{"id":21325,"date":"2022-11-17T12:57:09","date_gmt":"2022-11-17T04:57:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/?p=21325"},"modified":"2024-04-17T12:13:06","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T04:13:06","slug":"money-for-assignments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/2022\/11\/money-for-assignments\/","title":{"rendered":"Money for Assignments"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some Chinese students overseas turn to ghostwriting services to meet their families\u2019 high expectations.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Eve Qiao and Lily Wang<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jason Chen* is a freshman at New York University, which ranks among the top 30 universities around the globe. But he used to hire ghostwriters to do his homework back in high school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHiring ghostwriters was popular among my high school fellows,\u201d Chen says. The act refers to students paying someone to do their homework. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chen came across a ghostwriting service agency on WeChat in December 2021, who later referred a ghostwriter to him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The then Grade 9 student paid the ghostwriter, who was a Hong Kong University student, RMB \u00a52,000-3,000 (US $280-420) per assignment to write three book reviews for him, in 2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe HKU student promised me that the assignments would be finished with high quality and complete confidentiality. Most of the works got As,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Advertisement from a ghostwriting agency in WeChat groups. Their service ranges from finance and economics to medical health and architecture. <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Not a \u201cGood Student\u201d Anymore<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Chen recalls he was \u201ca good student\u201d in both his parents’ eyes \u2013 being admitted to his hometown\u2019s best junior high school, where he was a star student, until his parents sent him to study in the US when he was 14. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy mother always has high expectations on me, hoping that I can be a top student in class,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut when I failed a book review assignment in the first semester of high school in the US, my mom got mad at me. She cut my monthly pocket money,\u201d he says. To sustain his way of life, he had to occasionally ask his friends to pay for his meals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s when hiring a ghostwriter came to his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Student searching for information on writing tasks<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When Chen turned to a ghostwriter, his assignments were mainly book reviews of Shakespeare\u2019s works. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He found Old English in classical literature, with different grammar and vocabulary, difficult to read and understand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are so boring that I couldn\u2019t finish reading them without falling asleep. I don\u2019t like doing book reviews. I know hiring ghostwriters is bad and I miss the chance to learn,\u201d the now 19-year-old student says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But he still went ahead. \u201cI did not want my mother to cut my pocket money again. I didn\u2019t want to live like that anymore,\u201d Chen recalls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pressure from <\/strong>P<\/strong>arents<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Charlie Mi* used to operate a ghostwriting agency between 2017 and 2021.  The agency refers students to individual ghostwriting service providers, acting like match-makers just like the one Chen came across on Wechat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mi approached students through WeChat to promote their services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI reached out to around 2,000 university students from all over the world. One-third of them eventually purchased the ghostwriting service,\u201d Mi says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He recalls the pricing for such service ranged from RMB \u00a5300 (US $41.7) to RMB \u00a55,000 (US $695.3), depending on the number of words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mi quit the industry in October 2021 in fear of legal risks after providing such service was outlawed in the United Kingdom, as most of his clients studied at British universities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The October notice<\/a> from the UK\u2019s Department for Education says that \u201cessays for money\u201d are \u201cunethical\u201d as it profits by \u201cundermining the hard work\u201d other students do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Mi says some of his clients were just too lazy for homework, while others were overwhelmed by pressure from their families.     <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI once met a student who has already done well, getting a B+ in most subjects. But his parents thought he should get As, putting him under so much pressure that he finally turned to us for help,\u201d Mi sighs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Dai Kun of the Faculty of Education at the Chinese University of Hong Kong agrees that parents play a role in the issue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStudents hire ghostwriters only to meet their parents\u2019 expectations. Parents don\u2019t really care about what they learn, or how knowledge would make a difference in their children\u2019s future,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He points out that Chinese parents are always making decisions and drafting life plans for their children, regardless of the children\u2019s own will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dai also thinks it is difficult for schools to identify students who have hired ghostwriters to do their homework.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo one else but the students themselves know that they have hired a ghostwriter. And as relative regulations do not exist in many countries, catching ghostwriting behaviors remains tricky,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Names changed at interviewees\u2019 request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edited by Ryan Li
Sub-edited by Leung Pak Hei<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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