The Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim was the only university in Norway without an increase in this type of complaint, and the trend can be seen in higher education institutions in Sweden and Denmark as well.
The University of Bergen had had no plagiarism complaints since 1999 but in the fall 2003 term the school's committee handled nine cases, with seven of these ending in sanctions.
Universities and colleges in Norway are now considering using Internet based search utilities to help reveal plagiarism.
The new reform uses more take-home work and the extra possibilities for research can lead to the temptation to plagiarize.
"There are probably many who have problems understanding the original texts and so they copy a lot of what they find," student Marthe Skogboe told the newspaper.
