Dealing with suspected plagiarism and poor scholarship

All candidates have been warned about the need to avoid plagiarism and poor scholarship in the material they submit for examination. See the University's Code of Practice ('Essential links' on right) and the advice given to candidates concerning avoidance of plagiarism.

What to do if you suspect plagiarism or poor scholarship

If you suspect that parts of the work are not the candidate's own original work, for example:

• parts of the work that appear to use other authors' material without due acknowledgment;
• cut and paste reproduction of others' work even where there is a reference to the source;
• marked changes in the style of writing that suggests cut and paste
• others have clearly been involved in the work but they are not acknowledged or the contribution of the candidate is not clear
• figures or data appear to have been copied without acknowledgment or even fabricated

these matters may or may not constitute wrong-doing, but need to be addressed, and need to be handled carefully in the examination process.

The University's procedure for examiners in the event of suspicion of plagiarism advises you to alert the Secretary of the Degree Committee in the first instance; please do this as early as possible and (s)he will be able to advise you further.