Thousands of young people cheat their way into university. Stories and phrases are being copied from the internet to complete application forms, in an attempt to give out a good impression to admission tutors. Personal statements are used to help potential students gain a place at university and to distinguish between candidates who achieve the required grades. Sites designed to help give advice to those not knowing what to write have led to exact phrasing being found duplicated on various applications.
However a survey carried out by UCAS suggests that only 5% of applications were actually guilty of plagiarism. Another concerning trend is the increase in plagiarism in A level and GCSE coursework, sites offer students either free essays or essays in return for cash, or their own work; many students do not realise by submitting and sharing their work with the site, they cannot submit the work as their own, even though it was legitimately written.
UCAS has said they won't take any action against the individuals caught copying, but would consult universities on the best actions to take. There is nothing wrong with using the web for advice, but plagiarism is unaccpetable.