How to Avoid Plagiarism in Dissertations, Theses, and Research Papers

In the year 2019-2020, nearly 3.9 million students will graduate from American universities. Many of these students will have had to write a dissertation or thesis. It's a daunting prospect, but we're here to help you. It's a daunting prospect, but we're here to help you. Not only do we offer research writing services, but we can also help you learn how to avoid plagiarism. When you're citing multiple sources, you must know how to quote correctly without plagiarizing.

In this article, we give you the best tips on how to avoid plagiarism. Students normally wonder: how do I avoid plagiarism in my research paper, dissertation, or thesis? Avoiding plagiarism in a paper should be a priority. Read on for our dissertation writing tips and learn how to hand in a top-class document!

1. Always Cite Your Sources Correctly

Understanding how to cite sources correctly is one of the most important tips to avoid plagiarism. When you're trawling through countless research sources and finding new information and ideas, it's easy to forget where you found this information. Do not use any ideas that you've read if you can't place a source.

As you're researching, make notes of all your sources. This could be as simple as writing down the titles of all the journal articles that you want to cite.  You also need to make sure that you cite these sources in the right reference style. The style you use depends on your discipline and could be Harvard, MHRA, APA, or MLA. Follow these guidelines to the letter, or your citations may not count. If you don't cite the source, it's plagiarism. 

2. Use Quotations and Paraphrasing

This is one of the top dissertation writing tips that you need to understand. You shouldn't rely on quotations for your work. While an authoritative quotation can help your argument, too many can trigger plagiarism alerts. You should learn the difference between quoting and paraphrasing.

Paraphrasing is when you take a quote and reword it, putting it into your own words. You're still using their argument, but it's original work. This has two huge advantages when it comes to knowing how to avoid plagiarism. It shows that you have a good understanding of the argument in question and aren't just parroting from the source.

It also will not trigger any plagiarism checkers that your college may run your essay through. However, even if you are paraphrasing, you need to cite your sources. If you don't cite the source, you're still at risk of plagiarism. Aim to use quotations and paraphrasing evenly throughout your dissertation. It's advisable to err on the side of caution and utilize paraphrasing a little more if required.

3. Don't Copy Others' Styles

Avoiding thesis plagiarism doesn't just boil down to copying and pasting from others' works. It also depends on writing in your own style. Attempting to copy another writer's style is plagiarism, even if you aren't using their own words. You should write the essay in your own style and with your own flair.

Don't forget that your essay is marked on its writing, as well as its research! Writing in your own style also shows employers that you are capable of producing solid, original work. You need to be able to show them papers that bear your copyright, no one else's.

4. Use a Plagiarism Checker

When you've finished your dissertation or thesis, you should check for plagiarism before you submit it. Even if you follow every single tip on this page, mistakes happen. You don't want to be marked down for these mistakes. There are several plagiarism checkers available online that can trawl through your essay and check it against other works.

Any examples of plagiarism that it finds will be highlighted, letting you correct them with ease. Plagiarism checkers can also give you links to any articles that you haven't cited. This means that you can add citations with ease. This should be the final step before you hand your paper in. Don't leave it until the last minute either. If there are problems, it may take considerable time to make corrections.

5. Avoid Self-Plagiarism

This is one of the key tips to avoid plagiarism, but it sounds counter-intuitive, doesn't it? Surely you can't plagiarize from your own work? You can! It's important when you're writing your thesis, dissertation, or research paper, that you don't use sections of previous papers. If you do, you need to cite your own work, just as you would a journal article. You should also avoid submitting any paper that has previously been submitted.

Some universities will take a harsher stance towards self-plagiarism. For example, some may require that you don't write on the same topic twice throughout your course. As such, you should find out your college's policy on self-plagiarism. While it's okay to use ideas and arguments from your previous works, you should treat them as you would any other academic paper.

6.Understanding Common Knowledge

You don't have to cite common knowledge. That's common knowledge in and of itself. However, this is a huge gray area. If an argument has been made in one paper or is based on the knowledge that's not likely to be known by an educated member of the public, cite it. There's a British legal test that is based on "the man on the Clapham omnibus."

This is based on understanding what a hypothetical member of the public would understand. Think about your argument. Is it based on the knowledge that's specific to your field? If it is, then cite it. You should err on the side of caution here. You won't be marked down for including more citations.

You've Read Our Tips to Avoid Plagiarism: Now What?

Plagiarism is a minefield for those writing a thesis or dissertation. You've read our tips to avoid plagiarism, but do you still need help? Then take a look at our plagiarism removal service, and see how we can help make your paper outstanding! Got any questions for us? Join our live chat for instant help.