
The only way to avoid plagiarism is to correctly give credit (or 'attribution') to words and ideas that you got from another person
Credit must be given when you quote, paraphrase, or summarize someone else’s ideas.
Follow these tips to help you stay on top of appropriately attributing sources.
Tips for preventing plagiarism
- Start your assignment as soon as you can: If you leave your assignment to the last minute, you'll rush and may miss properly citing sources that you use.
- Log in using your JagID credentials to the Libraries' GALILEO, Gil-Find Catalog, or the individual databases you frequently use (some databases may require you to create a free account). Save the sources you find to these accounts so you can easily cite them.
- Record the citation details for each source you save, and record your own notes about each source you want to use. GALILEO and individual databases have a cite generator that can used to generate and save citations.
- Write your rough draft in only your own words, and only quote sparingly. Add quotes after your main argument has been made.
- Use quotation marks around phrases or sentences that you have cited verbatim from the source.
- Consult the appropriate citation guide or handbook, e.g., MLA or APA, so you know how to paraphrase, quote, and cite correctly in that citation style.
- Run your paper through TurnItIn* early if your professor has activated it for your course through D2L. Otherwise, you can run it through a free text-matching application (see suggestions below). Make any revisions if necessary.
- Still aren't sure? If you aren’t sure how to do any of the above, ask your professor well before your paper is due.
*Turnitin is a text-matching web application to help you detect plagiarism so you can revise your paper before final submission. If your professor doesn't use TurnItIn or another text-matching application, you can test your papers on these free sites: