What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism, according to the University of Maryland Code of Academic Integrity, is "intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one's own in any academic exercise." Examples of acts that would be defined as plagiarism are:

Copying word for word, and neglecting to both enclose the words in quotation marks and to cite the source
Summarizing or paraphrasing someone else's words or ideas and failing to cite the source
Reproducing the organization or structure of another person's work and failing to cite it
Any other act in which someone presents someone else's intellectual material as their own, whether it involves graphics, code, data, charts, etc.

Plagiarism is a serious act of academic dishonesty which is not taken lightly at this University. The goal of this Web site is to colocate resources which address students' information needs in relation to plagiarism: how to integrate and properly cite other people's ideas, how to develop solid research habits to avoid committing plagiarism, what policies and codes the University has developed to address breaches of integrity, and where to find additional help and assistance. We welcome suggestions for improvement. Please use the link at the left to email us.

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Last modified: January 25, 2010

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