<p>I was recently caught for plagiarism. It was an isolated incident, so while I received a zero for the assignment, I was not suspended. My first term grade for the class will be a D-.
I have proven myself capable of writing well without any possibility of cheating (in-class essays, for example) and my guidance counselors and teachers all consider me a student of high integrity.
If I my application is otherwise relatively strong, but not outstanding, and I can pull my grade up for second term, do I still even stand a chance?</p>
<p>Also, this incident taught me a lot about who I can hurt by cheating, what my own capabilities are, and how important it is for me to be able to rest on my morals (after I submitted the essay, I even became physically ill, constantly vomiting, because of the guilt and emotional duress). Since it was such an important moment in my life, I am heavily considering writing about it for my common app essay. Would emphasizing the incident only hurt me, even if I was writing about how everything it taught me will prevent me from ever plagiarizing again?</p>
<p>A D- would hurt, though if what you say is true, they’ll only think you do badly in the class, not that you cheated. I don’t know what impact writing about it would have. It could show growth as a person, or it could turn them against you.</p>
<p>I think that you’re pretty much screwed either way. Sorry, but you have a pretty bad grade on your record and not a great way to explain it away.</p>
<p>I would advise against making it your Common App essay. Use that as an opportunity to reveal yourself as a person and as a student. Save your excuses for the Additional Information section of the Common App, and ask your GC to explain the situation as an outlier in her rec.</p>
<p>I disagree with the above posters. This is a very real ethical dilemma and a problem that many top schools face. This is an original topic and writing about it shows you are not afraid to take risks. Additionally, appropriate treatment of the topic will only strengthen your application, since it will demonstrate both character depth and fundamental integrity. Go for it.</p>
<p>Would you have written about it if you hadn’t been caught? Probably not. Because of that, no matter how sincere you sound, it may just sound like an explanation for a bad grade. Mentos has a point - it’s a risk, but I’m not too certain if it’s one worth taking.</p>
<p>BTW, the expression is “resting on your laurels”, not resting on your morals. Other than that, I think its a bad idea, but probably no worse than the D-.</p>
<p>^This. IF you do write about it in an essay, make sure you emphasize that you changed as a result of getting caught, not because of the action itself. I would even go so far as to acknowledge that you would not be writing about this if you hadn’t got caught, and perhaps why getting caught was in some ways a good thing for you. You’ll have to judge for yourself. </p>
<p>Just wondering, does the fact that you plagiarized appear elsewhere on your application? Or is it just the D-?</p>
<p>This is excellent advice- this is exactly the kind of situation the Additional Information essay is meant to cover. </p>
<p>I too would recommend using your main Common App essay to discuss some particularly positive aspect of who you are. While an isolated case of plagiarism by no means excludes you from admission to top tier schools, it certainly isn’t enough to build your entire application around!</p>
<p>Imagine you are an employer and you get a letter from a prospective candidate for a job who claims being a cheater in his letter. What are the chances for him to be recruited as opposed to the many other candidates who have a positive success story to tell about their past career ?</p>
<p>Say that you got a D- because you contracted meningitis while exploring the Amazon Delta and couldn’t attend classes for two months, but you’re such an outstanding and honest guy that your teacher just couldn’t bring his/herself to give you an F in the course.
Then, bribe your high school counselor into backing up your story if she gets a call from the schools you’re applying to.
Or better yet, just bribe your teacher, the principal, and the registrar and make everything go away. “It was all a misunderstanding, Mrs. Heysam, but we cleared it all up and Johnny got an A.” :D</p>