The other side (are model essays misused?)

I'm a professional published writer, and have been for 35 years. I have written 14 books, and over 5,000 nationally-published articles/short stories.

Very late in my life, I decided to do a self-funded PhD, as I have 2 first First Class degrees.

I am now very short of money to finish my thesis, so I thought I'd sign up to a well-advertised and apparently well-respected academic website, to write model papers for them.

I have changed my mind, not only because of their ineptitude (they couldn't deal with the complexity of my CV and are still struggling with it), but because of what I've not only seen here, but in the MA students I teach in my very special field.

Some of them are using bought essays and dissertations to get their MA. It's clear. These students, often from overseas, don't have the conceptual or linguistic ability to cope with the course. They are lovely people, very ambitious, but just can't hack it.

Today was the last straw, and what finally decided me that writing for others is unethical was that a really insecure but well-intentioned student whose MA I am supervising has submitted a dissertation draft which is actually copied and pasted from 3 sources. She has written none of it. I spotted that immediately, Googled phrases from it, and found the three papers in a heartbeat. She is now in the difficult position of having to rewrite her entire dissertation in 3 weeks, and I'm in the difficult position of having to report her for plagiarism. I believe she 'bought' this rubbish.

I can't understand how any academic tutor can fail to recognise that the students you know are who they are. We know these students. They can't suddenly write something amazing when they're just average or below in class. For those with language problems, they can't suddenly acquire skills they've never shown.

When they buy essays and dissertations, and use them, with all the plagiarism and faults of the quick cash essay writers (yes, these are supposed to be Turnedin but they rarely are), don't they think we notice?

Or am I unusual, in academia, in spotting the 'bought in' pieces?

In 18 MA students, it's happened, on my course, for two of them in the last two years. Both were failed.

Please, students, don't do this. By all means, if you have some money, buy guidance and proofreading and editing. But don't think you can get away with submitting someone else's work as your own. It doesn't work like that.

I will not write 'model essays'. They are being misused.

You may want to read this evidence to the contrary.

go for it! I'm a teacher too. it's OK to be a bad cop. give in to the dark side!

Before you start giving us a "holier than thou" sermon here, you should first consider why you decided to write model papers in the first place. You needed money and writing academic essays was the quickest way for you, using whatever limited expertise you do have, as I do not believe that a self-respecting PhD certified professor will every give in to the temptations of model writing papers, to earn the money that you needed. So don't come here and say you will "never" do whatever. The students know very well that they are not supposed to turn in any model papers for a grade in their classes. If they do that, they do so at their own risk. As their professor, you should do what you have to do in order to fulfill the academic integrity requirements of your university. You know the inadequacies of your foreign students, you know that they are struggling in the class. They will get help in any way that they can. A professor who has more of a heart for the student's plight rather a wish to look good before university management would have given the student the chance to submit a new paper, without reporting the problem to management yet. Everyone deserves a second chance. Most specially the students who are trying their best to pass a class. You know the student can't hack it, so why don't you help the student instead of telling them to not seek help with their writing problems or failing them, or reporting them immediately while pretending to give the student a chance to pass the class?

Too late, grasshopper. I AM holier than thou ...

The OP misses the point. The "model essay" excuse is just the company's way of pretending to condone academic dishonesty. A model paper will only remain a model paper for a student who would like to honor that code of integrity at his university. However, the student is paying hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars for an "original model paper". As such, the student cannot be expected to merely use the paper as tutorial or directional basis for the research that was paid for. The student will definitely submit the essay for a grade because it is, for all intents and purposes, an original paper with rights to the intellectual property transferred to the student as soon as the payment is completed.

This is one educator who doesn't cut the students any slack because he fails to acknowledge the reality that the students are overwhelmed with written papers all semester. Rather than letting a few papers fall through the cracks and getting a bad grade, the student will do his best to complete the paper and get a good grade. After all, he paid his tuition fees, so he needs to pass the class by any means possible. Purchasing a model paper is one way of doing that.

The student should never be judged based upon anything else but a desire to pass his class. In which case, he should be applauded for doing his best to complete his course requirements. He attends the class, participates in class, and completes all other requirements for the course. So what's the big deal about paying for one research paper? It's no big deal. The paper isn't going to be the only reason he passes the class.

This apparently occurred in 2009, when plagiarism scanning was still relatively new rather than standard at most academic institutions, and it demonstrates why there's now such a good market for custom-written academic essays but no longer any market for pre-written essays. The OP didn't say how he determined that the project in question was purchased instead of just having been copied and pasted from open-source material found by the student, herself. Obviously, his advice to students is limited in applicability to those who (foolishly) try to submit a purchased essay to professors already familiar with their sub-par writing and/or English-language skills. Notwithstanding the ethical issues, there's no comparable risk to students whose professors aren't already familiar with their writing style, as long as they find a service provider with a very long reputation for providing only original custom work.

This is an extremely important angle to discuss. Considering that professors do not necessarily know each student to the smallest of details, differences in the manner of writing do not really matter that much. Not unless, of course, you are sub-par student who has been known to be such but has provided the professor with a pristine paper. Generally, however, students can get away with submitting custom papers, especially because passing the plagiarism test with due consideration of the instructions are both the only things necessary for the paper itself. That being said, it is still critical for students to be cautious of which providers they are getting their essays from. Model essays, I would say, would have more fluidity just because it gives way for the student to feel competent and useful in the process of writing and submitting.

Once a student pays for a model essay, they are free to use it however they wish. If they plan to turn it in for a grade, then they should make sure it is worthy of being submitted by doing their own Google search and revising the plagiarized sections from there on. Nobody ever encouraged them to submit the paper for a grade. It is clear in all the sites and they are informed by independent writers that they must never expect to get a grade for the paper. Yet, they still do. I do not fault the writers for the methods they use to complete the paper for the client. I do fault the students for not listening when they are told they should never submit the paper for a grade. If they get caught, it isn't the writer's fault. The student was fairly warned. Writers should continue to write model papers as it serves a purpose for students who actually use the paper to write a new one on their own. As for the ones who misuse the paper, whatever happens after is all squarely on their shoulders.