Catholic University of Ghana Takes a Firm Stand on Academic Integrity with Mandatory Turnitin Checks

• March 24, 2024   Category: Education

Fiapre-Sunyani, Ghana – The Catholic University of Ghana, known for its high academic standards and integrity, has introduced a new mandatory policy for all graduate students to ensure the originality of their academic work.

As part of the initiative, Fr. Prof. Peter N. Amponsah, the Pro Vice-Chancellor, has announced that all academic work submitted by graduate students will be subjected to a Turnitin check to detect any possible plagiarism.

In a memorandum dated March 21, 2024, addressed to deans, faculty members, and students, Fr. Prof. Amponsah emphasized the institution's commitment to upholding the highest standards of originality and scholarly conduct. The memo outlines the university's stance against plagiarism and the necessity for storing academic work in a standard repository.

To familiarize students with the Turnitin service, a workshop was held via Zoom on Saturday, March 23, 2024, to provide guidance on how to use the tool for self-checks. The workshop sought to equip students with the knowledge to avoid unintentional academic misconduct and to encourage thorough review and revision of their work.

The new protocol mandates that any paper with a similarity report indicating a plagiarism score above 20% will be rejected. The memo also details the steps for registering and payment of a modest fee for the Turnitin service, a process that has been made available through the university's dedicated registration link. https://turnitin.academicdigital.space/register

Students are allocated three opportunities to self-check their documents, with further submissions necessitating reactivation by the Turnitin instructor. Support and assistance with the registration and use of Turnitin are offered through the provided contact details.

The Catholic University of Ghana’s move to enforce a mandatory Turnitin check represents a proactive approach to maintain academic excellence and to deter plagiarism. It highlights the university’s dedication to fostering an environment of academic integrity among its scholars, a step that is expected to further enhance the reputation of the institution.