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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

My tutee has plagiarised my work! AIBU to have sent this email?

136 replies

DissertationDrama · 20/04/2018 19:08

I have been privately tutoring a third year university student through the dissertation process. This has included face to face sessions and proofreading. Some months ago I gave this student a copy of my (first class) undergraduate dissertation with the express instruction not to copy it, to use it purely for structuring guidance. During my degree my university provided every student with copies of ex-students' dissertations to use for the same purpose, so I assumed this was a generous, but fairly normal action on my part. How I regret it now! This evening the student has sent me the latest chapter of their dissertation, and it is identical to the same chapter of my dissertation, with perhaps one word in every twenty changed to match the topic their dissertation concerns. WIBU to have sent the following email?

Dear Student,

This is is plagiarism.

You have completely copied my X chapter, changing odd words to make it relevant to your topic. On a personal level this is unfair, but from an academic point of view this is completely unacceptable. You absolutely must not submit this - you will be caught. Your university will scan every piece of work submitted for plagiarism and this will definitely be picked up, particularly because it was originally written by a student of this university only twelve months ago. If you are caught you could loose your degree, there are also consequences for me as the original author of the work. Again, I will reiterate: you absolutely cannot submitthis as part of your dissertation.

I sent you a copy of my work as guidance, in the same way that the university gave everyone copies of previous students' work last year. It's fine to follow the rough structure of another person's work, but I did not and do not give you permission to copy it.

As you haven't actually attempted to submit my work as your own (only sent it to me) I'm going to give you a chance to change this. For reasurance I want to see a completely new version of this chapter that bares no resemblance to my work by X date. If you send this to me by then, then I'll continue to look at your subsequent work if you still want me to. We all make mistakes after all. However, if you don't send me a totally new methods chapter, I will be forced to report this to the university to protect both of us.

Let me know which it is going to be.

From,
Dissertation Drama.

OP posts:
TheDowagerCuntess · 20/04/2018 20:18

Isn't it better to seek advice on the wisdom of a possible action before you do it?

Original poster
DissertationDrama · 20/04/2018 20:18

BlancheM
Exactly, the dissertation does not work at all. It is totally inconsistent. I've repeatedly said this but it's completely fallen on deaf ears. There isn't any more I can do.

PhilODox
I thought that too until I met this student. The quality of their work is remarkable, and not in a good way, I regret getting involved at all, and have done long before plagiarism gate. No, no responsibility for others will ensue after the degree.

OP posts:
SusanBunch · 20/04/2018 20:19

you could have had your degree overturned for collusion

That will literally never happen, trust me.

Lweji · 20/04/2018 20:20

It would only be collusion if you noticed the plagiarism and didn't call the student out on it, or you had told them to copy it.

I'd tell you to remove any mention of consequences to you from your email, but you've already sent it.

It's fine to show previous work. It's no encouragement to plagiarise.

Keep your email, in case you need to show that you did tell the student not to copy your work.
But, even if you had told them to copy it, they are adults and ultimately responsible for what they submit.

GhostedDad · 20/04/2018 20:21

For those who don't know - you aren't even allowed to plagiarise your own work. I had to do a dummy project proposal - I got 92%. I now have to change my project totally as I cannot reuse the introduction or it is classed as plagiarism and I daren't risk it

corcaithecat · 20/04/2018 20:21

The OP said their current degree was not at this University. Do keep up dear. Smile

Llanali · 20/04/2018 20:23

Rebecca-

OP went to university A.
She graduated.
Plagiariser goes to University A and asked their lecturers for tutor recommendations.
A current lecturer at University A, recommends OP as a recently graduated student to tutor Plagiariser.

OP agrees, and is also currently studying at University B.

I think!?

Jessikita · 20/04/2018 20:23

Your email is great, except I would expect a first class student to know basics! It’s lose not loose!!!

Original poster
DissertationDrama · 20/04/2018 20:23

I have now received an apologetic and panicked response, and an assurance that it will be fixed.

OP posts:
ConciseandNice · 20/04/2018 20:24

A friend of mine who is a nurse had a postgraduate paper he’d written stolen from him, the doctor who nicked it actually presented it at a conference and that was when my friend found out! People are shocking. Another friend plagiarised one page of his undergraduate dissertation and didn’t receive his degree.

Original poster
DissertationDrama · 20/04/2018 20:24

Llanali
That is correct Smile

OP posts:
Biologifemini · 20/04/2018 20:24

It is bad. You are right.
Off topic but who the hell gets tutoring in their final year of uni? Surely this is madness and now it makes sense that some of the 1sts I have seen have been below average in the workplace.

ConciseandNice · 20/04/2018 20:25

I hope they do fix it. Stealing of thoughts and words is beyond the pale and indicative I think of a certain kind of laziness that is hard to solve if at all.

corcaithecat · 20/04/2018 20:27

It's often overseas students who pay for private tutoring for obvious reasons.

TheRagingGirl · 20/04/2018 20:27

DissertationDrama what I see from your posts is that you are out of your depth here.

Now that you've explained the arrangements, I can see why. It is not surprising - you're very inexperienced, and this is your first experience of tutoring undergrads. I wouldn't have asked a first year postgrad (Masters student?) to tutor a Dissertation student - in my department, we only have permanent staff and a couple of independent scholars, with PhDs, as dissertation supervisors.

You need support and mentoring over this. It's too much for you to be expected to deal with this on your own, without mentoring, back-up & support.

Please, please, contact the Head of Department who set this up with you. Tell her what you've told us, and ask them to call the student in. It sounds as though you've done whatever you can, and clearly & forcefully told the student that his behaviour is cheating. Send on the email you've sent, report the whole incident, and let people with much longer teaching experience and authority over the student, clean up this mess (not your mess, that of the student).

You can't be expected to deal with this on your own. If you get help, you'll learn really useful skills about how to deal with these awful kinds of students (thankfully, they're rare, but one remembers them ...).

Good luck.

Mummyoflittledragon · 20/04/2018 20:30

Good. Looks as if it was an excellent email after all. Smile

Original poster
DissertationDrama · 20/04/2018 20:30

TheRagingGirl

I'm not the dissertation supervisor. It is supervised by a lecturer. I don't work in academia, I was recommended to tutor this student as they were specifically looking for a postgraduate student for reasons I won't disclose to tutor them privately.

OP posts:
PancakesAndMapleSyrup · 20/04/2018 20:32

I would warn the university regardless of whether they change that paragraph or not. They may change it just for you and then submit your work. Quite frankly there is no way i would have my degree put at risk by some c and whether they may or not submit it. Fuck right off. Inform them.

theeyeofthestormchaser · 20/04/2018 20:34

And they’re a third year? Bet they’ve plagiarised before...

Op, you were quite right to react as you did. What were they thinking?! That you wouldn’t notice or summat??

BlancheM · 20/04/2018 20:34

I would withdraw your help and wish them luck in your shoes. It sounds harsh but a degree is supposed to be a remarkable achievement and based on personal merit and intellect, surely. This student sounds clueless, especially as a third year. They must have had a lot of hand-holding to get this far.

c75kp0r · 20/04/2018 20:35

Why do we say plagiarism / academic misconduct ...erm because you can commit academic misconduct without plagiarising and vice versa. They are not synonyms.

BlondeB83 · 20/04/2018 20:36

As long as it’s not in anyway English related I think you’re fine with that e-mail Grin

Very cheeky on the student’s part!

BlondeB83 · 20/04/2018 20:36

Do you really think they deserve their degree?

TheRagingGirl · 20/04/2018 20:37

I'm not the dissertation supervisor. It is supervised by a lecturer. I don't work in academia, I was recommended to tutor this student as they were specifically looking for a postgraduate student for reasons I won't disclose to tutor them privately.

I know that. My advice still stands. You do not have the experience to deal with this, nor should you be expected to: you need support. A good Department would see this.

OnTheRise · 20/04/2018 20:38

Plagiarism does get students kicked out of university, with no degree to their name.

I don't think you'll be in a spot, OP, if this student plagiarises you: but just in case, I'd make sure the uni knows about your involvement in this issue, and the steps you've taken to ensure they correct this before handing their work in.