Business Schools Doing Multiple Things to Discuss and Address Plagiarism and Integrity in Admissions Essays

Business schools choose Turnitin® for Admissions integrated with ApplyYourself to verify admissions essays and discover plagiarism

CINCINNATI and OAKLAND, Calif., June 16, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Hobsons, the leader in Enrollment Management Technology (EMT) software and iParadigms, the leading provider of plagiarism prevention solutions, today announced that business schools are addressing plagiarism in business school admissions essays by using Turnitin for Admissions. Northeastern University's College of Business is one of the many graduate business schools that will verify business school admissions essays submitted in 2011 using Turnitin for Admissions integrated with the ApplyYourself Application system.

"Previously, verification of our three application essays has not been possible," said Evelyn Tate, Director, Graduate Recruitment and Admissions Northeastern University Graduate School of Business Administration. "Our admissions staff could not invest the incredible amount of time required to attempt to do what Turnitin for Admissions does in seconds. With the growing call for ethics in business (and business schools), we are looking forward to increasing the honesty and integrity of the business school application process through the use of Turnitin for Admissions."

The issues will be discussed at the 2011 GMAC Admissions Directors Symposium on June 21–22 at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. Business school admissions directors from around the world will discuss plagiarism and integrity in application essays at a session facilitated by business school admissions directors. On June 23rd, following the sessions at the GMAC Annual conference, Turnitin for Admissions will host a meeting at the Marriott in the Provincetown Room at 6:30 PM to share findings from business schools and discuss how MBA programs are using Turnitin for Admissions to verify application essays.

Business schools have been discussing the issues and sharing information in an online discussion group, Integrity in MBA Admissions, started in February by Carrie Marcinkevage from Penn State University, Smeal College of Business. Over 100 business school admissions professionals have joined the group and others may join the group by contacting Marcinkevage at [email protected]. In a web presentation recorded in May, Marcinkevage described plagiarism problems in their MBA application essays and how they have improved their application process to verify those documents: https://hobsons.webex.com/hobsons/lsr.php?AT=pb&SP=EC&rID=3167457&rKey=472e83e98c7e92f0

In 2010, more than half of the top U.S. graduate business school admission offices used Hobsons' ApplyYourself to process applications. This online application process management tool enables admissions offices to streamline application processes, integrate applicant data with existing prospect systems and arm admission teams with a centralized system to drive enrollment.

Turnitin for Admissions compares submitted documents to an extensive database of Internet content, online sample essay banks, subscription content, and other documents to create a comprehensive similarity report. Application essays and other applicant-created documents are verified to help reveal plagiarism, recycled submissions, purchased documents, and other unethical content.

About Hobsons

Hobsons is a premier provider of innovative technology and integrated marketing solutions that empower education professionals to manage the entire student lifecycle including recruitment, enrollment, and retention. With end-to-end, enterprise-class products built from over thirty years of education experience and market knowledge, Hobsons helps more than 5,000 global secondary schools, colleges, and universities achieve their goals. A Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) subsidiary, Hobsons is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH with offices in Arlington, VA; Oakland, CA; London, England; and Melbourne, Australia.  

For more information about Hobsons and its complete line of technology solutions, please visit www.hobsons.com.  

About iParadigms

iParadigms, LLC is the world's leading provider of web-based solutions for plagiarism prevention. The company's products also include Turnitin, used by educators worldwide to check students' papers for originality, to enable web-based peer review and for digital grading of student work. iParadigms' Turnitin for Admissions helps admissions professionals make more informed choices by uncovering plagiarism, recycled submissions, duplicate responses, purchased documents, and unoriginal content in the admissions process. iParadigms is headquartered in Oakland, CA with an international office located in Newcastle, United Kingdom. iParadigms is backed by Warburg Pincus.  http://www.iparadigms.com and http://www.turnitinadmissions.com.  

SOURCE iParadigms, LLC