Plagiarism

When asked the other day what advice I would give to incoming freshman, I was hit with a terrible flashback of sitting in the Academic Dean’s office, an inch away from expulsion.

While I treasure a number of lessons learned at Fairfield, there’s nothing like learning a lesson the hard way. Let it be known that lessons like these really stick in the memory bank, especially when four years of education are at stake.

Last semester, I found myself in a situation I never would have imagined I would be in. I sat at a table in front of the Dean with dark circles under my eyes, a runny nose and a box of tissues. Strewn about the table were my academic files scribbled with fat red marks and copies of old essays.

I didn’t know what was worse about the situation; that my four-year education could get flushed down the toilet, or that I was faced with this possible expulsion for the same mistake I made two years earlier as a sophomore-paraphrasing in an essay without citing the source.

As I sat there waiting for his decision with my stomach tied up in knots, I was sure I would be going home. However, by some miracle, the Dean opted to let me stay. Instead of expulsion, he failed me in English and gave me academic probation. Let me say that failing a class never felt so good. It was peanuts compared to the possibility of not graduating.

They say the only way to learn is through making mistakes. For some, it may even mean making the same mistake a few times before the lesson sticks, but eventually it always does.

I think it goes unsaid that after this incident, I’ve learned to become a master at citing sources; I’ve even acquired a talent for APA format.

Ultimately, what I’ve learned from all of this is a taste of what real life-outside of Fairfield-is like; where careless mistakes are no longer acceptable and second chances are seldom given.

That day before the Dean, I wanted to crawl away and let someone else clean up my mess, but it finally hit me that I couldn’t count on someone else to vouch for me. I had to take account for my own mistakes-no matter how disastrous they are.