...how did you get into grad school?

So, with papers you usually have a question that you thought of and wanted to answer, or a question a professor wants you to answer which you then tailor to your interests. You jot down a few ideas, scribble on the prompt and think. So, go through your damn notes.

After you figure out the question you go research. So you use Google, the stacks at the library or talk to professors and classmates. So, pull up your search history, your email and see if your library keeps records of what you checked out.

After that you use your research. Some people print it out and scribble over it while other prefer to use PDFs that you can hilight. Others may write in the books they brought for the paper - textbooks included. So, find this shit.

You then begin to outline, so go through your notes and find your outlines and thesis drafts and index cards of citations....

Finally, you write the damn thing and doubt yourself like mad, so you ask your friends and professors to read it. Go find that 3am text begging Stacy to read the paper and print it out as proof. Find the drafts to show development.

You also may have certain tics in your writing. I use "as well as", "in the end", and "please note" a whole damn lot. I also have issues with tense that show up constantly. I'm lazy and use son of citation machine too, so that's in my search history. I use japanese sources in my papers too, which other students in my undergraduate and most likely in my graduate program didn't thus that's another way my paper said it was mine. I also write the date as day - month - year format which isn't common in the US.

Anyway... I find it amazing you can't prove a paper is yours. Like dude... think for a second. We all write and research differently, we all have our way of doing things and it shows up in our papers.

You mentioned in another comment that this has happened prior. You need to reevaluate and think if you're ready for graduate school.