Copycatch - UCAS

Can you imagine how many sentences like "developed my communication and leadership skills" or "blah has always facinated me" or "I read New Scientist" or paticular scientific theories.

Reply 1

*pitseleh*

I would imagine if the plagiarising software runs into a sentence which looks a lot like someone else's, the similar statements will be compared to see if it's just coincidence or not. I don't think they'll be silly enough to write off an application simply because bits of it sound similar to parts of other people's applications: as you say, there are so many sentences variations of which will be used by heaps and heaps of people.

Reply 2

raspberrybubbles

I have been wondering about this- if you've used the ps helper on here, will it flag it up on ucas? even though it's private and all?

Reply 3

Rhys.

I have been wondering about this- if you've used the ps helper on here, will it flag it up on ucas? even though it's private and all?

No, the PS Helper forum gives you a hand with your *own* work. Why would getting someone to check over it flag you up for plagiarism?

what if they give it to their younger brother or something!

Then their younger brother would get caught for plagiarising a previous statement!

Is this the end of TSR PS Helper?

Repeat after me: Getting someone (a friend, family member, or someone on the internet) to point out mistakes or improvements is not the same as copying your personal statement from the internet.

Reply 4

RosiePosiePuddingAndPie

Rhys.

No, the PS Helper forum gives you a hand with your *own* work. Why would getting someone to check over it flag you up for plagiarism?

I think what they're saying is that this Copycatch thing checks the internet for personal statements and compares yours to see if it's plagiarised at all. So if you post your personal statement in the PS Help forum, it might be shown up by the Copycatch thing, and you could be accused of plagiarism even though it's just your work posted on the internet.

I expect that you would be able to explain the misunderstanding to UCAS or someone if that did happen though, although I don't know for definite..