Turnitin is a web-based system that allows the user to submit a piece of writing, and examine it for its originality.

The system can be used in a number of ways:

• To manage online submission of coursework.
• To foster better referencing and citation skills amongst students.
• To assess work for possible instances of plagiarism.

Turnitin matches submitted text against a database of electronic materials, and produces an Originality Report highlighting any matched text. An overall percentage of copied text is also provided. However, images, graphs, and diagrams are not processed by the system.

The Originality Report must be reviewed by the user to determine what action to take. Referencing may need to be clearer, a match might be found with previously submitted work, or possible instances of plagiarism may be shown. Note: The software does not make any judgement in its report, it can only compare the submitted text with its database.

At NUI Maynooth, we currently support the originality checking functions of Turnitin. We recommend using Turnitin integrated with Moodle. (Please note: we do not currently support the Grademark features of Turnitin).

Getting started:

• You can access Turnitin via Moodle.
• To use Turnitin via Moodle, please see the Resources listed below. You can also contact us at moodlesupport@nuim.ie.
• Students often need support in starting to use Turnitin: a Quick Start student guide is also provided below.