International students accused of ‘buying essays’ · Issue 865, by Jonathan Evans

A leading essay writing service in the UK has reported a threefold increase on 2007 in the number of overseas students ‘buying university essays’.

The claims have fuelled suggestions from Jed Hallam, a spokesman for UKEssays.com, that the alleged increase is because a number of overseas students have “very poor written and verbal skills”.

He said: “It’s another example of universities turning into businesses.”

Hallam then went on to criticise universities for not providing “enough language support” for overseas students.

Essay writing services charge between £120 for an undergraduate essay written within five days to £3,200 for a 10,000 word postgraduate dissertation.

However, the sites claim that they are model answers and should not be copied or submitted as their own work.

Universities accuse them of selling essays that are used dishonestly by students.

A Cardiff University spokesperson said: “All international students are required to give proof of English language proficiency prior to receiving an unconditional offer to study at the University.

“Once international students have met the conditions of their offers and are studying on undergraduate and postgraduate courses, they have language support available to them.”

The University’s International Development Division and the Students’ Union provide a number of free open access courses for international students.

These courses cover academic conventions and include advice on how to avoid plagiarism.

A University spokesperson added: “The International Development Division has received no complaints about international students buying essays online.”