Referencing and plagiarism
References are full details of all the sources you have used in your work.
Citations are partial references within the main body of your text.
Bibliographies are full lists of resources used in your work, even if you have not directly cited them. Resources can include books, journal articles, websites, images and DVDs.
There are different ways of citing references, the main ones being the Harvard and Numeric systems. Your tutor will advise you which system is the preferred one for your course.
Full details of the Harvard (British Standard version) and Numeric systems are available in LLR's guide Citing references: a guide for users. 
RefWorks bibliographic management software is also available to help you organise and manage your references. It is web-based and can be used both on and off campus.
If you would like to test your understanding of the Harvard system, have a look at the Harvard Referencing Ferret.
Plagiarism is the copying, summarising or paraphrasing of someone else's work or ideas, not acknowledging them and either directly or indirectly passing them off as your own independent work.
Although technically it is very easy to copy large amounts of text from an electronic journal article or book and paste them into an assignment or project, if you do not acknowledge the original source, this will be seen as plagiarism and, as such, will be viewed as a serious academic offence. It could result in you not being awarded a degree and your dismissal from the University.
Good academic practice in citation and referencing will help you to avoid risking plagiarism, even inadvertently.
See Appendix 1, paragraph 2 of the University's Academic Standards and Quality Handbook- Section 17B Academic Misconduct: Code of Practice for further information.
To learn more about the importance of recognising and avoiding plagiarism, have a look at the Plagiarism Badger.
Turnitin - The University subscribes to JISC's online Plagiarism Detection Service (Turnitin). This provides higher education institution staff with the facility to check for plagiarism in student assignments and is used to prevent collusion and deter deliberate cheating.
If your tutor asks you to submit your assignments through Turnitin, you will be able to access the service via your NOW Dropbox link.
Further information and advice on referencing and plagiarism is available via the LearnHigher website.
