When Cheating Doesn’t Pay: How One Student’s Copycat Essay Got Them in Trouble

A Reddit user discovered a close friend copied her college essay and used it to apply to a top college, getting her a full scholarship. However, when she found out, she took her actions into her own hands.

She Was Helping Her With The College Process

While the original poster (OP) was in college, she was helping a friend in high school with the college process. In one instance, OP shared a copy of her college essay with her, but only to show her “writing techniques” to apply to her own college essay.

However, OP discovered that this friend had just re-submitted OP’s college essay instead of writing one for herself. OP was furious because the essay was very personal, and this friend barely didn’t even tweak it. OP felt taken advantage of.

You Might Also Like: Cheapest States to Go to College in the United States 

She Gathered All The Evidence

OP gathered all the evidence of her helping the friend with her college process, including sending the friend a copy of her essay. After sending the evidence to the school, the friend lost her scholarship and her seat in the school.

People are now accusing OP of being dramatic and shaming her for “robbing her of her education.” Her friend was the only person in her family to get into college and receive a scholarship. But, now, she had lost everything.

You Might Also Like: 50 College Majors That Earn the Least Money

The Community Weighs In

Many Reddit users say that if the friend plagiarizes OP’s work, she won’t survive even the first semester of college. They also add that colleges have a “no-nonsense policy” where forgetting to cite a source on a paper can be very costly.

Another Reddit user said that, technically, the school didn’t accept the friend. Instead, the school thought they were accepting OP.

Is OP wrong for informing the college of the plagiarized essay? Is the college wrong for taking away the friend’s scholarship and seat? Did OP rob the friend of an education?

This article was produced and syndicated by Parent Portfolio.