- This topic has 10 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 10 years ago by
.
- Posts
hi all,
I was looking for some help here i was told previously by bsc people that my project is matching to other sources and students less than 25% though.
I was asked to submit my draft work of project including articles used and how my ideas developed. I submitted all the work to them my notes articles used excel workings etc and detail workplan. Later i receive email from them that i am still not able to answer that why is there match with other student work. And that There is large match in SLS with other students. About SLS match i was not told previously and now i am told its a large match in SLS with other students and that my project seems like a group work.I would like help on how do i present my case to them
Please share your experience in dealing with ACO inquiry or if you have the knowledge of it. How to effectively present your case. How to write cover letter? what proofs to submit etc etc.
@shehli So you really have no idea why your work should be very similar to someone else’s? You didn’t let anyone else see it? Did you attend a college where the tutor showed you samples or made suggestions about some sections? For sure the electronic checking has identified similarities so you need to consider how this could have happened. I suggest that you try to co-operate as much as possible – if you can think of any possible reasons then let them know e.g. is it possible your mentor may have shown your work to another student without your knowledge or permission?
It must be very stressful for you but you need to see it first from their side – they are investigating irregularities (they may be asking the same sort of questions to those whose work has been identified as similar to yours) to get to the bottom of what has gone on. They are kind of collecting evidence I suppose so if you can assist with this it will put you in a better light.
@shehli I am aware of a similar case to yours (although I cannot categorically say the facts are absolutely identical). However the student was informed that he had a 36% match with another student’s SLS. The reason was because he had used an internet source (unreferenced) and unbeknown to him the other student had used exactly the same source ( also unreferenced) so to an outsider it looked as if they had copied from each other.
I advised him to fess up as there was no point in trying to stick out that it was all his own work! He confessed to thie ACO exactly what had happened and although the SLS should be referenced and I stress I do not condone taking extracts from the internet without acknowledgement, in this particular case, the ACO decided to take a lenient view because he had co-operated.
The moral here is don’t copy or use work without referencing, you will be found out. If you slip up and do so, then do not deny it – the ACO officers are not fools and do not want to be treated as such. If a student tries to lie their way out , then they are probably digging a bigger hole for themselves and I wouldn’t expect the ACO to be very forgiving. This student fessed up (the only sensible thing to do in the circumstances) and after several anxious months is now delighted to learn he will be getting his BSc afterall 😀
(He agreed to share his experience with me and the error of his ways with you all so that you can all learn from it 🙂 )
- Topics: 0
- Replies: 10
- ☆
there are no referencing requirements in an SLS
@aneeb123 – on the contrary there are referencing requirements and rules about not copying material throughout the whole submission. The charge of plagiarism will be applied by OBU to both the RAP and the SLS (as both of the students on this forum found out the hard way!).
The student I am referring to above had lifted material from the internet and had not referenced it. Take it from me (and I have more than 10 years RAP experience) in the circumstances they were extremely lucky to be cleared by the ACO.
- Topics: 0
- Replies: 24
- ☆
hey trephena you know a lot about the bsc degree… could you tell me if two or more projects have the same format that would be plaigiarism….. i mean if their format is similar
@nada000 – if you are using a similar format to another student for the RAP then that would not be plagiarism in itself as normally plagiarism refers to written ideas. However if you are intending to use an identical or similar formats for your Presentation whereas that again in itself would not be plagiarism, you could be found guilty of collusion. What that means as a ‘charge’ is that you and another student have collaborated in producing your work whereas the RAP / SLS and Presentation etc are intended principally to be your own original work under the guidance of a mentor (and of course a bit of help and advice where appropriate from us at OT) 🙂
Remember both you and your mentor are certifying to OBU the authenticity of your RAP submission as your own piece of work and if it isn’t, then technically you are infringing the university rules and are also in contravention of the ACCA Code of Ethics.
Does using the same ratios/models as someone else constitute as collusion? I have not copied from anywhere but I am pretty sure that my ratios and models may be similar to other students since everyone uses more or less the same ratios/models for topic 8. Content will obviously not be, just the choice of ratios and models. I m a little worried. What if someone with the same topic/company as me has had the same ratios/models? How will I be able to prove to OBU that it is not collusion.
@mark – Chill!! 😀
You would only have to worry if the wording of your work and evaluation was more or less identical. The electronic checking system has algorithms that identify similar passages and even if students change a few words it does not trick the system (as some students have discovered!) Obviously if you are citing from the same book or article this is going to be word-for-word the same – which is why referencing is so important together with citation marks if it is a direct quotation – otherwise you would in effect be saying that the words and ideas are your own and that is what constitutes plagiarism. Provided you have done the work yourself and referenced fairly well you have nothing to fear.
I have put together an article about the Academic Conduct Office and what it means if you are informed that your RAP is under investigation from the ACO which is available via the following link
As I have stressed here and in the article, if you have complied with referencing and the university rules (See section 9 of the OBU Information Pack for these in detail) then you should not be unduly concerned 😀
OK. Thank you for the detailed response. This calmed me down a bit.
I got a little freaked out and went on to “writecheck” to see if I made any blunders. Looks ok to me. There is an 8% match. Not sure if it is acceptable?
Most of the matching is because the company’s name is repeating on every page which is highlighted as a match. Some other things like headings and sub headings are a match too but I assume anyone following OBU’s guidelines will have that one.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.