How do I use Turnitin?
Accessing and using Turnitin
You access Turnitin through Moodle. Turnitin is most commonly integrated into your assessment dropboxes. Depending on the settings for your unit’s assessment dropbox, resubmissions might be allowed. Any resubmission will overwrite previously generated Similarity Reports in the same dropbox. For large files, or when the server is very busy, the report can take longer to generate. So, plan ahead and upload early — well in advance of your deadline!
Depending on how your unit has set up Turnitin for your assessment, you may be allowed to submit your assessment through Turnitin more than once. After your first three submissions, it takes 24 hours for similarity reports to be generated.
NoteDifferent assessments may have different Turnitin setups, and in some cases (such as videos) is not used. Always check with your unit teaching staff how Turnitin is being used. |
Uploading your work to Turnitin
In many cases, Turnitin will be integrated into your assessment drop box and your work is automatically uploaded to Turnitin as part of this process. To learn more about uploading your assessments view our Moodle assessment guide.
Ask your tutor or Unit Coordinator if Turnitin is being used for an assessment.
NoteNever use drop boxes for other units! This can lead to unexpected matches in other units and cause other problems. |
Accessing your Similarity Report
It usually takes just a few minutes for your initial Similarity Report to be generated. However, it can take longer for large documents, or when the server is very busy. So, plan ahead and upload your work early — well in advance of the deadline.
If resubmissions are permitted, it will take roughly the same amount of time to generate the report the first three times. After 3 resubmissions, you will need to wait 24 hours after each resubmission to see a new Similarity Report.
You can access your report through the same dropbox where you submitted it. When your report is ready, you will see a coloured box and a percentage. The percentage is not as important as the reason for any similarities, so always check your report in detail!
Pending means that your report has not yet been generated. Check back later or refresh to update the page.
You can also Download your Similarity Report if you want to, or are required to, by clicking the download icon at the bottom of the navigation bar on the right-hand side of the report.
Access notes
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Understanding the Similarity Report
- The distribution of text matches is more important than the overall similarity percentage.
- Look for blocks of matching text — where most of a sentence or paragraph is matching (even if a few words don’t match).
- Small matches such as in-text citations or short technical terms are usually acceptable.
- Generally, you can ignore highlighted text from the following sections:
- The reference list or bibliography of your assignment.
- Quotations and block quotations that are properly cited according to relevant style guidelines and discussed within the text.
- Assignment titles and tables of contents.
- Templates, cover pages, or assignment questions.
Your Similarity report can help you identify areas for improvement in your writing.
If resubmissions are allowed, Turnitin can help you identify areas of improvement in your current assignment. Whether or not resubmissions are allowed, Turnitin can help you
identify areas of improvement in your future assignments. First, it is important to understand how to read a report.
Sample report
Click on the blue plus icons to learn more about the Turnitin feedback studio interface.
What does the report mean?
Assignments submitted to Turnitin generate a Similarity Report. Any matching or highly similar text discovered by Turnitin is highlighted in the report.
Similarity does not necessarily mean that you have plagiarised. The report shows that your assignment contains phrases or sentences that appear in another work. To avoid appearing to have plagiarised, you need to check whether the highlighted sections in your paper are directly copied from a source or contain poorly paraphrased sentences.
- Quoting correctly: If the highlighted text is a direct quote from the original source, enclose it with quotation marks and include a correctly formatted reference. In some referencing formats, additional information should also be provided with direct quotations, such as page or paragraph numbers from the original source. More information about referencing formats can be found on the Citing and Referencing library guide.
- Paraphrasing correctly: Paraphrasing appropriately means presenting ideas in your own words and your own sentence structure, while still including an appropriate reference. An example of poor paraphrasing is to copy sentences from the source and include them in your paper with superficial changes, such as replacing some words in the sentence with synonyms. This can lead to unintentional plagiarism, as replacing words does not make something original. Instead, you should focus on the idea presented in the source and present that idea in your own words and sentence structure in your writing, remembering to include a reference to the source.
Note that Turnitin only recognises double quotation marks (“...”), not single ones (‘...’). So, Turnitin may identify quotes in single quotation marks as similarity text matches rather than quotations. However, some referencing styles (such as Harvard) require single quotation marks. It is more important to follow the guidelines for the specific style you have been instructed to use, than to worry about your similarity percentage in Turnitin. If you have quoted the source correctly following relevant guidelines, your lecturer will take this into account when assessing your work.
For more information on developing your quoting and paraphrasing skills, visit the Paraphrasing, summarising and quoting resource