<p>Hey there. I just found out that a friend of mine who helped me with my essays has used a major part of my supplement essay in his transfer essay (same school). He did not ask my permission before submitting the essay, and is now saying that he copied/ used my essay as it was successful! His defense is that the school will not notice the similarity between our essays since he applied for transfer admission so maybe different people read transfer essays, and that they might have forgotten my essay already! I think if the same person reads an essay similar to the one he read months ago, that person will be able to recall.</p>
<p>So I have two questions:</p>
<p>1) Will the admission people be able to recognize the connection in our essays</p>
<p>What are the chances they will find out considering the arguments my friend made? And if they do, will they contact me about it? I can say that I lost my essay!</p>
<p>caliph - this is one of those awkward situations … you’re blameless, and you might be affected, but there’s little that you can do about it. Your “friend” (not) isn’t going to volunteer that he stole your essay. The school might see a connection, but it’s HIGHLY unlikely they would ask you for an explanation. And you can’t really notify the school … I mean, how do you prove that the essay is really yours?</p>
<p>My advice would be to sit tight and hope for the best. Oh, and dump that “friend” of yours before he does something REALLY bad … like hiding HIS dope in the trunk of YOUR car.</p>
<p>Well, I can claim that the essay is mine since I sent it in December while he only submitted it a couple of days so. I have already stopped speaking with him. But I am still curious to if it is certain or not that the college will find out. Does anyone have any knowledge about the essay reading process?</p>
<p>Just to clarify, you say he “helped” you with the essay. How much? Did he write portions of it? Would he possibly say it was the other way around (he wrote, you borrowed), and would there be any legitimacy to that claim on his part?</p>
<p>Also… did you get in? They don’t usually rescind without at least talking to you. So if you have a legitmate story, you would probably be okay. If you have any emails about the essays, those might help (you know, you sent it to him asking for feedback, he emailed back with a few comments/updates, etc.). Hang onto 'em.</p>
<p>Most school’s adcoms cover a certain area and that adcom usually has the first read of the essays from people applying from his area. Some schools that have LOTS of applications hire others to do the first read for them (retired English teachers, guidance counselors, etc.)</p>
<p>Not sure how the transfer applications are processed…do the same people read them also or is there a whole different department that takes care of that? Don’t know.</p>
<p>The problem you might encounter is if your school uses a software program that can spot plagarism. </p>
<p>Right now, it makes sense to hold tight. You really don’t know how much of your essay he stole and used. </p>
<p>What do people think about emailing the admissions director proactively? Explain that it has come to your attention that someone may have used your essays in his transfer application and let the school decide the course of events regarding the other student? At this stage, you don’t have to go into big detail about what this person did or didn’t do in reviewing your essay.</p>
<p>Don’t talk on the phone with any underlings to begin with. Send a message that will get to the top guy.</p>
<p>To answer your question, I would say, yes, it’s a problem for you. I lean towards your being proactive in contacting admissions, but either way you should tell the truth. </p>
<p>Look, do you really want to have this guy as a friend anymore? Do you want to spend the next four years of your life having to live on the same campus with someone who betrayed you and is a cheater? If your answer is no, then do what you can to protect yourself and don’t worry about him. Let him understand the consequences of unethical behavior.</p>
<p>“I am thinking of asking him to withdraw his essay (otherwise I’ll inform the college), and offering to help in writing a new one.”</p>
<p>Your thinking is seriously flawed. TEST QUESTION: Why don’t criminals simply turn themselves into the police … after all, that would be the moral thing to do, right?</p>
<p>I think Ellemenope was suggesting that at a small school, they would be more likely to recognize a plagiarized essay.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t tell him that you’re considering informing the college, as he could then beat you to it and make something up. I would say just contact the college proactively. You don’t really want to help him get in if he’s willing to do that to you…</p>
Isn’t this what caused the problem in the first place? Why don’t you people write your own essays and avoid issues like this? I suspect the friend had more of a hand in your essay than you imply if he was able to write one almost identical to it at a later time. If all the friend did was review it for spelling/grammar errors the friend probably wouldn’t have recalled enough of the content to be able to copy it.</p>
<p>The essay is supposed to be the essay of the individual - not a collaboration with friends.</p>
<p>Since you’re the one writing, I’m assuming you’re the one telling the truth. My advice: tell admissions and do it quickly. You don’t want to be with him for several years and you don’t want him to claim you stole it first.</p>
<p>The first one to turn it in a few months before the second guy has a huge advantage on appearing to be the true author. I can see a couple of things possible if Op takes no action: 1) the school doesn’t notice, no problem for Op
But if they do, they might question either 1 or both authors to determine the real author, or they might throw out both students. Also possible they might suspect student 2 plagerized, BUT WITH student 1 as a willing helper, and might throw out both.
If all is as OP says, student 2 has sure put OP in a very risky spot.</p>