Plagiarism in Harvard Residency Application Essays

According to a recent study, there was evidence of plagiarism in 5.26 percent of residency application essays submitted to the Harvard teaching hospital.

The issue of plagiarism in school is an old one. Whether it is a junior high school English essay or a graduate school application essay, teachers are always on the lookout for plagiarized material. However, modern software designed to analyze papers and personal statements is making things easier. In fact, it has helped to reveal that the problem is more widespread than initially thought. Most recently there was an alarming trend of using plagiarized material in a medical school application essay.

In a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, there was evidence of plagiarism in 5.26 percent of residency application essays submitted to the Harvard teaching hospital Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The study was conducted using specialized software to compare the medical school personal statement essays with a database of “Internet pages, published works and previously submitted essays.” According to the study, a match of more than 10 percent to an existing work was determined as proof of plagiarism.

Study authors Dr. Segal and Dr. Gelfand found that non-U.S. citizens were more likely to plagiarize. However, evidence of plagiarism was found in applications to all specialty programs including applicants with academic honors. According to the results, other characteristics included previous residency or fellowship, lack of research experience or volunteer experience.

When it comes to a medical school or grad school personal statement, students are encouraged to write unique, creative essays in order to set them apart from the rest of the applicants. If you need assistance with determining whether you have plagiarized material in a grad school or medical school application essay, consider turning to the professionals at AdmissionsEssays.com.