One of the biggest points that are frequently raised when it comes to dissertations is the threat of plagiarism. Writing a thesis is hard work. There are millions of students all over the world researching and writing about a particular field of study. One of the requirements of a thesis is that it needs to be original. And this is only possible if a student was to do a thorough literature review and make sure that nobody has written on the same topic that he plans to research on. It is very difficult to find a topic that is totally original and make sure that no one else has worked on it. If the student is lucky enough to find such a topic, then it becomes quite hard to conduct the research because that means that the student would have to put in a lot of the effort himself when it comes to collecting the data.
There have been times when students have become lazy and opted to copy somebody’s work rather than coming up with something original. Those who have gotten caught have had to face serious consequences. That is why those who have no such ill intentions need to put in the required effort to make sure that their work is completely original so that they do not copy somebody’s work even inadvertently. If they do refer some other body of work then it is essential that they acknowledge it in the appropriate manner. Each style of publishing lays down a particular format for the way the citations are to be written. The researcher needs to use the right citation style to make sure that all the acknowledgements are given properly. The bibliography page needs to be given a lot of importance so that all the books, websites, newspapers and journals that have been used by the author for his work are acknowledged.
Academic research is very important. It often leads to path breaking work that has changed the face of humanity and the way we live. Some of the most important discoveries have been made in the laboratories of major universities around the world. Researchers play a valuable role in academia, science, humanities and the arts. It is important therefore that they understand their roles as intellectuals and be true and honest to their profession. After all, the originality of the work that they do today could change the world that we live in tomorrow.
