Posts by ai983

ai983

Jan 31, 2016

Writing Careers / What do you know about WritersDepartment.com - I didn't pass the test? [16]

@editor75 - Haha, nice! Thanks for sharing the chat. This industry is not well-regulated, which is exactly why so many of them casually lie about their location, charge customers 3.35x the author's pay etc. While this behavior is unethical, I understand why they take advantage of people - because they can. To be completely rigorous, my piece wasn't an engineering paper per se, but there wouldn't have been any paper without the technical details, given the nature of the question.

@writers2beware - That's a pretty awesome tool you used there. How does one run that IP query you used? I'd love to be able to know more about academic writing websites priorto applying, and not after that, like now. Usually, the rackets don't pay well either, so I hate to waste time taking their tests. Moreover, a better paying job would allow me to invest in some writing courses, which would help me improve my writing and maintain the quality around a fixed point by placing my knowledge on a solid theoretical footing.

ai983

Jan 30, 2016

Writing Careers / What do you know about WritersDepartment.com - I didn't pass the test? [16]

@Major - thanks a lot, that's an interesting finding.

@editor75 - thanks for the insights. It's weird that people out there waste their time with such antics. At this point, my main concern is that some strangers have copies of my papers, the exact same documents that I regularly use to create accounts. Identity theft, anyone? Regarding your second point, posting the essay online forfeits my right to ever use it again because it will show up in plagiarism checks, which is why I changed my mind about it. (It may not be a long essay, but I had to waste quite a few hours of my life researching highly technical information regarding skyscraper structural features. Thinking about it now, it's weird that they sent me such a theme, far removed from my area of expertise - business.) I am not here to make a point or gain trust; I don't treat this as a contest or tournament. I don't care what people think about my "claim". I am only interested in factual information about some website, if such information exists. So, thanks everyone for answering, much appreciated!

ai983

Jan 30, 2016

Writing Careers / What do you know about WritersDepartment.com - I didn't pass the test? [16]

@Major, I didn't ask where they are, there's is little room for conversation like that in the communication with them. I didn't send any tax forms, only a copy of my ID and graduation certificate. @Major, on a second thought, I'd rather distribute the piece by email. I'm somewhat unsure it's a good idea to post it here.

ai983

Jan 29, 2016

Writing Careers / What do you know about WritersDepartment.com - I didn't pass the test? [16]

The weirdest thing happened to me. I'm working as a freelance academic writer for some time and I applied for a position with this website a few days ago. I have no idea how to pick these sites in advance, usually you have to make an account to be actually able to see what they offer. So I submitted the bunch of details they required, passed the tests, submitted some short written piece for evaluation.

Writer Department

Two days later, I get an email saying that I didn't pass the test and here, have a pat on the head, the right fit is out there. To which I replied and ask in a couple of sentences what was the exact problem, as in "point the mistakes". There were no obvious mistakes in the 200-word text, so I was genuinely puzzled. To which they reply and say that, wait!, actually the HR dept decided to give me another chance.

They gave me a new essay theme (the title was grammatically wrong), this time a longer piece. I wrote the thing, had it checked through 2 grammar checking websites and a paper-rater, proofread by 2 English natives etc. It was flawless. If anyone cares to read it, I can post it here later on. Today they answer, again, that unfortunately my writing does not meet the requirements of their customers. I think this is a lie. In their exact words, my "writing skills are not enough to meet the demands and writing expectations of [the] clients".

The piece was grammatically flawless, interesting, fact-checked, referenced; I took special care to not use long sentences or weird formulations; I used vocabulary words to make it appropriate for a high education level. It was impeccable. Even if the website doesn't accept writers at this point, or they are simply not interested in my application, why not say so instead of lying?

I am seriously considering to file a case with the Internet Crime Complaint Center because this website may very well be used for phishing or god-knows-what. Anyone who has any idea what's up with this site is welcome to share information. Thanks a lot!