Dismissed for plagiarism

<p>I have been dismissed from my program for plagiarism. I cited everything but didn’t put a lot of it in my own words or in quotes, believe it or not but I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong at the time. I had a lot on my mind and was trying to finish quickly, it was sloppy work and plagiarism wasn’t even on my mind. I’m not here for anyone to judge me or put negative things because you wasting time and that doesn’t help. I already know I have to face the consequences for what I’ve done and deeply regret this. I learned from my mistakes and I want to move past this and get a degree in an another graduate school. I’m afraid this will follow me for the rest of my life. How long does this stay on your record? I have a bachelors but I got dismissed from a PsyD program in clinical psychology. I feel like my life and dreams are ruined. I don’t know what school I can apply to now because I think all of them ask if you have been dismissed?, Has anyone else been through this? Any real advice would be appreciated.</p>

<p>Don’t be down on yourself. Many of the greatest journalists and esteemed researches have been accused of plagiarism and poor work ethic. When you apply for anything/another school communicate straight forwardly about your past, to avoid it surfacing again, explain how it has changed you for the better. Talk about how you will never make the same mistake again. There will be people who shut the door at your face, but there are also some willing to give others a second chance. If you find it difficult getting into another program then take a few years off and get hands on experience in the field, intern or apply for jobs that you qualify for. Improving your resume may increase your chances of getting into another program.</p>

<p>Which of the greatest journalists and esteemed researchers have been accused of plagiarism?</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

<p>Julliet since you want to get smart with me here is a list via wikipedia of researchers, authors and publishers have been accused of plagiarism. NY times, Boston Globe and award winning author Dan Brown are among those who have been accused of plagiarism. The Matrix is currently being sued for plagiarism. Monopoly is rumored to have been plagiarized and there is a lot of evidence to back up the rumor.</p>

<p>[List</a> of plagiarism incidents - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_plagiarism_incidents]List”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_plagiarism_incidents)</p>

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  1. “Accused” does not equal guilty - while Dan Brown was sued for plagiarism, both cases were dismissed, yet the OP clearly (however accidentally) committed and was found guilty of plagiarism.</p>

<p>2) The cases you cite nearly all involve well respected people who already had a substantial following and body of work. That is a far different scenario than a student just trying to get started. The OP lacks the kind of support base that the others you cite had.</p>

<p>3) Those people found guilty of plagiarism have generally suffered some pretty substantial consequences - loss of job being one of the big ones. This is not a minor incident that will just go away, this is a big deal, and right now it is the dominating point of the OP’s resume.</p>

<p>OP: This will follow you until you leave this field of study or complete a terminal degree. They will not advertise the reason why you left the program, but they WILL tell anyone who asks with a need to know. Since any OTHER program will ask them, this will be something that every such program will find out about.</p>

<p>The first thing I would do is talk to your department. Find out if there is any process for re-entry - often, after X years you can apply to re-enter, although you will need to convince them that you have changed and will not do such a thing again. Even if there is not, you may have a professor or two who is on your side and can speak to the circumstances. If neither of these is true then you are probably done getting this degree in the US.</p>

<p>The second thing I would do is to talk to some other schools PRIOR to applying. Explain the situation, refer them to that professor at your old department who can vouch for you (assuming you have one), and ask them if they would consider you or if your application would be wasted paper. Don’t ask them for an admission decision (as that is a competitive issue) but simply if you qualify for admission.</p>

<p>The third thing I would do is figure out something useful to do for the months or years it may take to resolve this. You will need to show them some indication that you are a hard-working, dedicated, ethical individual, and incidentally probably need an income while this is all going on.</p>

<p>Good luck! I was dismissed from my undergrad for grades, but was re-admitted 6 years later and finished strong. Yours is a more difficult case, but I would not say you are sunk quite yet.</p>

<p>I just find it hard to believe that a person in a doctoral program was in such a rush to complete a paper that he didn’t follow convention in properly citing sources. It doesn’t take any extra time to use quotes or state attributions. And, at such a high educational level, there should not have been any thought to do less than necessary with respect to attribution.</p>

<p>Cosmicfish you are a pessimist who has no idea what they are talking about. One of my pet peeves is people who think they know it all. Jane Goodall. Look her up if you do not know who that is. Her new book was found to have taken content without citing where she got it from just like OP here. She apologized, gave a couple of press release and is releasing the edited book in a couple of weeks. </p>

<p>Jayson Blair is a former NYT journalist who was found to have plagiarized, he resigned from his job and went back to college to get a new degree and a new job.</p>

<p>Fareed Zakaria is one of the top journalists for CNN. He plagiarized a column from the New Yorker on gun control. He was suspended from his job. He apologized and described it as a ‘lapse of judgment’. After careful review of the incident it was decided that that it was an isolated incident.</p>

<p>I’m trying to say that everyone can recover from an incident no matter how great, based on how they handle it. I come from a family of doctors and engineers. My sister is a chemical engineer. My uncle is a heart surgeon, he once made a careless mistake that almost caused a patient their life and he was almost sued for it and almost lost his license. If you are willing to accept your mistakes and find a way to fix them then life will be a whole less hectic for you. He kept his license and ended up actually getting hired by an even better and bigger hospital by moving past that incident and letting his skill talk.</p>

<p>What about BP and their oil spill? Did they not recover from it? Or the Embezzling wall street bankers? Don’t come at me with your 1) 2) 3) facts because I don’t have time for people who just like to argue for no reason.</p>

<p>Sorry but not putting it in quotes is one of the oldest dodges there is. If possible, I’d meet with the department head, own up, apologize and ask to be readmitted at a later date. A lot of it will probably depend on how much acrimony has been built up.</p>

<p>Just because you cite a few examples of people recovering from mistakes does not mean the OP will be able to do the same. Do you know how many people DON’T plagiarize and are successful? Far more than those who do plagiarize and are successful, that’s for sure.</p>

<p>1) No, BP has not recovered. That is why they still play gulf recovery commercials today.
2) Bankers’ reputations are known for cunning, deceitfulness, and backstabbing even to today.
3) There is no sense in providing false hope. Tell the facts as they are.</p>

<p>OP I wish you good luck, but there are so many people out there who have not made (your) mistake that it may be difficult, at least for the near term.</p>

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Strange, people usually need to know me a lot longer before they realize that!</p>

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Good, everyone should have a pet. One of mine is people who think that anyone who has a different opinion or perspective is necessarily a “know it all”.</p>

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Goodall, Goodall, Goodall… yes, despite having been born, raised, and educated in a janitor’s closet, I think I have heard that name before! And if I recall correctly, her plagiarism incident was outside the academic system, beyond the purview of any particular authority figures, and after more than a half-century of scholarship… all of which I would consider mitigating factors that do not apply to the OP.</p>

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How is this a counter-example? He plagiarized, was caught, lost his job and left the field of journalism to work in human resources! I count that as a worst case scenario, not a “take heart” story!</p>

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CNN kept him, based on two decades of otherwise unblemished journalism. If that was in his first year, do you think they would have kept him? I don’t.</p>

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Absolutely! But do not fool yourself (or anyone else) into thinking that such mistakes can be recovered without cost in time, effort, or money, and also realize that the very top limits of your field become harder to reach with each such stumble.</p>

<p>As a personal anecdote, I flunked out of college at the age of 22. I recovered. I spent 6 years out of school, got permission to re-enter, did very well, and am now professionally employed and in a top PhD program. The fact that I stumbled and recovered is not a complete story without understanding that I could not have gone straight into a decent college immediately after flunking out, and that despite my improved performance since that time I am still penalized in some quarters for flunking out 15 years and 2.5 degrees ago.</p>

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BP is a corporation not a person, lost billions, and may not regain their reputation and standing in the US for decades. Bankers who actually do embezzle go to jail, and rules that apply to corporations are not especially applicable to people.</p>

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I like facts. And while I do enjoy a good argument, I don’t do so for no reason. If I did, you would see me posting a LOT more often.</p>