A CBS News investigation has uncovered a “contract cheating” syndicate involving Kenyans and students in the US. The journalist revealed that thousands of unemployed Kenyan graduates are thriving by taking courses for US college and university students.
Kenyans reportedly sign up on various accredited websites where they get to access ‘jobs’ from the US students and do them at a fee. Kenyans are said to be so good at the job and are often given US students’ university and college credentials where they access assignments and exams.
Online writing, as it is known in Kenya, is not a new thing. Academic writing, creative writing, and copywriting offer employment to thousands of unemployed youths each year. There are hundreds of pages online dedicated to networking for online writers. Writing accounts are said to cost so much given the earning potential from the assignments available.
The account owners are said to be earning about Sh2,000 a page and as much as Sh200,000 a month. Those who sub-contract the work retain 75 percent of the earnings, paying the ’employees’ about Sh200 and Sh500 a page.
Read: Freelance, Online Workers Risk Losing Cash as PayPal Blocks Access to Kenyan Users
CBS Journalist Debora Patta spoke to two Kenyans who disclosed that they had helped students in US universities complete their education. One of them, William, said that he was currently taking a Master’s degree course for a client after completing the undergraduate degree course.
William said the client had promised to pay him to do his PhD course as well. So good is he at his job that the client once told him to dumb down a bit, to make the assignments more believable. At the time, William was helping the client score as high as 97 percent out of 100 in some units.
Terming the practice as a form of social corruption, the CBS News Desk said it was unfortunate that the students’ education was being taken by third parties. They expressed shock saying that unqualified people may be getting sensitive jobs in fields such as medicine, with little knowledge since their courses are done by third parties.
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