For the last decade it seems, employers, most unknowingly, have not been able to take for granted that a degree, even from the most highly ranked universities, ensures that the holder of that degree actually studied and passed the courses indicated by the degree.
When a university graduate is employed, an employer should reasonably expect that the graduate will be able to evidence and exercise the attributes of the degree attained.
Whilst forgeries of testamurs and having other people sit examinations are century old problems, the advent of online learning including the electronic submission of assignments now seen at most traditional campuses, has created a multi-million-dollar cheating industry.
Higher education regulators around the world are aware of this threat. This is a threat not only to institutions and potential employers of graduates, but to the very essence of education. This is not a problem unique to Universities, we see these transgressions across all levels of academia be it, schools, colleges or professional organisations, most of which use online examinations and/or electronic assignment submissions.
If one can buy a degree or qualification by using proxies to undertake assignments and examinations, the true value of educational qualifications is eroded as well as the integrity of the institution awarding the degree.
Do we want engineers of our bridges and buildings, our medical professionals, our pilots, our technicians, etc. to have someone else undertake their assignments and exams?
Online cheating sites allow students to purchase and then submit original assignments, often written by academics or graduate students to earn additional income.
For those unaware of the thousands of sites available one only needs to Google “assignment writing services” to see the many sites available. Some governments, including Australia, have passed legislation banning the use of these sites; however, some with com.au addresses still exist in spite of the legislation.
Many of these sites are very sophisticated, including services which include money back guarantees when a pass mark is not achieved. Some cheating sites also offer distinctions and high distinctions for a higher payment. PhD theses are also available for the cost of some USD 35,000.
Universities worldwide have and continue to expend significant resources to assure academic integrity aimed at stopping contract cheating and examination fraud. However, without any fool proof solutions the results are questionable.
The move to more online education activities because of the coronavirus pandemic has only exacerbated the problem. On the positive side over the past decade software has significantly helped curtail plagiarism and, henceforth, promote a deeper understanding of academic integrity amongst students and faculty.
It is difficult to estimate the number of students who use contract cheating services but based on reports from across the globe the number would be at least 10 per cent. The scant evidence to hand shows that domestic students are as likely to use cheating services as foreign students. If these 10 per cent of students were expelled for cheating the already precarious financial position of some institutions would become untenable.
Douglas Stephens is a pseudonym of a Higher Education Executive with extensive experience in Australia and worldwide.
Comments
5 responses to “University degrees are not as valuable as they once were with the million dollar cheating industry.”
I agree with Kieran about the legitimacy of the author. I have always put my name to anything I write, even if because of my former employment (a secondary school teacher), it could get me into hot water with my employer.While I accept that the author is quite correct in his observation; I can add that even primary school students, aided and abetted by their parents, now engage in this despicable behavior. The author should own his /her comments.
John can you inform the readership of the policies of P&I in this regard please.
By the way I have a Masters and two post graduate qualifications as well as my basic degree . All were obtained by my blood,sweat and tears and long nights of study and; with the exception of my basic degree , completed part-time! I am always prepared to put my name to my work.
Hey, why single out students for their dishonesty? They are just one component in an institutionally dodgy system. Overseas university students, even those that cannot read, write or speak adequate english, are not allowed to fail: university funding depends on a constant, satisfied stream of them and their fees. This is nothing new and not a secret. Thus the high fees they pay, ostensibly for tuition, are in fact the unconditional sale price of an Australian university degree, often with residency/citizenship chucked in as the “set of steak knives” to seal the deal.
There are solutions; they’re just take time and effort. If a computer program is submitted, and works, sit the student down opposite the examiner and ask about functions, inputs and outputs from different modules, and overall program structure; if the questions can’t be answered, the student didn’t write the program. A few probing questions can sort out whether a student understands the history or literature essay that they submitted. Require the student to submit progress reports on significant work. Unfortunately, they require time and money and so rigour and integrity are abandoned.
If it our culture is regarded as intellectual property to be bought and sold by individuals, this is what you get.
I find it ironic that the author of this article feels the need to use a pseudonym. How do I know it was not written by someone else without the claimed qualifications – precisely the point made by the article?