Turn it similarity score 33%

Hi I have just submitted my 4500 word assignment through TurnItIn - when submitting this, my similarity score was 33%, the majority of my bibliography and reference list was hightlighted/flagged - but when I went into my similarity report, I excluded bibliography and quotes and my score was 7% - I am really worried, is having a score of 33% bad, and will my lecturer/marker know that it is 7% rather than 33%?

Thank you :smile:

Reply 1

cheadle

17

Turnitin always picks up references which, when properly formatted, map to other examples of the same references across the internet. Tutors understand that, so I really wouldn't worry.

Reply 2

Scotland Yard

Clearing and Applications Advisor, Universities Forum Helper

20

Original post by Liverpooltom95

Hi I have just submitted my 4500 word assignment through TurnItIn - when submitting this, my similarity score was 33%, the majority of my bibliography and reference list was hightlighted/flagged - but when I went into my similarity report, I excluded bibliography and quotes and my score was 7% - I am really worried, is having a score of 33% bad, and will my lecturer/marker know that it is 7% rather than 33%?

Thank you :smile:

Turnitin is very trigger-happy and will detect a lot of things that aren't plagiarism, because it'll flag things that are properly referenced or, my favourite, because apparently words like "the" and "and" standing in isolation are plagiarism (!).

My university has told us to completely disregard the similarity score. I recommend you do the same and instead check what it has highlighted to see if it is actually plagiarism. Seems like you're done that already. In any case, if you haven't plagiarised, you have very little to worry about, regardless of what Turnitin says :smile:

Reply 3

gjd800

20

Original post by Scotland Yard

Turnitin is very trigger-happy and will detect a lot of things that aren't plagiarism, because it'll flag things that are properly referenced or, my favourite, because apparently words like "the" and "and" standing in isolation are plagiarism (!).

My university has told us to completely disregard the similarity score. I recommend you do the same and instead check what it has highlighted to see if it is actually plagiarism. Seems like you're done that already. In any case, if you haven't plagiarised, you have very little to worry about, regardless of what Turnitin says :smile:

TurnItIn doesn't flag 'plagiarism', merely similarity. I have made this point ad nauseum on here. Frankly, as a site official you should not be misrepresenting how TurnItIn works in this manner.

I notice people posting this 'advice' all the time and actually, the advice from your university (and thus from you) is decidedly bad. You ought not ignore the similarity score, but should instead understand how it works so that you know when to have concerns and when not to. When you understand it, as cheadle has helpfully pointed out (as usual), you see that there's not much at all to be concerned with in this instance.

There are plenty of instances where a score of 33 would be something to worry about, I've seen hundreds over the past decade.

Original post by Liverpooltom95

Hi I have just submitted my 4500 word assignment through TurnItIn - when submitting this, my similarity score was 33%, the majority of my bibliography and reference list was hightlighted/flagged - but when I went into my similarity report, I excluded bibliography and quotes and my score was 7% - I am really worried, is having a score of 33% bad, and will my lecturer/marker know that it is 7% rather than 33%?

Thank you :smile:

Hey!

I totally relate with your concerns but 33% similarity isn't necessarily bad, especially because a good part of it is bibliography and quotes. It's just that your quotes need to be referenced properly. Similarity scores can vary widely depending on factors like the type of assignment, the field of study, and the sources you've used. Your lecturer or marker understands that similarity scores are just one tool used to evaluate assignments. They'll take into account the context of your work, the quality of your analysis, and the depth of your understanding of the subject matter. I would recommend you to talk to your PAT (Personal Academic Tutor) and other Academic Support available in your university for further clarification. Hope this helps!

Best Wishes
Priya :smile:

Postgraduate Ambassador
University of Southampton

Turn it similarity score 33%

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