Penalty for Committing Plagiarism - Essay Example

The question now rests, on whether Ingrid deserves this punishment or not.

            To be sure, Ingrid has to be punished. Plagiarism, whether intentional or not, is still an offense, and neglect does not excuse or exempt a student from committing plagiarism. But the question arises where regular punishment applies to inadvertent plagiarism which resulted from neglect in referencing the original work. It has to be mentioned that the penalty of withholding the bachelor’s degree for one year and a permanent notation on the student’s transcript that he or she committed plagiarism is applicable to those students who willfully, knowingly, and intentionally committed plagiarism with the intention to cheat. Ingrid’s case does not fall in this category because plagiarism was committed unwittingly and not with the intention to cheat but rather out of negligence.

            Withholding the bachelor’s degree for one year much more a permanent notation on the student’s transcript that he or she committed plagiarism is not appropriate as a punishment and is in fact, excessive especially the notation on the student’s transcript that he or she committed plagiarism because it will affect his or her career and life in general long after she graduated college. It would be cruel to punish her for the rest of her life for a mistake she committed in college. Permanently notating her transcript is tantamount to nullifying her college degree because it is short of saying that she cheated on her way to college.

            Having mentioned this, I would instead, propose an alternative punishment for Ingrid. She still should be punished even if her commission of plagiarism is unintentional to send the message that we do not plagiarism in whatever form that it may come.

            My proposal is to remove the notation on her transcript that she committed plagiarism so that she will still have a career after college and that she will still have the chance to reform herself and learn a lesson from this mistake. It is still recommended however that the punishment of withholding the bachelor’s degree shall be applied to Ingrid so that she may realize and the students of the university in general that we do not take plagiarism lightly and that it is a grave offense whatever the circumstance that led to its commission. The year of waiting to receive her bachelor’s degree shall serve as a time for Ingrid to contemplate her mistake that she may not commit again.

            I sincerely believe that this alternative punishment is balanced and just. We did not tolerate plagiarism which is against school policy and we did not resort to excessiveness when we meted our punishment.

            I hope that the Committee will adopt this recommendation.