Deals and Steals on upgrades for the home!

Open menu

  • Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • GMA3: WYNTK
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Contact Us
  • © 2023 ABC News
  • Living

We tried buying a college admissions essay online, here's what happened

VIDEO: How easy is it to buy a college admissions essay online?
4:20
How easy is it to buy a college admissions essay online?
ABCNews.com
BySandra Temko
April 03, 2019, 8:07 am

“Operation Varsity Blues” is the country’s largest-ever college admissions scandal, with millions of dollars allegedly paid for bribes and test cheating. “Good Morning America” found you can pay much less to cheat on college essays through contract cheating. But is it worth it?

“Contract cheating has grown a great deal over the past ten years, “ said Professor David Rettinger of the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Rettinger is president of the International Center for Academic Integrity, an organization that promotes integrity in academia throughout the world. "Students are willing to use internet sites, family members, friends and other technology to get contractors to do their work.”

According to industry estimates, contract cheating is a global business worth hundreds of millions of dollars, advertising online and on social media.

Editor’s Picks

When mother doesn't know best: The ferocity of overparenting in the midst of the college cheating scandal

  • Mar 29, 2019

Harvard report helps parents emphasize ethics, character during college applications

  • Mar 18, 2019

5 things college counselors want teens and families to know in the wake of massive college admissions cheating scandal

  • Mar 13, 2019

(MORE: When mother doesn't know best: The ferocity of overparenting in the midst of the college cheating scandal)

“It’s quite covert,” said Associate Professor Cath Ellis, of the University of New South Wales in Australia. “It’s designed not to be able to be investigated very effectively.”

"GMA" did a simple internet search for “buy college admissions essay” and countless options popped up. On some sites, writers even submitted bids for their work. For less than fifty dollars, "GMA" purchased a fully-written college admissions essay online.

We gave a panel of four former admissions officers and directors five essays to read: the one we bought and four others from real students who successfully applied to colleges, including an Ivy League school.

Could the panelists spot the fraud? As it turns out, none of them chose the fraud essay. But the reasons for their choices show the dangers of cheating.

“It was probably the worst essay. And that’s why I thought it couldn’t be the fake one,” said Sally Ganga, college admissions consultant at Bright Horizons College Coach.

“They wrote about a topic that a lot of people write about because they think it’s what admissions wants to hear,” Elizabeth Heaton, also at Bright Horizons College Coach, told "GMA." “You want to hear what’s important to the student.”

(MORE: 5 things college counselors want teens and families to know in the wake of massive college admissions cheating scandal)

The experiment was limited by the fact that there was no complete portfolio with which to judge the essays. “If something was utterly fake and submitted off the internet, the degree with which it didn’t jive with the rest of the details would make it stand out,” said Davin Sweeney, Director of New York Metro for Collegewise.

An even bigger problem is “parental tinkering,” according to Sweeney. “That is the most prevalent example of essays that end up in the admissions office that are not purely the student’s original voice. And the question is often can you tell when a parent got their hands on it? It’s difficult.”

All the panelists thought it was a waste of time and money to have someone else write a student’s college admissions essay. And they think the current scandal could result in reforms. "I’m really excited by the conversation that is being forced," said Kyra Tyler, college admissions consultant.

For students applying to college, Ganga’s advice to students is "be your authentic self.”

"This is really not about the parents. This is not what you get to tell your boss or your peers or your family where your kid got into college," said Tyler. "The focus should be on helping your child successfully manage this and feel good about themselves."

Editor’s Picks

When mother doesn't know best: The ferocity of overparenting in the midst of the college cheating scandal

  • Mar 29, 2019

Harvard report helps parents emphasize ethics, character during college applications

  • Mar 18, 2019

5 things college counselors want teens and families to know in the wake of massive college admissions cheating scandal

  • Mar 13, 2019
Up Next in Living—

Undocumented immigrant turns Ph.D. hopes into reality

September 29, 2023

Lunar watchers treated to the sight of 2023's last supermoon

September 29, 2023

Gen Z is burdened by student loan debt, and now many are facing payments for 1st time

September 29, 2023

Michigan music teachers bring orchestra to life for middle schoolers

September 28, 2023

Up Next in Living—

Undocumented immigrant turns Ph.D. hopes into reality

September 29, 2023

Lunar watchers treated to the sight of 2023's last supermoon

September 29, 2023

Gen Z is burdened by student loan debt, and now many are facing payments for 1st time

September 29, 2023

Michigan music teachers bring orchestra to life for middle schoolers

September 28, 2023

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap

© 2023 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Do Not Sell My Info— 
  • Contact Us— 

© 2023 ABC News