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Research Essay Guidelines:
– Word Length: Approximately 2400 words +/- 10%
– 1 ½ spacing. (Between Paragraphs)
– 12 pt font
– Verdana
– Referencing Style: Harvard
– Please remember that you will need to have at least Four (4)
varying references.
For example: eJournals, WebPages,
eNewspaper articles, documentaries and eText books (if you cant find anything you may use normal websites)
– You will need to include: Reference List. not including 2400 words
Turnitin:
You are responsible for assessing its level of plagiarism. Although you
can submit the report to Turnitin as many times as you like before the
due date, only the final submission will count to Turnitin. Any Turnitin
Report with 18% or above plagiarism will be carefully reviewed and
marks deducted equivalent to the percentage if needed.
rolling faq( please read)
1) How old can my references be?
– No older than 2016
2) Is this an essay
– Yes, in the brief it advises you
3) My sources are all newspapers will I get a HD?
– No sadly, we would expect a mix of academic references.
4) Do I need a cover-sheet?
– Not necessary but it would be good to have your Full Name and STUDENT ID in the header at-least
5) Hey I found some cool stuff on Wikipedia is that okay?
– I think you all know the answer, No
6) I did a paper similar in the past can I use that material in this one?
-Sadly no, this is known as self plagiarism and is a big no no in Academia
A uni policy notes this also: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/academic-integrity
7) I am doing a similar question in another unit this semester can I use the same info in that one since I am studying both concurrently?
– Again no, MQ’s plagiarism policy (above) does not allow this, there are no exemptions on similarity for these type of situations and the similarity number will only increase once both are in the Turnitin database and match with each other. T

read very carefully if this situation applies to you, your discussion points will have to be almost completely different in each unit. Consider this early fair warning.
8) I think I won’t make the deadline, what’s the penalty for being late? How late can I be?
– We are using the standard penalty of 10% per 24hrs. This is actually generous as this assessment is replacing your final exam and if you missed the exam you would require special consideration. In saying that if you have a reason for the lateness you welcome to apply for special consideration via ask.mq.edu.au
9) Resubmissions allowed?
– Only up to the deadline. Post that no resubmissions. This is standard with Turnitin.
10) What Reference Style should I used for the final essay?
– Harvard Style Referencing, should use intext citations.
11) Should I have headings?
– No, this is an essay not a report.
12) How many cases should I use for my essay
– That comes down to you and how your write your essay
13) Are we allowed +/- 10% for the word count of the essay?
– Yes you are:)
14) When you say “cases” do you want us to find the effected companies/organizations and then talk about how it effected them individually, or do you want us to talk about the effects and impacts (positive and negative) in general and talk about the outcomes of this law?
– Cases refers to examples. As we have had examples of GDPR in action. British Airways was one of the first for example.
15) I have searched a lot of references about GDPR, and I found the diagrams in some resources are very interesting. Could I use graphs as examples in my essay and discuss them? (diagrams appear in my essay)
– You can put them in an appendix after you references if you like. It’s an essay so no pictures in the actual paper.
16) I can’t see it stated explicitly anywhere, but I’m assuming that the 2,400 world limit does NOT include the reference list?
– That is correct, it does not include the reference list