Edubirdie is an online essay writing service that allows students to hire freelance writers to complete various types of academic writing projects. The company maintains that its main mission is to provide assistance to students who need help with their written assignments but may struggle with certain subjects, have time constraints, or other issues that make completing certain projects difficult. Many criticize Edubirdie and services like it for potentially enabling academic dishonesty.
The company was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus. It has grown significantly since its founding and now employs over 1,000 writers to handle customer orders. Customers can submit writing requests on the Edubirdie website for a variety of academic projects including essays, research papers, coursework, case studies, lab reports, PowerPoint presentations, and more. Customers are required to provide relevant instructions and materials for their order that the writer can use to complete the project.
Prices on Edubirdie are determined based on factors like academic level, type of paper, number of pages, and deadline. Standard rates start at around $18 per page for high school level work with shorter deadlines and can increase to over $30 per page for longer and more complex graduate level projects. Edubirdie offers discounts for returning customers and bundle packages. Customers can choose between several quality levels for their writers, ranging from standard to premium options that come with benefits like free revisions.
Once an order is placed, Edubirdie matches it with a writer from its pool based on the customer’s specifications and the writer’s qualifications and ratings. Customers can communicate directly with their assigned writer to provide any clarifications or directions as the project is being completed. Writers on Edubirdie hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and many have advanced degrees. They complete a vetting process that includes skills tests and sample submissions that are reviewed for quality and originality.
When the deadline arrives, the finished paper is submitted to the customer. Customers then have the opportunity to request revisions if any parts of the paper do not meet expectations. The number of free revisions depends on the service level selected. Projects are checked for plagiarism using copying detection software and writers are supposed to complete all work from scratch without copying from prewritten materials or other sources.
While Edubirdie claims its goal is only to provide assistance, the fact that it allows significant portions of school assignments to be outsourced has raised serious academic integrity concerns. Detractors argue Edubirdie encourages cheating by having professional third parties complete substantive elements or even all of a student’s graded classwork without their own meaningful contributions. Even if intentions are good, the end result is often passing off someone else’s work as one’s own.
Others counter that there are legitimate circumstances where outsourcing limited research or drafting help could be acceptable, such as for students with disabilities or those juggling school with employment or family responsibilities. It is impossible to prevent all abuse of such services or to ensure customers are not fully relying on writers do to the meaningful learning portions of their education. Questions also remain about the actual qualifications and abilities of writers.
Edubirdie and similar companies are banned at many academic institutions as they are considered cheating. They continue to operate and are difficult to fully regulate given their international nature. The debate around these services raises complex issues regarding academic standards and integrity versus expanding access and assistance for students facing real challenges. Overall, while customers may be satisfied, most academics see extensive outsourcing as undermining the core purpose of education.
Edubirdie offers a large pool of professional writers who can complete academic projects for paying customers. Many view this as enabling cheating by having third parties do substantive schoolwork. While intentions may be good, the end result is often misrepresenting outside work as one’s own and bypassing meaningful learning. Similar services will likely remain controversial and banned by many institutions as undermining academic standards. There are no easy answers, but moderation and transparency seem most appropriate given the complex issues around students’ needs and the goals of higher education.