What is Plagiarism

To steal and pass off the ideas or words of another person as one's own or using another's
production without crediting the source or take the idea from.

It is considered as a literary theft, and is not only against the ethics of research but is also a
crime.

All of the following are considered plagiarism:

 turning in someone else's work as your own

 copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit
 failing to put a quotation in quotation marks
 giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation
 changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit
 copying so many words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your
work, whether you give credit or not (see our section on "fair use" rules)

Ways to Avoid Plagiarism

1. Paraphrase - So you have found information that is perfect for your research paper.
Read it and put it into your own words.
2. Cite - Citing is one of the effective ways to avoid plagiarism. Follow the document
formatting guidelines (i.e. APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.) used by your educational institution
or the institution that issued the research request. Not citing properly can constitute
plagiarism.
3. Quoting - When quoting a source, use the quote exactly the way it appears. No one wants
to be misquoted. This practice usually involves the addition of a page number. Quoting
must be done correctly to avoid plagiarism allegations.
4. Referencing - One of the most important ways to avoid plagiarism is including a
reference page or page of works cited at the end of your research paper. Again, this page
must meet the document formatting guidelines used by your educational institution. This
information is very specific and includes the author(s), date of publication, title, and
source. Follow the directions for this page carefully. You will want to get the references
right.