the essay for you.

If at any point in the process you’re not sure what assistance is acceptable, check with the college counselor at your school. (If your school has no separate college counselor, the guidance office is a good bet.) College counselors are used to dealing with the issue of help from parents and teachers. They’ve thought fairly deeply about the line between honesty and dishonesty. Also, their credibility as a college office depends partly upon the students they send along to the universities. So college counselors have a strong interest in maintaining the integrity of the application process.

Some colleges come right out and ask you whether you received any help writing the essay, and if so, what kind. Once again, honesty rules. You must answer this question truthfully. If you have qualms about accepting any sort of help, talk with your college or guidance counselor before you work on the essay. 

Others can help you, but not over-help you, in writing an admission essay. That’s a good rule, but it’s not specific enough to keep you out of trouble.

Here are some possibilities for assistance:

• A sympathetic teacher: Most teachers are willing to spare you a few minutes, even if they have to chomp down a sandwich while reading a rough draft. Your English teacher is the logical choice, but teachers of other disciplines can help as well.
• Relatives: Assuming they don’t go overboard , relatives have a lot to offer. Fluency in English or experience in higher education is not necessary because your relatives know the most important subject — you. They can discuss your upbringing with you, tell you family stories, and help you remember or define important aspects of your life and character.
• Your friends: Your friends can help you in the same tasks and for the same reasons as your relatives. Apply the strategy explained in the preceding bullet (“Relatives”) to your peers.