ETD Process Requirements

ETD Plagiarism Check (Required)

Unfortunately, there is a growing body of evidence that suggests scholarly works, including theses and dissertations, are not immune to various types of plagiarism. These documents are becoming increasingly accessible with the move towards Electronic Theses and Dissertations and their publication through portals, such as USF's Scholar Commons; to the best of our ability, it is critical to ensure that these documents are plagiarism-free, as evidence of this would severely damage students', advisors', and the institution's reputation. Therefore, as of Spring 2013, the Office of Graduate Studies has instituted a requirement that theses and dissertation be analyzed using plagiarism-detection software.

This can be done using Turnitin in Canvas using the same method for checking students' assignments in other courses.

Turnitin File Requirements

For Turnitin to properly process the document, files need to be:

  • File Size Limit: 20mb
  • Page Limit: 400 pages
  • Document Type: .doc, .pdf, .rtf, and .txt

Submission Issues: Currently, Canvas has been having some issues with .docx and .pdf, so we are suggesting that students submit .doc files with images/figures stripped out to allow a smaller file size.

Turnitin Submission Examples

When submitting your Turnitin file to the Office of Graduate Studies, you should search for a page that looks similar to either of these examples where the similarity percentage is clearly visible:
turnitin report 2turnitin report 1turnitin report 3

Steps Using Turnitin/Canvas (For Major Professors)

Setting Up Turnitin Assignment in Canvas: Video

  1. Select the relevant thesis or dissertation course in Canvas.
  2. Determine if the student is listed in the appropriate section; if not, this likely means that they failed to register for the required 2-hours of thesis/dissertation credits required for graduation. These hours are necessary in the semester of graduation as the Office of Graduate Studies requires an active course to assign the final 'S' grade for all of these hours taken.
  3. Set up the Turnitin tool, which can be done in Assignments:
    • Open Assignments.
    • Create an assignment (or open an existing one) and click on EDIT.
    • Under Submission Type, select EXTERNAL TOOL (in the discontinued workflow, we used to click on online).
    • A new search window expands. Click the FIND button without typing anything.
    • Scroll down to find Turnitin LTI and click on it.
    • Click the green SELECT button.
    • Remember to click the green SAVE AND PUBLISH button at the bottom of the assignment settings.
  4. Have the student upload the approved version of their thesis/dissertation.
  5. Depending on the file size and type, along with the number of assignments in the Turnitin queue, it can take several minutes to several hours to process. Check back periodically, and look for error signs, like the ones described here.
  6. Once Turnitin has analyzed the document, examine the generated report (accessible through the Grade Center) to determine if there is evidence of plagiarism.
  7. If there are no issues, print out the relevant summary of the report (usually the first page), attach it to the Certificate of Approval and fill out the plagiarism section on that form.
  8. We strongly suggest that the student or department/college submit the Certificate of Approval, Plagiarism Result page, (and SED Survey completion page for Doctoral Students only) as a packet either in person (ALN 226) or via email to the ETD Help Desk to ensure we receive it.

Submission will not go through/results not showing after 24 hours: If any problems arise, and you are not able to get the assignment to go through Turnitin, please email the ETD Help Desk. We will work with you to ensure professors and students are able to work through this process.

Submitting your ETD to Turnitin/Canvas (For Students)

Submitting Your ETD to Canvas for Plagiarism Check: Video | Tutorial

  1. Select the relevant thesis or dissertation course in Canvas.
  2. Open Assignments.
  3. Open the related Assignment.
  4. View Assignment Summary
  5. Select Upload Submission.
  6. Use Upload Submission tab: Enter a title and then click on Select a file to upload.
  7. Save your ETD as a separate document for the plagiarism submission, using the following guidelines:
    • File Size Limit: 20 mb, less than 400 pages (If more than 400 pages, Select All, make the font size 2 or 3pt, and single-spaced.
    • Figures/Images: Remove all images and figures from the document.
    • Document Type: .doc, .pdf, .rtf, .txt (.docx tends to get stuck, so stuck with the file types listed)
  8. Once it's uploaded, select Accept Submission & Save.
  9. It can take several hours up to a day to process, depending on the Turnitin workload. Check with your major professor to see if they've gotten the results back.
  10. Once your Major Professor has reviewed the results, they should print the first page of the results.
  11. The Certificate of Approval should then be brought to the Office of Graduate Studies along with the relevant student survey completion form(s).
  12. We strongly suggest that the student or department/college submit the Certificate of Approval, Plagiarism Result page, (and SED Survey completion page for Doctoral Students only) as a packet via email to the ETD Help Desk to ensure we receive it.

Additional Tutorials for Turnitin (Canvas)