How to avoid plagiarism in your college writing

According do www.dictionary.com, plagiarism is defined as; the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work. Many college students either do not take plagiarism seriously, or do not know enough about how to research and write a paper to avoid plagiarism. This article will help college students understand when sources need to be cited.

Learn when to cite in your academic writing. What needs to be cited? Anytime you use a word-for-word quote, the source needs to be given credit. If you are paraphrasing another persons' ideas, or any ideas that are not your own, even if they are from a class lecture or a website they need to be properly cited. What does not need to be cited? Anything that would be considered common knowledge, like scientific or historical facts. There is no need to site your own research or writing.

If you are asked to work in a group, ask your professor ahead of time what their expectation are. If your group is assignment is to answer 6 essay questions, is it appropriate to each answer 2 of the questions individually then combine all 6 answers and turn it in as a group project? Not only is it not appropriate, its Plagiarism.

Be careful turning in the same work in more than one class. Is it ok to write a paper for one class, make a few changes to it and turn it in for a different class? It's your work right? This is a grey area that is ok at some colleges and universities and not others. Check with your schools' handbook and more importantly check with your professors before you do it.

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Differences Between High School and College

If you have been accepted to a college or university, chances are you were at least a C+ student in high school. The majority of 4 year colleges and universities require a 2.5 or better GPA and a certain score on either the ACT or SAT.

In order to be successful in college, you will need to adjust your study habits to meet the more rigorous demands of your college professors.

Differences between high school and college include:

More freedom - No one will be making sure you go to class or do your homework anymore.. It will be up to you whether or not you get up on time for class and organize your day so that you have time to study.

Less time in class / More time out of class - You might think because you only have class 12-15 hours a week that you have a lot of free time. In reality, for every hour you spend in class you are expected to spend 2-3 hours outside of class studying.

Lower Grades - Students who received A's and B's in high school may be receiving C's and D's in college. This is not necessarily a reflection on the students abilities, but a sign that their study skills and habits need some work.

Attending College Online

Today's college student looks much different than in past years. Many students are choosing out of necessity to work full-time and so an online education makes much more sense than attending college classes in person. Although and online degree is convenient, it can sometimes be hard to motivate yourself to go to class, when the classroom is your living room.

When taking an online class it becomes important to create a time management system. Online classes can usually be attended anytime and anyplace. Because of this, online students tend to procrastinate and wait until the last minute to attend class. Creating a time management system at the beginning of the semester will help keep you on track.

PUT INTO PRACTICE THESE 5 STRATEGIES to improve time management skills;

Set specific and measurable goals; both academic and personal
Create a semester calendar
Create a weekly schedule
Make a to-do list for each day of the week
Set aside time to work on each course

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE TIME YOU NEED TO STUDY

At a traditional College there will be much more time spent in class. Online College is the complete opposite. Most of your time will be spent studying and working on projects. On average, students should expect to spend two to three hours outside of class for every hour spent in class. This means for every 3-unit class a student should expect to spend six to nine hours per week studying outside of class.

KNOW YOUR CAMPUS RESOURCES AND DON'T BE AFFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP

Even though your taking online college courses, there are still plenty of resources available to you. Professors that teach online classes usually have a lot of experience in the fields they teach and expect a lot of interaction from the students, so don't be afraid to ask your professor for help if you don't understand something. Getting an online degree can be very convenient, but it's not for everyone. You have to be very disciplined and motivated.

Student Loan Consolidation

Student Loan Consolidation is becoming more of an important issue as more and more college students are being forced into student loan debt in order to pay the high cost of college tuition. After graduation your Student Loans may go into repayment right away or there may be a grace period depending on your lender. The easiest way to get your payments under control is with a student loan consolidation.

The first step to consolidating your student loans is to know who your lenders are. When filling out financial aid paperwork students' are given a choice of lenders. If you have taken out a student loan every year, you may have more than one lender. There is also a difference between Federal Student Loans and Private Student Loans. Gather up all your paperwork from your last four years of college and write out a list of all your lenders, the amounts you owe and whether your loan is a Federal or Private Student loan. If you do not know who your lenders are you can visit this link http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/repaying.jsp for information on all of your federal loans.

Which student loans are eligible and which are not? According to the Federal Student Aid website the following are some of the student loans are eligible for consolidation;
Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans
Subsidized Federal Consolidation Loans
Guaranteed Student Loans (GSL)
Unsubsidized and Nonsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans
Unsubsidized Federal Consolidation Loans
Direct PLUS Consolidation Loans
Federal Perkins Loans
Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS)

Loans that are not eligible for consolidation are; Loans made by a state or private lender and not guaranteed by the federal government Check their website for more details.

To be eligible you must have a qualified loan in repayment, grace, deferment or default status. Remember, even if your loan is currently in default you can still qualify if you have made satisfactory repayment arrangements. You can apply online, over the phone or fill out a paper application. Just visit the Federal Student Aid website or any other qualified student loan consolidation lender.

WHY TAKE NOTES?

Note taking is essential for studying and learning in college

Taking notes develops a sense of listening

Lecture notes provide the clearest and best indication of what the you should study for the exam

Taking notes in class makes the student an active participant in the learning process rather than a passive listener or daydreamer.

Taking notes helps the student sort out important information

The notes taken will become a study aid, an external memory device, and an instrument to aid in review and recitation


REMEMBER THESE IMPORTANT POINTS ABOUT TAKING NOTES

Review your notes as soon as possible after class

Review the notes from the previous class meeting while you sit and wait for the class to begin

Review each week's notes at the end of the week

Studies have shown that one's recall rises immediately after learning

After about twenty-four hours, recall has diminished by about 80%

The single most effective way to prepare for a test is recitation

Hearing your own voice summarizing the material and quizzing yourself on it will greatly reinforce your mental image of the subject.

Studies have shown that about 80% of your study time should be spent in recitation rather than rereading.

TIME MANAGEMENT

One of the hardest things in making the transition from high school to college is realizing that you alone (not your parents or professors) are in charge of how your time is spent. Many times college freshmen have not learned to manage their time effectively because they have never really had the opportunity. In high school much of your time was managed for you. College offers many more choices of ways to use (and often waste) time.

You may have had all A's and B's in high school are now receiving C's and D's in college. Just because you are receiving lower grades does not mean tht you are less capable than those receiving higher grades but your study skills, including time management, may need some work.

5 STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING TIME MANAGEMENT SKILLS

Set specific and measurable goals; both academic and personal

Create a semester calendar

Create a weekly schedule

Make a to-do list for each day of the week

Set aside time to work on each course

PREPARING FOR A MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAM

Step 1

Carefully read the test question and determine what is being asked by identifying key words.

Step 2

Make sure to read all the answer choices. There are probably a couple of obviously wrong answers you can eliminate right away.

Step 3

Extreme words such as All, Always and Never generally are not in the correct answer.

Step 4
If you see the answer choice, "None of the Above" this is usually not the correct answer. If you see the answer choice, "All of the Above" this usually is the correct answer.

Step 5

If you have two answer choices and they are direct opposites, one of them is most likely the correct answer.

Step 6

Make sure you answered the question! This seems like it would be obvious, but when people write tests they come up with some really good answer choices that are correct, they just don't answer the question being asked.

READING SKILLS

College classes require more reading than most students are used to. Learn the 5 most important strategies to make the time you do have to read more efficient.

Step 1

UNDERSTAND THE PURPOSE

There are many different types of reading, each with a different purpose.-scanning – preview questions and answer choices -idea reading – very quick, looking only for the most important words -exploratory reading – more detailed -study reading – maximum understanding of ideas -critical reading – separating fact and opinion / making judgments about -what the author wants you to believe -analytical reading – used when studying math or science / requires deep concentration

Step 2

LOOK UP VOCABULARY THAT MAY BE NEW TO YOU

This may take some time, but if you don't then you might miss the message.

Step 3

WRITE IT OUT

If you are reading information that may be on an exam later, write out potential questions and answers. That way you will have something to go back to later when you are studying for the exam.

Step 4

REACT IN SOME WAY TO THE MESSAGE OF WHATEVER YOU ARE READING

Whether you love it, hate it, agree or disagree reacting to what you are reading will help you remember it later.

Step 5

DON'T BE AFRAID TO MARK IN YOUR BOOK

Highlight, underline, or circle (or whatever else you feel comfortable doing). When you are studying for the test later on you don't want to have to read the whole book over again. Marking in your books will save time later.

STUDY SKILLS

If you are a freshmen in college, chances are you don't quite know what to expect when it comes to how much time you will need to study. Follow these 4 steps and you will develop study habits that will be with you for the next 4 years and make it to graduation

Step 1

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE HOW MUCH TIME YOU WILL NEED TO STUDY

When you were in high school you probably spent a lot more time in class than you did studying at home. College is the complete opposite. On average, students should expect to spend two to three hours outside of class for every hour spent in class. This means for every 3-unit class a student should expect to spend six to nine hours per week studying outside of class.

Step 2

GET INVOLVED IN A STUDY GROUP

Being in a study group is helpful because a group can always remember more than one person. It's usually most helpful to review notes right after class. Studies show that recall is best immediately after learning.

Step 3

KEEP A SEMESTER CALENDAR AND PLAN YOUR STUDY TIME

There are plenty of other things to do in college other than study. Set aside time to study for each class, if you don't you will always end up doing something else.

Step 4

USE YOUR CAMPUS RESOURCES

Don't be afraid to ask for help. Most college campuses have a learning center with free tutoring for just about every class they offer.