The Telegraph (BUTTON) * Premium * News * Politics * Sport * Business * Money * Opinion * Obituaries * Travel * Tech & Science * Culture * Film * TV * Lifestyle * Fashion * Luxury * Cars * Video * Free Mobile App * Jobs * Financial Services * Tutors * Rewards * Events * Dating * Offers * Shop * Garden Shop * Bookshop * Box Office * Puzzles * Fantasy Football * Wine Shop * Work at The Telegraph * Telegraph Corporate * Search * Video * Rewards * Upgrade to Premium * My Account My details My newsletters Logout Upgrade to Premium * Search * Video * Rewards * Subscribe - 30 days free * Login * Register * Search * Video * Rewards * My Account My details My newsletters Logout The Telegraph * Home * News * Sport * Business (BUTTON) ALL SECTIONS * Education * Primary * Secondary * University * Student life * Tutors * League tables * Professional courses * Clearing (BUTTON) More * Telegraph * Education Inside the 'essay mills' offering to do students' work for them * * * * [TELEMMGLPICT000143361918_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqpVlberWd9EgFPZtcLiMQfyf2A9a 6I9YchsjMeADBa08.jpeg?imwidth=450] For struggling students, using an essay writing company can be tempting Credit: Gary John Norman * Guy Kelly 12 October 2017 • 7:00am Any student will be familiar with the feeling: that creeping horror as you realise, yes, that 10,000-word essay you’ve known about for months is actually due next week. And, no, you still haven’t done any work on the topic. For most, the natural response involves a carousel of self-loathing, extension requests, and Red Bull-fuelled all-nighters. For an increasing number of others, though, all it means is spending £50 on a professional to do it for them. “We know this practice of using formal ‘essay mills’ goes on, and we need to try and educate staff and students to appreciate the consequences of using them,” says Gareth Crossman, head of policy and public affairs at the universities watchdog, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), which has just announced a crackdown. “In a way, it doesn’t matter how widespread it is, but it’s the fact it goes on at all that we must address. It’s about the integrity of our universities.” Incidentally, though, it is widespread, and getting worse. It is estimated that the ‘professional essay writing industry’ – services offering to quickly complete any assignment, to any standard, for a fee – is now worth over £100m, providing completed assignments to tens of thousands of students at UK universities every year. And where once it was mainly international students looking to produce work with a better standard of English, it’s a growing trend among stressed native speakers too. One of the largest companies, Essaywriter.co.uk, recently told the Telegraph it had seen the number of UK customers increase by a fifth over the last two years. jo johnson Jo Johnson, Minister for Universities and Science Credit: PA ​“Insufficient maintenance funding also means that around 70 per cent of students must now take on paid work alongside their studies, which can leave little time for academic work and study,” the National Students Union vice president, Amatey Doku, said. “Many websites play on the vulnerabilities and anxieties of students. We would urge those who are struggling to seek support through their unions and universities rather than looking to a quick fix.” This week, the first major steps were taken to halt the essay mills’ grind, in the form of new guidelines produced by the QAA. Commissioned by Universities minister Jo Johnson MP and distributed to all UK universities, they recommend using software that can pick up on shifts in tone and style, a ban on essay mills advertising near to campuses, and an encouragement of whistle-blowing both among staff and students. "I could request a 30,000-word PhD-level dissertation for my imaginary medical degree. If I need it in a fortnight, that’ll be £36,950" Johnson called it an “unacceptable and pernicious” practice, while universities will generally expel anybody they catch – though given the essays aren’t plagiarised, identifying a paid-for piece of work isn’t easy. Using an essay mill, on the other hand, very much is. Type the words “essay writing service” into Google, and more than 28 million results come back: pages and pages of different companies, each boasting similar services. Once clicked, too, many operate identically: a chat window pops up, asking if you need any help, and sympathetic lures, often written in curiously poor English, cover the page. “Are you too busy with another assignment? Are you not in the mood of doing any assignment? Does this particular assignment bore you? You would rather be doing something else?” asks one site, soothingly. “If that’s the case, then you need an online essay help.”​ essay mills According to the NUS, the rise in students using essay mills is a product of stress ​ Generally, work ordered from essay mills is given to one of the thousands of freelance writers on their books, most of whom have a specialist subject. One company, UK Essays, boasts “3,500 writers, all of whom are qualified to degree-level at a minimum, and many of whom are teachers, lecturers and professionals.” When a student places an order, all they do is give the details of their assignment, the number of pages and deadline, and then wait for a quote. For consistency, some will let you choose your required grade - a basic undergraduate essay in English Literature from the cheaper sites at a 2:1 standard will set you back around £30 - but others know you will simply want the best product possible, and can charge thousands. They’re getting smarter, too. To counter QAA guidelines, some sites now ask for samples of previous work, to inspire the copy artist futher. Alarmingly, no subject is off the table – something Johnson said could “endanger the lives of others”. On one site I visit, a chatroom helper tells me student nurses are some of their most reliable customers. Searching for a quote on another, meanwhile, I find I could request a 30,000-word PhD-level dissertation for my imaginary medical degree. If I need it in a fortnight, that’ll be £36,950. Or to put it another way, a year and a half’s salary as a junior doctor. Top 10 | Universities ranked 2016/2017 According to Daniel Dennehy, chief operating officer of UK Essays – which advises students to merely draw on the model answers, rather than submit them – the practice is no different from home-tutoring, meaning for students looking for extra support, a ban on all essay mills regardless of their practice, would make their lives even more difficult. “Why not utilise the expertise of previous graduates and professionals across the UK to help you succeed? Most universities do not offer any such provision, but this is the essence of our service: we simply help students who need additional guidance by connecting them with qualified academics,” he says. “We are aware that services like our can be viewed as controversial [but] our proposed solution to this issue is regulation of the industry. If demand is not slowing down, the most logical way to proceed is to consider how we can minimise the potential damage of this demand while ensuring that the key aim – to help students who need it – is not compromised.” Until then, the temptation remains. 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