A short set of common questions about what Ref-Check does – and does not – do, particularly in relation to plagiarism detection, storage of student work, and supported referencing styles.
No. Ref-Check does not detect plagiarism or academic misconduct. It focuses on the accuracy and completeness of citations and reference lists.
Ref-Check is designed to complement, not replace, plagiarism detection tools such as Turnitin. It supports conversations about referencing quality and academic integrity by making technical issues visible.
Ref-Check attempts to identify references that may have been withdrawn, retracted, or are no longer available. This is done by comparing bibliographic metadata against recognised scholarly indexing and publication databases where possible.
Because publication records can change over time and not all retractions are consistently indexed, these checks are intended to highlight potential issues rather than provide a definitive judgement. Academic judgement should always be applied when interpreting the results.
No. Assignment text is processed for the purpose of the check and is not retained as a reusable corpus of student work or used to train external models.
Ref-Check does not employ generative AI or machine-learning models. All checks are based on fixed, rule-based processes and reference-matching logic. For more detail, see the privacy and data handling information.
Ref-Check is currently designed to process documents without retaining the original text after analysis. This approach supports privacy, data minimisation, and ease of use across educational settings.
As the platform develops, some optional features (such as saved workspaces or extended review tools) may require documents to be stored. Where this is the case, storage will always be transparent, optional, and fully controlled by the user.
Users will be able to decide whether to store documents and will retain the ability to delete them at any time.
Ref-Check works with text-based documents where the content can be reliably extracted. This includes common formats such as Word documents, text-based PDFs, and other standard text files.
For best results, documents should contain clear, extractable text, in-text citations, and a structured reference list. Image-only or scanned documents are not supported.
No. Ref-Check focuses solely on the technical accuracy of citations and reference lists. It identifies missing entries, inconsistencies, and formatting issues but does not interpret or evaluate the quality of writing, arguments, or academic ideas.
It is designed to complement, not replace, tools such as plagiarism detectors.
Ref-Check supports recognised author–date referencing styles, including Harvard variants and APA. Where institutional or programme-level guidance exists, this guidance is treated as the authoritative source.
The focus is on clarity, consistency, and alignment with local requirements rather than enforcing a single generic version of a style.
Yes. Ref-Check is designed to work alongside local, organisational, or institutional referencing guidance. Its checks focus on internal consistency, completeness, and traceability, rather than enforcing a one-size-fits-all standard.
Where specific local rules are published and clearly defined, Ref-Check can align its checks to reflect those requirements.
Referencing guidance can change over time, and institutional or programme-level rules always take precedence. If you believe there is a difference between the version used by Ref-Check and the current guidance for your course or organisation, we’re very happy to review this.
If you can share the relevant official referencing guidance, we can assess whether an update is required and, where appropriate, adjust our implementation accordingly. Please get in touch with the details.
Ref-Check supports recognised author–date referencing styles and common institutional variants. If your specific style is not currently listed, this does not necessarily mean it cannot be supported.
Where a clear set of author–date referencing rules is available, we can review the guidance and, where appropriate, add support for that style. If you would like us to consider a particular approach, please contact us and share the relevant referencing guidance.
Ref-Check works best with clearly structured documents that include in-text citations and a defined reference list, such as essays, reports, and standard academic assignments.
More complex documents, such as full theses or multi-section manuscripts, can vary significantly in structure and may not always be processed as reliably in their entirety. In these cases, results may depend on how consistently references are presented throughout the document.
Enhanced support for complex and long-form academic documents is in development as Ref-Check continues to evolve.
Yes. Ref-Check can be used wherever accurate citation and referencing are required, including research reports, professional documents, policy writing, and editorial workflows. It focuses on technical accuracy rather than academic judgement.
Yes. Ref-Check is designed with clarity, predictability, and low cognitive load in mind. Its structured output and transparent logic support a wide range of users, including those who benefit from clear and consistent presentation of information.
If you have a question that is not answered here, you are very welcome to contact us. We can provide further information for academic staff, academic skills teams, and institutional leads considering Ref-Check for pilots or wider deployment.