First, let me say this: breathe. If you’re reading this because your teacher found plagiarism in your extended essay, don’t worry. It’s not the end of a life. As someone who has worked with many IB students over the years, I can tell you this happens more often than you think.
Yes, extended essay plagiarism is a problem, but how you deal with it matters. That’s what I want to talk about.
Don’t Panic About Plagiarism in Your Extended Essay
Plagiarism in an extended essay includes using someone else’s words, ideas, or data without proper citation. It applies to books, websites, journal articles—even AI-generated content. Depending on the severity, the IB can apply penalties ranging from reduced marks on your EE to disqualification. That said, schools often handle minor cases internally. Again, it all comes down to communication and context.
When students are scared and ask me what to do if their teacher finds plagiarism in their extended essay, I always tell them the same thing: don’t freak out. I get it—your mind is probably running, your heart is beating fast, and you’re picturing your license slipping away. Being afraid doesn’t help much, though. It’s harder to make good choices when you’re feeling upset. Now, take a deep breath. Let’s go more slowly.
Working with IB students worldwide helps me say this occurs more often than you may expect. Compared to popular belief, plagiarism is more widespread in extended writings. Many more were marked as well. Usually, it’s simply bad paraphrasing, a missed reference, or a poorly copied sentence, not a deliberate attempt to deceive.
At this time, I believe the most crucial action is considering things from a larger perspective. Some of my students have mistakenly misappropriated a source, copied and pasted a phrase without understanding they needed to acknowledge it, or believed that paraphrasing was sufficient to make it their own. You’re just a student under much stress in these situations, not lying.
Figure Out the Type and Extent of the Plagiarism
After taking a deep breath and realizing there is a problem, the next step is to find exactly what kind of plagiarism was found in your extended essay. It’s important to know this because teachers don’t treat all cases the same. From what I’ve seen, the IB uniquely handles each case based on the type and severity of the issue.
First, ask yourself: Was it just a small mistake in the citation? It sounds too much like the original, right? Or were whole lines copied word-for-word from another source?
Just be honest with yourself here. If you know what went wrong, you can better fix it.
Was It Accidental or Intentional?
This is one of the first things your teacher will ask, straight out or roundabout. Also, yes, it does matter. The purpose of the person committing the plagiarism affects how important the IB sees this issue:
- Accidental plagiarism usually happens when you don’t properly cite your sources, use the wrong ones, or put quotation marks in the wrong places.
- If you copied significant parts of your essay from other sources like books, papers, or websites and didn’t give credit, intentional plagiarism will get you in more trouble.
Teachers can often tell the difference. I think it makes a big difference in how they see your case if you’re honest about making mistakes and ready to fix them.
Check the Report or Feedback
Your teacher should have given you access to the plagiarism-checking report or given you a lot of comments. Right? So, this paper is where you should begin. It tells you which parts of your essay were marked as plagiarized, where they came from, and what percentage of your essay might be deemed not original. You must pay attention to several aspects (mark each while reviewing your paper):
- Plagiarized parts and their source matches.
- How much overlap is there with other texts?
- Notes or comments from your teacher.
- Which parts are straight quotes, and which ones are bad paraphrasing?
- Any citations that are missing or wrong?
Do not quickly scan this. Carefully read each note and try to figure out what caused the trouble. Was it not paying attention? Not getting the style of citation right? Or was it something worse?
I’ve seen that students are much more likely to solve their problems if they carefully read and consider the comments. After looking at the proof, you can fix your work or, if necessary, tell your side of the story better.
Reach Out to Your Teacher As Soon As Possible
Having nerves, feeling ashamed, or even being defensive is normal. Putting off the talk or blaming the system (or plagiarism-checking tool) will not help your cause, though. Teachers know how to deal with these situations, and most want to help you learn, not punish you for no reason.
Say so if you didn’t know you were copying someone else’s work. Most students don’t copy on purpose, but they do it by accident because they don’t know how to quote, paraphrase too closely, or forget to add quotation marks. IB rules say these situations are usually handled more gently since the purpose counts.
Be polite, but also tell the truth. Don’t freak out or say sorry too much. A cool answer shows that you are an adult. For example, you could say, “I’ve read the marked sections and now see what I missed. I didn’t know how to paraphrase that source properly and didn’t mean to turn in anything dishonest.”
This kind of comment shows that you know yourself, and teachers are more likely to give you another chance when you say it.
Also, don’t think that things are set in stone. In many schools, especially if it’s your first time, you’ll be given a chance to fix your work. You could be asked to fix your extended essay, go to a meeting about academic honesty, or write a piece about what happened.
Now is the time to ask deep questions to your teacher:
- What parts of my essay were the primary concerns?
- Can I make changes and resubmit my extended essay?
- Can I get help with using the right citation style?
I think these questions show effort and accountability. Trust me, IB teachers want to see that you want to do better, not just stay out of trouble.
How to Revise Your Extended Essay After a Plagiarism Issue?
You can edit your extended essay after your teacher finds plagiarism in it. That is a good sign. It means they think your work has been promised, and the problem can be fixed.
Rework Your Citations and Bibliography
I think this is the most common place for trouble. If you don’t follow proper citation style or aren’t careful, even if you write a great essay, it’s still plagiarism. Now you know why I always tell my students to go over every in-text citation and double-check the style of their bibliography:
- Quotation marks and a citation must be used around every straight quote.
- Ideas that have been paraphrased still need to have a source.
- Your References or Works Cited page should be complete and in alphabetical order.
- The style of citations must be used throughout.
Remember, just one missed citation or badly written reference is enough to get you flagged again.
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Check Your Work Before Resubmitting
Use a plagiarism checker on your essay before you turn it in again. These tools aren’t perfect—they sometimes show problems that aren’t there—but they can still be helpful. They often find problems like missing citations, paraphrasing too close to the source, quotation marks, or bibliographies that don’t match up.
I’ve learned that catching these mistakes alone is a sign of effort and keeps you from having the same problem again. It’s always better to fix them yourself than to have the teacher point them out again.
Ask a Classmate or Supervisor to Review
A fresh pair of eyes can really help. I suggest someone else look over your extended essay, preferably someone who deals with academic writing. This person could be a trusted peer, your supervisor, or even a parent with editing experience. Ask them to review that your thoughts sound authentic and that your paraphrasing is understandable and does not resemble the original too closely.
Working together on a review is not only helpful but also thoughtful. Making mistakes as a writer is okay, but getting a second opinion can help protect your work.
The Bottom Line
If you plagiarize in an extended essay, it’s not the end of the world. You can fix the problem and learn something from it, too. Things generally go better than you think they will if you are willing to think about them, change your work, and ask for help when needed.
Remember that you don’t have to do this alone if you feel you can’t handle it. We can help you with your TOK essays, extended essays, and other IB assignments here at the Buy TOK Essay service. When the rush is on, getting help from someone who knows the IB standards can make all the difference.
So, what should you do if your teacher finds plagiarism in your extended essay? Fix the problem, own up to your mistake, ask for help if needed, and keep going. You can do this.
