Introduction
Students these days juggle many responsibilities like academics, extracurricular activities, part-time jobs, and maintaining social lives. With so many competing priorities, academics often take a backseat. This leads students to look for alternative ways to complete their academic work on time. One such alternative that has gained popularity in recent years is using essay writing services that offer to “type my essay” for a fee. While these services promise to lighten the student’s workload, they also raise ethical concerns. This article aims to provide an in-depth look at these types of “type my essay” services – how they work, benefits and drawbacks of using them, and factors students should consider before signing up.
How do “type my essay” services work?
Most essay writing services work on a fairly simple model. Students provide key details about the essay like word count, topic, sources to be used, formatting style, and deadline. This information is then passed on to in-house writers. The company has a pool of freelance writers from different academic backgrounds who can handle essays from a wide range of subjects at varying college levels.
Students pay anywhere between $10-$30 per page depending on the urgency, complexity of the topic, word count, and the writer’s qualifications. Some services also charge additional fees for features like unlimited revisions, topic research, formatting, plagiarism reports etc. Upon receiving the payment, the writer gets to work on crafting an original, plagiarism-free paper from scratch as per the client’s specifications.
The completed draft is submitted to the student by the deadline. Some companies offer an additional review and quality check on all orders before delivery. Clients can then review the essay and request minor revisions if needed, for which additional charges may apply. The final approved version of the paper can then be downloaded in the required file format. Some companies also offer editing and proofreading services without writing the full paper from scratch.
Benefits of using “type my essay” services
Saves time: With a deadline looming and too much on your plate already, these services free up time that would otherwise be spent researching and writing the essay from scratch. You can focus on other important tasks.
Gets the work done on time: When time is short, an expertly written, well-researched paper delivered by the due date significantly decreases stress levels. Late assignments are avoided.
Ensures high quality: Professional writers have higher research, analytical thinking and technical writing skills than typical students. So the standard and structure of such essays are better than average student work.
Any subject expertise: Big companies have vast networks of subject-matter experts who can provide original content even for very niche or complex topics on little notice.
Unlimited revisions: Most companies offer free or low-cost revisions until the client is fully satisfied with the work. Final papers are polished to a high standard.
Potential drawbacks
Plagiarism risks: Despite quality checks, some unscrupulous companies may deliver plagiarized content at times. Students must check papers thoroughly for original content.
Poor referencing: While references are included, their integrity and citation styles may not always be up to the required academic standards if not carefully reviewed.
Low learning: Simply outsourcing essays provides no learning value to students compared to researching and writing with understanding. Grades may not reflect their own skills.
Money drain: Frequent use of these services can quickly become an expensive proposition, draining student budgets without building long-term writing abilities.
Code of conduct violations: Many colleges prohibit unauthorized help on graded assignments and consider essay mills as academic dishonesty, punishable by penalties like suspension or expulsion.
Sub-standard services: There are also some fly-by-night operations delivering very poor quality work or simply taking money and not delivering anything in return. Careful provider selection is key.
Ethical considerations around “type my essay”
The ethics of using essay writing companies is a debated issue. On one hand, they promise a helpful service for busy students within a competitive system. They also undermine learning goals and assessment validity. A few perspectives on this matter:
Academic integrity: Most higher education institutions have clear policies against unauthorized third-party assistance and consider it a form of plagiarism or contract cheating. Regular use can compromise academic ethics.
False representation: Essays typed by others and submitted under a student’s name provide a misrepresentation of their own skills and understanding to evaluators like professors. It challenges assessment credibility.
Short-term gain vs long-term costs: While essay services ensure immediate deadlines are met, they provide only temporary relief and do not support sustained learning or preparation for future independent workloads. Reliance on them can create gaps in competencies.
Unfair advantages: Over-dependence on essay services effectively gives unearned benefits to students compared to peers who put in their own sincere effort through research and writing. It skews a level playing field.
Commercialization of education: Widespread use of essay companies shifts the focus of higher education away from learning itself towards just obtaining credentials. It treats colleges as businesses rather than institutions of enriching knowledge.
On balance, while understandable as an expedient option, over-reliance on essay services goes against principles of academic integrity and honest assessment of a student’s abilities. Occasional, carefully managed use may be tolerable, but they should not replace independent learning efforts. Overall responsibility for one’s education lies with the student primarily.
Should you use “type my essay” services? Key considerations:
Use them judiciously, not as a replacement for your own work. Balance is important.
Check your college’s code of conduct to understand its stance on third-party help, and consequences of violations.
Consider your long-term goals. Are you truly learning, or just looking for temporary relief from stress?
Carefully research providers based on reviews, quality scores, turnaround time, pricing policies, and plagiarism checking protocols.
Limit use to only non-core courses. Don’t compromise in major/minor subjects that shape your learning.
Have assignments paraphrasing already completed work reviewed to avoid potential plagiarism issues.
Understand that over-dependence eventually creates gaps in your own abilities and self-reliance. Build skills gradually, don’t outsource routinely.
In moderation, such services can certainly help overcome occasional tight spots. But students must weigh ethical and learning implications carefully before regularly turning to others to “type my essay.” For genuine assessment of abilities and skills, independent and sincere effort usually works best in the long run.
Andrew Stroud