how to check thesis in turnitin

Library Services

UCL LIBRARY SERVICES

• Guides and databases
• Library skills

References, citations and avoiding plagiarism

• Getting Started
• Assignments
• Independent research
• Understanding a reference
• Managing your references
• How to reference
• Acknowledging and referencing AI
• Harvard referencing
• Vancouver referencing
• APA referencing
• Chicago referencing
• OSCOLA referencing
• MHRA referencing
• MLA referencing
• Avoiding plagiarism
• Further help

UCL uses Turnitin, a plagiarism detection tool which checks students' work against a large database of sources such as journal articles, websites and other students’ work.

It provides a 'similarity index score' expressed as a percentage, which you can use as a guide for how much of your own text matches other sources.  You can check your work in a test version via the Plagiarism and academic writing for students Moodle course. When you then submit your work as an assignment, it will not be compared against your test version in Turnitin.

• Plagiarism and academic writing for students UCL Moodle course. Includes facility to upload and check your work in Turnitin, before submitting it formally.
• << Previous: Avoiding plagiarism
• Next: Further help >>
• Last Updated: Apr 18, 2024 5:20 PM
• URL: https://library-guides.ucl.ac.uk/referencing-plagiarism

Turnitin Access To Plagiarism Check For GMS Students

Turnitin is an online plagiarism checking tool that compares your work with existing online publications.

To gain access:

• Request  access  to the   Plagiarism-Check Blackboard site
• Access to this site will be continuous throughout your time in GMS

How it works:

• Upload your papers to Blackboard Learn to check for similarity index
• Submit  multiple versions of papers, take home assignments, theses or dissertations and rewrite text as needed

Extended Directions:

• You will be asked to give your name, email BUID and the submission type (i.e. Dissertation, Thesis or Paper) and your GMS program affiliation.
• After verifying you are not a robot, you be should sent to a new page and get a notification saying “We have received your request to be added to the plagiarism check Blackboard Learn site.” It will take some time for your request to be approved (at least 10 min, possibly 24 hr). The next time you log in to Blackboard, under ‘My Courses’ in the right-hand column you should see the entry:  “GMS Plagiarism Check”.
• Then click on “>> View/Complete”  (The first time you use Turnitin it will ask you to agree the user agreement). If you have never submitted a document before there should be a submit button.  If you have submitted before you will need to click the resubmit button to submit your new or revised document.  You may get a warning that resubmitting will replace your earlier submission.  It also reminds you that you can only upload 3 documents in 24 hours.
• You can browse to find the document on your computer then click ‘upload’
• You will get a message saying it may take up to 2-min to load
• Once the document is loaded be sure to click on ‘confirm’
• You should get a congratulatory message.  (You will also get an email confirming the successful submission.)
• Click on the link to return to submission list
• You will likely see that your document ‘similarity’ index is ‘processing.’  The algorithm may take a few hours to run.  You will need check back and see when it has finished.
• Press “view” on the far right to see the submitted manuscript with Turnitin’s Feedback Studio which has some interesting automation features.
• Alternatively, you can download the results with the arrow icon on the far right of the display
• NOTE:  Students cannot submit more than 3 documents in a 24hour period.  Please plan accordingly or use an alternatively resource like Turnitin Draft Coach alternative via Google Doc
• It is recommended that you remove the bibliography/references prior to submission to Turnitin.
• Because Turnitin cannot scan Images and Figures these can also be removed prior to the check. You must manually check images and figures for plagiarism and potential copyright violations.
• Published manuscripts should be removed from your thesis or dissertation prior to submission to Turnitin, assuming that they have already been analyzed by Turnitin. If they have not been, they should be included. Unpublished manuscripts should be included in your submission to Turnitin. • How to interpret a “Turnitin Originality Report”

 How to Interpret Your Score Report

•  Similarity index, Similarity by Source, Internet Sources, Publications, & Student Papers
• Generally, the similarity index should be less than 20%.
• A common definition may be acceptable.
• Did it identify methods or protocols from your lab? These will need to be rewritten.
• Did it identify matches to publications or text from the internet—again these sentences, paragraphs,  sections will need to be rewritten
• If you have any questions interpreting the Turnitin report please reach out to your faculty mentors.
• Once you have made edits it is important to resubmit the document for a final check.
• The final Turnitin report should be submitted to your mentor and first reader for approval.
• Having problems with Turnitin:  Reach out to Dr. Theresa Davies for assistance ( [email protected] )

Postgraduate Research in the Health Sciences Library Guide

• Finding books & theses
• Finding journals
• Finding journal articles
• Point of Care Resources
• Literature Reviews
• Systematic, Scoping & Rapid Reviews
• Research methodology
• Referencing & reference managers
• Current Awareness Tools
• Turnitin and Submission of Theses
• Authorship and Scholarly Communication
• Useful links

Turnitin  is the leading academic plagiarism detector, utilized by teachers and students to avoid plagiarism and ensure academic integrity. Contact the   CILT Helpdesk for further support: [email protected]

• Turnitin for UCT Postgraduate Students

Online submission of theses

• Digital Submission of a Thesis/Disertation for Examination and Library Access Student help document
• Submission of a PhD Thesis Doctoral Degress Board process
• << Previous: Current Awareness Tools
• Next: Authorship and Scholarly Communication >>
• Last Updated: May 23, 2024 1:38 PM
• URL: https://libguides.lib.uct.ac.za/health-postgraduate

• {{item.title}} {{item.title}} 0" aria-label="Find options under this page" @click="mobchildshow(true, item.title)" class="more-menu">
• {{subitem.title}}

Turnitin guidance

Turnitin guidance, introduction.

All versions of your thesis being put forward for final examination (either initial submission or after any amendments have been made), must be submitted electronically to the PGR Thesis Submission Area in Turnitin.  

Do not use this area for uploading drafts or your progression monitoring reports. Your School will have a designated draft submission area on a separate part of BrightSpace for this. If in doubt, please speak to your PGR admin team.

Before you submit your thesis to Turnitin

Before submitting your thesis to Turnitin, please ensure you have read the guidance below:

• You can upload a copy of your thesis to the draft Turnitin submission area which can support you to identify where your work should be referenced or has been poorly paraphrased. The draft Turnitin area can be found on your School BrightSpace page – see your supervisor if you are unsure how to find this.
• Your work should be uploaded in pdf format.
• If you need to submit a compressed version to Turnitin owing to file sizes, and you provide the School with a non-compressed version to send to the examiners, you must make this clear in your submission declaration.
• Both the submission to Turnitin and the and the submission paperwork, form part of the University's requirements for submission. If you fail to supply either of these by the deadline, your work could be classed as a non-submission and withdrawn from your course.
• Once you have uploaded your thesis to Turnitin, no further changes to the work can be made. You should ensure that any proof-reading and supervisory review of the work is made in good time to meet your submission deadline. The submission of any paper copies to your School and the upload to Turnitin, should take place on the same day wherever possible.

If you need further support

If you require any further support with submitting your thesis, please speak to either your supervisor or your School PGR Admin Team.

Free plagiarism checker by EasyBib

Check for plagiarism, grammar errors, and more.

• Expert Check

Check for accidental plagiarism

Avoid unintentional plagiarism. Check your work against billions of sources to ensure complete originality.

Find and fix grammar errors

Turn in your best work. Our smart proofreader catches even the smallest writing mistakes so you don't have to.

Get expert writing help

Improve the quality of your paper. Receive feedback on your main idea, writing mechanics, structure, conclusion, and more.

What students are saying about us

"Caught comma errors that I actually struggle with even after proofreading myself."

- Natasha J.

"I find the suggestions to be extremely helpful especially as they can instantly take you to that section in your paper for you to fix any and all issues related to the grammar or spelling error(s)."

- Catherine R.

Check for unintentional plagiarism

Easily check your paper for missing citations and accidental plagiarism with the EasyBib plagiarism checker. The EasyBib plagiarism checker:

• Scans your paper against billions of sources.
• Identifies text that may be flagged for plagiarism.
• Provides you with a plagiarism score.

You can submit your paper at any hour of the day and quickly receive a plagiarism report.

What is the EasyBib plagiarism checker? 

Most basic plagiarism checkers review your work and calculate a percentage, meaning how much of your writing is indicative of original work. But, the EasyBib plagiarism checker goes way beyond a simple percentage. Any text that could be categorized as potential plagiarism is highlighted, allowing you time to review each warning and determine how to adjust it or how to cite it correctly.

You’ll even see the sources against which your writing is compared and the actual word for word breakdown. If you determine that a warning is unnecessary, you can waive the plagiarism check suggestion.

Plagiarism is unethical because it doesn’t credit those who created the original work; it violates intellectual property and serves to benefit the perpetrator. It is a severe enough academic offense, that many faculty members use their own plagiarism checking tool for their students’ work. With the EasyBib Plagiarism checker, you can stay one step ahead of your professors and catch citation mistakes and accidental plagiarism before you submit your work for grading.

Why use a plagiarism checker? 

Imagine – it’s finals week and the final research paper of the semester is due in two days. You, being quite familiar with this high-stakes situation, hit the books, and pull together a ten-page, last-minute masterpiece using articles and materials from dozens of different sources.

However, in those late, coffee-fueled hours, are you fully confident that you correctly cited all the different sources you used? Are you sure you didn’t accidentally forget any? Are you confident that your teacher’s plagiarism tool will give your paper a 0% plagiarism score?

That’s where the EasyBib plagiarism checker comes in to save the day. One quick check can help you address all the above questions and put your mind at ease.

What exactly is plagiarism? 

Plagiarism has a number of possible definitions; it involves more than just copying someone else’s work. Improper citing, patchworking, and paraphrasing could all lead to plagiarism in one of your college assignments. Below are some common examples of accidental plagiarism that commonly occur.

Quoting or paraphrasing without citations

Not including in-text citations is another common type of accidental plagiarism. Quoting is taking verbatim text from a source. Paraphrasing is when you’re using another source to take the same idea but put it in your own words. In both cases, it’s important to always cite where those ideas are coming from. The EasyBib plagiarism checker can help alert you to when you need to accurately cite the sources you used.

Patchwork plagiarism

When writing a paper, you’re often sifting through multiple sources and tabs from different search engines. It’s easy to accidentally string together pieces of sentences and phrases into your own paragraphs. You may change a few words here and there, but it’s similar to the original text. Even though it’s accidental, it is still considered plagiarism. It’s important to clearly state when you’re using someone else’s words and work.

Improper citations

Depending on the class, professor, subject, or teacher, there are multiple correct citation styles and preferences. Some examples of common style guides that are followed for citations include MLA, APA, and Chicago style. When citing resources, it’s important to cite them accurately. Incorrect citations could make it impossible for a reader to track down a source and it’s considered plagiarism. There are EasyBib citation tools to help you do this.

Don’t fall victim to plagiarism pitfalls. Most of the time, you don’t even mean to commit plagiarism; rather, you’ve read so many sources from different search engines that it gets difficult to determine an original thought or well-stated fact versus someone else’s work. Or worse, you assume a statement is common knowledge, when in fact, it should be attributed to another author.

When in doubt, cite your source!

Time for a quick plagiarism quiz! 

Which of the following requires a citation?

• A chart or graph from another source
• A paraphrase of an original source
• Several sources’ ideas summarized into your own paragraph
• A direct quote
• All of the above

If you guessed option E than you’d be correct. Correct punctuation and citation of another individual’s ideas, quotes, and graphics are a pillar of good academic writing.

What if you copy your own previous writing?

Resubmitting your own original work for another class’s assignment is a form of self-plagiarism, so don’t cut corners in your writing. Draft an original piece for each class or ask your professor if you can incorporate your previous research.

What features are available with the EasyBib plagiarism checker? 

Along with providing warnings and sources for possible plagiarism, the EasyBib  plagiarism checker works alongside the other EasyBib tools, including a grammar checker  and a spell checker . You’ll receive personalized feedback on your thesis and writing structure too!

The  plagiarism checker compares your writing sample with billions of available sources online so that it detects plagiarism at every level. You’ll be notified of which phrases are too similar to current research and literature, prompting a possible rewrite or additional citation. You’ll also get feedback on your paper’s inconsistencies, such as changes in text, formatting, or style. These small details could suggest possible plagiarism within your assignment.

And speaking of citations, there are also  EasyBib citation tools  available. They help you quickly build your bibliography and avoid accidental plagiarism. Make sure you know which citation format your professor prefers!

Great! How do I start? 

Simply copy and paste or upload your essay into the checker at the top of this page. You’ll receive the first five grammar suggestions for free! To try the plagiarism checker for free, start your EasyBib Plus three-day free trial.* If you love the product and decide to opt for premium services, you’ll have access to unlimited writing suggestions and personalized feedback.

The EasyBib plagiarism checker is conveniently available 24 hours a day and seven days a week. You can cancel anytime.  Check your paper for free today!.

*See Terms and Conditions

Visit www.easybib.com for more information on helpful EasyBib writing and citing tools.

For informational guides and on writing and citing, visit the EasyBib guides homepage .

Advanced Similarity Report settings

When creating a paper assignment, you may select to view and change any of the advanced assignment options. The advanced assignment options are viewed by clicking the + Optional Settings link.

Generate Similarity Reports for submissions?

If the assignment is set to accept any file type Turnitin will only generate Similarity Reports for the following file types:

Microsoft Word; PowerPoint; WordPerfect; PostScript; PDF; HTML; RTF; OpenOffice (ODT); Hangul (HWP); Google Docs; Slides; and Sheets (submitted via the Google Drive submission option); and plain text files.

Report generation and resubmission options

Select from the dropdown list when, after student submission, that you would like Similarity Reports to be generated. There are three options for this assignment setting:

• Immediately (first report is final) - Similarity Reports for all submissions will be generated immediately. Students cannot resubmit papers. Submissions must be deleted by the instructor to enable resubmission.

The first three resubmissions will generate a new Similarity Report straight away. After three attempts, a 24-hour wait is enforced to generate Similarity Reports for all subsequent resubmissions.

Resubmission attempts are shared between you and your students. If you attempt to resubmit on their behalf, one of their attempts will be used.

Only the latest submission is available to the instructor or student. Previous versions are overwritten.

Similarity Reports will regenerate within an hour of the due date and time to allow student submissions to compare against one another within the assignment. A change in the Similarity Report similarity index may result from the regeneration of the reports. This option is typically used when students are self-reviewing and revising their submissions and able to view the Similarity Report. No resubmissions are allowed after the due date and time of the assignment.

• On due date - Similarity Reports will not be generated for any submission until the due date and time of the assignment. Students may resubmit as many times as needed until the due date and time without receiving reports. Resubmissions may not be made after the due date and time of the assignment.

If an instructor chooses to grade without a student submission and the Immediately first report is final is selected, students will not be able to submit to the assignment once the Grading Template is created.

Excluding the bibliography

Select whether you would like text appearing in the bibliography, works cited, or references sections of assignments to be excluded from being checked for matches in the Similarity Index when generating Similarity Reports. This setting can be overridden in individual Similarity Reports.

Excluding quotes

Select whether you would like text appearing in the quotes of an assignment to be excluded from being checked for matches in the Similarity Index when generating Similarity Reports. This setting can be overridden in individual Similarity Reports.

Excluding small sources

The exclude small sources feature works by excluding sources in the source list that are below a set word count or percentage threshold. For example, if the threshold is set to 3%, any 1% or 2% match would be removed from the current report's source list (Match Overview or All Sources). With this feature, you have greater control over sifting out smaller sources, allowing you to focus on larger, more problematic and suspect sources within Similarity Reports.

This setting can be overridden or adjusted in individual Similarity Reports via the Turnitin Viewer. You can adjust the exclude small sources assignment setting at any time by clicking the edit icon to the right of the assignment name.

Allow access to Similarity Reports

Choose whether you would like your students to view the Similarity Reports for their submissions to this assignment. This option gives instructors more flexibility and control when creating assignments.

Repository options

If the repository options are enabled for an instructor by the administrator, two or four options will appear within the Submit papers to dropdown list . Select from the dropdown list where you would like papers to be submitted to. The settings provide you with the ability to select whether papers are stored in a Turnitin standard paper repository, your institution's paper repository, the student's choice of paper repository, or no repository at all.

The benefit of submitting papers to the standard paper repository is that student papers can be compared against by students from others institutions. You can engage with Instructors from other institutions to help each other investigate potential cases of academic misconduct.

However, by selecting to submit papers to the institution's paper repository, this means that the assignment will only be available for comparison against other students' submissions within the institution. The papers will still be compared against all of the Turnitin databases you have selected.

The currently available search targets are:

• Student paper repository - works previously submitted in classes and assignments on Turnitin.
• Institution paper repository - a private repository of student papers unique to your institution.
• Current and archived internet - a repository of archived and live publicly available internet pages containing billions of pages of existing content and tens of thousands of new pages added daily.
• Periodicals, journals, & publications - third party periodical, journal, and publication content including many major professional journals, periodicals, and business publications.

Changing advanced assignment option defaults

If any changes have been made to the advanced assignment options, an additional option will be available at the bottom of the options panel. The instructor is asked Would you like to save these options as your defaults for future assignments ? Tick the box to have all future assignment creations use the advanced assignment options that have been selected as the default setting. Leave the box empty to continue with the previous default advanced assignment option settings.

The default settings can be changed at any time when creating a new assignment or updating an existing assignment.

Was this page helpful?

We're sorry to hear that., need to contact a human.

• Turnitin.com
• Release Notes
• Known Issues
• Privacy and Security
• System Status