Writing: Avoiding Plagiarism: Faculty, Staff, and Researcher Tools and Resources

• Plagiarism at the University of Virginia: Working with Students
• Avoiding Plagiarism in Your Own Work

The Honor Committee at the University of Virginia maintains a page, For Faculty & TAs, with information on the Honor code and your role in upholding it.

Plagiarism is a form of cheating and, as such, is an Honor offense at the University of Virginia.  The UVA Honor Committee website states:

By today’s standard, an Honor Offense is defined as a Significant Act of Lying, Cheating or Stealing, which Act is committed with Knowledge. Three criteria determine whether or not an Honor Offense has occurred:

• Act: Was an act of lying, cheating or stealing committed?
• Knowledge: Did the student know, or should a reasonable University student have known, that the Act in question was Lying, Cheating, or Stealing?
• Significance: Would open toleration of this Act violate or erode the community of trust? (from http://www.virginia.edu/honor/overview/)

More information about plagiarism in relation to the University of Virginia Honor Code can be found in Understanding Citations, Plagiarism, and Paraphrasing: A University of Virginia Honor Committee Supplement​.

Though you would likely never intend to commit plagiarism, knowing more about it and other forms of academic fraud may reduce the risk of accidental fraud.  Consult the Key Resources section on the homepage of this guide contains a number of valuable resources that detail different types of plagiarism and academic fraud.

Reviewing how to properly cite your sources may also be helpful.  The Darden Camp Library Style Guides and Citation Management guide contains information on various citation methods, the Harvard Business School Citation Guide [PDF], which has information on citing business-specific information sources.  Our guide also includes information on citation management software, which can help you keep track of the resources you're using.

Use the tools below to check your own work for plagiarism.  Be aware that with any plagiarism detection software, false positives can and do occur.  Be critical of the results and use them as a tool to identify potential areas for improvement if necessary.

Email the library if you have any questions or concerns.