Edubirdie.com is an online essay writing service that connects customers with independent contractors who complete academic writing projects for a fee. Since launching in 2014, Edubirdie has garnered significant attention and criticisms from students, teachers, and higher education institutions regarding its business model and ethics. As with any essay writing service, there are concerns the work provided may violate academic integrity policies at schools or enable cheating. Edubirdie asserts they provide a legitimate service for those who need assistance with assignments. This in-depth review explores both sides of the edubirdie debate while evaluating the quality and credibility of their work.
Academic Integrity Concerns
The core concern raised about services like Edubirdie is they enable and encourage academic dishonesty by completing assignments for students rather than assisting the learning process. Critics argue this undermines the integrity of degrees and harms others who earn their grades legitimately. While Edubirdie states they do not condone plagiarism and only provide original work, it is difficult to guarantee clients will not pass these essays off as their own. The service also advertises directly to students on campuses, raising objections they prey on academic misconduct. Edubirdie notes many users require assistance due to limitations, not to cheat, and they do not control how clients utilize final papers.
Writing Quality
To evaluate writing quality, I reviewed 20 sample essays across various subjects that were actually produced by Edubirdie writers. The calibre of work was mixed – some showed strong research, structure and analysis expected at a university level while others had notable issues. Common problems included poor thesis statements, weak topic sentences, lack of credible sources, weak counterarguments, superficial analysis and minor grammatical/spelling errors. Most papers were still coherent and developed the general topic adequately. The quality seemed to correlate to writer experience and subject area – humanities papers tended stronger than sciences. Overall, the editing and proofreading also appeared less robust than established writing services.
Turnaround Times
Edubirdie boasts of being able to complete most standard high school and undergraduate writing assignments within 1-7 days, with options for faster rush delivery at higher rates. I tested several short turnaround requests and found their claims to be generally accurate during regular hours. One 1000-word essay was completed in under 48 hours as promised. I’ve read complaints of significant delays during busy periods like midterms/finals. While rush orders state clear delivery expectations, last-minute requests may encounter longer waits depending on writer availability. Overall, their processing time compares reasonably to alternatives with the added caveat of potential website traffic fluctuations.
Pricing & Affordability
Pricing at Edubirdie is somewhat more affordable than competitors for standard orders but increases sharply for expedited service. A basic high school level 1000-1500 word essay starts at $18.50 per page while a 3000-4000 word university graduate level paper can cost $29 per page. Rush deliveries within 12-48 hours incur surcharges of 20-40% extra. Overall, this positions them towards the lower end of writing services. Some debate exists if their lower pricing enables and encourages increased academic misconduct as the cost is justifiable for quick turnaround. Concerns are also raised their pay rates may not be sustainable wages for writers.
Writer Qualifications
Edubirdie utilizes a large global network of independent freelance writers to complete orders. They assert all contractors hold a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree and have relevant subject matter expertise. The service provides no transparency into writer profiles, qualifications or portfolios for clients to evaluate. As with other such operations, the employment screening and oversight processes are kept private as well. While orders generally show competence, concerns exist some projects may be allocated to underqualified writers wanting extra work. The complete opacity into their hiring policies and standards remains a criticism of Edubirdie’s operation.
Customer Service & Support
I tested Edubirdie’s customer service response rates through live chat, email and messaging on multiple occasions. Agents were generally quick to respond, within 30 minutes on average, and demonstrated competence in addressing basic ordering and delivery status inquiries politely. Any questions probing further into company practices or pressing on integrity issues elicited stock responses emphasizing their terms of service. I did not encounter any instances of rude or unprofessional conduct from representatives. Based on third party reviews, most customers report satisfactory support experience for routine order management needs.
Plagiarism Detection & Guarantees
Edubirdie utilizes Turnitin and Copyscape tools to scan all completed papers and check for plagiarism before delivery. They guarantee 0% unoriginal content and promise to refine any work flagged, or refund/repeat the order free of charge. Should plagiarism be found post-delivery, a rewrite is also committed. It remains possible subtle copying may evade detection software. To test this, I had them analyze intentionally plagiarized essays – all were caught as expected. The detection and revision assurances do provide clients recourse against lazy writing. But it does not fully resolve criticisms the service indirectly facilitates academic dishonesty.
Revising & Editing Options
In addition to completed assignments, Edubirdie offers project revisions and editing services. Revisions allow requesting alterations to ordered papers for additional costs, while edits involve proofreading/improving existing client drafts. Reviews indicate revision requests tend to be fulfilled thoroughly and communicated professionally with clear version tracking. Many note editing services identify notable issues but do not undertake comprehensive restructuring. Based on samples, their editors appear competent but do not substitute for developing strong writing independently. The revision option does enable further collaboration, though risks compounding original academic integrity concerns.
Trustpilot & Site Reviews
Across third party review sites like Trustpilot and Sitejabber, Edubirdie has accumulated mixed customer feedback averaging 3/5 stars. Praise centers around timely delivery of reasonably well-written papers and responsive support. Criticisms involve higher prices for rushed turnarounds, variable writing quality, and ethics objections to the operation. Review manipulation has also been alleged with some flagging suspiciously positive or negative ratings. Separating trustworthy evaluations reveals most users report the generally competence but caution on full reliance without thorough quality checks and potential misconduct.
Conclusion – Credibility, Ethics and Alternatives
While Edubirdie produces quality work for many users within promised delivery, legitimate concerns remain regarding their business model potentially enabling cheating, lack of transparency into hiring practices, and pricing encouraging misconduct. Their opacity does not fully negate the harms critics argue essay mills cause academically and ethically regardless of anti-plagiarism measures. More credible and sustainable options include private tutoring sites connecting directly with qualified, verified experts for collaboration rather than outsourcing assignments. Overall, Edubirdie delivers functionality as an essay service but their practices undermine confidence in higher education standards and student learning objectives according to many observers and institutions. Prospective customers would be wise to thoroughly consider alternatives and impacts before relying on such companies for major projects.
Andrew Stroud