Five hacks to avoid ‘accidental’ plagiarism

Unfortunately, plagiarism can accidently strike us all especially if we've tight deadlines and work piling up. A poorly acknowledge source, a misjudged cut and paste, a forgotten citation and even just poor notes can spell trouble.  

Our five brilliant hacks will help you avoid these blunders, so you’ll be able to:   

• Spot ‘accidental plagiarism’ before it happens   
• Avoid the risks and limitations of Artificial Intelligence  
• Master note-making like a pro   
• Getting referencing and writing right  
• Switch on our brilliant and easy support tools  

This guide is not subject specific but will give general advice that applies across subject areas, although the presentation will employ the Harvard referencing system to explain referencing techniques. If you're not sure what style of referencing you use, refer to your Subject Guide or ask your School. 

Upcoming sessions:

You do not have to book onto the workshop as attendance is on a first come first served basis.

• Online (MS Teams) 12:00-13:00 Tuesday 7 October 2025 Link to join

If you need further information or any adjustments to fully access our sessions, please contact libraryhelp@tees.ac.uk in advance. 

Previously recorded session:

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Point to think about - always bear this in mind when you write. 

If a sentence does not have a reference, the reader assumes that all the work here including ideas, theories, evidence, argument etc...is yours and yours alone. If you paraphrase, summarise or copy a source but don't reference, you are plagiarising.

So how can we avoid this?

Hack #1 - Identify some common 'accidental plagiarism' examples

1. Submitting the same assignment you have already submitted for another module

2. Taking a quotation from a source, giving a citation, but not using quotation marks 

3. Taking a graph from a textbook, without giving the source

4. Making some notes from ideas in a source and using them in your text but forgetting to reference

5. Giving a citation for some information but misspelling the author's name

6. Putting some points of general knowledge in your text without citation

1-4 are considered examples of plagiarism, whereas 5 is a careless error and 6 is acceptable. 

Hack #2 - Artificial Intelligence

The university is using a traffic light system to let you know if AI can be used in a specific module. Make sure you confirm this before using any AI tools. If you can use AI:

• Be constantly critical - evaluate ALL references & information sources – be aware of  ‘ghost references’ and ‘hallucinations’ (false facts) 
• Evidence AI searches undertaken to find the resources to support your assignment and bibliography.

Hack #3 - Take careful notes. 

A very important aspect of studying at University. It is often an underestimated skill - see our note-making guide and below. ​

• Include the full reference of the source especially page numbers
• Use abbreviations - ensure you remember what they mean when you go back to your notes.
• Explain points so they’ll make sense later
• Distinguish quotations/paraphrases/something in-between
• Read, then make notes, try not to make lots of copied content as this is where plagiarism can slip in

What not to do when making notes:

• Simply just highlight book/journal texts - ‘it’s not learning. It’s colouring in!’ (Wood, 2018, p. 69)
• Just copy the points - remember you need to know the context for these
• Copy original text, instead paraphrase
• Worry about the neatness of the notes – they’re yours!
• Muddle up your ideas with points copied from a text - danger of plagiarism.

Hack #4 - Referencing and Writing

• Acknowledge all sources of information and cite correctly using the reference style for your subject. 
• Using ‘quotation marks’ when directly stating another person’s words.
• When you write, paraphrase or summarise to explain the ideas of others.
• Never copy and paste text even if referenced. You may forget to include quotation marks and hidden script can be embedded within text
• Don't submit same work for different assessments - this is self plagiarism. 
• Use Turnitin and check your work for plagiarism before submitting - access via eLearning@Tees Tips for using Turnitin can be found using the UNIverse self-service portal. 

Hack #5 - Use our tools and support

We've a range of tools and support that can help you avoid plagiarism and compile references.

• RefWorks - reference management tool to create and manage your own personal databases of useful reference and create citations
• Discovery citation tool (care - check the reference is correct for your style)
• Referencing help and support
• Drop in help - in the Library and online

Remember, if you need any help or are unsure about anything, we are here to help - just ask! 

It is important that you understand the seriousness of plagiarism and how this is defined as 'academic misconduct'. The following information will help you and also provides advice and help.  

• Academic misconduct

• Teesside University Student Regulations

 Please take time to read them carefully. 

Our Succeed@Tees 'How to use References' workshop will also help you.  

You may also find it useful to refer to our Learning Hub Helpsheet 'How to paraphrase' and our referencing help pages.

Additional useful resources can be found on the reading list which show you how to reference your work correctly, collate good notes and help you better understand how to paraphrase, summarise and use quotations - click on the image below.

This work is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Deed.