Career advice - how to tell my future employer that I work at PHD/Masters level on a daily basis?

i recognize this is a slightly humorous question considering the nature of the industry, but i thought some of you might have some advice.

i've been working as an academic/essay writer for a few years successfully. i'm trying to find more socially responsible employment, but it's sort of a struggle when my most recent experience is within this industry. i'd like to tell them i work at a PHD/masters level on a daily basis, but am sort of in a bind on how to say it without sounding entirely unethical (please spare the lecture, i know it's a shady industry)

i was wondering if any fellow writers any advice or experience about dealing with legit employers?

Do you have a PhD/MS?

i'm taking graduate courses, but i'm mostly self-educated. i have a bachelor of arts from a decent public university though.

You run a research business... technically honest without giving too much detail?

yeah that sounds like a good route. research, advice, etc. everything but the actual writing

Then I don't think you should communicate to potential employers that you work at a masters/phD level. If you're asked about it in an interview and you claim to provide "advice" to masters/PhD candidates, the next question would most likely be what makes you qualified to provide such advice.

self-education

Say you're a freelance writer. Just say you do business-to-business writing.

By the way, in the current job market, do you feel you can make more money in a "job" than as an essay writer? If you don't find the right opportunity, are you prepared to keep writing academic essays? Just curious.

i'm not sure honestly, trying to find out.

worth a try :/

Did you have another career before started writing essays? Maybe you could draw upon that in your job search.

By the way, I doubt you'll get much judgment here for being an essay writer. The forum is, by definition, made up of people who write essays, buy essays, or serve as intermediaries. I guess it is shady in a way, but most people here would view it as somewhere between "fine" and "not that bad."

I disclosed it in full detail (along with examples as writing samples) to every U.S. employer and it was never a problem, including federal law enforcement background investigators. The only responses I ever got in the U.S. were positive comments about actually being able to do this and I got the jobs. The only negative response I ever got was from a European entity together with advice not to mention it to other potential Swiss employers.

Another piece of advice: freelanceessaywriters.com/telling-people

They just didn't care? Were you just doing essays part-time while working at another job?

It really just wasn't an issue.

Either they didn't ask me anything about it and just considered the writing samples as writing samples or they gave me an opportunity to explain that it meant I was very good at short deadlines, handling unpredictable changes in schedules, and that I'm very versatile in being able to produce many different types of writing on different subject matter areas.

But I always disclosed exactly what I do for a living and discussed it freely if they were interested; and that included furnishing the name and main address and contact info for the essay companies that use me the most in the Employment History sections of their applications.

There really aren't that many people who can do this very well or consistently over any substantial period of time and it does demonstrate a lot of the skills that many employers really need in anybody they consider hiring as a writer.

I've always written on a freelance basis since law school, on my own time while employed, and anytime I was in between jobs, relying on it to different degrees at different times.

Since 2007, I've been doing it as a fulltime living and absolutely nothing else.

That is excellent. A person who can write well and quickly, without getting flustered on deadline, should never go hungry.

FreelanceWriter and Major thank you very much for your response. i feel empowered now :)

you can definitely say hat you are freelance writer assisting students in their work or providing assistance in educational services

I always disclosed information about my freelance writing career on a need to know basis. Depending upon the type of employment I applied for, I would adjust the description and work duties so that the interviewer would not pry too much into the background of my job. Most of them pretty much did not care to ask about it in-depth anyway and I never found a reason to disclose that I was once an academic freelance writer. All management knew is that I was pretty smart and knew about more things than my immediate supervisors did. They turned to me for the more difficult office cases and had me working on their reports and other documents because I was the most competent in the office. They did not care how I became competent, just that I could do the job. This resulted in my becoming an indispensable part of the company. These are the reasons why I learned to just keep my mouth shut because of the benefits of the adaptable work description. Eventually, I ended up getting paid more than the average rank and file because of "on the side" jobs for the higher ups.

One probable limitation to my suggestion that it probably doesn't matter to most employers would be the distinction between US and European employers. European employers are probably much more likely to consider it a potential negative, notwithstanding the desirable writing and time-management skills and (often) the ability to work under extreme pressure that it obviously represents.

I don't think putting "academic freelance writer" in your resume would resonate well anywhere. However I agree that this job requires a certain skill-set that is not very common and includes a combination of mental fortitude, quick wit, wide and deep education, resourcefulness, and the ability to work under extreme duress for long hours. I think most employers would want a candidate with such skills in their company, especially for challenging tasks.

Consider the work done by a academic writer to be something of an unofficial job. It is not something to be bragged about in public as some people, specifically employers may tend to view this in a negative light. Think of it like a baby sitting job. A baby sitter gets paid a decent amount of money and has some sort of related work experience when it comes to child care, but you won't list baby sitting as one of your job descriptions when you apply for a normal nanny position. Instead, you will gloss over that and only mention it in passing should it come up during the interview. Yes, it is a skill, but it is not considered a notable skill on the part of the employer. So it is best to not mention it at all in a job application. If you feel a need to mention it in passing during the interview then do so. However, I would refrain from that as well since, like I said, it is a gray area that employers tend to be divided about.

If the job specifically asks about writing, then it would be hard to get around it. If there's some leeway, you could list your previous role as an "academic consultant" noting that some of your duties included assisting with theses and dissertations. When you're working with grad students, it's a little easier to explain the role since there has to be mutual involvement from both parties (at least most of the time). In that sense, you are consulting and writing samples and editing as opposed to many other types of projects where there's not much (if any) customer involvement beyond them submitting the order, paying, and receiving the paper. ;)

These days, one can always admit to being a freelance writer. It is openly regarded as a legitimate profession now. Nobody questions what sort of writer you are. Just that you don't punch the clock. They would envy anybody who lists himself as such these days. Mostly because it usually connotes a better income than a daily 9-5 job. I know of some old school writers who are still a but shy about admitting they are freelance writers. They admit to being tutors instead. If you think about it, an academic writer could pass for a tutor since he is supposed to write model papers only. It's all a matter of personal preference. Present yourself at your next job application as you wish. Just be honest about having focused on academic writing help when asked. I don't think it will be much of an issue unless you are applying for a job at an academic institution.

Living in a gig economy, there is nothing wrong with mentioning your level of education achieved or currently undertaking, as well as the fact that you are freelance writer and researcher. It not a big deal anymore these days since the digital nomad lifestyle if widely accepted and admired by most. There is no more stigma attached to being an academic writer and researcher these days. There are creative ways ot explaining the job already.