Turnitin Instructor Guide

Turnitin is a plagiarism-prevention tool that helps you check the academic integrity of student writing. You can also use Turnitin to give marks and detailed feedback to each student, as well as re-use common feedback across multiple student submissions.
Access Not immediate You will need to request and set up a Turnitin account with us first. Once you have completed setup, you can use this account to log in to Turnitin.
Cost Yes Free.
Bandwidth Yes Low demand on internet connections.
Canvas Integration No None.
Privacy Partial Verified by UBC’s Privacy Impact Assessment process, provided you follow the additional steps noted below.
Similar UBC-Supported Tools N Turnitin is the only centrally supported tool for checking potential plagiarism.

What can I use it for?

You can use Turnitin to collect and review student assignments:

  • Comparing the text of student writing against Turnitin’s sources, to look for potential plagiarism
  • Checking for improper citations in student writing
  • Adding contextual marks and feedback to student writing

A note about Turnitin

Turnitin is privacy-compliant, if you take proper steps to protect students’ personal information. Please provide the following information to your students:

  • In this course, you will be using Turnitin, which is a tool to help review your written work. When creating an account in the tool, you will be asked to provide personally identifying information. Please know that you are not required to consent to sharing this personal information with the tool, if you are uncomfortable doing so. If you choose not to provide consent, you may create an account using a nickname and a non-identifying email address, then let your instructor know what alias you are using in the tool.

This tool guide was last reviewed in July 2023.

How are other faculty using Turnitin?

Xiaowen Xu profile Xiaowen Xu uses Turnitin so students can self-check for plagiarism in the Chinese Language Program

In advanced content-based literature courses under the Chinese Language Program, students are expected to enhance their academic writing skills. To achieve that learning outcome, students need to grasp a solid knowledge of academic integrity and avoid plagiarism. Turnitin can help students prevent basic forms of plagiarism when writing assignments, such as short analysis papers and final papers. Read more »

What do I need to use Turnitin?

A supported web browser

Turnitin runs in your web browser and supports using Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari. For which versions work, check the Turnitin supported browsers.


A UBC Turnitin account

UBC Turnitin accounts must be requested and created through the LT Hub, as outlined below.

Tips

  • Once you have a Turnitin account, you can log in directly to turnitin.com. Students will also be able to create Turnitin accounts on this website, once you set up a Turnitin class.
  • Turnitin is one tool that can be used to promote academic integrity, but you can consider multiple approaches. Read through UBC’s Academic Integrity website for more information about how to approach academic integrity more holistically and what it means.

How do I use Turnitin?

After receiving a Turnitin account, you will create a Turnitin class. Then you can enroll students, collect assignments to check, and review or grade them for your course.

Click any bar below for instructions and tips for using Turnitin.

Expand All

Request and set up a Turnitin account

  1. To use Turnitin for the first time as an instructor, you will need to request an account from us in the LT Hub using our contact form.
    • If you have a teaching assistant (TA) who has already been appointed and will need access to your Turnitin class, please send us your TA's name and UBC employee email as well.
  2. After your account is created, you will receive an email from Turnitin. It will contain a link to set up your account using your email address and last name.
  3. To finish setting up your account, you will receive a second email with a link to set up your password and security question. Note that your password must be at least eight characters long.
  4. After you receive an email that your account setup is complete, you will be able to log in to Turnitin from turnitin.com.

Create your Turnitin class

Get started with Turnitin by creating a class. Then you can add students and assignments.

  1. Log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password.
  2. Click Add Class.
  3. Enter the required information (marked with a red asterisk) to create a new class, including the following:
    • Class type - There are two types of classes in Turnitin: standard and master. The main difference is that a master class lets you create sections and add TAs. If you will use sections and/or want to provide a TA (or a co-instructor) access to your course, please choose "Master".
    • Enrollment key - Fill in this field with the code that you will give your students to verify that they can enroll. This field will only appear if your class is a standard class; for a master class, enrollment keys will be set later for each section.
    • Class end date - Once this date has passed, students can no longer enrol in the class or submit assignments. The default end date for classes is twelve months from the start, but you can extend the end date at any time.
  4. Click Submit to add your class.
  5. You will see a pop-up window with your class ID and enrollment key. Copy these down so you can share them with students later, then click Continue.
  6. If your class is a master and you want to add sections and/or give TAs access to your course, follow the steps to create a new section for your class.
    • Turnitin will need your TA's information for this process. Please note that only one TA can be assigned per section.

Tips

  • You can change the class type at any time without affecting enrollment or student submissions. Learn how to convert from standard to master and convert from master to standard on Turnitin's website.
  • If you misplace the class ID or enrollment key, you can still find this information. The class ID is listed next to the course name on the Turnitin homepage. Clicking to edit the course from the homepage will let you view and edit the enrollment key.
  • Make sure to privately share your class ID and enrollment key with students. Anyone with this information will be able to join your Turnitin class.

Manage student enrollments in your Turnitin class

We recommend that you let students self-enroll, rather than enroll them yourself. Self-enrollment allows students to decide how they want to share their personal information with the tool.

Note that, to ensure your use of Turnitin complies with UBC privacy requirements, students must also be offered an option to use an alias. This step is included in the process below.

  1. Before you invite students to self-enroll, please provide the following information to them:
    • In this course, you will be using Turnitin, which is a tool to help review your written work. When creating an account in the tool, you will be asked to provide personally identifying information. Please know that you are not required to consent to sharing this personal information with the tool, if you are uncomfortable doing so. If you choose not to provide consent, you may create an account using a nickname and a non-identifying email address, then let your instructor know what alias you are using in the tool.
  2. You will need to share the class ID and enrollment key with students, in order for them to self-enroll.
    • If you missed copying down the class ID or enrollment key earlier, you can find this information by logging in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password. The class ID is listed next to the course name on the Turnitin homepage. Clicking to edit the course from the homepage will let you view and edit the enrollment key.
  3. Share the class ID and enrollment key with your students, and provide them instructions on how to use these. You can use the text below:
    • If you have not used Turnitin before, please create a student account and enter the class ID and enrollment key in the form provided. Keep in mind that you are allowed to use an alias in creating your account, so long as you tell your instructor what alias you choose.
    • If you have used Turnitin before, log in to turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password. Click Enroll in a Class at the top of the student homepage, enter the class ID and enrollment key in the form provided, and click Submit.
  1. Log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password, and click the class name.
  2. Click the Students tab.
  3. Find the student's name. Click the trash can icon to drop the student from the class.

Tips

  • You can change the enrollment key even after students have enrolled. Doing so will not affect the currently enrolled students.
  • You can re-add dropped students manually. From the Turnitin dashboard, click the class name, then access the "Students" tab. Follow the instructions there to add students, keeping in mind the following:
    • To restore access to the student's previous submissions, you need to use the same email address that the student did.
    • To protect the student's privacy, please use the same name or alias that the student did.

Set up an assignment in your Turnitin class

In Turnitin, you can collect written work that can automatically be reviewed by Turnitin for potential plagiarism.

  1. Log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password, and click the class name.
  2. Click Add Assignment.
  3. Enter the assignment title and select the start date, due date, and post date. The post date is when your marks and feedback are released to the students. Optionally, you can also enter a point value for the assignment.
  4. Click Optional settings. Optional settings let you add instructions, allow late submissions, and customize how the initial check for potential plagiarism will be run. These plagiarism-checking settings are under the "Similarity Report" heading:
    • Generate Similarity Reports for submissions? - Select "Yes" to have the initial plagiarism-checking report run.
    • Generate Similarity Reports for student submission? - Select when you would like the initial report generated: a) immediately upon submission and the student cannot resubmit, b) immediately upon submission and the student can resubmit (and a new report will be generated), or c) after the due date of the assignment.
    • Exclude bibliographic materials from Similarity Index for all papers in this assignment? - Select if you want to exclude checking the text that appears in the bibliography, works cited, or references sections of student submissions.
    • Exclude quoted materials from Similarity Index for all papers in this assignment? - Select if you want to exclude checking the text that appears within quotes in the student writing.
    • Exclude small sources? - Select if you want to exclude seeing matches that have a small amount in common with a student's writing. You can set the match length as a total word count or as a percentage, and you can change this setting for individual submissions later.
  5. Click Submit to create the assignment. Students will be able to submit work during the start and due dates that you set.

Tips

  • You can also change the assignment settings and dates after creating an assignment. From the "Assignments" tab for the class, click "More actions" for the assignment, then select "Edit settings".
  • Some of the plagiarism-checking settings can be adjusted again when reviewing an individual student's writing. You can make these adjustments when you view the similarity report. Details on viewing and interacting with the report are provided in the next two accordion sections.

Check for plagiarism in a Turnitin assignment

In Turnitin, you check for potential plagiarism by running what's called a similarity report. Similarity reports tell you the outcome of comparing the text of the student writing against Turnitin's sources. These reports are initially run on each student's writing according to the preferences you set in the assignment settings. But the settings can be adjusted and the report run again at any time.

  1. Once students have submitted assignments, log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password, and click the class name.
  2. From the "Assignments" tab for the class, click View next to the assignment you wish to review.
  3. Click the assignment title for any individual student to launch the Feedback Studio window. The Feedback Studio allows you to view and run similarity reports, as well as add marks and feedback to the writing.
  4. In the Feedback Studio, you will see a toolbar on the right-hand side of the assignment. The red part of the menu relates to the similarity report. Each icon corresponds to a different piece of information from the report:
    • Flags for Review - The first numbered icon in the toolbar will flag any abnormalities that the Turnitin algorithm has found in this writing. A flag does not necessarily mean a problem, but rather a specific area that you should review.
    • Match Overview - The second numbered icon in the toolbar will report the percentage of the document where the text was very similar or a match to other Turnitin sources. Again, a higher number here does not necessarily indicate a problem. How much text you can expect to match will depend on the report settings you've selected (i.e., what text you include or exclude) and the particulars of your assignment.
    • All Sources - The third icon in the toolbar will show the sources where similar or matching text was found, such as in websites, other student papers, or published articles. You can use this interface to exclude sources from the report, if you decide that they are not problematic.
    • Filters and Settings - The fourth icon in the toolbar will let you adjust some of the similarity report settings, overriding the defaults that you set for the assignment. When you are ready to run the report again, click New Report.
    • Excluded Sources - The final icon in the toolbar will show you any sources that you've chosen to exclude from the report using the "All Sources" interface. You can restore any sources here to add them back to the report.
  5. When you are finished reviewing the report for this submission, you can click the arrow icon in the top right corner to advance to the next submission.
  6. When you are finished reviewing reports, you can close the Feedback Studio window.

Tips

  • Remember that it's up to you and your teaching team to decide what is or is not plagiarism. The Turnitin tool provides an automated report to guide your review, but its algorithms only highlight potentially problematic content. You will need to verify if the highlighted text constitutes actual misconduct, based on your context.
  • Teaching assistants can also review similarity reports for the sections to which they are assigned. Follow the steps to create a new section for your class, which will include adding a TA to the section. Please note that only one TA can be assigned per section.
  • In the Feedback Studio, you can click the question mark icon in the top right corner for shortcuts to Turnitin help. Learn more about similarity reports and grading options from there. Grading options are also covered in the next accordion section.
  • You can submit on behalf of your students for a Turnitin assignment. This feature also includes the option to upload a zip file of all student writing for the assignment (up to 200MB and containing up to 1000 individual files).
  • You can also use Turnitin to check work that is not associated with a specific class or assignment. Enable this option by activating the quick submit feature.

Grade a Turnitin assignment

You can mark and provide feedback on student writing directly in Turnitin. However, please note that no grades are sent from Turnitin to Canvas, as no integration is available at this time.

  1. Once students have submitted assignments, log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password, and click the class name.
  2. From the "Assignments" tab for the class, click View next to the assignment you wish to review.
  3. Click the assignment title for any individual student to launch the Feedback Studio window. The Feedback Studio allows you to add marks and feedback to the submission, as well as view and run similarity reports to check for potential plagiarism.
  4. To enter a mark overall, enter a number in the box at the top of the assignment. It will save automatically.
  5. To directly annotate the submission, click or highlight any part of the document. A menu will pop up with options. Depending on whether you clicked or highlighted, you may see options for adding QuickMarks (reusable feedback), comments, strike-throughs, or plain text.
  6. You will also see a toolbar on the right-hand side of the assignment. The blue part of the menu relates to the instructor feedback options. Each icon corresponds to a grading option:
    • QuickMarks - The first icon in the toolbar gives you access to reusable feedback. Explore and apply options from the existing libraries, or build your own by adding comments as you write them.
    • Feedback Summary - The second icon in the toolbar lets you summarize your overall feedback for the student in audio or text.
    • Rubric - The third icon in the toolbar lets you add specific marking schemes to the writing. Click the cog icon at the top right of the panel to explore and apply rubrics and grading forms from existing libraries, or build your own.
  7. When you are finished marking the report for this submission, you can click the arrow icon in the top right corner to advance to the next submission.
  8. When you are finished marking reports, you can close the Feedback Studio window.

Tips

Turnitin FAQ

Find UBC-specific answers to frequently asked questions by clicking any bar below.

No, UBC has decided not to enable Turnitin's feature for detecting Artificial Intelligence-generated writing at this time. The university believes the feature is too new, untested, and hard to validate. You can read more about the decision to not enable the Turnitin AI-detection feature in our news post.

Yes, you can submit on behalf of your students:

  1. In Turnitin, from the dashboard for the class or class section, click More actions and select Submit.
  2. At the top of the page, select the submission type from the "Submit" dropdown.
  3. Depending on the type, you will either add the writing and then select the student or vice versa.
  4. Complete the process by clicking the buttons to upload or submit.

Students will be able to see their submission and feedback as long as you have selected them as the student or author for the submission.

Yes, teaching assistants can review similarity reports for the sections to which they are assigned. Your TA will need to request an account for their UBC email address (using preferably their employee email ending with @ubc.ca) by contacting us at the LT Hub.

Once your TA has an account, follow the steps to create a new section for your class, which will include adding a TA to the section. Please note that only one TA can be assigned per section.

You will have to set your Turnitin class type to "Master" to create sections for the class. If you initially set the class type to "Standard", you can convert from standard to master.

Yes, you can use Turnitin to check work that is not associated with a specific class or assignment. Enable this option by activating the quick submit feature.

Yes. Deleting an assignment submission will remove the submission and its grade from your class's assignment inbox. Depending on your settings, deleting can also prevent new submissions from being compared against the deleted one during similarity checks.

  1. Log in to Turnitin at turnitin.com using your email address and Turnitin password, and click the class name.
  2. Next to the assignment where the submission is located, click View.
  3. Select the checkbox next to the submission you would like to delete.
  4. On the top right of the submissions list, click Delete and choose Request permanent deletion to both a) delete the submission and b) remove it from future similarity checks.
    • Note that you will only be able to make one deletion request at a time.
  5. A pop-up message will appear informing you of the deletion procedure. Click Continue.
  6. Select a matching “Reason for Deletion” and click Continue.
  7. If the submission details displayed in the pop-up message are correct, type “DELETE” in the empty text field and click Confirm to submit the deletion request.
  8. If an expedited deletion is required, email LT.hub@ubc.ca after submitting your request. Please include the following in your email: your name and faculty, the class ID, the assignment name, the paper ID for the submission, and when your request to Turnitin was made.
  9. You will receive a notification in your Turnitin inbox when your deletion request has been processed.

For questions or issues related to your deletion request, please contact us at the LT Hub.

Unless you change the default assignment setting, student submissions to your assignments are saved to the Turnitin standard paper repository database. The benefit of saving to this database is that, if the work or parts of it are submitted again in a subsequent class (at UBC or another institution), Turnitin will flag this as potential plagiarism.

If such a flag happens on a new student submission, know that the original student submission will not be accessible to any instructors or TAs from other classes or institutions. In other words, if a student submits an assignment in your class in Term 1 and another student submits this same assignment in another instructor's class in Term 2, the Term 2 instructor won't be able to see the first student's assignment. The Term 2 instructor will only see that a match was found by Turnitin in a previous student's writing.

Where can I get more support with Turnitin?

Technical support

If you have trouble with Turnitin:


Pedagogical support

Learn more


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